1. Halloween (1978)

Category: cult classic horror slasher 

Halloween, the first installment in the Halloween franchise, follows the story of Laurie Strode, a high school student/babysitter, and Michael Myers, the killer. The film had several sequels and a reboot in 2007 directed by Rob Zombie, delving into the history of Michael Myers while still keeping the base plot of the original and the importance of Laurie Strode. The last movie in the Halloween franchise came out in 2009, called Halloween 2 and was directed by Rob Zombie. The movie has earned its place on this list for being an iconic horror film and it helps that it happens to be named after the holiday, Halloween.

2. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) 

Category: cult classic supernatural horror 

The first film directed by Wes Craven, follows student Nancy Thompson and her friends Glen, Tina, and Rod, who have been having strange dreams involving a killer with a burnt face stalking them in their nightmares. A Nightmare on Elm Street stemmed several sequels starring Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger and the original franchise tied in with the Friday the 13th franchise in 2003, with the film Freddy vs Jason. A Nightmare on Elm Street also earned a reboot in 2010 with Jackie Earle Haley playing Freddy Krueger. A Nightmare on Elm Street earned its place on this list for being such a famous supernatural horror film and delving into psychological horror, which is rare for films to successfully pull off.

3. Friday the 13th (1980) and Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)

Category: cult classic slasher horror  

 In the first film, the killer is Jason’s mother, Mrs. Voorhees. She kills Camp Crystal Lake counselors with Jason finally appearing in the second movie. From the second film on, Jason is the main killer and face of the Friday the 13th franchise. The original franchise stretched from 1980 to 2001, ending with Jason X and had a crossover film with the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise in 2003 called Freddy vs Jason. In 2009, the film earned a reboot starring Jared Padalecki and Danielle Panabaker with Derek Mears playing the famous killer, Jason. These movies have earned their place on this list for being popular horror films that still hold up even today.

4. Scream (1996)

Category:  slasher film

Scream centered around teen Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) and her friends as the Ghostface killer begins to pick off the townsfolk one by one. Scream added a new life to the horror genre by pushing the fourth wall and poking light fun at tropes used in horror movies, not to mention it was credited with revitalizing the horror genre in the 90s. The movie stemmed a four film franchise and a TV show on MTV by the same name. Scream quickly earned its place on this list for how praised it is as a movie and how it is both fun and scary.

5. The Blair Witch Project (1999)

Category:  found-footage horror

The Blair Witch Project received major positive reviews and became one of the most successful independent films of all time. The film follows three students trying to uncover the mystery of the local legend, the Blair Witch. The film tells the viewers that what they are watching is recovered footage and that the three students featured in the movie were never seen or heard from again, leading them to believe the movie is true. The Blair Witch Project helped to make found footage horror films popular. It also created its own franchise involving a sequel, books, novels, comic books, video games, and several mockumentaries. A third film is said to be in the works. The Blair Witch Project secured it’s place on this list for being a creative film that helped create a mold for future found footage horror films.

6. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Category: stop motion dark fantasy musical

This film produced and conceived by Tim Burton, follows Jack Skellington in the fictional setting of Halloween Town. Becoming bored of Halloween Town, Jack discovers a portal to Christmas Town and decides that, instead of Halloween, he will focus on making Christmas amazing. The movie has several iconic songs in the soundtrack and in 2006, a special edition soundtrack was released with covers of the original songs by popular artists such as Amy Lee, Flyleaf, Fall Out Boy, Marilyn Manson, and Panic! At the Disco. This movie earned its place on the list for being creative and having such memorable music that is remembered and loved by many.

7. Hocus Pocus (1993)

Category: cult classic comedy fantasy

This film begins during the Salem Witch trials, where three witch sisters (Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy) are hung…but not before one of them casts a resurrection spell that will ensure they live again when a virgin lights the black flame candle. Three hundred years later, teen Max Dennison does just that, bringing the sisters back to life on Halloween. Hocus Pocus has earned its place on this list for being a fun family friendly Halloween movie that adults and kids can enjoy.

8. Scooby-Doo! and the Witch’s Ghost (1999)

Category: cartoon

The film based on Scooby-Doo! cartoons, follows the Mystery Inc. gang, author Ben Ravencroft, and an all-female Gothic rock band called the “Hex Girls”. With mysterious witch sightings happening in the town of Oakhaven, the gang must solve the mystery and find the facts about this witch and her true history. This movie has secured its place on this list as it was and still is a popular cartoon and a nice family friendly movie to watch on Halloween.

9. It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966)

Category: Halloween special

The special follows the Peanuts gang during the Halloween season. Linus brings up the Great Pumpkin, swearing that it’s real. Charlie Brown doubts Linus, as does the rest of the gang, and decides to go enjoy the festivities instead of wait for the Great Pumpkin. The Great Pumpkin has earned its place on this list as the Peanuts specials have been loved and shared for generations.

10. Coraline (2009)

Category:  stop motion animated dark fantasy

This film based on a novel of the same name written by Neil Gaiman centers around Coraline Jones, an 11 year old displeased with the way her parents ignore her in favor of their work. In her new house, Coraline discovers a portal to another world, where she finds more caring and attentive duplicates of her parents. The Other World may seem magical, but not everything is what it seems and Coraline learns that the hard way. Coraline has secured its place on this list for pushing what it means to be a child friendly movie while still supplying a dark plot and scary scenes.