There are sooo many incredible Horror movies. It’s really hard to pick ten favorites. And my “10 Favorite Horror Movies” list changes a lot. I recently watched some movies that could be on this list one day.

Here are my favorite Horror movies, why they’re my favorites, and one screenwriting tip from each movie. You can use some of these tips for other genres. And SPOILER ALERT- the below contains spoilers about the films!!!

10- THE PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS

The People Under the Stairs is one of those Horror movies I can watch over and over again. The scenes and the Robesons are scary, but they’re also hilarious. My favorite things about the movie are Roach and the world he built inside the walls. Roach’s death hit me really hard when I first saw the movie.

Screenwriting Tip: The world Roach built inside the walls is a world within a world (the house). It’s interesting to watch a world inside another world. Think about using one in your script and show how the two worlds collide.

9- CUJO

The legendary Horror master Stephen King. Where would Horror be without him? The Shining, It, Pet Sematary, Misery, Carrie. They’re all incredible! I don’t see Cujo getting as much love though.

Cujo is a friendly St. Bernard who turns violent and attacks Donna Trenton and her young son Tad. There’s something scary about a friendly animal or person turning violent. I was so scared watching Cujo when I was young. I kept thinking “The dog’s gonna get in the car!” This movie is really intense!

Screenwriting Tip: If you’re trying to think of an antagonist for your script, have one of your friendly characters turn into a violent character. Later on in the script, you’ll have some juicy dilemma scenes, like will the main character kill the violent family member to save other characters?

8- FINAL DESTINATION

I remember being blown away by Final Destination. The opening scene in this movie is executed brilliantly. The villain is something the characters can’t see or escape, but what really sticks out in the movie are the unique kill scenes. The Final Destination franchise is unlike anything I’ve ever seen!

Screenwriting Tip: One way to get producers, directors, and actors interested in your script is by making the kill scenes unique. They’ve read and seen a lot of kill scenes, so you have to really think hard to come up with fresh ones. Really dig into your script’s concept to come up with the scenes.

7- GET OUT

Get Out is one of those unsettling movies that sticks with you. It’s not just the scares that make the movie unsettling. It’s also the real-life things that Jordan Peele shows in his movies, which can be scarier than Horror movies.

Jordan uses a lot of symbolism in Get Out, Us, and Nope, and I love it! I have to be really focused when I watch his movies so I don’t miss the deeper meaning of things.

Screenwriting Tip: Use symbolism to make your scripts more fun to read and more impactful. I add symbols when I outline and write scripts, but sometimes I add them during rewrites.

6- JAWS

Dun dun… Dun dun. Haha! This movie is phenomenal! From the directing to the story to the performances and more! Jaws has one of my favorite lines in movie history (“You're gonna need a bigger boat”). The scenes on the ocean feel so unsettling, and the music makes the scenes even more unsettling.

Screenwriting Tip: You don’t have to show the entire monster all the time in your script. Showing parts of the monster builds suspense for the audience, and it saves money during filming.

5- DAWN OF THE DEAD (2004)

George A. Romero is a legendary Horror master. I love watching movies where people from different backgrounds work together to survive. I saw Dawn of the Dead in theaters. It’s one of those films that’s better when you see it in theaters with other people.

The movie has this feeling of doom, and the outbreak scene near the start of the movie sets the stage for that feeling.

Screenwriting Tip: Add an “Oh, sh*t!” scene(s) in your script. I’ve read Horror scripts and seen Horror movies that don’t have “Oh, sh*t!” scenes. That scene can pull readers into the story and help you option your script, sell your script, or get a writing job.

4- A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET (1984)

Wes Craven is another legendary Horror master, and Freddy Krueger is a Horror icon! Freddy is the perfect balance between terror and comedy. The scariest thing about this movie is Freddy attacks people in their dreams. My favorite thing about this movie is Nancy Thompson fighting Freddy. She’s one of the top Final Girls in Horror history.

The “One, Two, Freddy’s Coming For You” song scared me as much as Freddy growing up! It’s so creepy!

Screenwriting Tip: Write a catchy, creepy song in your script. It could make your script scarier.

3- FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VI: JASON LIVES

Jason Lives is a Slasher Horror masterpiece! This movie is full of iconic scenes, like the scene when Jason Voorhees and Tommy Jarvis are fighting on the lake surrounded by fire. Jason is my favorite Horror icon hands down. He’s terrifying! And guess what? He becomes even scarier in Jason Lives when he gets supernatural powers!

Screenwriting Tip: Dramatic irony is when the audience knows something that a character doesn’t. The Friday the 13th franchise is full of dramatic irony, like in Jason Lives when Jason is inside the RV, but Cort Andrews doesn’t know. Dramatic irony can amp up the suspense and scares in your script.

Bonus Tip!: Jason Lives is the sixth movie in the franchise. The franchise could’ve got repetitive, but in my opinion, Jason getting supernatural powers kept it fresh. If you’re producing your third, fourth, etc. movie in a franchise, try adding something new to keep it fresh.

2- ALIENS

Aliens is my favorite movie in the Alien franchise, and the franchise is one of the best Horror franchises in history. Aliens has incredible scares, action, suspense, comedy, Ellen Ripley (one of the top Final Girls), the marines, and the iconic scene/line (the power loader fight scene where Ripley says, “Get away from her, you b*tch!”).

The Xenomorphs are horrifying! They can hurt you when you hurt them (their acidic blood). Genius!

Screenwriting Tip: The Xenomorphs’ acidic blood is one thing that separates them from other aliens. Give your alien, monster, etc. something unique that’ll separate it from other monsters.

1- THE THING (1982)

John Carpenter is one of my favorite directors and a legendary Horror master. He made masterpiece after masterpiece, but the Thing is his main masterpiece in my opinion. There’s so much I love about it. The location and weather, the cast, the alien life-form, practical effects, visuals, and more!

The things I love most about this movie are the characters not knowing who’s the Thing and the ending.

Screenwriting Tip: It’s great to get answers at the end of a movie, but you don’t always have to wrap up things at the end. Go with the ending that works best for the story.

Those are my favorite Horror movies! I’m sure there are a lot more tips screenwriters can learn from them. What’s your favorite Horror movie and why is it your favorite? If you’re not a Horror fan, what’s your favorite movie and why?

Let's hear your thoughts in the comments below!

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