The horror movie genre was briefly in trouble at the turn of the 21st century. The dawn of CGI had made filmmakers complacent, which didn’t bode well fora genre whose greatest asset is the ability to surprise. Plus, the meta takedowns of the ’90s a laScreamhad laid bare the artifice of a lot of horror tropes, removing their capacity to scare.
But this just forced horror filmmakers to reinvent the genre, and throughout the 2010s, critics began to take notice of the rise of prestige horror films. Consequently, the last 20 years have produced dozens upon dozens of memorable horror movies.
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Updated May 20, 2025 by Russ Boswell: Historically, January tends to be a dumping ground for F-grade horror movies, although 2023 has been better than usual thanks to a few 2022 leftovers like The Menu and a few great newcomers. What are thebest new horror movies?
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In 2018, John Krasinski (of The Office fame) brought audiences one of the most visceral and nerve-wracking films in decades. The premise follows a family as they struggle to survive an onslaught of monstrous alien-like creatures that attack at the slightest sound. to keep everyone safe, the family lives as quiet a life as possible, utilizing tricks and engineering to muffle as much noise as they can. Thanks to the eerie quietness in many of the scenes, A Quiet Place expertly builds tension throughout, ending in a climax that is heart-racing and panic-inducing.
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The Christmas season doesn’t usually breed thoughts of monsters and Horror, but a scary Holiday-theme story can actually work incredibly well when done correctly. 2015’s Krampus is a great example of a terrifying Christmas film, with just enough Comedy to offer some jolliness and reassuring laughter throughout the tense and sometimes gory moments. The film does a great job of staying grounded enough in reality by offering a look at a fairly dysfunctional family during one fateful Christmas Eve. The end result is a 98-minute fright-fest that sees the enigmatic Krampus terrorizing the group and picking them off one by one.
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Another holiday offering, Trick ‘r Treat is much more at home during the spookiest time of the year. Those that enjoy anthology films (that feature a series of short sometimes interconnected stories) will definitely want to put this film at the top of their watch list. Although it wasn’t as successful as it should have been in 2007, it has since developed a cult following thanks to its unique stories and creepy premises. An overarching plot is woven throughout as viewers are introduced to a cast of characters spread across multiple mini-horror stories.
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Although it starts off as a grounded drama about an ex-killer’s attempts to go straight, Ben Wheatley’sKill Listsoon devolves into full-on horror when the lead is targeted by a terrifying cult in the woods.
As is typical for Wheatley’s work,Kill Listculminates in one of the most disturbing, harrowing endings in recent memory. It leaves audiences feeling cold – in a good way.
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DirecTV,FuboTV,Kanopy,Showtime
The apocalyptic event that ended the world before the events ofIt Comes at Nightis never specified, because it isn’t important. This is a character-driven story about a family reluctantly taking in another family during an extremely dangerous, hostile time and trying to figure out if they can trust them.
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Writer-director Trey Edward Shults masterfully builds up the tension throughout the movie, while keeping the audience disoriented by the layout of the house, similar to Kubrick’s depiction of the Overlook Hotel inThe Shining.
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Paramount Plus,Plex
There have been a handful ofhorror filmsover the years that were so terrifying they managed to root themselves firmly into the genre, attaining a legendary status that has movie-goers talking about them for decades after their release.
It’s only been 20 years sinceThe Ringhit theaters, but it’s definitely managed to influence the genre enough that fans are often referencing it (and other films like it) well into the modern age of horror cinema. The idea of a cursed videotape has been explored through other films andThe Ringhelped to jumpstart both the “found footage” and Japanese sub-genres in America.
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Amazon Prime Video + AMC+,DirecTV,Kanopy,PlutoTV,TubiTV
The 2010s were so overflowing with elevated horror thatScream 5even poked fun at the movement. Typically relying on atmosphere rather than jump scares, these movies use horror to dive into their characters’ psyches.The Babadookis one of the stronger and scarier examples of this sort of story.
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A single mother, who has yet to properly grieve the death of her husband, struggles to deal with her son’s growing obsession with an imaginary friend. Before long, she begins to fear that maybe the “imaginary” part is not accurate.
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Killer dolls are a horror trope for a reason, but the concept has an uneven track record since these films can quickly become unintentionally funny.M3GANgets ahead of this possibility by actively adopting a comedic touch, while still delivering scares and thrills. After losing her parents, Cady moves in with her scientist aunt, a decent person who does not have all that much interest in taking care of a child. To keep her company, Cady finds a friend in M3GAN, an A.I. robot designed to look like an uncanny little girl.
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M3GANdoes not take itself seriously, a decision that pays off beautifully since it encourages the film to embrace its premise’s inherent silliness. Horror-comedy movies are difficult to pull off, but this feature manages to satisfy both genres.
Hoopla,Screambox
2016’sTerrifieris a decent slasher flickelevated by a fantastic villain. Terrifying, grotesque, and weirdly funny, Art the Clown deserves to go down as a horror great, and the enigmatic killer found a project worthy of his presence in 2022’s sequel.Terrifier 2far exceeds expectations, both in terms of quality and ambition. Clocking in at nearly 2.5 hours, Damien Leone crafted a slasher epic that threatens to transcend its genre.
Like its predecessor,Terrifier 2embraces gore wholeheartedly, so much so that certain scenes might be too disgusting for some people. However, if someone enjoys a rollercoaster bloodbath, this might be thebest horror movie of Halloween 2022.
Netflix
Inspired by a recurring nightmare from his childhood, David Robert Mitchell brought one of the most inventive original premises of the decade to life inIt Follows. It’s about a sexually transmitted parasite that causes a supernatural entity to follow the affected party until they either pass it on to someone else or die.
Although it wasn’t intended to be,It Followsended up being interpreted as a perfect metaphor for STDs and their attached social stigma.
