From spine-chilling psychological thrillers to heart-stopping supernatural horror, we're counting down the most terrifying and groundbreaking horror films of the 21st century. Get ready for a journey through the most innovative and nightmare-inducing movies that have redefined the genre since 2000!
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00:00and I know it was an accident and I know you're in pain and I wish I could take that away for you
00:05I wish I could shield you from the knowledge that you did what you did
00:09Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the scariest
00:13and most thought-provoking horror films of the century so far
00:17We'll vote down here
00:19Yes, we do
00:24Number 30, Talk to Me
00:27Pure pressure can be a killer, a fact Mia comes to know all too well
00:31In Talk to Me, the protagonist and her best friend Jade
00:34learn about a strange new trend amongst their friend group
00:36Although it initially seems like it may just be a fun party trick,
00:39it is soon revealed to be a terrifyingly real gateway to the undead
00:43as Mia grabs hold of a hand and comes face to face with a corpse
00:46Run, run, run, run, run, run, run, run, run
00:54Despite the horrifying implications, Mia becomes addicted to the thrill of possession,
00:58hoping that she can find her recently deceased mother amongst the crowd
01:01Sophie Wilde is giving her all in the film's lead role, pivoting from spine-chilling horror
01:05to devastating displays of grief with ease
01:08I don't think that was your mom, Mia
01:09No, it was, at first
01:13She used to call me Mia all the time, I mean, how would the spirits know that?
01:16Number 29, Prey
01:18The prequel we didn't know we needed
01:20As the seventh film to be released in the Predator franchise,
01:23it's understandable that some fans approached Prey with a healthy amount of skepticism
01:27But the film's dedication to melding franchise lore with historical authenticity
01:31led to it being one of the film series' most beloved entries
01:34What do you think left those tracks?
01:36And skinned that snake?
01:37And before I fell, I saw lightning in the trees
01:40There's something else out there
01:41Even the toothbrushes were meticulously crafted to be era-accurate
01:44At a time when CG reigned supreme,
01:47Prey also opted to use practical effects for its iconic antagonist
01:50And it paid off in a big way
01:52The film has one of the franchise's most fearsome depictions of the Predator
01:56And the suit's real-world physicality adds a layer of authenticity to the acting
02:00that can be lost in CGI-heavy productions
02:09Number 28, Terrifier 2
02:12Horror is one of the few genres where audience members walking out
02:15can be seen as a badge of honor
02:17This movie didn't just have people walking out
02:19It apparently had some moviegoers leaving in ambulances
02:22Do you have any idea how insensitive that is?
02:25Not to mention sick?
02:26Made on a crowdfunded budget of $250,000,
02:30Terrifier 2 was something of a passion project for Damian Leone
02:33who had been developing its antagonist, Arthur Clown,
02:35for close to two decades prior to its release
02:38Clearly, the director's dedication paid off
02:40As the film became a surprise hit despite its polarizing gore and violence,
02:44earning over $15 million in profits
02:47Actress Lauren Lavera played no small part in this mainstream success,
02:51providing the Terrifier franchise with its first fully-fleshed-out final girl,
02:55Sienna Shaw
02:56You're right about everything
02:59What's right about you, too?
