Ultimate List of Classic Horror Movies Every Fan Must See At Least Once

Directed by horror film legend Alfred Hitchcock, Psycho is one of the most iconic horror films in history—and its infamous shower scene terrorized a generation of movie-goers. Norman Bates is a disturbed motel owner who lives with his overbearing mother in the house behind i. The problem is, “Mother” won’t stop killing the female hotel guests who get too close to her precious boy.

In the town of Bodega Bay, California, citizens begin to experience random and violent bird attacks. While this could also be considered a creature feature, the psychological tension created by the film's mood is unmatched. This film is another Hitchcock classic.

Released in 1960, this aesthetic French horror film is a twisted treat for the eyes—even if it will disturb you. Dr. Génessier is a plastic surgeon who accidentally disfigures his daughter disfigured—forcing her to wear a mask. Determined to make up for the trauma he inflicted upon his daughter, Génessier kidnaps women and slices them up—with the hope that he’ll be able to graft their surgically removed features onto his daughter’s face. 

Based on the classic novel of the same name by Bram Stoker, this film follows Transylvanian vampire Dracula (Bela Lugosi), who turns the locals of an English town into his unwitting victims.

Teenager Charley Brewster (William Ragsdale) makes the terrifying discovery that his new neighbor, Jerry Dandrige (Chris Sarandon), is a nefarious vampire. To protect all he holds dear, Charley teams up with washed-up horror actor Peter Vincent (Roddy McDowall).

When a family moves to the California town of Santa Carla, the teenage brothers get pulled into a world of trouble. As the older Michael (Jason Patric) gets mixed up with a dangerous gang of vampires led by David (Kiefer Sutherland), the younger Sam (Corey Haim) teams up with the Frog brothers (Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander) who claim to be vampire hunters.

An epic tale based on the novel of the same name by Anne Rice, this film follows centuries-old vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac (Brad Pitt) as he recounts the many years of his tortured life, encompassing his transformation and betrayal at the hands of seductive aristocrat Lestat de Lioncourt (Tom Cruise).

One of the more recent films on this list of must-watch classics, this 2007 flick takes place in Barrow, Alaska during its annual 30 days of polar night. Plunged into unending darkness, the townspeople are terrorized by a vicious gang of vampires.

When Larry Talbot (Lon Chaney Jr.) returns to his family's home in Wales, his connection with a beautiful woman is darkened by a werewolf bite. Unable to control himself, he becomes the target of the townspeople's deadly hunt.

When two American college students go on a tour of Britain, a werewolf attack leaves them forever changed. As one of the young men feels pulled between two worlds, the locals refuse to admit the existence of this brutal creature.

After a disturbing experience with a serial killer, newswoman Karen White (Dee Wallace) heads off to a secluded retreat to emotionally recover. Unfortunately for her, the eerie townspeople are not quite what they seem.

Macabre sisters Brigitte (Emily Perkins) and Ginger (Katharine Isabelle) are outcasts in their quaint suburban town—until Ginger is bitten by a creature in the woods, and begins a transition that is deadly for everyone around her.

When a family travelling to California gets in a car accident, they find themselves stranded in an Air Testing desert closed to the public. But they’re not alone—they’re being hunted by a family of crazed cannibals.

When writer Jennifer Hills (Camille Keaton) leaves the big city to isolate herself in a cabin to work, she finds herself helpless as she’s brutalized by a group of sadistic men. Left for dead, Jennifer gathers herself to set out on a mission of violent revenge.

Based on the Stephen King novel of the same name, successful author Paul Sheldon (James Caan) finds himself in a precarious situation after a car wreck lands him in the care of Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates). Annie demands that, as he recovers, he write a new book that brings her favorite character back to life—or else.

Young FBI cadet Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) must work with a conniving cannibal, Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins), to catch another serial killer who skins his victims.

Written by Steven Spielberg, this film follows a family’s attack by malevolent ghosts in their suburban home. The ultimate nightmare—ghosts that can cause physical damage.

