47 Scariest Horror Movies of All Time

Veteran homicide detective William Somerset takes one final case with young colleague David Mills, who is set to replace him, in an attempt to trace the steps of a serial killer who is targeting victims representing seven deadly sins, only to get themselves embroiled into the twisted plan of the diabolical assailant.

In this Academy Award-winning psychological thriller, FBI trainee Clarice Starling is pulled from her training to interview former psychiatrist and imprisoned cannibalistic psychopath Hannibal Lecter in connection with grisly murders by another serial killer, nicknamed Buffalo Bill, who skins his victims. However, she can only retrieve information from the manipulative killer in exchange for exposing her own psychological traumas.

This psychological horror movies is Based on the 1959 novel by Robert Bloch. The movie follows the story of a secretary Marion Crane, who, frustrated with her life, steals $40,000 cash from her employer and leaves Phoenix, Arizona. She checks in at Bates Motel owned by friendly Norman Bates who appears to have a dominating mother.

Based on Stephen King’s novel, this psychological horror movie has Jack Torrance moving into a secluded hotel, with a violent past, as an off-season caretaker along with his wife, Wendy and psychic son, Danny. While the supernatural influences gradually turn Jack into a more violent person, the safety of his family is threatened.

Considered one of the greatest films of all time, this science-fiction horror film directed by Ridley Scott is about space merchant vessel Nostromo whose crew respond to a distress call on their way back to earth. As a result they end up with a dangerous and aggressive extra-terrestrial creature on board.

Child psychologist Malcolm Crowe sees an opportunity to redeem himself after he meets his new patient Cole Sear, who exhibits similar symptoms to one of his former patients whom he had failed to treat. Despite doubting Sear's claims at first, Crowe gradually discovers that he might actually be able to see dead people, unaware of their death.

Steven Spielberg’s Jaws is adapted from the popular 1974 novel by Peter Benchley. When a killer shark attacks a vacationer at the Amity Island, police chief Martin Brody wants to close down the beaches but Mayor Vaughn is against it. However, with the shark continuing its killing spree, Brody teams up with a marine biologist and a professional shark hunter to hunt down the beast.

This psychological thriller is based on an original story by Andreis Henz. When the production of Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake ballet demands a ballerina who can portray both the pure White Swan and the dark sensual Black Swan, Nina is the first choice; however, she faces competition from Lily who is better suited to play the Black Swan. As she struggles to keep the role for herself, Nina loses her hold on reality and herself.

A girl is seemingly possessed by an entity and she starts behaving oddly, after which her mother consults various physicians, who fail to find any problem with her. Eventually, her mother feels that she might be really possessed, and she seeks the help of two Catholic priests, hoping they will be able to help her daughter.

Director Roman Polanski’s first American movie is about Guy and Rosemary Woodhouse, who move into an apartment where Rosemary meets their friendly, yet a little weird neighbors. She experiences strange incidences and nightmares, and hears odd sounds. When she gets pregnant, Rosemary is worried that their neighbors and suddenly-distant husband are planning some sinister conspiracy against her baby.

A woman who identifies herself as Rita survives a murder attempt and a car crash on Mulholland Drive, but is left with amnesia. Aspiring actress Betty Elms finds Rita in her aunt's apartment and decides to help her regain her identity, but as they proceed with the investigation, the boundary between real and illusion gets blurred.

Novelist Paul Sheldon, known for creating the character Misery Chastain meets with a car accident. Nurse Annie Wilkes rescues him and claims to be his number one fan. However, she transforms into a violent psychopath, takes Paul captive, and tortures him when she realizes Paul is killing Misery in his latest novel. 

Frankenstein is a science fiction horror film which is based on the novel by Mary Shelley. It revolves around a scientist named Henry Frankenstein, who is obsessed with creating human life. Along with his assistant, he manages to gather parts from freshly buried bodies, but ends up getting a damaged brain. Eventually, he succeeds in bringing the creature to life, although he is unaware that its brain is damaged.

The first sequel to the 1931 film Frankenstein, the story follows Henry Frankenstein, who is thought to have died, but is actually alive and reunited with his fiancée. Although he decides to abandon his attempt to create life, his old mentor soon coerce him into creating a mate for the Monster and he succumbs to it, initially unwilling. 

When a satellite crashes all of a sudden, its radiation forces the recently deceased to rise from their graves and seek to prey on the living. Trapped in a rural farmhouse in western Pennsylvania, seven people try to survive against a large group of these undead creatures.