03:01I'm not one
03:03They used me to get you here
03:05They need you in this place for a reason
03:07Number 27, The Strangers
03:10You don't have to do this
03:13You can stop now
03:16Our next entry is a tense and chilling horror movie
03:19that might not be as graphic or action-packed as other films on this list,
03:22but one that plays on our fears of humanity
03:24The Strangers is a realistic movie about two everyday people
03:28being tormented for no reason whatsoever
03:36It was also inspired by real events,
03:38including the Manson murders, lending it an even scarier degree of credibility
03:42While ghosts and elaborate trap-making serial killers are fun,
03:45they take place outside of our everyday existence
03:48The Strangers reminds us that darkness and depravity does exist,
03:52sometimes literally in our own backyards
03:55Number 26, Barbarian
03:58There's no denying Barbarian's dark sense of humor,
04:00but its well-crafted scares still place it firmly in the horror category
04:04An Airbnb mix-up begins this sordid tale of decades-old secrets,
04:08and to say that travelers Tess and Keith are unprepared for what awaits them
04:11in their unexpectedly shared living arrangement is an understatement
04:19A series of narrative twists and turns keeps the characters, and viewers, on their toes,
04:24as the film slowly unravels the barbaric truth behind the Brightmoor home
04:28that the true monster is not the disfigured woman keeping people captive,
04:31but her relatively normal-looking father
04:33is just one of many brilliant subversions by this clever modern horror
04:38Number 25, Black Swan
04:53Darren Aronofsky was already a veteran director in Hollywood by the time 2010 came around,
04:57but he really made his mark in the horror world with Black Swan
05:01Exposing a more macabre side to the world of professional ballet,
05:04the film stars Natalie Portman as Nina Sayers,
05:07a young dancer with the New York City Ballet Company,
05:10who shoulders the immense pressure of playing the dual role of both the black and white swan
05:14in a production of Swan Lake
05:23As the stress of her position begins to chip away at Nina's mental health,
05:27she becomes a danger to herself and others
05:30It makes for an intoxicating and magical viewing experience,
05:33and an essential entry in 21st century horror
05:38Number 24, The Wailing
05:47As a South Korean horror film with a runtime approaching three hours,
05:51The Wailing may appear to be an intimidating watch to more casual moviegoers
05:55Fortunately, this supernatural horror is so intense and tightly written
05:59that you won't want to peel your eyes away
06:03It focuses on the spread of an infection
06:05that causes people to harm those around them indiscriminately
06:08Thought to be brought into Cook Sung by a demon taking the form of a Japanese man,
06:12the disease leads to mistrust among the community
06:15as a series of motiveless murders pile up
06:18At one point, an intense exorcism is even attempted to rid the protagonist's daughter
06:22of the supposed infection,
06:23but it cannot stop the unrelenting horror brought by the red-eyed demon
06:36Number 23, The Descent
06:46If you or any of your friends ever debated going spelunking into uncharted caves,
06:502005's The Descent should provide some much-needed discouragement
06:54Upon the journey into the abyss, things go horribly wrong
06:58It quickly becomes a struggle to survive against the abominations that are stalking them
07:06The Descent, as a title, can be interpreted both literally and as a descent into madness
07:16with plenty of gore, a claustrophobic setting,
07:19and more creepy crawlies than one's sanity can handle
07:21The fear of what lies beneath has since become a popular theme in horror,
07:25and we might have this British classic to thank for it
07:32Number 22, The Autopsy of Jane Doe
07:35It opens with a mystery
07:37Father-son coroners Tommy and Austin have been tasked with
07:40finding out what happened to create the horrific crime scene in the film's opening
07:48Their first autopsy is more graphic than one you'd see on a primetime crime show,
07:52but otherwise, fairly run-of-the-mill
07:54But when they start examining the Jane Doe, they begin to find anomalies
07:58Dread begins to set in as more and more interior injuries
08:01fail to match up with the condition of the corpse's body
08:05By the time Tommy and Austin realize something supernatural is afoot, it's already too late
08:10The film's horror concept is uniquely terrifying,
08:13and its open-ended final scene is sure to leave viewers on edge long after the credits roll
08:28In 2022, Tai West gave us two original horror films, X and Pearl
08:33Part of a film series also titled X, the movies had unique, well-rounded characters
08:38and aesthetics inspired by films of the past
08:40While there is some debate as to which entry comes out on top,
08:43we tend to prefer the technicolor terror that is Pearl
08:46Taking cues from the classic Hollywood era, particularly The Wizard of Oz,
08:50Pearl is a spine-chilling subversion of a visual style
08:53typically associated with screwball comedy and exaggerated melodrama
08:57You're not gonna leave me here! I'm not staying on this farm!
