Horror Movies and TV The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century  

Ranker Horror
12.3k votes 825 voters 23.9k views 83 items

List Rules Full-length horror films released in theaters since January 2000, anywhere in the world

A list of the Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century. Looking for some recently-made horror movies to enjoy? This list provides a comprehensive view of all the best horror movies of the 21st century so that you can pick a movie that everyone is still talking about to watch tonight. Ranked in order of the most popular horror movie of the 21st century to the least popular, you will be able to see which movies got the most votes and watch them for yourself.

If you don’t agree with the voting, go ahead and vote for your favorite horror movie from the 21st century and see it get raised higher on the list. If you don’t see a particular favorite 21st century horror movie, go ahead and add it to the list. Then others will be able to see your favorite horror movie too. It may even get voted number 1 on the list of the best horror movies of the 21st century!

If you are a die-hard horror movie fan, this is a great list to see which recent movies came out that you might have missed. From “The Conjuring” to “Mama,” the 21st century has provided some great scary horror movies that shouldn’t be missed. Go ahead and pick out a few from the list and enjoy a 21st century horror movie marathon!

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The Conjuring is listed (or ranked) 1 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
The Conjuring Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Joey King The Conjuring is a 2013 American supernatural horror film directed by James Wan. Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga star as Ed and Lorraine Warren, who were American paranormal investigators and ...more

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28 Days Later is listed (or ranked) 2 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
28 Days Later Cillian Murphy, Christopher Eccleston, Naomie Harris 28 Days Later is a 2002 British post-apocalyptic horror film directed by Danny Boyle. The screenplay was written by Alex Garland. The film stars Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Brendan Gleeson, ...more

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Insidious is listed (or ranked) 3 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Insidious Rose Byrne, Barbara Hershey, Patrick Wilson Insidious is a 2011 American supernatural horror film directed by James Wan, written by Leigh Whannell, and starring Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne and Barbara Hershey. It is the first installment ...more

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It is listed (or ranked) 4 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
TeenaLand added It Tim Curry, Seth Green, John Ritter It is a 1990 psychological horror/drama miniseries based on Stephen King's novel of the same name. The story revolves around an inter-dimensional predatory life-form, which has the ability to ...more

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The Descent is listed (or ranked) 5 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
The Descent Shauna Macdonald, Natalie Mendoza, Alex Reid The Descent is a 2005 British adventure horror film directed by Neil Marshall. Six women enter an unmapped cave system, become trapped, and are hunted by flesh-eating subterranean humanoids.

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Saw is listed (or ranked) 6 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Saw Danny Glover, Monica Potter, Shawnee Smith Saw is a 2004 horror film written by Leigh Whannell and directed by James Wan, in Wan's directorial debut. In the film, Adam (Whannell) and Lawrence (Cary Elwes) awaken chained in a large ...more

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The Mist is listed (or ranked) 7 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
The Mist Thomas Jane, Marcia Gay Harden, Laurie Holden The Mist is a 2007 American science fiction horror film based on the 1980 novella of the same name by Stephen King. The film was written and directed by Frank Darabont, who had previously ...more

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The Others is listed (or ranked) 8 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
dee123 added The Others Nicole Kidman, Christopher Eccleston, Michelle Fairley The Others is a 2001 horror-thriller film written, directed and scored by Alejandro Amenábar. It stars Nicole Kidman and Fionnula Flanagan. It won eight Goya Awards, including awards for ...more

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Jeepers Creepers is listed (or ranked) 9 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
dee123 added Jeepers Creepers Justin Long, Eileen Brennan, Victor Salva Jeepers Creepers is a 2001 American horror film written and directed by Victor Salva. The film takes its name from the 1938 song "Jeepers Creepers", which is featured in the film.