Chris is an African-American man who reluctantly agrees to meet the family of his Caucasian girlfriend Rose. Later, at their house, Chris starts to witness strange behavior from their servants. It soon seems that there is something terribly wrong with the family.  

A six year old boy, Michael Myers, mercilessly kills his teenage sister, Judith on the Halloween night in 1963. He is imprisoned for fifteen years. Now 21, Michael escapes and returns to his hometown to figure out his next unaware victims – a female babysitter and her friends. The only person who understands his intentions is his psychiatrist, Dr. Loomis.

Named after Bobby Vinton’s song, Blue Velvet, is a neo-noir psychological thriller by American filmmaker David Keith Lynch. It starts when a college student, who is in town visiting his ailing father, finds a human ear severed and thrown in a field. What follows, is his journey to try and uncover the mystery and getting involved with an enticing lounge singer.

In this comic retelling of the original film, Ash Williams takes only his girlfriend Linda to the abandoned cabin in the woods and plays back the tape of an archaeologist reciting passages from the Book of the Dead. After unleashed evil forces turn Linda into a 'deadite', a group of researchers end up there searching for the tape.

Patrick Bateman is a handsome and wealthy investment banker who is focused on maintaining a high status in front of his friends and fiancée Evelyn and living a life full of vanity. However, by the night, he turns into a violent serial killer who mindlessly murders anyone around him .

In a remote country house, Grace Stewart awaits the return of her husband from WWII while bringing up her two photosensitive children with strict discipline. Her peaceful life is shattered when a trio of new servants join in. Strange thing begin to happen and her daughter starts interacting with an unknown boy. Grace must overcome her fears and find the truth.

Fred Madison, a Jazz musician, who is suspicious of his wife Renee’s loyalty, receives video tapes of their house, and one showing Renee’s murder. Accused of her murder, he is sentenced to death. In the prison, he mysteriously transforms into mechanic Peter Dayton, who is then released. Peter meets a gangster’s girlfriend, Alice, who is Renee’s mirror-image, which deepens the mystery further. 

Hunted by blind creatures extremely sensitive to sound, a family has survived silently in an isolated farm for a year in a post-apocalyptic Earth. However, their quiet paradise has recently been located by the predators, and the couple, Evelyn and Lee Abbott, must take drastic measures to ensure the survival of their three children.

A group of teenage friends begin having mysterious dreams—in which they are attacked by a clawed killer, and sometimes killed too—leading to injuries and death in real life as well. Nancy, one of the teenagers, decides to stay awake, to survive and also uncover the reality of the mysterious dream killer.

The Lighthouse is a psychological horror drama film which revolves around Ephraim, who arrives at a remote island to work as a lighthouse keeper. He begins to assist his supervisor Thomas. However, over the days, he tries to maintain his sanity as he is haunted by strange and mysterious visions.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a horror film which revolves around five friends making their way to rural Texas, to visit the grave of a grandfather. Things turn ugly when they stumble across a seemingly empty house, only to discover that there is something sinister lying within.  Soon, they encounter a family of cannibals, who turn their lives into a nightmare.

Five friends go to a remote cabin in the woods to spend the weekend and discover an old Egyptian book and an archeologist's tape while investigating the underground cellar that opens by itself. As they play the tape full of strange incantations, ancient demonic powers are released and start to possess the friends one by one.

Based on Stephen King’s novel, the film is about Carrie White, a withdrawn, sensitive teenager who is brought up by an overbearing, fanatically religious mother. A target of taunts at school, she often receives help from her gym teacher. When Carrie gets bullied and humiliated at the senior prom, she unleashes her newly found telekinetic powers, leading to terrible consequences.

After her mother passes away, Annie and the rest of her family is struck with grief. She soon starts attending a support group. However, soon strange things start occurring and she begins to learn some horrifying truths about her ancestry.

Following a car accident, Michelle finds herself locked in the underground bunker of a man named Howard who tells her that the outside world is unbreathable due to an unknown chemical attack. Emmett, the only other person living in the bunker, dismisses her concerns about being abducted, but she can't help looking for ways to escape captivity.

FBI agent, Chet Desmond, disappears mysteriously while investigating the murder of Teresa Banks of Deerfield. One year later, in the neighboring town of Twin Peaks, Laura Palmer who leads a troubled life as a drug addict, is brutally murdered. Can the events of the last seven days of her life preceding her murder throw any light on the identity of the killer? 