09:02And of course, the translation of Pearl from the murderous granny in X
09:06to a bright-eyed German immigrant with big dreams
09:08could not have been achieved without the trilogy's star, Mia Goth
09:12She absolutely kills it
09:14Seems like there's something missing in me that the rest of the world has
09:21College can be an important time of transition and self-discovery
09:24Unfortunately for Justine, her first week at veterinary school
09:28leads her to discover a taste for human flesh
09:36The main character of Raw, Justine initially struggles against her newfound craving
09:40before finally giving in to her desires in increasingly daring ways
09:43The movie depicts this descent in gory, grotesque detail
09:47that is certain to make even the most seasoned horror fans squirm in their seats
09:50The fact that Raw is the feature debut of its director, Giulio Di Corno,
09:54only makes its skin-crawling horror all the more impressive
09:58Following in the footsteps of David Cronenberg,
10:00Di Corno has brought back the body horror better than ever
10:08Let the right one in
10:21With Nordic noir thrillers on the rise, audiences were not surprised when John Ivedal Lindqvist,
10:28Sweden's answer to Stephen King, became an overnight sensation
10:32There was also no doubt that his screenplay, based on his own novel, was going to be a hit
10:37But it didn't only become a hit, it took the world by storm
10:40The big-screen adaptation of his atmospheric tale of a young boy who befriends a young vampire
10:45was an immense critical and box office success, winning plenty of awards
10:50and immediately greenlighting an American remake
10:52It plays less like a vampire movie and more like a snowy arctic fever dream,
10:56though it's still got plenty of horror elements as well
11:14Drag Me to Hell saw the long-awaited return of Sam Raimi to the genre that
11:18gave him his humble beginnings with Evil Dead
11:20The idea came from a script he had been working on with his brother Ivan throughout the decade,
11:25during which he was working on the Spider-Man trilogy
11:27This morality tale follows a young lone officer who regrettably refuses an extension for an old
11:32woman, who in turn puts a curse on her so that she'll be dragged to hell in three days
11:37The director more than delivers all the nasty fun you'd expect from him
11:49A Quiet Place
11:50If you've ever wondered how long you can hold your breath,
11:53try this 90-minute horror on for size
11:55While we don't advise doing this literally,
11:57it may be hard to stop yourself as the palpable tension builds in A Quiet Place
12:01In lieu of much-spoken dialogue, this film relies on a thrilling score
12:05and expert sound design to build its apocalyptic world
12:08This is because the film's nameless alien antagonists
12:11use super-hearing as their primary means of finding prey
12:19While some films of this nature may have relied on the written word for communication between
12:23characters, A Quiet Place is notable for casting a deaf actress in a leading role
12:28and teaching its hearing cast to appear fluent in American Sign Language
12:39Number 16 The Witch
12:41What is thou like to live deliciously?
12:44Robert Eggers' slow-burn horror might not be for everyone,
12:47but for those in tune with his dark aesthetic and sinister sensibilities,
12:50it's nothing short of a masterpiece
12:52Set in 1600s New England, The Witch focuses on an exiled family
12:56who become the victims of a series of devastating misfortunes,
13:00beginning with the death of their newborn child
13:02Though it's hard to believe given the plethora of top-notch performances
13:05she's delivered afterwards,
13:06the film also starred Anya Taylor-Joy in her feature film debut
13:10as the family's daughter, Thomasson
13:18Eggers would later go on to highlight the talents of Willem Dafoe
13:22and Robert Pattinson in the tense psychological thriller The Lighthouse
13:35Horror reboots can be extremely hit-or-miss, and most suck
13:39But some, like Evil Dead,
13:41managed to successfully bring the story and characters to modern audiences
13:45While the first Evil Dead delivered some genuine scares in 1981,
13:48this reboot completely does away with the original sense of humor
13:52as it is interested solely in scaring and revolting its audience
13:56It's not gonna stop until he has you
13:59Until he has all of you!
14:13Telling the story of a detox trip gone wrong,
14:15this brutally terrifying film will have you thinking twice
14:18about reciting random incantations from books found in mysterious cabins,
14:22if you were ever thinking about it
14:24Seriously though, even for horror fans,
14:26Evil Dead is not for the faint of heart
14:39Dracula, Frankenstein, and the Wolfman
14:42are among Universal's more recognizable classic monsters
14:45Typically, the Invisible Man doesn't get nearly as much love from the studio
14:49So it was interesting to see his story updated for a more contemporary crowd
14:53Unlike the 1933 film,
14:552020's The Invisible Man does not cast its titular character as the protagonist,
14:59opting instead to follow the deteriorating mental state of a woman who is terrorized by him
15:04This radical perspective change
15:06allows for the movie to act as a metaphor for the horrifying reality of abuse
15:10and its traumatizing effects
15:11It's a whole new layer of depth
15:13to a once simplistic story of a man corrupted by power
15:16There you are
15:24For her first feature-length film,
15:26Anna Lily Amarpour invites audiences into an enchanting black and white world
15:30that plays with societal ideas about vampires and womanhood
15:34Its small crowdfunded budget forced Amarpour to be creative in the film's construction,
15:38but didn't hinder its stylish visuals or strong feminist themes
15:47She even shot the Iranian-set film in California to avoid any censorship of its content,
15:52which includes controversial subjects like sex work, drug use, and generational trauma
15:58An eerie atmosphere haunts every moment of this slow-paced horror,
16:01adding a healthy dose of fear to its significant social messaging
16:16In death, there are no accidents, no coincidences, no mishaps, and no escapes
16:23Amidst the slasher craze of the 2000s,
16:25New Line Cinema took it one step further and turned Death himself into the antagonist
16:30Based on an abandoned X-Files script idea,
16:33the twisted story follows a group of teens that narrowly escapes a fatal plane explosion
16:38Well, Death is feeling cheated,
16:39and the film's story is about a young girl who is trapped in a world full of nightmares
16:44Well, Death is feeling cheated,
16:46and decides to kill them off anyway in bizarre Rube Goldberg-like ways
16:50With a villain you never see,
16:52a cruel moral to the story of never being able to escape death,
16:55and some of the most creative cinematic kills,
16:57this box-office smash gets major props from the horror community
17:01I told you you were next!