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Dawn of the Dead is listed (or ranked) 10 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Dawn of the Dead Ving Rhames, Ty Burrell, Kevin Zegers Dawn of the Dead is a 2004 American horror film directed by Zack Snyder in his feature film directorial debut. A remake of George A. Romero's 1978 film of the same name, it is written by James ...more

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Shaun of the Dead is listed (or ranked) 11 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Shaun of the Dead Martin Freeman, Simon Pegg, Bill Nighy Shaun of the Dead is a 2004 British horror comedy film directed by Edgar Wright and written by Wright and Simon Pegg, and starring Pegg and Nick Frost. Pegg plays Shaun, a man attempting to get ...more

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The Grudge is listed (or ranked) 12 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
The Grudge Sarah Michelle Gellar, KaDee Strickland, Bill Pullman The Grudge is a 2004 American horror film and the first installment in The Grudge franchise. It is a remake of the Japanese film Ju-on: The Grudge. The film was released in North America on ...more

The Best Western Movies of the 21st Century

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Let the Right One In is listed (or ranked) 13 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Let the Right One In Lina Leandersson, Tom Ljungman, Philip Hersh Let the Right One In is a 2008 film directed by Tomas Alfredson.

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Evil Dead is listed (or ranked) 14 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
willyboymcoy added Evil Dead Jane Levy, Jessica Lucas, Shiloh Fernandez Evil Dead is a 2013 American supernatural horror film written and directed by Fede Alvarez. It is the fourth installment of the Evil Dead franchise, serving as both a reboot, a remake and as a ...more

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Final Destination is listed (or ranked) 15 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Final Destination Ali Larter, Seann William Scott, Devon Sawa Final Destination is a 2000 American horror film directed by James Wong. It is the first installment of the Final Destination series. The screenplay was written by James Wong, Glen Morgan, and ...more

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The Babadook is listed (or ranked) 16 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
angelop24 added The Babadook Essie Davis, Daniel Henshall, Adam Morgan The Babadook is a 2014 Australian psychological horror film, written and directed by Jennifer Kent, in which a woman and her son are tormented by a "boogie-man" type monster. The film ...more

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The Devil's Rejects is listed (or ranked) 17 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
The Devil's Rejects Diamond Dallas Page, Danny Trejo, Ginger Lynn The Devil's Rejects is a 2005 American horror film written and directed by Rob Zombie, and the sequel to his 2003 film House of 1000 Corpses. The film is centered on the run of three members of ...more

The Best Michael B. Jordan Movies

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The Exorcism of Emily Rose is listed (or ranked) 18 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
dee123 added The Exorcism of Emily Rose Laura Linney, Jennifer Carpenter, Tom Wilkinson The Exorcism of Emily Rose is a 2005 American courtroom drama horror film directed by Scott Derrickson and starring Laura Linney and Tom Wilkinson. The film is loosely based on the story of ...more

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The Orphanage is listed (or ranked) 19 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
The Orphanage Geraldine Chaplin, Belén Rueda, Édgar Vivar The Orphanage is a 2007 Spanish horror film and the debut feature of Spanish filmmaker J. A. Bayona. The film stars Belén Rueda as Laura, Fernando Cayo as her husband, Carlos, and Roger ...more

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Hostel is listed (or ranked) 20 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Hostel Eli Roth, Ashley Robbins, Jay Hernandez Hostel is a 2005 American horror film written, produced, and directed by Eli Roth and starring Jay Hernandez. It is the first installment of the Hostel film series, followed by Hostel: Part II, ...more

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The Woman in Black is listed (or ranked) 21 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
wbalazs91 added The Woman in Black Daniel Radcliffe, Ciarán Hinds, Janet McTeer The Woman in Black is a 2012 British horror film directed by James Watkins and written by Jane Goldman, based on Susan Hill's novel of the same name. It was produced by Hammer Film Productions. ...more

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The Conjuring 2 is listed (or ranked) 22 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Kaizerchief added The Conjuring 2

The Best Actors Who Won All 5 Major Awards for the Same Role in the 21st Century

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The Skeleton Key is listed (or ranked) 23 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
dee123 added The Skeleton Key Kate Hudson, John Hurt, Joy Bryant The Skeleton Key is a 2005 American supernatural horror film starring Kate Hudson, Gena Rowlands, John Hurt, Peter Sarsgaard, and Joy Bryant. The film centers on a young hospice nurse who ...more

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REC is listed (or ranked) 24 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
REC Manuela Velasco, Javier Botet, Ana Isabel Velásquez REC is a 2007 Spanish horror film, co-written and directed by Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza. The film was shot in Barcelona, Spain and the title is an abbreviation of the word ...more

