The Most Popular Horror Movie

1970: Count Dracula

This take on Bram Stoker's classic novel stars Christopher Lee as Dracula and is, comparatively, the least corny of the bunch.




1973: The Exorcist

If you see this movie even once, you will be scared for the rest of your life, and that's a fact. Linda Blair plays Regan MacNeil, a little girl who becomes possessed by the devil after playing with an Ouija board. Then she barfs on everyone and says nasty things about putting a cross in her coo-coo.




1974: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
There's so much to be afraid of in this movie: hitchhikers, gas stations, run-down towns, people who kill your friends and then make clothes out of their faces, etc. The grainy cinematography really adds to the chill factor.




1975: Jaws

When you hear that "dun-dun, dun-dun, dun-dun" sound (you know what I'm talking about), you know shit's about to get bloody.




1976: Carrie

Based on a novel by Stephen King, this tells the story of awkward, sheltered Carrie White, who uses her telekinetic abilities to get revenge on kids who make fun of her at school, as well as on her crazy mom. Even though she does kill a bunch of people with her mind, it's hard to not feel bad for Carrie in this.




1978: Halloween

An undeniable classic that pairs a constantly running and screaming Jamie Lee Curtis with a lurking creeper named Michael Myers. This movie set off the whole "Want to make something scary? Put a guy in a mask" trend.




1979: Alien

Rarely do you see strong female leads in horror movies, but this one has two — one human, and one alien. Sigourney Weaver kicks ass all over the place and manages to survive without having anything disgusting erupt out of her chest.




1980: The Shining

Only a few movies based on Stephen King books come anywhere close to being as good as the book itself (flashback to 1976's Carrie) but this is one of them. This has it all: elevators filled with blood, Shelley Duvall, ghost twins, and Jack Nicholson at his craziest.




1982: Poltergeist

You might think plenty of things are scarier than a little girl talking to ghosts in her television or an odd woman with a high-pitched voice investigating spirits in a haunted house, but there isn't. You know a movie is a classic when it has its own catch phrase: "They're heeeeeeeere."




1984: A Nightmare on Elm Street

This poses the question, "What would happen if the insane things that went down in your nightmares could actually harm you?" You know all those dreams you have about pooping in front of a crowd? Now think about whether you'd rather be eaten by an actual monster with a knife glove or have those poop dreams come true. If you think you prefer the poop dreams, you might want to move on to 1985.





1985: Fright Nigh

A kid who's obsessed with horror movies suspects his neighbors are up to something otherworldly. This is another classic take on vampires, but with sort of a punk-rock twist in the form of one of the coolest horror movie characters ever — Evil Ed.




1987: The Lost Boys

Is it still a horror movie if you would absolutely sleep with every single person in it? This classic about hot teen vampires in California ended up setting off a vampire/goth frenzy that I honestly hope will last forever.




1988: Child's Play

This movie about a doll that gets possessed and kills people is the absolute worst, but in the best possible way.




1989: Pet Sematary

Dead kids who come back to life and hide under your bed and slash at your ankles with a knife? Totally. This is another entry born from the twisted brain of Stephen King, and it's terribly amazing.




1991: The Silence of the Lambs

Based on one of the best horror novels ever written, this movie has major staying power. After seeing it just once, you'll be making "it rubs the lotion on its skin" jokes until the end of time. Also, Jodie Foster as a takes-no-sass FBI agent searching for a serial killer will give you life.




1992: Buffy the Vampire Slayer

A lot of much scarier movies came out this year — Candyman, Sleepwalkers, etc — but this one is the most notable because it's the movie that eventually launched the best (and I mean best) TV show ever produce




1994: Interview With the Vampire

There are a few good scares to be had in this film adaptation of Anne Rice's beloved book, but really, the scariest aspect is the casting of Tom Cruise as Lestat.




1995: Species

This movie about a sexy lady alien who's just trying to make some alien babies by sleeping with every human man she can find was very trendsetting.




1996: Scream

Talking on the telephone is so horrifying that they based a whole movie around it. Who among us doesn't scream in terror every time that thing rings?




1997: I Know What You Did Last Summer

This star-studded (for the time — hi, Freddie Prinze Jr. and Jennifer Love Hewitt!) film about a group of teens that vow to conceal a crime they accidentally committed is clever in ways you don't expect from what would otherwise be a formulaic slasher.




1998: The Faculty

This is a movie about figuring out that the DIY drug the hot boy in school sells can be used to kill teachers …who are aliens. Also, Clea DuVall is in it, and Clea DuVall in anything is a good sign.





1999: The Blair Witch Project

When this movie premiered in theaters, it was marketed more as an event than a film. No one had much of a clue as to what it was about, but reviews were coming back saying that people who saw advanced screenings were passing out in the aisles. If you can stand the shaky camera work (which is now very much a thing used to show that something is real) then this found-footage pioneer is something you shouldn't miss.




2000: American Psycho

Maybe you're like me and made the mistake of watching this with your parents, not knowing how much weird sex was in it. Or maybe you haven't seen it at all, in which case you're lucky to be able to watch this psycho-thriller for the very first time. It's disgusting and scary, but still a little funny at times. You also learn a lot about business cards and facial care.




2004: Saw

Who could have possibly guessed that when the first Saw movie came out in 2004, there would eventually be 829 more of them? They're still oddly unique though, this one especially.





2005: The Exorcism of Emily Rose

It's the terrifying story of a girl living on a sad farm with her parents, who gets possessed by the devil and turns into Dexter's sister.




2006: The Omen

This remake of the 1976 classic of the same name was released in theaters on June 6, 2006, which is literally a once-in-a-lifetime marketing scheme. But evil little kids will be scary no matter what year it is.




2007: Paranormal Activity

Continuing the general vibe started by The Blair Witch Project, this movie about a couple setting up cameras in their home to observe nightly ghost activities uses fake "reality" to make things more scary, and it works. Bonus points for quite literally the scariest ending of a movie ever — you'll wanna watch this with a friend.




2008: The Strangers

Staring Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman in roles you wouldn't really expect them to play, this amplifies the fear of home invasion to a maddening roar.




2009: Jennifer's Body

You've heard the expression "weird boner?" Well, this entire movie is weird boner- producing. Parts of it are really gross and really scary, but the majority of it is oddly arousing (in a questionable way). Maybe Megan Fox as a possessed, cannibalistic sex fiend just has that effect on movies.




2010: Black Swan

More of a creepy thriller than a horror movie, several truly terrifying things take place here that revolve around peeled finger skin and Winona Ryder being crazy.




2011: The Human Centipede

Truth be told, this is the only movie on this list I haven't seen. What that means is that I can happily watch any manner of hacking and running and screaming and bleeding, but will draw the line at people being forced to eat poop. Don't let that stop you though!