17:02Number 11, The Babadook
17:04Whether or not you see The Babadook's titular antagonist
17:07as a metaphor for grief or depression, or both,
17:10there's no denying its extraordinary take on the horror genre
17:13Notably, it is a film that is as sympathetic as it is scary,
17:16a breath of fresh air in a sea of genre films
17:19eager to undermine their mentally unstable heroes
17:21The Babadook is the first film in the franchise to feature a horror-themed film
17:25A breath of fresh air in a sea of genre films
17:28eager to undermine their mentally unstable heroes
17:30This makes it stand out from the crowd of not only its predecessors,
17:33but those who attempted to mirror its success with similarly analogous monsters
17:44The delivery of the fearsome Babadook's background is equally inspired,
17:47as the audience is introduced to his mythology
17:49through the unsettling illustrations in a children's story
17:56Number 10, The Ring
18:13During a decade that was drowning in terrible American remakes,
18:16this gem easily stood out, mostly because of the talent behind it
18:20With the brilliant director who'd be behind the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise,
18:23and future Oscar-nominated Naomi Watson lead role,
18:26you had a surefire hit
18:28A psychological horror flick about a vengeful ghost
18:30who uses a videotape to kill her victims,
18:33this is a movie that took everything that was already great about the original
18:37and built upon it
18:38More backstory, more human emotion, and more deadly thrills
18:42In terms of influence,
18:43few films have had as pronounced effect on the horror genre as The Ring
18:53Number 9, It Follows
18:58Having sex in a horror film is a recipe for disaster
19:01In Scream, Randy even lists it as the first of three rules to surviving a horror movie
19:12It Follows takes the trope up a notch,
19:14giving its characters the ability to pass their nightmarish stalkers on like STDs
19:19Understandably opposed to transferring her fate over to an unsuspecting victim,
19:23Jade does everything in her power to try and kill off her ever-changing followers
19:26without hurting anyone else
19:34Her quest plays out like a bad dream that's impossible to wake up from,
19:37complete with an unclear sense of time and space
19:40We'd hate to be a part of it,
19:41but we'd be lying if we said we didn't want one of those shell phones
19:45Number 8, The Cabin in the Woods
19:53What have you been up to?
19:55Yes, this film at times feels more comedic than overtly horrific,
19:59but we like to remind you that it's still got some solid scary moments
20:03What really earns this movie a spot on this list, however,
20:05is how deftly it manages to subvert expectations
20:08And really, isn't that the hallmark of a great horror film?
