In January this year, movie-buffs got a pleasant surprise when filmmaker Dinesh Vijan announced 8 new films in the Maddock Horror Comedy Universe along with their release dates. This was great news for fans, most of whom were still under the spell of Shraddha Kapoor and Rajkummar Rao’s blockbuster hit film Stree 2 (2024). 2025 will begin with Ayushmann Khurrana and Rashmika Mandanna-starrer Thama and Shakti Shalini, followed by Bhediya 2, Chamunda, Stree 3, Maha Munjya, Pehla Mahayudh and Doosara Mahayudh. While there have been rumours about the star cast of all films, recent buzz suggests that all the horror comedies will have one star in common— Shraddha.
So far, the Maddock Horror Comedy Universe has released 4 films, out of which Munjya (2024) was the only horror comedy which did not star Shraddha Kapoor. The actor was the leading lady of Stree (2018) as well as Stree 2, and even joined Varun Dhawan for a song in Bhediya (2022). Last year, Varun won hearts with his cameo in Stree 2 when he saved Shraddha in the climax of her film. So fans were obviously expecting Shraddha to reunite with Varun in Bhediya 2, before stepping in the shoes of her beloved character for Stree 3. But a report shared by The Nod, which recently took the actor’s interview, mentioned that Shraddha will be a part of all 8 films in the horror comedy universe.
Well, this new rumoured development has left netizens divided. Some fans are excited! For instance, one social media user guessed, “Either she's the real Thanos of horror universe or she's gonna bring entire team together,” whereas another gushed, “As she should? At this point she is the OG of the universe from a folklore standpoint. Sidenote, God damn how hot does she look in that photo. 😮💨” Meanwhile, other internet users are disappointed and bored. One such netizen claimed, “Her PR will make it all about her and if the film is hit, they will say it's bcoz of her. All while she will have 2-3 min appearance,” whereas another agreed and wrote, “Exactly can't wait to see them do that again. And how godess Shraddha made everything hit and how she is better than anyone else who has graced the earth.” Another comment read, “Yawn. Boring.”
{{/usCountry}}Well, this new rumoured development has left netizens divided. Some fans are excited! For instance, one social media user guessed, “Either she's the real Thanos of horror universe or she's gonna bring entire team together,” whereas another gushed, “As she should? At this point she is the OG of the universe from a folklore standpoint. Sidenote, God damn how hot does she look in that photo. 😮💨” Meanwhile, other internet users are disappointed and bored. One such netizen claimed, “Her PR will make it all about her and if the film is hit, they will say it's bcoz of her. All while she will have 2-3 min appearance,” whereas another agreed and wrote, “Exactly can't wait to see them do that again. And how godess Shraddha made everything hit and how she is better than anyone else who has graced the earth.” Another comment read, “Yawn. Boring.”
{{/usCountry}}Other actors who are rumoured to be a part of the horror comedy universe are Kiara Advani, Alia Bhatt and Akshay Kumar. Who are you most excited for?