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Drag Me to Hell is listed (or ranked) 25 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Drag Me to Hell Octavia Spencer, Justin Long, Lia Johnson Drag Me to Hell is a 2009 American horror film co-written and directed by Sam Raimi. The plot, written with his brother Ivan, focuses on loan officer Christine Brown, who reluctantly, under ...more

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Cabin Fever is listed (or ranked) 26 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Cabin Fever Eli Roth, Cerina Vincent, Jordan Ladd Cabin Fever is a 2002 American black comedy horror film directed by Eli Roth and starring Rider Strong, Jordan Ladd, James DeBello and Giuseppe Andrews. It was produced by Lauren Moews & ...more

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Sinister is listed (or ranked) 27 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
wonderfuldevil@gmail.com added Sinister Ethan Hawke, Vincent D'Onofrio, Fred Thompson Sinister is a 2012 supernatural horror film directed by Scott Derrickson and written by Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill. It stars Ethan Hawke as fictional true-crime writer Ellison Oswalt who ...more

60+ of Your Greatest Childhood Fears

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Frailty is listed (or ranked) 28 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
dee123 added Frailty Matthew McConaughey, Bill Paxton, Powers Boothe Frailty is a 2002 psychological thriller film, directed by and starring Bill Paxton, and co-starring Matthew McConaughey. It marks Paxton's directorial debut. The plot focuses on the strange ...more

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Devil is listed (or ranked) 29 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Tiffany Marie Long added Devil Zoie Palmer, Caroline Dhavernas, Logan Marshall-Green Devil is a 2010 American supernatural horror film directed by John Erick Dowdle and written by Brian Nelson based on a story by M. Night Shyamalan. The film stars Chris Messina, Logan ...more

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What Lies Beneath is listed (or ranked) 30 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
dee123 added What Lies Beneath Michelle Pfeiffer, Harrison Ford, Amber Valletta What Lies Beneath is a 2000 American psychological thriller film directed by Robert Zemeckis. It is the first film by ImageMovers. It stars Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer as a well-to-do ...more

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Mama is listed (or ranked) 31 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Mama Jessica Chastain, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Daniel Kash Mama is a 2013 horror film written by Neil Cross, Andres Muschietti and Barbara Muschietti and directed by Andres Muschietti.

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You're Next is listed (or ranked) 32 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
willyboymcoy added You're Next Sharni Vinson, Barbara Crampton, Amy Seimetz You're Next is a 2011 American independent action-horror slasher film directed by Adam Wingard, written by Simon Barrett, and starring Sharni Vinson, Nicholas Tucci, Wendy Glenn, A. J. Bowen, ...more

The Best Serial Dramas of the 21st Century

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A Nightmare on Elm Street is listed (or ranked) 33 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Tiffany Marie Long added A Nightmare on Elm Street Rooney Mara, Connie Britton, Katie Cassidy A Nightmare on Elm Street is a 2010 American slasher film directed by Samuel Bayer and written by Wesley Strick and Eric Heisserer as a remake of Wes Craven's 1984 film of the same name, which ...more

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Hard Candy is listed (or ranked) 34 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Hard Candy Ellen Page, Sandra Oh, Patrick Wilson Hard Candy is a 2005 vigilante thriller film focusing on the torture of a suspected sexual predator by a 14-year-old female vigilante. The film was directed by David Slade, written by Brian ...more

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Ginger Snaps is listed (or ranked) 35 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
dee123 added Ginger Snaps Lucy Lawless, Mimi Rogers, Katharine Isabelle Ginger Snaps is a 2000 Canadian comic horror film directed by John Fawcett. The film focuses on two teenage sisters, Ginger and Brigitte Fitzgerald, who have a fascination with death. The title ...more

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Saw II is listed (or ranked) 36 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Saw II Emmanuelle Vaugier, Shawnee Smith, Dina Meyer Saw II is a 2005 Canadian-American horror film, a sequel to 2004's Saw and the second installment in the seven-part Saw franchise, directed and co-written by Darren Lynn Bousman. Co-written with ...more

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Battle Royale is listed (or ranked) 37 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Battle Royale Beat Kitano, Chiaki Kuriyama, Kou Shibasaki Battle Royale is a 2000 Japanese action thriller film adapted from the 1999 novel of the same name by Koushun Takami. It is the final film directed by Kinji Fukasaku, the screenplay written by ...more