20:11The Cabin in the Woods initially comes across like any old supernatural or slasher teen horror flick,
20:16but below this so-called cabin lies an elaborate government conspiracy,
20:20one that makes the whole thing not only feel like a brilliant love letter to the horror genre,
20:24but a few dozen different movies fighting one another for screen time
20:27It's chaotic, brilliantly crafted, and just a whole lot of fun
20:39Number 7, Saw
20:46The one that started it all
20:48The complex puzzle and mystery behind these two men stuck in a room with a dead body
20:53plays out more like a demented Samuel Beckett play
20:56Still, there are tons of cringe-worthy moments,
20:58from a brilliant script that keeps you guessing,
21:00to a jaw-dropping ending you will never forget
21:03Saw's legacy is basically as big as it gets
21:06You're probably wondering where you are
21:08I'll tell you where you might be
21:11You might be in the room that you die in
21:13Number 6, It
21:15Unless you've been living in the sewers this past decade,
21:17you're likely aware of this 2017 Stephen King adaptation
21:20Upon release, the film held the record for the R-rated film with the biggest theatrical opening,
21:25boasting over $200 million in profits
21:28While some of the success can be attributed to the movie's extensive marketing campaign,
21:32it also must be said that it's just that good
21:45Bill Skarsgård brilliantly brought to life Pennywise,
21:49striking fear into a new generation with updated scares and a whole new look
21:53While the teen actors helped carry the film's necessary emotional weight,
21:56along with Skarsgård, Sophia Lillis received the brunt of the film's praise,
22:00including several individual award nominations
22:02This is what it wants
22:04It wants to divide us
22:08We were all together when we heard it
22:11That's why we're still alive
22:14Number 5, 28 Days Later
22:16It was the blood
22:18There was something in the blood
22:22By the time they tried to evacuate the city, it was already too late
22:26Like Stanley Kubrick before him,
22:27Danny Boyle is the kind of prolific director that likes playing with different genres
22:31After the major successes of Trainspotting and The Beach,
22:34he set his eyes on horror, and boy did he leave his mark
22:38A different take on the zombie film, 28 Days Later,
22:41is an apocalyptic contagion masterpiece with a brilliant narrative,
22:44haunting opening sequence,
22:46and devastating scenarios featuring the breakthrough performance of a young Cillian Murphy
22:50While the virus in question is turning people into violent mutating creatures,
22:54it turns us into a blubbering mess behind the couch
22:58I was longer than a heartbeat
23:03Jim?
23:09Number 4, The Conjuring
23:11Well, honey, I'm pretty sure that it was just a bad dream
23:14No, no, it talked to me
23:18It said that it wants my family dead
23:23After unleashing not one, but two major horror franchises upon the world with Saw and Insidious,
23:29filmmaker James Wan delivered one of the greatest Haunted House films in years
23:34Unlike most of the movies on our list,
23:36The Conjuring doesn't necessarily feel like it pushes the boundaries of the genre
23:39In fact, it's decidedly old school
23:41What makes it so worthwhile, however, is its attention to detail
23:44This dark entity has latched itself to your family, and it's feeding off you
23:49It's an incredibly well-crafted and expertly paced film
23:52with well-developed characters that we really care about
23:55Wan's knack for building tension and breaking it with terrifying scares
23:59is a testament to his horror movie experience
24:01In short, it's the perfect supernatural horror film,
24:04one with superb scares and a whole lot of replay value
24:07You're not a priest
24:08Well, you got a better idea
24:10You can do it
24:12You can do it
24:13You've got to get out of here
24:14I'm not leaving you
24:15Damn it, Lorena, I'm not doing this with you in here
24:18Number three, Wreck
24:26We're starting to see a pattern
24:27Take an established theme, put in some very talented hands,
24:30and watch something refreshing come to life
24:33Rising Spanish horror directors Paco Plaza and Jaume Barragá-Ró
24:37brought the found footage style to a zombie virus outbreak
24:40and gave the world this dizzying rollercoaster ride
24:43in which we trail a news crew that has been following the fire department
24:46It all seems like a boring night
24:47until they're locked up in a tenement building
24:49where the residents are starting to get a little violent and, well, a little undead
24:54For its influence and legacy in the found footage subgenre,
24:57Wreck takes our number three spot
25:08Number two, Get Out
25:15After establishing himself as an actor and comedian,
25:18Jordan Peele made a surprising career turn with Get Out
25:21Beginning as a darkly comedic psychological thriller,
25:23the film's biggest antagonist initially appears to be racism
25:27This is, of course, still the case by the film's end
25:29but its shocking last act twist really brings the terror to a whole new level
25:33With an instantly gripping script and stellar performances,
25:37it should come as no surprise that Get Out became one of the few horror films
25:40to be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars
25:43Peele would follow this success up with the equally impressive Us and Nope
25:47becoming one of the decade's best and most consistent horror directors
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26:13Number one, Hereditary
26:25Annie is not okay
26:27Following a sudden death in the family,
26:28the grieving mother begins lashing out at her son Peter
26:31and turning to supernatural means to communicate with the one she lost
26:35The already horrific situation ramps up in intensity,
26:38culminating in a climax that still gives us nightmares
26:41The film's uniquely volatile portrayal of generational trauma
26:44was a smash hit for indie studio A24
26:47and even heralded by one critic as the scariest movie of 2018
26:55Director Ari Aster's follow-up folk horror, Midsommar,
26:58took things up a notch in the shock department
27:00but Hereditary remains his masterpiece
27:02and the gold standard for all horror films that follow in the next decade
27:06What horror movie releases are you most looking forward to?
27:09Let us know in the comments
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