Alex Goyette’s Breeder is a small, strange horror film about a poodle breeder who wants to breed people, and critics have been warm to it. It sits at 87% on Rotten Tomatoes, with Dot-Marie Jones’ villain performance drawing most of the praise. Here’s the critic scorecard, how the outlets reviewed it, and where reviewers split.
Breeder (2026) critic scorecard
| Source | Score | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Rotten Tomatoes (critics) | 87% | Share of critic reviews that are positive, from 38 reviews |
| Rotten Tomatoes (audience) | Not yet posted | Popcornmeter needs 50 verified ratings |
| Metacritic | Not yet posted | Weighted average of critic scores, 0 to 100 |
Scores as of November 1, 2026. They shift as reviews come in, and early scores on a limited release can move a lot.
Written, directed and edited by Goyette in his feature debut, the film follows Russell (Daniel Doheny), a broke college researcher who is lured to a remote ranch by an eccentric poodle breeder named Patti (Dot-Marie Jones) with an offer of research funding. The catch is what she wants in return. Maddie Phillips and Tanaya Beatty also star. It premiered at the Tribeca Festival in June, was picked up by Independent Film Company and Shudder, and opened in limited release on October 28 after moving from an earlier October date. It runs 97 minutes and is rated R for sexual content, disturbing material, language, graphic nudity and violence.
What the major outlets thought
Verdicts below summarize each outlet’s individual review. They are not the overall critical consensus.
| Outlet | Critic | Verdict | The takeaway | Full review |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dread Central | Caroline Colvin | Positive (4.0) | Calls it messed up but a delightful, technically stunning debut, and praises the chemistry between Doheny and Jones and the way it handles coercion and eugenics. | Read ↗ |
| Bloody Disgusting | Daniel Kurland | Positive (4/5 skulls) | Names it one of 2026’s best horror surprises, a slow-burn thriller that mixes eugenics themes with dark humor, though he says the ending may divide viewers. | Read ↗ |
| ScreenAnarchy | Olga Artemyeva | Mostly positive | Calls it entertaining and says Jones’ comic menace is its secret weapon, but finds the film tone deaf toward its female characters and the ending polarizing. | Read ↗ |
| But Why Tho? | James Preston Poole | Positive (7/10) | A very good horror entry with confident direction and strong style, held back by an underwritten lead and a film that seems afraid to push its premise further. | Read ↗ |
| San Jose Mercury News | Randy Myers | Positive (3.5/4) | Says Goyette takes a simple premise and tightens the screws, mixing very dark humor with characters who are more than caricatures. | Read ↗ |
| RogerEbert.com | Brian Tallerico | Mixed (2.5/4) | Calls it an undeniably strong debut, though maybe not the best of the genre this year, and sees promise in the filmmaker. | Read ↗ |
More reviews worth reading
- Deep Focus Review (Brian Eggert, 2.5/4) says there is no one to root for and the script could be tighter, but finds the experience too compelling and well presented to dismiss.
- Beyond the Cinerama Dome (Tina Kakadelis) calls it crafty and far more wily than the premise suggests.
- At the Movies Again (Brett Arnold) credits Jones with a commanding performance that sells the premise.
Scores and star ratings above are as listed by each outlet or by Rotten Tomatoes.
Where critics split
The praise is consistent. Nearly every review singles out Dot-Marie Jones, best known as Coach Beiste on Glee, for a deadpan, menacing performance that mixes dark comedy with dread. Critics also like the look of the film and its willingness to stay uncomfortable without leaning on gore.
The doubts cluster in two places. Several reviewers find Russell underwritten or morally muddled, and some feel the film holds back from pushing its exploitation-horror idea as far as it could. The ending is the other fault line: critics who liked the film still call it polarizing, and ScreenAnarchy says it sacrifices catharsis and handles its female characters’ perspectives unevenly in a story about reproductive violence.
Should you see it?
If you like slow-burn, darkly funny horror built on a villain performance, the reviews say Breeder delivers, and it’s a good fit for a Shudder-style night in. If you want fast scares or a conventional resolution, the mixed reaction to the ending is worth heeding. It’s R-rated for a reason, including graphic nudity and disturbing material.
About these scores
The Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer is the percentage of professional reviews that are positive. The Metacritic Metascore is a weighted average on a 0 to 100 scale. They measure different things, and neither is a Heretic Circle rating. A 2020 Danish film also called Breeder exists and is scored separately. Last updated November 1, 2026.