I think we can all agree that the threshold of getting scared varies greatly with each individual. To some, an itsy bitsy spider is as scary as Lucifer himself, while others might find the aforementioned lord of darkness a harmless kitten. The same applies to watching movies – some might find the suspense and the plot twists in the Miss Marple series too much, thank you, while others might be able to watch Sinister without covering their eyes with their hands, not even once. Not. Even. Once. So, that proves to us that we, the viewers are different, but is there an actual way to figure out which movie is truly the scariest? Glad you asked for there is definitely a way to scientifically measure the level of the scariness of each horror movie! And the way they are ranked in this list, dedicated to the scariest movies ever, is based exactly on that.
Let’s go back a bit to the part where we said ‘scientific measure’ and clear the air about it. In 2020, a UK broadband company started doing research to figure out the truly scariest movies ever. How do they do it? Well, first of all, they hand-pick their ‘victims’ who are to endure a screening of some 40 horror movies (not all at once, of course). The list of films is changed up a bit each year, and the ‘victims’ come from a fresh roster each year. Then, the people watching these scary movies are equipped with heart monitors that write down the person’s average resting heart rate, then the average while watching a certain movie, and the highest spike in BPM that it has caused. A perfectly reasonable way to measure the chills!
So, get ready for spooks, chills, and blood-curdling stories, for the scariest movies are, as usual, just a bit further down. If you do not agree with the way they are ranked, give your favorites a vote to change it up! Also, be a good friend and share the joy of a sleepless night after watching one of these creepy movies with your friends.
#1 Sinister
2012 | 1 hour 50 minutes | Directed by Scott Derrickson
Starring Ethan Hawke, Juliet Rylance, James Ransone
While most movies are written based on an idea that the writer got while fully conscious, Sinister was directly inspired by a nightmare its writer got after watching The Ring. And if you’ve ever had a truly chilling dream, you know how scary it would be to see it on a big screen in your waking hours. Paralyzing shocks and diabolical twists make Sinister a movie you just might wish to unsee.
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#2 The Conjuring
2013 | 1 hour 52 minutes | Directed by James Wan
Starring Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Ron Livingston
You know what’s more terrifying than even the best horror movie? A horror movie based on a real, definitely undeniably true story. Yup, Ed and Lorraine Warren are real, and so is the possessed Perron family. And even if you can distance yourself from the fact that this sort of weird stuff can happen to you, The Conjuring is nonetheless horrifying. Filled with old-school horrors and minimum CGI effects, this horror movie will creep up on you heavier and heavier with each minute. A paranormal movie that’ll surely scare even a seasoned horror fan.
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#3 The Exorcist
1973 | 2 hours 2 minutes | Directed by William Friedkin
Starring Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Linda Blair
Filming marked by accidents and a release riddled with controversies and even riots; The Exorcist made a grand entrance into the movie industry history. And if you haven’t seen it already, here’s the plot in its basics – The Exorcist follows a twelve-year-old girl that has been possessed by a demon and needs it to be expelled. With such a sure-shot horrifying premise, great acting, and severe shocks throughout, The Exorcist is still one of the best paranormal horror movies after some 50 years of its release.
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#4 Insidious
2010 | 1 hour 43 minutes | Directed by James Wan
Starring Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Ty Simpkins
Astral travel already sounds like a dangerous thing to be capable of, and such a premise pays off big time in Insidious. But add that ability to a seemingly comatose boy, and it gets a whole lot scarier. Malevolent spirits, unexplained happenings, and an uncharted territory inhabited by tortured souls make this horror movie a truly terrifying watch.
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#5 The Descent
2005 | 1 hour 39 minutes | Directed by Neil Marshall
Starring Shauna Macdonald, Natalie Mendoza, Alex Reid
The Descent follows six women who find themselves lost in a cave system and struggling to survive against the humanoid monsters living there. So, if you think a horrific cat-and-mouse game would be enough to scare the bejesus out of you, then add in the factor of overwhelming claustrophobia, and voila – a demonically scary movie is at your service. Do we need to remind ourselves with a warning not to watch The Descent before embarking on a speleological expedition?
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#6 The Ring
2002 | 1 hour 55 minutes | Directed by Gore Verbinski
Starring Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson, Brian Cox
All the horror movies based on Japanese or Korean originals are bound to be blood-soaked, demonic, and should come with a warning. And that’s precisely the case with The Ring – remember the cursed video and the seven-day note? If not – give The Ring a shot, but for the love of all that’s great, don’t watch it alone in the dark.
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#7 A Nightmare On Elm Street
1984 | 1 hour 31 minutes | Directed by Wes Craven
Starring Heather Langenkamp, Johnny Depp, Robert Englund
Our list wouldn’t be complete without such a classic paranormal slasher horror as A Nightmare On Elm Street. Right from the first minute, you’re haunted by dark mystery, actual unexplained slashings, and just good old terror occupying the space in your veins. And to make it even better, there’s no happy ending for A Nightmare On Elm Street – that alone will horrify you long after the movie has ended.
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#8 It
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#9 The Conjuring 2
2016 | 2 hours 14 minutes | Directed by James Wan
Starring Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Madison Wolfe
A second installment in The Conjuring series, this movie follows the same paranormal investigators that we’re already acquainted with Ed and Lorraine Warren. This time they’re headed to England to dig deeper into a poltergeist case. Once again, we get to see old-school horror tricks done in a fresh and unnerving way, raising our hair and tingling our spines.
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#10 28 Days Later
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#11 Hereditary
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#12 The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
1974 | 1 hour 23 minutes | Directed by Tobe Hooper
Starring Marilyn Burns, Edwin Neal, Allen Danziger
Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a horror film that not only originated some of our beloved elements of the slasher genre but has also become one of the most influential horror movies ever. The story here, although quite a simple one, proves that a good horror flick might not need a complex premise to be a genuinely scary one. Thus, here it’s a group of friends that fall victim to a family of cannibals while on their way to visit an old homestead. Seems familiar? Well, we told you that Texas Chainsaw Massacre is one of the most influential horror movies of all time!
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#13 Halloween (1978)
1978 | 1 hour 31 minutes | Directed by John Carpenter
Starring Donald Pleasance, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tony Moran
Halloween is an independent slasher film directed and scored by the horror master himself – John Carpenter. The plot centers around Michael Myers – a mental patient who killed his sister on the night of Halloween when he was six years old. After fifteen years spent in a sanitarium, Michael escapes only to terrorize the small town of Haddonfield, Illinois once again. Now, Halloween might not have been as popular upon its release but has since gained a true cult following and praises from contemporary cinema critics.
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#14 Hush (2016)
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#15 A Quiet Place
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#16 Paranormal Activity
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#17 The Babadook
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#18 The Visit
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#19 Scream
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#20 The Silence Of The Lambs
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#21 It Follows
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#22 Carrie (1976)
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#23 The Others
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#24 The Shining
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#25 The Cabin In The Woods
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#26 Psycho
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#27 Get Out
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#28 Alien
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#29 Jaws
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#30 Evil Dead
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#31 Poltergeist (1982)
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#32 The Omen (1976)
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#33 Deliverance
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#34 The Thing
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#35 Children Of The Corn
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#36 The Birds
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#37 Night Of The Living Dead (1968)
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#38 Us
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#39 The Fly
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#40 Let The Right One In
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#41 Hellraiser
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#42 Child’s Play
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#43 Train To Busan
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#44 Suspiria (1977)
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#45 Nosferatu: A Symphony Of Horror
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#46 The Hills Have Eyes
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#47 The Orphanage
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#48 Friday The 13th
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#49 Open Water
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#50 Midsommar
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