Real, Horrifying Punishments in Other Countries

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Session 9 is listed (or ranked) 38 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Session 9 Josh Lucas, David Caruso, 피터 뮬란 Session 9 is a 2001 American independent psychological horror film directed by Brad Anderson and written by Anderson and Stephen Gevedon. The film stars David Caruso, Peter Mullan, Stephen ...more

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It Follows is listed (or ranked) 39 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Charleen Hamill added It Follows Maika Monroe, Keir Gilchrist, Linda Boston It Follows is a 2014 Horror film written by David Robert Mitchell and directed by David Robert Mitchell.

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Identity is listed (or ranked) 40 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
dee123 added Identity Amanda Peet, John Cusack, Alfred Molina Identity is a 2003 American psychological thriller film directed by James Mangold from a screenplay written by Michael Cooney. The film stars John Cusack, Ray Liotta, Amanda Peet, Alfred Molina, ...more

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Final Destination 2 is listed (or ranked) 41 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Final Destination 2 Ali Larter, A. J. Cook, Sarah Carter Final Destination 2 is a 2003 supernatural American horror film directed by David R. Ellis. The screenplay by J. Mackye Gruber and Eric Bress was from a story by Gruber, Bress, and series ...more

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The Witch is listed (or ranked) 42 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Spartanical added The Witch Richard Johnson, Gian Maria Volonté, Ivan Rassimov La strega in amore is a 1966 film directed by Damiano Damiani.

The Most Horrifying Found-Footage Movies

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Ju-on: The Curse is listed (or ranked) 43 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Ju-on: The Curse Chiaki Kuriyama, Takashi Matsuyama, Taro Suwa Ju-on: The Curse, also known as simply Ju-on, is a 2000 Japanese V-Cinema horror film and the first installment in the Ju-on franchise, following two short films, Katasumi and 4444444444. The ...more

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Grave Encounters is listed (or ranked) 44 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
ChloeJHightower added Grave Encounters Alex Sander, Merwin Mondesir, Mackenzie Gray Grave Encounters is a 2011 Canadian supernatural horror film, shot found footage style. The footage follows the crew of a paranormal reality television program who lock themselves in a haunted ...more

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Dog Soldiers is listed (or ranked) 45 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
dee123 added Dog Soldiers Kevin McKidd, Liam Cunningham, Sean Pertwee Dog Soldiers is a 2002 British horror film written and directed by Neil Marshall, and starring Kevin McKidd, Sean Pertwee and Liam Cunningham. A British production, set in the highlands of ...more

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Oculus is listed (or ranked) 46 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Ironicard added Oculus Karen Gillan, Katee Sackhoff, James Lafferty Oculus is a 2013 American supernatural psychological horror film directed by Mike Flanagan. A young woman (Karen Gillan) is convinced that an antique mirror is responsible for the death and ...more

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Jeepers Creepers 2 is listed (or ranked) 47 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Lory Kerner-Billups added Jeepers Creepers 2 Justin Long, Nicki Aycox, Ray Wise Jeepers Creepers 2 is a 2003 American horror film written and directed by Victor Salva, produced by American Zoetrope, Capitol Films, Myriad Pictures and distributed by United Artists, a ...more

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Dark Water is listed (or ranked) 48 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Dark Water Asami Mizukawa, Fumiyo Kohinata, Hitomi Kuroki Dark Water is a 2002 Japanese horror film directed by Hideo Nakata, the director of Ring and Ring 2. Dark Water is based on Floating Water, a short story by Koji Suzuki. The plot follows a ...more

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Grindhouse is listed (or ranked) 49 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Grindhouse Nicolas Cage, Bruce Willis, Rose McGowan Grindhouse is a 2007 American horror film double feature co-written, produced, and directed by Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino. The double feature consists of two feature-length segments, ...more

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Wolf Creek is listed (or ranked) 50 on the list The Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century
Wolf Creek Teresa Palmer, John Jarratt, Kestie Morassi Wolf Creek is a 2005 Australian horror film written, co-produced, and directed by Greg McLean, and starring John Jarratt. The story revolves around three backpackers who find themselves held ...more