Hive (2026) Review – Generic Socially-Conscious horror Fails to Land

Welcome to Knockout Horror. Today we are checking out Tubi original horror movie Hive (2026). Look, it’s free on Tubi, you don’t have a lot to lose checking this one out but don’t put it at the top of your watch-list when there is so much great horror around. Let’s take a look at why.

Spinning The Tubi Roulette Wheel

I’m going to be honest, here. I watched Hive ages ago. Like, somewhere back in late April and just completely forgot about it. Now, that probably speaks to how packed my schedule has been over the past few months but it also speaks to how forgettable this movie really is.

“It’s exactly what it sounds like; scary kids scaring kids… and adults.”

Spinning the roulette wheel that is Tubi’s original horror library can often feel like it’s weighted squarely against you. Pick red, it’s black, pick twenty five, it’s one. It’s rare that you land on something you want to watch and something you can actually enjoy.

Naturally, that makes finding hidden gems like Don’t Trip (2025), Lowlifes (2024), and… hold on, I am struggling here… Hidden Exposure (2023) all the more exciting. They are the proverbial needles in the haystack. Today’s movie, Hive, most definitely doesn’t fall into that category.

This is about as generic as generic horror comes. The story follows Sasha (Xochitl Gomez), a teen (really??) babysitter desperate for work who agrees to begin caring for an eccentric woman’s daughter. After a positive introduction, a trip to the playground soon reveals a hidden world of darkness plagued by demonic children.

It’s exactly what it sounds like; scary kids scaring kids… and adults. If you were to think of something like Children of the Corn (1984) or The Children (2008) you would be in the same playground. So now that your expectations are aligned, how does it hold up? Well, averagely, if averagely is actually a word.

It’s incredibly generic and forgettable

Reviews of movies like this are fairly difficult because absolutely nothing stands out about Hive. It’s as middle of the road as you can get. Not offensive but not very interesting, either. Us reviewers thrive on the extremes, whether good or bad; it’s tough to criticise middling in any meaningful way.

“Vargas has created an almost Burton-esque presentation of suburban perfection, here, that is deliberately designed to feel a bit uncanny and just slightly unsettling.”

This is director Felipe Vargas’ second feature film after teaming up with four other directors for two segments on 2025’s incredibly lacklustre anthology The Summoning of Baby Blue and he knows how to craft a decent looking picture. Hive doesn’t look like a low budget production and the decision to bring along experienced cinematographer Carmen Cabana pays dividends.

The opening is fairly strong and does a nice job of establishing the violent underworld hidden behind the picture perfect neighbourhood we’ll be revisiting shortly. We are then introduced to our likable protagonist, Sasha, played capably by Xochitl Gomez. You won’t be seeing many familiar faces here but that’s a good thing.

She’s a hard worker and directly contrasted against our obnoxiously eccentric, rich mom Camille (Tanya van Graan). Camille is demanding and her daughter is a complete brat. You can see where this one is going. Nothing Sasha does is going to be quite enough, though don’t expect Vargas to mine that interesting narrative well all that deeply.

Vargas has created an almost Burton-esque presentation of suburban perfection, here, that is deliberately designed to feel a bit uncanny and just slightly unsettling. You know how this goes? Perfectly manicured gardens, pastel painted houses. This is a colourful movie and that choice seems very deliberate.

The aesthetics act as almost a visual social commentary on the gap between those doing the work and those doing the ordering around. Everything looks happy and safe but the veneer hides something sinister. It’s about to get gloomy, though, and that’s where Hive becomes far less interesting.

Run of the mill horror tropes

By the time the first half an hour, or so, of the movie is done and dusted, Vargas seems to lose his way a little and begins settling into a sequence of overly familiar horror tropes, moody puke coloured lighting, and repetition. There’s something so played out about the whole “menacing kids staring menacingly” thing that it all starts to feel a bit amateurish rather quickly.

There’s a distinct hint of the b-movie about Hive which contrasts sharply against its obvious social commentary bent. This is, ostensibly, a story about how the affluent classes thrive and succeed off of the back of the hardworking and exploited underclass. But that important message is diluted when juxtaposed against the type of scares you would expect to see in a camp 80s horror.

Instead of crafting a compelling group of characters who fight back against the ills of privilege and racism, Vargas has crafted a generic genre flick where extremely shallow characters fight back against a group of naughty kids. Nobody is all that well developed, the story is thread-bare, and the metaphor doesn’t land.

It’s a bit too on the nose, as well. Vargas has leaned into racial cliches to make sure the viewer “gets” the message and understands the difference between the two disparate groups of people. There’s no subtlety at all, and by the time we take a trip to the very literal seedy underworld of said affluent neighbourhood, the impactful yet nuanced social commentary train has long left the station.

The movie suddenly feels like an extended cycle of repetitive scares with very little in the way of imagination. It really drags, too. It’s worth noting that Vargas double-dips at the end for one last horror sequence and it feels very greedy as most viewers will have already checked out and be aching to see the credits roll.

It might work for some viewers

With all of the above being said, Hive may still surprise some viewers. The quality of Tubi original horror is such that it’s almost impossible not to overrate movies like this, a little, just for being competent.

“There’s something so played out about the whole “menacing kids staring menacingly” thing that it all starts to feel a bit amateurish rather quickly. “

This is a decent looking film, there’s a fair bit of tension early on, acting is generally fine, and some of the special effect work is pretty decent.

There’s probably enough scares to make this a competent sleep-over horror option and non-genre fans will probably get a kick out of it because they are less aware of the tropes. If some of the scenes weren’t so violent it would be an ideal teen horror.

Despite the above, I really can’t recommend Hive to anyone other than the most open-minded of horror fans which is quite a shame. There’s potential here, it just never comes together in any meaningful way and, like I did, you will probably completely forget about the movie just days after watching it.

Our Scoring Philosophy: A Fair Fight

Horror is a genre that thrives thanks to indie film makers and low budget creators. At Knockout Horror, we firmly believe that every movie that we review deserves a fair fight. That's why we grade on a curve. Our star ratings are all about context, judging a film on what it achieves with the resources it has.

A 4-star rating for a scrappy indie horror made for $10,000 is a testament to its ingenuity and raw power. A 4-star rating for a $100 million blockbuster means it delivered on its epic promises. We don't compare them side-by-side; we celebrate success in every weight class, from the back-alley brawler to the heavyweight champion. Please keep this in mind when considering star ratings.