36 of the Best Slasher Movies Every Horror Fan Should See at Least Once
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The horror movie genre takes many forms, but one of the most well-known subcategories is the slasher film. The premise of a slasher film is pretty straightforward. It involves people in a somewhat confined setting who are being stalked by an unknown assailant or entity. The kills tend to be over-the-top with next-level gore compared to your average horror film.
Slashers require two major things, according to Paste Magazine: the villains need to be somewhat human (aka not a Xenomorph from the Alien franchise or a werewolf) and there needs to be a body count. One-and-done kills don't cut it — pun intended — in the slasher world.
If this sounds like your speed of scary, there are plenty of horror movies to fall in love with, including some classics from the '80s and '90s. So, if you're in the mood to be scared out of your wits, we've compiled a list of the best, must-see slasher movies spanning seven decades.
For folks looking for less of a scare, there are still plenty of options for your ~spooky~ movie-watching mood. Check out both our lists of funny and non-scary horror films.
Scream (1996)
If you've never seen a slasher film and are looking to dip your toe into the genre, this quintessential movie is the perfect place to start. There are currently six films in the franchise, with the latest one having premiered in March 2023. All of them are amazing in their own special way, but the first one really sets the tone for the series.
A masked killer is stalking the fictional town of Woodsboro, and one teen girl, Sydney (Neve Campbell), seems to be at the heart of the mayhem. The opening scene alone will leave you shook.
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The Blackening (2023)
The Blackening turns the slasher genre on its head. It follows a group of old friends who decide to get together at a remote cabin over Juneteenth weekend to catch up and relax. But when they realize there's a crazed killer in the house with them who is forcing them to play sick games, they decide to fight back.
This horror-comedy spoofs several slasher tropes, including one about Black people in horror movies always being the first to die.
MORE: The Best New Horror Movies to Watch in 2023
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X (2022)
If you thought Jenna Ortega was brilliant in the fifth and sixth installments of the Scream franchise, you're going to love her in this slasher.
X takes place in 1979 and follows a group of people who stay at a secluded farmhouse to secretly make a pornographic film. However, once their elderly hosts find out what they're doing, things go from weird to WTF very quickly.
A prequel to X, called Pearl, also came out in 2022. Plus, there's going to be a sequel to X in the near future, titled MaXXXine.
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Fear Street Trilogy (2021)
This three-part movie series is adapted from R.L. Stine's beloved teen horror series of the same name. Set in different time periods, these movies are about a group of friends who work to get to the bottom of all the brutal murders that have plagued their town for centuries.
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School Spirit (2019)
Technically, this is a TV episode for Hulu's Into the Dark horror series, where every episode is centered around a holiday or major event, such as "back to school." However, this is the length of a movie, so we're including it on our list.
No connection to Peyton List's School Spirits Paramount+ show, School Spirit is like Scream meets The Breakfast Club. Starring Corey Fogelmanis, this horror film follows a group of misfits who end up in detention together, only to slowly start dying one by one.
"It’s weird. I was a fan of Into the Dark before I was on it," Corey told Seventeen in 2019. "So, when the possibility of me being on it came about, I was like really excited because I think it’s super out of the box and I feel like they’re taking cool, weird risks with the stories that they’re telling, so I was excited about it."
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Hell Fest (2018)
A night at a horror-themed amusement park turns into a bloodbath when a serial killer begins killing off the guests. Unfortunately, no one seems to realize the deaths aren't part of the theme park's show.
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Happy Death Day (2017)
Think of this movie like a horror version of Groundhog Day. Trapped in a time loop, college student Tree (Jessica Rothe) must relive the day of her murder on repeat until she can uncover who her killer really is.
A sequel, Happy Death Day 2U, premiered in 2019.
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Terrifier (2016)
Pennywise the Dancing Clown from the IT movies was incredibly scary, but wait until you meet Art the Clown. He doesn't talk and he does not show mercy to anyone unlucky enough to cross paths with him on Halloween night. Art's rampage is extremely gory but it's also campy fun.
In October 2022, the long-awaited sequel, Terrifier 2, premiered in theaters. It's a box-office success and made over $5 million on a $250,000 budget. (However, if you are squeamish, this probably isn't the movie for you. Many people have reportedly fainted and/or thrown up while watching the movie.)
In June 2023, Variety shared Terrifier 3 was happening and writer/director Damien Leone said he plans to "top" the first two movies' goriest scenes.
