The first impression one gets from a film often comes from the poster; this is particularly true of films in the pre-internet era, where you would have a more challenging time finding trailers or review; ultimately relying on the thrills offered in the promotional material. The art of making an eye-catching poster still exists, and this is especially the case when it comes to the horror genre. Promising to frighten or shock you, horror movie posters employ all sorts of confrontational imagery, often accompanied by a catchy tagline to draw you in.
To list out the best horror movie posters, one could easily make a list in the hundreds, as each era has its own unique style and charms. We have whittled it down to twenty film posters that present the best in the horror genre.
20Sadako 3D (2012)
The infamous ghost from The Ring series returns, taking to the internet to find a new host so that she can live once again. This puts the vengeful spirit on the path with a high school teacher, Akane, who must fight against Sadako to protect herself and her boyfriend from the curse caused by watching a video of Sadako.
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Thecraze for 3D has come and gonea few times over, somewhat dating the “3D” part of the poster. Still, seeing Sadako reach out looks slick and terrifying on this poster, mimicking the coming out of the TV that made her such a horror icon. The simplicity of the black background also assures the image of the Japanese ghost stands out. Some alternatives for theSadako 3Dposter include showing some of the cast around the image of Sadako, and others changing the background. Still, this version is the best rendition as it focuses solely on the frightening ghostly image of Sadako.
Stream on Tubi
19TerrorVision (1986)
TerrorVision
Dripping 80s cheese and nostalgia, Ted Nicolaou’sTerrorVisionfollows a nuclear family, the Puttermans, as they step into modern society with a state-of-the-art TV satellite. However, the waves from the dish bring an alien force to Earth that is hungry for human flesh.
Something is unsettling about an eye protruding from a satellite dish in the semi-realistic artwork on the poster that instantly catches your attention. It also serves as a quick visual summary ofTerrorVision, which sees an evil alien entity being brought to Earth through satellite TV. For a campy80s horror flickthat flew under the radar for many, it certainly has a memorable poster.
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18The Lift
An elevator begins to function on its own, leading to the death of several residents and visitors of the building. A technician is tasked with fixing the lift, unaware of its sentient status. As he starts to work on it, he realizes there are greater forces at play and that fixing the elevator is not such a simple task.
We will not pretend thatThe Liftposter is not a slight rip-off ofThe Poltergeistposter — a blonde child with a doll facing toward a light source indicating unknown horrors — which could have easily been in this same slot. And yet, there is something about the art here that feels slightly more sinister and daunting. The hand hanging out also suggests maybe a murder or something horrifying emerging from the elevator. It is a striking imageof the underrated gemfrom Dutch director Dick Maas. The poster also gets some extra credit for one of the more entertaining yet silly taglines: “Take the Stairs, Take the Stairs. For God’s Sake, Take the Stairs!!!”
17The Damned (1962)
The Damned
After an American tourist becomes harassed by a group of British juvenile delinquents, he tries to escape as the confrontation between them becomes intense. This draws all of them to a remote location where the government is conducting experiments to create children who can survive nuclear fallout. They must work together to escape the island with their lives with both the government and the experimental children coming after them.
The aesthetic of posters has undoubtedly changed with each decade, and while many of the horror posters of the 60s are enjoyable, campy, and bright, even when dealing with horrific subjects, a few stand out. The British filmThe Damnedbenefits from having the ghastly child in the dead center, but it is the text above, “Children of Ice and Darkness,” that makes this poster pop. Combined, it is a wonderfully macabre poster and one of the best of the era. Fun fact,the punk rock band’The Damned' was influenced by the film in choosing their name, adding some extra coolness to the poster.
Rent on Flix Fling
16A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
A Nightmare on Elm Street
On Elm Street, Nancy Thompson and a group of her friends (comprising Tina Gray, Rod Lane and Glen Lantz) are being tormented by a clawed killer in their dreams named Fred Krueger. Nancy must think quickly, as Fred tries to pick them off one by one. When he has you in your sleep, who is there to save you?
Nancy Thompson and her friend begin to have nightmares about a burnt figure, which coincides with mysterious deaths in their town. As Nancy digs deeper, she learns that the dead killer Freddy Kreuger is behind the lethal nightmares. Now, she must fight to stay awake and figure out a plan to take out the claw-wielding monster before he claims more victims.
