Entertainment

146 voters

These Teen Screams Are Your Watchlist Dreams: The Best Of Teen Horror TV

Updated January 26, 2021 1.2k votes 146 voters 3.3k views35 items

List RulesVote up the best horror TV shows in which the main characters and target audience are teens and young people.

From shows about serial killers stalking cheerleaders to plots about young witches harnessing their power, the best teen horror series will leave you screaming... for more episodes. Some terrifying teen shows feature werewolves howling at the moon while other scary series are haunting in completely original ways. A few great teen scream shows are even based on classic horror films.

A murder mystery set at a sorority is at the center of Ryan Murphy's Scream Queens which finds horror legend Jamie Lee Curtis leading an all-star cast. Of course, Murphy's now-iconic series American Horror Story – which features several teen-heavy seasons – is also on this list of the scariest teen horror series. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is a great option for younger teens and tweens. In Twin Peaks, the entire town is stricken with fear after the popular teenager, Laura Palmer, is found murdered in the pilot episode. Riverdale, another spooky series for teens, pays homage to Twin Peaks with its title sequence.

Don't let your favorite teen horror show end up at the bottom of this list – what a nightmare that would be! Vote up the best teen scream series and please add great shows we may have missed.

...more

1
60
17
Stranger Things
Winona Ryder, David Harbour
Premiered: July 15, 2016
More Stranger Things
The Best Characters on 'Stranger Things,' Ranked Who Would Be In 'Stranger Things' If It Were Cast In The '80s?
2
62
25
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Sarah Michelle Gellar, Nicholas Brendon
Premiered: March 10, 1997
More Buffy the Vampire Slayer
15 Fan Theories About Buffy The Vampire Slayer Just Crazy Enough To Be True#3 of 32 The Best UPN Shows
3
62
25
American Horror Story
Dylan McDermott, Connie Britton
Premiered: October 5, 2011
More American Horror Story
Cody Fern Clapbacks From 'American Horror Story' That Burn Hotter Than The Devil Awesome Angela Bassett Interviews For All The 'AHS' Aficionados
4
54
18
Are You Afraid of the Dark?
Ross Hull, Raine Pare-Coull
Premiered: July 16, 1992
More Are You Afraid of the Dark?
The Midnight Society From 'Are You Afraid Of The Dark?' - Where Are They Now#12 of 83 The Best After School Shows from the '90s
5
37
5
Goosebumps
R.L. Stine, Kathryn Short
Premiered: November 3, 1995
More Goosebumps
Fan Theories About 'Goosebumps'#302 of 508 The Best TV Theme Songs of All Time
6
38
11
Scream
Willa Fitzgerald, Bex Taylor-Klaus
Premiered: June 30, 2015
7
42
18
Teen Wolf
Tyler Posey, Dylan O'Brien
Premiered: June 5, 2011
More Teen Wolf
#25 of 51 The Best MTV Original Shows#13 of 16 16 Teen Shows That Ended With One Final Emotional Gut Punch
8
45
28
The Vampire Diaries
Paul Wesley, Ian Somerhalder
Premiered: September 10, 2009
More The Vampire Diaries
The Best Seasons of 'The Vampire Diaries'#11 of 225 The Greatest TV Shows for Women
9
38
24
Bates Motel
Vera Farmiga, Freddie Highmore
Premiered: March 18, 2013
More Bates Motel
#169 of 203 The TV Shows with the Best Writing#248 of 363 The Greatest TV Dramas of All Time
10
37
27
Twin Peaks
Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean
Premiered: April 8, 1990
More
Surprising Things You Didn't Know About Twin Peaks#11 of 45 New TV Shows of the Last Few Years with the Best Overall Acting

11
27
15
Hemlock Grove
Famke Janssen, Bill Skarsgård
Premiered: April 19, 2013
More Hemlock Grove
Ranking the Best Seasons of 'Hemlock Grove'#1054 of 1,313 The Best Guilty Pleasure TV Shows
12
30
20
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
Kiernan Shipka, Ross Lynch
Premiered: October 26, 2018
More Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
The Most Vital Things You Missed In Season 1 Of 'Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina'#24 of 856 The Best Original Streaming Shows Of The Last Few Years
13
38
31
Pretty Little Liars
Troian Bellisario, Ashley Benson
Premiered: June 8, 2010
More Pretty Little Liars
The Best Pretty Little Liars Characters#40 of 313 The Best Female-Led TV Shows
14
12
1
Are You Afraid of the Dark?
Lyliana Wray, Sam Ashe Arnold
Premiered: October 11, 2019
More Are You Afraid of the Dark?
#35 of 123 The Best Nickelodeon Original Shows#228 of 287 The Best TV Shows Returning In 2021
15
20
11
The Order
Jake Manley, Kayla Heller
Premiered: March 7, 2019
More The Order
The Best Characters On 'The Order', Ranked#23 of 519 The Best New Netflix Original Series Of The Last Few Years
16
30
27
Scream Queens
Emma Roberts, Jamie Lee Curtis
Premiered: September 22, 2015
17
14
8
It
John Ritter, Richard Thomas
Premiered: November 18, 1990
More It
The Biggest Differences Between The Novel And 'IT: Chapter I'#139 of 375 'Old' Movies Every Young Person Needs To Watch In Their Lifetime
18
2
2
The Unsettling
Holly Taylor, Tequan Richmond
Premiered: 2019
More The Unsettling
#61 of 104 The Best New Teen TV Shows Of The Last Few Years#19 of 22 The Best Supernatural Teen Series
19
28
28
Riverdale
K.J. Apa, Lili Reinhart
Premiered: January 26, 2017
More Riverdale
The Best Characters On 'Riverdale', Ranked#35 of 142 The Best Shows Currently On The Air
20
18
15
Eerie, Indiana
Omri Katz, Justin Shenkarow
Premiered: September 15, 1991
More Eerie, Indiana
#18 of 317 The Best Shows Canceled After a Single Season#248 of 538 TV Shows Canceled Before Their Time

21
17
14
Dark
Oliver Masucci, Karoline Eichhorn
Premiered: December 1, 2017
More Dark
#4 of 56 The Best New Shows of the Last Few Years That You've Been Missing Out On#6 of 15 The Best New Conspiracy TV Shows of the Last Few Years
22
0
5
Detention
Li Lingwei, Han Ning
Premiered: December 5, 2020
More Detention
#48 of 56 The Best New Historical Drama TV Series of the Last Few Years#218 of 327 The Best New TV Dramas of the Last Few Years
23
10
5
The Haunting
Michiel Huisman, Carla Gugino
Premiered: October 12, 2018
More The Haunting
The Scariest Ghosts In 'The Haunting Of Hill House'The 13 Most Compelling 'Haunting Of Hill House' Fan Theories
24
8
4
The Secret Circle
Britt Robertson, Thomas Dekker
Premiered: September 15, 2011
More The Secret Circle
#37 of 135 The Best Shows About High School#62 of 129 Canceled Shows We'd Most Like to See as Movies
25
8
5
Locke & Key
Jackson Robert Scott, Connor Jessup
Premiered: February 7, 2020
More Locke & Key
#6 of 41 The Best Newer TV Shows With Gay Characters#2 of 335 The Best 2020 Original Streaming Platform Shows