A Stanley Kubrick classic, The Shining is the adaptation of the Stephen King’s novel by the same name (although King notoriously wasn’t thrilled with the adaptation itself.) Still, this film is an iconic classic. The notorious Stanley hotel, the twins in the bloody hallway, the ghosts in the bar, Jack’s descent into madness. It may not be a true representation of the source material but it’s become a classic in its own right.

This is the American version of Ringu (1998)—and frankly, both versions are worth the watch. I was a teenager when I first saw this movie in the theater—and the ghost of the dead girl crawling out of the television is a visual I will never forget.

Just because a film is a classic, doesn’t mean it is without its problems. In fact, plenty of old staples are rife with outdated social norms, which lend themselves to being wildly offensive in today’s social landscape—even if the initial intention was to be the opposite. The racism in this 1943 film is no exception, despite its mark on cinematic history.

Canadian nurse Betsy Connell (Frances Dee) arrives on a Caribbean island to care for the catatonic wife of a sugar plantation owner, Paul Holland (Tom Conway). As Betsy becomes entangled in Paul’s complicated life, she seeks out voodoo practices to heal his broken wife.

This pivotal classic from director George Romero follows a mismatched group of people holed up in a farmhouse as the dead begin to rise. As the flesh-eaters descend, the tension amidst the group threatens their chances of survival.

Four weeks after a dangerous virus is released from an animal testing lab, a man wakes up from a coma alone. London is deserted, fallen to the savage infected, and he and the few survivors must fight for what remains of their life.

Based on the ultimate classic novel of the same name by Mary Shelley, this film follows the hubris of Doctor Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) as he attempts to discover the secret behind creating life. Cobbling a monster together out of dead parts, he succeeds—but his creation is not fit for the harsh world of the living.

Deep in the jungle of the Amazon, a gilled, prehistoric man lives within the Black Lagoon. But as scientists attempt to capture this ancient creature to study him, the beast falls in love with a woman named Kay (Julie Adams).

After receiving a strange transmission, the crew of a commercial spacecraft must investigate a disturbance on a distant moon. What they encounter there is a horrifying creature far more dangerous than they could ever imagine.

Isolated in a research station in Antarctica in the dead of winter, an American research team stumbles across what appears to be an alien life form. Terror unfolds as the life form begins to hunt them—shapeshifting into the form of their allies.

While technically released as a two-part miniseries, this three-hour adaptation of the Stephen King novel of the same name can easily be viewed in one sitting. In the 60s, seven young teenage outcasts face off against an otherworldly child-eating clown. Three decades later, they must reunite as adults to stop him once and for all.

Related: Top 10 Stephen King Adaptations in the Last 20 Years

The original summer blockbuster, Jaws tells the story of the town of Amity Island as it is terrorized by a murderous shark. After local politicians refuse to close the beaches, police chief Martin Brody (Roy Schneider) enlists the help of a marine biologist and a professional shark hunter to hunt down the creature. 

The Fireflys are a tight-knit family that preys upon innocent travelers for their depraved rituals. Some of their victims’ bodies are sculpted into grotesque art while others are otherwise mutilated.

A David Cronenburg classic, this film explores the horror of bodily transformation. After a teleportation science experiment goes wrong, Dr. Seth Brundle’s DNA is accidentally fused with the DNA of a fly and slowly morphs over the course of the film into a 185-pound fly—to the great despair of both himself and his girlfriend. A body horror masterpiece.

Three young aspiring filmmakers head in the woods with camcorders, hoping to film a documentary about a local legend known as the Blair Witch. At the time it came out, most people hadn’t seen anything like it. The low-budget style of the footage led many people to wonder if it was an actual documentary.

This mockumentary-style film follows a family (mother, father, and son) trying to process the death of their daughter/sister. Their pain is palpable, as well as their longing to understand what happened. As the documentary progresses, strange phenomena are recorded in the house…and the family begins to wonder if they’re being haunted by more than grief.

A family experiencing bizarre supernatural experiences in their home sets up video cameras to capture what’s going on. You’ll never look at a baby monitor the same way again.

