Photo Credit: Vecteezy.com
Photo Credit: Vecteezy.com
What are Students Currently Watching?
By Emma Grytoyr
Published 11 January 2026
If you walk through any high school hallway right now, you’ll hear students buzzing about movies that are loud, emotional, and made to be shared with the world. This year, teens have been especially drawn to films with nostalgic throw-backs that blend good humor with real-life themes. These are the types of movies that are topping watchlists and filling theaters.
Superhero fatigue might be real, but teens are still watching high-energy action movies that include character arcs, not just explosions. Romantic comedies have also made a comeback, especially the ones that feel more modern and relatable rather than overly cheesy. Meanwhile, mystery thrillers are also becoming very popular thanks to their curiosity and jaw-dropping plot twists.
For fans of mystery:
Scream - A horror/comedy in which a group of teens are terrorized by a masked killer.
A Haunting in Venice - A detective attends a seance on Halloween, only for a guest to be found dead, leaving him to solve the case.
Knives Out - A detective investigates the strange death of a rich family’s grandfather, but he finds a struggle when he realizes that everyone seems guilty.
For fans of adventure:
Avatar: The Way of Water - A family on the planet Pandora must leave their home and learn to live with an ocean tribe, all while being chased by their threatening enemies.
Dune - A boy travels to a desert planet where everyone wants control of a valuable resource, but he ends up getting himself into a huge conflict.
Hunger Games - In a dystopian future, the Capitol sends twelve tributes every year to fight for their lives in an arena. The main character volunteers in place of her younger sister and risks everything.
Something emotional or relatable:
The Summer I Turned Pretty - A girl spends the summer with close family friends in a beach house and ends up in a love triangle with the two brothers, causing lots of family drama to appear.
10 Things I Hate About You - A classic rom-com where a teen gets paid to take out a girl with an extremely strict father, so that his friend can take out her sister.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower - A quiet teen starts high school, makes new friends, and learns to deal with his past struggles.