There is a bit of crudeness to the design of Wes Craven’sA Nightmare on Elm Streetposter, with Freddy’s image slightly obscured and disproportioned. However, this adds intrigue to the artwork and gets the imagination going. Where this poster impresses most is in the frightened expression artist Matthew Peak was able to convey in the face of the young woman lying in bed. The tag here also adds to the whole design, with the words “If Nancy doesn’t wake up screaming, she won’t wake up at all” hovering over the horrified girl.
Rent on Apple TV+
Dead and Buried
The small town of Potter’s Bluff becomes a deathtrap for tourists as the locals form mobs to kill anyone who comes through. The town sheriff begins to investigate the changes in his town, unraveling dark secrets about the town that include a bizarre ritual involving bringing the dead back to life.
The poster art forDead and Buriedis simple yet memorable: a large face like a monolith in a desolate landscape, resting in the obscurity of whether it is a statue — or not. The poster also conveys the peculiar state that looms over the town in the film:where the dead are brought back to lifeas odd marionettes of their former selves. The art was done by Italian painter Dario Campanile, who created realistic portraits, landscapes, and observational paintings. This certainly helps add to the realism of the stone face and surrounding cracked landscape.
Stream on Prime Video
14Demons (1985)
Fromthe Italian master of horrorDario Argento,Demonsstarts with a masked man handing out flyers to a new movie premiere, free for anyone to attend. This draws a small crowd looking for a way to kill an evening. As the film starts, violence starts to erupt in the theater as demons begin to take over the bodies of patrons. Finding themselves trapped in the theater, the night becomes a fight for survival against an evil force.
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The poster forDemonsbenefits from seeing the ’70s Italian stand out, with the image of the zombies/demons looming toward the survivors of an overrun theater. The poster art perfectly mimics that moment with an ominous, artistic flair. Regardless, the image of demonic figures with the tagline reading, “They will make cemeteries their cathedrals, and the cities will be your tombs,” is haunting. Artist Enzio Sciotti created iconic posters of the era for films such asMaximum Overdrive,Bloody Birthday, andThe Beyond, which could have easily made this list.
Stream on AMC+
13The Thing (1982)
After a group of American researchers in the Antarctic take in a dog being chased by a soviet helicopter, they soon learn that they have brought in an alien entity that mimics its prey. As paranoia sets in among the crew, they must race to figure out how to stop the spread before it makes its way out of the remote location.
It is hard todeny the influence of John Carpenter’sThe Thing, as it has influenced generations of filmmakers and creature effects artists. It has also charmed video game creators, with the hit horror seriesDead Spacedrawing inspiration from the distorted human forms. Unsurprisingly, there are many cool re-imaginings ofThe Thingposter worth checking out. Still, the iconic original image from artist Drew Struzan, who completed the work in a single day (he had not even seen the movie), is still the best. For a rush job (it even arrived at the production company slightly wet), it is pretty stunning and indicative of the unknown horrors seen in the movie.
12Mandy (2018)
The peaceful existence of Red Miller and Mandy Bloom is interrupted when a drug-fueled cult stumbles upon their remote home and kills Mandy. Now on a quest for revenge, Red Miller chases after the cult in a surreal battle against evil.
Capturing the neon haze that presides over the bulk of the runtime of Panos Cosmatos' metaphysical nightmare, the poster forMandyperfectly conveys the vibes of the film. The poster also draws you into the minor details, with a few ghastly monsters around the image ofa blood-stained Nicholas Cage. And how can you not notice the shadows at the bottom that look like two figures in a chainsaw battle? How cool is that? This is one of the few posters in this list that utilizes digital art, but it is so well executed and blended that it almost appears to be a painting.
11The Burning (1981)
The Burning
At summer camp, some teenagers pull a prank on the camp’s caretaker, Cropsy (Lou David). But the joke goes terribly wrong, and the teens leave Cropsy for dead after setting him on fire. But no one keeps Cropsy down. A few years later, the burned and disfigured caretaker returns to camp equipped with his trusty shears, ready to unleash his particular brand of vengeance on a whole new group of teens. The murderous Cropsy stalks the campers in the woods, one by one.
A legend is born when a summer camp caretaker is horribly burnt after a prank gone wrong. The story of Cropsy continues on as the man undergoes several years of treatment before being released back into the public. He heads back to the camp where the accident occurred and begins a violent murder spree in an attempt to get revenge.
Considered by many to be one of the best horror posters of the 80s,The Burningcertainly is undoubtedly striking and ominous. Showing the outline of the killer in the film, Cropsy, wielding shears over an image of a young couple in embrace, the poster captures the general formatof the slasher genrewith visceral accuracy. While this is one case where the taglines on the original poster are not exactly memorable, that matters little considering how well put together the poster art is.