Short for “record,” Rec is a Spanish found-footage film that follows firefighters answering an emergency call. Things go downhill quickly when an infection begins to spread…

As Rosemary Woodhouse (Mia Farrow) prepares for the arrival of her baby, she is helped by her neighbors, the eccentric Castavets. But as her due date gets closer, strange and horrific events begin to occur that lead Rosemary to suspect that everyone around her knows something about her baby that she doesn’t. 

On Halloween night, a group of high school students have a party at an abandoned and supposedly cursed funeral home. But after a séance goes wrong, they release a demon that begins possessing them one by one. 

High schooler Carrie White (Sissy Spacek) spends her days being bullied by her fellow students and her nights being tormented by her religious fanatic mother. When she discovers that she has telekinetic powers, Carrie eventually decides to take her revenge. 

American student Suzy Bannion (Jessica Harper) arrives at a prestigious dance school in Germany hoping to make something of herself as a ballerina. Instead, she discovers that the school is hiding an evil occult presence. 

When young Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair) begins acting strange and violent, a local priest, Damien Karras (Jason Miller) believes she has been possessed by a demon. Once he gets permission from the church, Karras and the more experienced Father Merrin (Max von Sydow) attempt to perform an exorcism to save Regan. 

After an attempted exorcism resulted in Emily Rose’s (Jennifer Carpenter) death, Father Richard Moore (Tom Wilkinson) is put on trial for her death. As the trial plays out, Father Moore is forced to relive the events of that terrible night. 

After recently divorced socialite Norah Benson’s (Shirley MacLaine) brother Joel (Perry King) returns to New York from a trip, he seems to lose his grip on reality, attacking a man and being sent to a mental institution. As Norah investigates, she begins to suspect that Joel has been possessed by the spirit of a serial killer. 

When a group of college friends discovers an ancient Sumerian text hidden in the remote cabin they’re vacationing in, they unknowingly release a demon who quickly begins possessing them one by one. The one unharmed is Ash Williams (Bruce Campbell), who now must do battle with the forces of evil just to stay alive. 

Based on the Shirley Jackson classic The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting follows a group of people who move into the mysterious Hill House to investigate claims of the paranormal. But is the house really haunted, or are the ghosts of their respective pasts catching up with them? 

One year after 112 Ocean Avenue becomes the site of a horrific murder, the Lutz family moves in. But almost as soon as they arrive, they begin to suspect that the house is haunted by a deeply evil presence. 

When a child goes missing, conservative police Sergeant Neil Howie (Edward Woodward) travels to a remote island to investigate. There he finds that the residents have developed a sexually charged cult centered around old Celtic gods, but that turns out to be far from the most disturbing thing he will uncover. 

During the English Civil War, Matthew Hopkins (Vincent Price) uses his position as the Witchfinder General to spread terror throughout the English countryside as he brutalizes suspected witches until they confess. After Hopkins’ assistant assaults his wife and Hopkins himself executes her uncle, soldier Richard Marshall (Ian Oglivy) vows revenge. 

While researching for her graduate thesis on urban legends, Helen Lyle (Virginia Madsen) learns about the story of the Candyman, who, if anyone says his name five times in front of a mirror, will appear to kill them. As a series of murders rocks the area, Helen comes face-to-face with a legend that is all too real. 

Ever since the summer young Jason Vorhees drowned, Camp Crystal Lake has had a troubled history. Now, as a group of counselors works to reopen the camp, someone begins killing them off one by one. 

One year after her mother was horrifically murdered, Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) finds herself being stalked by a killer. At a party thrown by her horror-movie obsessed friends, she will have to face her deepest fears. 

When Sally Hardesty (Marilyn Burns), her brother, and their friends go to visit her old family homestead, they stumble upon a family of murderous cannibals. As the imposing and mute Leatherface begins to hunt them down, it seems like there is no escape. 

Years ago, six year old Michael Meyers murdered his older sister on Halloween night. Now, he has escaped and returned to his hometown, where he has his sights set on teenager Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) and her friends. 

A group of teenagers are terrorized by Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund), a vengeful spirit who chases them in their dreams. If he kills them in the dream, they die in real life. 

While a group of sorority sisters enjoy their annual Christmas party, a mysterious man starts making threatening phone calls to them. As several sisters go missing over the course of the next few days, it's a race against time to track down the killer.