Jim Halsey is a young man who is on his way to deliver a car to San Diego from Chicago. When he spots Ryder, a hitchhiker, he decides to give him a ride. When they pass a stranded car, Ryder tells him that he has murdered the driver of the car, and he wants to do the same with Jim. Jim pushes Ryder out of the car, but Ryder continues to follow him.

Dani and Christian are in a relationship, but her psychological trauma affects her lover, Christian. They decide to travel to Northern Europe, to attend a midsummer festival in an ancestral commune, hoping that it will help them save their relationship. However, things take a sinister turn after they are asked to take part in a bizarre and violent competition.

Three friends on their way to a vacation meet a strange stuntman Mike. He offers to give lift to another of their friend, Pam, in his Death Proof stunt car and kills her. Later he kills the three friend by hitting their car. Fourteen months later, he picks up another set of girls as his target; however what he does not expect is a fierce fightback.

Tom Witzky’s son, Jake, has the ability to communicate with the dead.  Once a non believer, Tom begins to have faith in paranormal phenomena once he wakes up from a hypnotic trance induced by his sister-in-law. He not only realizes that he has psychic connection with Jake, but also starts having visions of a missing teenage girl. Will he be able to locate her and solve the mystery?  

William and Katherine lives a devout Christian life, near an impassable wilderness, along with their five kids. However, their lives turn upside down when their newborn son disappears all of a sudden, and their crops start failing. Soon, the family members start turning on one another, as if a sinister force has begun haunting them.

An adaptation of Stephen King’s story of the same name, this psychological thriller centers on author Michael Enslin who has spent his life debunking supernatural phenomena. The movie has four different endings depicting Enslin’s fate following his horrific experiences in the haunted room 1408 of The Dolphin Hotel in New York. 

Some disturbing visions convince Sam that his home is enchanted by a monster. His troubled single mother, Amelia, soon realises that her son is not lying about the monster that seems to have made its way into their home through the pages of a children's book. She gets into a state of paranoia when she learns about the erratic behaviour of her son. Its interesting to see how she tames this beast that never leaves them.

India Stoker’s world comes tumbling down when her loving father Richard passes away in a car accident on her 18th birthday. Things get even more complicated when her previously unknown uncle Charlie comes to take care of the family. Sinister motives and revelations about Charlie will change India Stoker forever. 

In a futuristic world of biotechnological virtual reality games, game designer Allegra Geller is attacked by a Realist, when presenting her new game eXistenZ. She is rescued by Ted Pikul and plants the damaged game pod into Ted’s body. What happens from then on dissolves the lines between illusion and reality. 

In order to take a break from their busy and hectic lives, the Wilson family takes a vacation to Santa Cruz. However, they are soon attacked by mysterious figures, who break into the house. Soon, they are shocked when they find out that the intruders are exact lookalikes.

It Follows is a psychological horror thriller film which tells the story of Jay, a teen girl, who sleeps with Hugh, her new boyfriend for the first time. However, she learns that her boyfriend has transmitted to her a fatal curse that is passed from victim to victim via sexual intercourse. Although her friends initially don’t believe her paranoid claims, they soon begin to realize that a sinister force is after her.   

The Stepfather is a psychological horror film which tells the story of Jerry Blake, a man with family values, who murders his entire family and puts on a new identity. He moves to another town, and gets married to a widow with a teen daughter. However, the girl proves to be too troublesome for him to handle.

After their daughter leaves for college, the seemingly perfect marriage of scientist Norman Spencer and housewife Claire is rocked by the strange visions the latter begins to see. While Norman initially dismisses her visions as delusions, Claire delves deeper into the mystery to uncover a terrifying secret her husband has been hiding from her.

The Night House is a psychological horror film which tells the story of Beth, whose husband has recently passed away. She decides to return to the spacious lakeside home which he had built for her in the middle of a forest. However, she soon starts to experience disturbing visions of a presence in the house, and soon she begins to investigate through her late husband’s belongings.   

During the Coronavirus lock-down in 2020, a group of six friends start holding weekly video calls to stay in touch. Things take a turn when one of them hires a medium in order to lead them into a virtual séance. They soon unknowingly invite a demonic presence, and start noticing strange occurrences in their homes.

Katie and Micah are facing problems in their relationship due to a demon that has haunted Katie since her childhood. Dr Fredrich, a psychic believes that it is feeding off her energy. Micah uses a camera to record any paranormal activity, and goes against the advice of taking help from a demonologist.