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It Follows (2014)
After having sex with a guy, Jay (Maika Monroe) quickly learns he passed on a type of disease to her — one that will eventually kill her unless she sleeps with someone new. If she doesn't, an entity that can take the shape of any human will follow her and ultimately kill her.
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The Town That Dreaded Sundown (2014)
While you should definitely watch the original 1976 film of the same name, this "meta-sequel" is certainly worth your time.
Loosely based on a true story about a killer in Texas who murdered people in 1946, the 2014 film takes place 65 years after the original killings. Now, more people are being murdered. Is it a copycat or the OG serial killer returning for more bloodshed?
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Creep (2014)
Josef (Mark Duplass), a man with terminal brain cancer, hires a videographer to film a video diary for Josef's unborn son. Soon, things take a strange, dark turn.
This is a different type of slasher film than the others on this list, both because it's a two-person cast and a found footage movie.
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The Cabin in the Woods (2012)
The initial plot of this movie is typical for a slasher: Teens go into the woods for a night of drinking and sex, only to be attacked by an unknown assailant. However, if you think you know where this movie is going, you're already on the wrong track.
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You're Next (2011)
Meeting your S.O.'s family is never easy, but it's really tough when family members start dying at the hands of some crazed killers wearing spooky animal masks. Luckily for Erin (Sharni Vinson), she knows how to fight back.
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Cry_Wolf (2005)
Don't sleep on this movie! Watch a young Pretty Little Liars' alum Julian Morris and Supernatural's Jared Padalecki star as bored boarding school students who, along with their friends, create a fake serial killer to prank their classmates. However, when an actual killer arrives on campus, the pranksters realize telling lies can get you into serious trouble.
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House of Wax (2005)
The year 2005 was a big one for Jared Padalecki. Besides Cry_Wolf, he also starred in this loose remake of the 1953 movie of the same name.
When a bunch of college friends accidentally end up in a ghost town on their way to a football game, they soon realize not everyone in the area has abandoned it: A creepy wax museum is still mysteriously up and running.
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Urban Legend (1998)
Ghost stories come to life in this '90s slasher about a college campus that's overrun with gruesome deaths that a serial killer has modeled off of urban legends.
If you can't get enough of spooky stories coming to life, there are two other films in this trilogy: Urban Legends: Final Cut and Urban Legends: Bloody Mary.
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I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997)
Based on the 1973 novel of the same name by Lois Duncan, this classic '90s horror movie follows four teens who accidentally kill someone and hide all the evidence. A year later, they start getting notes from someone who knows their dark secret.
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Candyman (1992)
Not to be confused with the 2021 sequel co-written by Jordan Peele, also called Candyman, this film is the reason your friend refuses to say a certain name five times in the bathroom mirror.
A grad student studying urban legends uncovers way more than she bargained for when she looks into the mysterious case of the Candyman, a vengeful spirit with a hook for a hand who the locals believe is murdering people at the Cabrini–Green Homes public housing project.
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Child's Play (1988)
Dolls are all fun and games until one of them gets possessed by the soul of a serial killer and goes on a rampage. You know about Chucky Finster from Rugrats, now meet Chucky from the Child's Play franchise.
There are so many movies in this popular franchise, as well as a TV show called Chucky that is perfect for fans of the killer doll saga.
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Hellraiser (1987)
In October 2022, Hulu released a new film in the Hellraiser franchise — appropriately called Hellraiser — but the OG should be your first film to watch.
If you ever come across a golden puzzle box, BEWARE! Trying to solve it could unleash the Cenobites, aka beings who don't seem to know the difference between pain and pleasure.
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Chopping Mall (1986)
This slasher film is more technology-focused than others on this list. When a gaggle of mall employees stays in the building after hours for a party, they soon become trapped and hunted by the mall's malfunctioning robot security system.
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Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984)
Meet your new Christmas movie-watching tradition! One Christmas Eve, after a brutal attack by a man dressed as Santa Claus that leaves little Billy orphaned, he becomes terrified of Jolly Old St. Nick.
Fast-forward several years, the now 18-year-old Billy (Robert Brian Wilson) puts on a Santa Claus costume on Christmas Eve and starts murdering "naughty" people.
Unsurprisingly, this film received a ton of backlash when it was released from angry parents upset by an evil Santa.
