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40.9k voters

The Best Horror Movies Of All Time

Originally by Ranker Community

Updated January 22, 2021 1.1m votes 40.9k voters 769.5k views722 items

List RulesVote up the top horror films in any subgenre.

These are the most popular Horror movies ranked by adrenaline junkies worldwide. Anyone can vote on this CrowdRanked list of these famous horror movies. Ghosts, zombies, monsters, or maybe just the quiet guy down the street who straps on a hockey mask for kicks; these are the films that scare the pants off you will be the highest rated horror movie? What are the greatest horror films ever made? And how many of these popular horror movies have you actually seen? No matter the answer, you'll find that this list goes way beyond the top 100 horror films of all time.

Great horror films have a long and storied history in cinema. From the earliest horror movies like 1922's Nosferatu, to modern favorites like the Saw series, scary movies have always had a special place in the collective, twisted hearts of moviegoers. Each year, new good horror movies come out that are designed to terrify, with evil characters bent on death and destruction. Will they all wind up on a list of the scariest horror movies ever made? Probably not, but not for a lack of trying.

Many of the best horror films are haunted house movies, relying on the setting as a huge, spooky selling factor. Other excellent horror films rely on nausea-inducing tactics, making us recoil in terror, totally disturbed by whatever we're watching on screen. Start with all of the ones on this list, and of course, feel free to add any top horror movies that might be missing.

Enjoy this list of great horror films, and remember: You can rerank this list in any order you like. Boo!

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1
15,272
4,365
The Exorcist
Max von Sydow, Ellen Burstyn
Released: 1973
Directed by: William Friedkin
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The Shining
Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall
Released: 1980
Directed by: Stanley Kubrick
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3
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Halloween
Jamie Lee Curtis, Kyle Richards
Released: 1978
Directed by: John Carpenter
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4
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A Nightmare on Elm Street
Johnny Depp, Robert Englund
Released: 1984
Directed by: Wes Craven
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5
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The Silence of the Lambs
Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins
Released: 1991
Directed by: Jonathan Demme
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Psycho
Alfred Hitchcock, Janet Leigh
Released: 1960
Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
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7
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Poltergeist
Craig T. Nelson, JoBeth Williams
Released: 1982
Directed by: Tobe Hooper
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The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
Gunnar Hansen, Marilyn Burns
Released: 1974
Directed by: Tobe Hooper
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9
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Alien
Sigourney Weaver, John Hurt
Released: 1979
Directed by: Ridley Scott
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10
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Carrie
John Travolta, Sissy Spacek
Released: 1976
Directed by: Brian De Palma
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11
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The Omen
Gregory Peck, Lee Remick
Released: 1976
Directed by: Richard Donner
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12
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The Conjuring
Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson
Released: 2013
Directed by: James Wan
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13
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Jaws
Steven Spielberg, Richard Dreyfuss
Released: 1975
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
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14
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The Thing
Kurt Russell, Keith David
Released: 1982
Directed by: John Carpenter
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15
7,439
3,645
The Evil Dead
Bruce Campbell, Sam Raimi
Released: 1981
Directed by: Sam Raimi
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16
9,902
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It
Tim Curry, Seth Green
Released: 1990
Directed by: Tommy Lee Wallace
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17
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Insidious
Rose Byrne, Barbara Hershey
Released: 2010
Directed by: James Wan
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18
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Pet Sematary
Stephen King, Fred Gwynne
Released: 1989
Directed by: Mary Lambert
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19
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The Amityville Horror
James Brolin, Margot Kidder
Released: 1979
Directed by: Stuart Rosenberg
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20
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Night of the Living Dead
George A. Romero, Duane Jones
Released: 1968
Directed by: George A. Romero
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21
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Friday the 13th
Kevin Bacon, Tom Savini
Released: 1980
Directed by: Sean S. Cunningham
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Misery
Lauren Bacall, Kathy Bates
Released: 1990
Directed by: Rob Reiner
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23
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The Ring
Naomi Watts, Pauley Perrette
Released: 2002
Directed by: Gore Verbinski
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24
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Aliens
Sigourney Weaver, Bill Paxton
Released: 1986
Directed by: James Cameron
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25
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Saw
Danny Glover, Monica Potter
Released: 2004
Directed by: James Wan
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