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The Best Ghost Movies of All Time, Ranked

Updated January 4, 2021 13.6k votes 1.3k voters 39.1k views87 items

List RulesMovies featuring ghosts, spirits, hauntings, and poltergeists.

Despite their supernatural subject matter, the best ghost movies aren’t always the scariest movies. Sure, many can be scary or are straight up horror movies, but some are meant for kids and families. So if you combine those varied genres to get a ranking of the best movies with ghosts, which ones comes out on top? To get a definitive answer, everyone needs to weigh in with their favorite ghost movies.

Movies have the ability to make us feel. Whether a good or bad emotion, they make us want to believe, be inspired, or somehow relate to the stories and characters we see on screen. Even when it's a ghost. Whenever you want to feel scared or are curious about the afterlife you can grab one of these best ghost movies to get your fix.

Not sure what qualifies as a ghost movie? Basically any film that features ghosts, spirits, poltergeists, and hauntings belongs on this list. For example, movies such as The Innocents, Beetlejuice, Poltergeist, and The House on Haunted Hill all fall under that category. Sure, they’re completely different genres, but they all have ghosts.

So vote for your favorite movies featuring ghosts and add any you feel are missing from the list. If you’re searching to see where a particular movie is ranked, use the search box at the top of the list. Otherwise, vote away for the best ghost movies of all time.

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152
The Sixth Sense
Bruce Willis, Mischa Barton
Released: 1999
Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan
The Sixth Sense is a 1999 American supernatural thriller film written and directed by M. Night... more on Wikipedia
2
498
155
The Others
Nicole Kidman, Christopher Eccleston
Released: 2001
Directed by: Alejandro Amenábar
The Others is a 2001 horror-thriller film written, directed and scored by Alejandro Amenábar.... more on Wikipedia
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Poltergeist
Craig T. Nelson, JoBeth Williams
Released: 1982
Directed by: Tobe Hooper
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The Conjuring
Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson
Released: 2013
Directed by: James Wan
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180
The Shining
Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall
Released: 1980
Directed by: Stanley Kubrick
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The Haunting
Claire Bloom, Lois Maxwell
Released: 1963
Directed by: Robert Wise
The Haunting is a 1963 British psychological horror film directed and produced by Robert Wise... more on Wikipedia
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Stir of Echoes
Jennifer Morrison, Kevin Bacon
Released: 1999
Directed by: David Koepp
Stir of Echoes is a supernatural horror-thriller released in the US in 1999, starring Kevin... more on Wikipedia

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What Lies Beneath
Michelle Pfeiffer, Harrison Ford
Released: 2000
Directed by: Robert Zemeckis
What Lies Beneath is a 2000 American psychological thriller film directed by Robert Zemeckis.... more on Wikipedia
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324
194
Beetlejuice
Alec Baldwin, Winona Ryder
Released: 1988
Directed by: Tim Burton
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91
Ghost Story
Fred Astaire, Douglas Fairbanks
Released: 1981
Directed by: John Irvin
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230
132
Ghost Ship
Julianna Margulies, Emily Browning
Released: 2002
Directed by: Steve Beck
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120
John Carpenter's The Fog
Jamie Lee Curtis, Janet Leigh
Released: 1980
Directed by: John Carpenter
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13
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The Ring
Naomi Watts, Pauley Perrette
Released: 2002
Directed by: Gore Verbinski
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213
122
The Changeling
George C. Scott, Melvyn Douglas
Released: 1980
Directed by: Peter Medak
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Ghostbusters
Bill Murray, Sigourney Weaver
Released: 1984
Directed by: Ivan Reitman
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Ju-on: The Grudge
Itou Misaki, Megumi Okina
Released: 2002
Directed by: Takashi Shimizu
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The Innocents
Deborah Kerr, Michael Redgrave
Released: 1961
Directed by: Jack Clayton
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The Frighteners
Michael J. Fox, Peter Jackson
Released: 1996
Directed by: Peter Jackson
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The Grudge
Sarah Michelle Gellar, KaDee Strickland
Released: 2004
Directed by: Takashi Shimizu
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Scrooged
Bill Murray, Robert Mitchum
Released: 1988
Directed by: Richard Donner
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105
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The Entity
Barbara Hershey, Ron Silver
Released: 1982
Directed by: Sidney J. Furie
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The Amityville Horror
James Brolin, Margot Kidder
Released: 1979
Directed by: Stuart Rosenberg
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The Orphanage
Geraldine Chaplin, Belén Rueda
Released: 2007
Directed by: Juan Antonio Bayona
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The Uninvited
Ray Milland, Gail Russell
Released: 1944
Directed by: Lewis Allen
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133
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Casper
Christina Ricci, Bill Pullman
Released: 1995
Directed by: Brad Silberling, Phil Nibbelink
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