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A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
What if every time you fell asleep, a severely burned figure with razor fingers named Freddy Krueger tried to murder you? How would you deal with that? Not well, most likely. That's what poor Nancy (Heather Langenkamp) endures in this classic Wes Craven film.
There are many sequels in this franchise, but Wes Craven's New Nightmare (1994) stands out amongst the rest. The film makes you question what is real and what isn't when actors from the first movie return to play fictional versions of themselves, and they soon become terrorized by Freddy Krueger.
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Sleepaway Camp (1983)
Do not Google anything about this movie before you watch it! The ending is so iconic and looking anything up about the film will immediately spoil it for you.
Years after her parents and brother are killed in a boating accident, Angela (Felissa Rose) and her cousin are sent to sleepaway camp for the summer. While there, someone starts murdering both the campers and the staff.
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Pieces (1982)
There's a killer on the loose in Boston who is targeting college students so he can make a human jigsaw puzzle from different victims' body parts.
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Bloody Birthday (1981)
Ten years after three kids were born during a total eclipse of the sun, they suddenly become killers who keep getting away with murder because of their age.
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The Burning (1981)
Somewhat similar to Friday the 13th, this slasher also takes place at a summer camp. After a camp caretaker is disfigured due to a prank backfiring, he begins stalking the camp, hellbent on getting his revenge.
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My Bloody Valentine (1981)
You've probably seen the 2009 remake starring Supernatural's Jensen Ackles, but you definitely need to check out the OG.
A town is forbidden from celebrating Valentine's Day due to an old folk tale about a vicious killer, but — unsurprisingly — people don't listen and celebrate the holiday anyway. They quickly learn the story was not just a legend when bodies start dropping.
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Friday the 13th (1980)
The ultimate camp horror movie, the first in the Friday the 13th series — which was filmed at an actual camp in New Jersey called Camp NoBeBoSco that you can tour today — introduced us to the legend of horror serial killer Jason Voorhees.
While setting up a camp that had previously been shut down due to mysterious deaths years before, the new camp counselors start being stalked and killed by an unknown figure.
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When a Stranger Calls (1979)
While the 2006 remake of the same name is fun, the original goes beyond the story of a babysitter receiving terrifying phone calls from inside the house.
Per IMDb, the 2006 film is "actually only a remake of the first 20 minutes" of the 1979 version. So, if you've seen the remake and think you know the whole story, you should definitely watch the original. You won't see the twists and turns coming.
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Tourist Trap (1979)
After a group of friends becomes stranded at a roadside museum, they're soon stalked by a masked figure who uses his supernatural abilities to control the tourist trap's mannequins. This movie is a bumpy, bizarre ride.
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Halloween (1978)
No slasher movie list is complete without the original Halloween. When Michael Myers is 6 years old, he brutally stabbed his sister to death on Halloween. Fifteen years later, he breaks out of a mental hospital and returns to his hometown to kill again. This time around, he's stalking and murdering babysitters.
Jamie Lee Curtis is the star of the film (and the franchise), playing Laurie. She recently squared off with Michael Myers again in the three-film sequel to the original movie: Halloween (2018), Halloween Kills (2021), and Halloween Ends (2022).
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The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
While driving in rural Texas to visit a grave, five friends encounter what looks to be a deserted house. Unfortunately for them, it's anything but, and they're stalked and murdered by a sadistic family. One member named Leatherface (Gunnar Hansen) wears a mask made out of human skin and wields a chain saw.
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Black Christmas (1974)
During Christmas break at a sorority house, several girls receive obscene and threatening phone calls from an unknown number. Soon after, the caller begins stalking and murdering them one by one.
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Psycho (1960)
This classic Alfred Hitchcock film tells the story of the mysterious Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), a man who runs the Bates Motel with his mother. On the run after embezzling money, Marion (Janet Leigh) skips town and hides out at the remote motel, only to quickly learn something is up with the place's peculiar staff.
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Peeping Tom (1960)
Along with Psycho, Peeping Tom is considered to be one of the first slashers. While Psycho is arguably well-known by both horror and non-horror fans alike, the same can't be said about Peeping Tom.
This British movie follows a serial killer who films his female victims' deaths, focusing on their terrified reactions to his carnage.
Interestingly, Peeping Tom gets a shout-out in Scream 4. When a character is asked by Ghostface to name the movie that started the "slasher craze," she answered with Psycho. Ghostface informed her it was actually Peeping Tom. It was the "first movie to ever put the audience in the killer's [point of view]." The more you know!
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