Top 20 Least Scary Horror Movies

The iconic 1980 horror film “Friday the 13th” hinted at the supernatural but, for the most part, felt pretty grounded in our reality. In contrast, the sequels progressively tossed all semblance of reality out the window. This is especially true for “Jason X,” a sci-fi slasher hybrid film that has Jason cryogenically frozen until the year 2455. Though this futuristic premise felt like it could be a refreshing new direction for the franchise, awkward comedy and shoddy craftsmanship led to its downfall with both fans and critics alike. The film’s poor performance proved that Jason should have stayed out of space and stuck to Camp Crystal Lake.

Terrifying animal movies have always been hit or miss. Not everyone can make “Jaws” — and “Anaconda” is proof of that. Though the film boasts a cult following thanks to a cast that includes Jon Voight, Jennifer Lopez, Owen Wilson, and Ice Cube, this lineup couldn’t save it from its own poorly thought-out script, which somehow managed to be both absurd and boring. The film’s massive animatronic snake certainly didn’t help the film’s case, frequently looking unnatural and lifeless next to the human actors. Though the movie was, surprisingly, a box office hit, it’s safe to say what success it’s had definitely isn’t based on its fear factor.

“I Know What You Did Last Summer” seemed like it had a recipe for success. Writer Kevin Williamson had just worked on the wildly successful slasher film “Scream,” while stars Jennifer Love Hewitt and Sarah Michelle Gellar were steadily rising in fame thanks to popular TV roles. Unfortunately, critical reception to the film was lukewarm. While “I Know What You Did Last Summer” holds the distinction of being one of the top ten highest grossing slasher films, the scares didn’t quite match those high profits. It takes over a half hour for the antagonist to actually kill anyone, and another long period before anyone else is offed, making for a pretty slow paced slasher movie.

Stephen King is considered a master of the horror genre - and for good reason! Unfortunately, that mastery of the genre on the page doesn’t always translate to the screen. This is especially true for “Children of the Corn,” a 1984 adaptation of a King story that has unnatural dialogue and strange special effects that make it anything but scary. Even the town’s triumphant takedown of Isaac and He Who Walks Behind The Rows is depicted in a way that feels more comedic than horrific. In the scene, Isaac gives a final high pitched scream as he is covered in a weird, glowing red light and then shot into the sky in a cartoonish fashion.

You have likely heard of “The Haunting of Hill House,” which was released on Netflix in 2018 to near-universal critical acclaim. What you may not know is that, 19 years earlier, another adaptation of the same source was made, simply titled “The Haunting.” Unlike its successor, “The Haunting” was panned by critics and audiences alike, even earning several nominations at the Razzies and the lesser known “Stinkers Bad Movie Awards.” For a ghost movie, “The Haunting” was just far too dull, and its story too convoluted to entertain. It’s unlikely any viewer in 1999 left the theater haunted by anything other than the almost two hours they’d just wasted by watching the movie.

Although most of the time a lack of scares can be a sign that a horror movie is bad, this isn’t always the case. A low-budget spoof of B horror movies, “Attack of the Killer Tomatoes' ' is intentionally more funny than it is frightening. As the title implies, the movie features tomatoes as its main antagonists. The once-harmless vegetables gain sentience, and begin attacking people around the world in the streets, in kitchens, and on beaches. The only way to stop them? A shrill song entitled “Puberty Love.” The film is a cult classic, and inspired a number of spin-off films, including a direct sequel that featured George Clooney in one of his first ever roles.

It may seem unheard of now, but in 2005, “House of Wax” was marketed with a spoiler. To fans and haters alike, the horror film offered one thing: to see Paris Hilton die on-screen. Of course, this wasn’t the film’s only marketing tactic, but the gimmick was a big draw, with t-shirts bearing the phrase “See Paris Die” selling out almost as soon as they were stocked. Unfortunately, it seems that the filmmakers spent so long crafting this perfect marketing gimmick that they forgot to make a good movie. “House of Wax” barely resembled the film it was a remake of, and fell victim to formulaic plot devices. At least the Paris death scene was, in her own words, “really awesome.”

When you think of the word “scary,” tires probably aren’t one of the first things that come to mind. Nonetheless, “Rubber” uses one of these everyday objects as its central antagonist. The opening of the film states that it is an homage to “no reason.” And it’s true! There truly is no reason for “Rubber” to exist. The premise of the horror comedy is kind of funny in its first half, but it quickly overstays its welcome, as the appeal of seeing a tire telepathically blow things up, unsurprisingly, wears off. With no real scares to speak of, you’re left with a horror movie that isn’t only not frightening, but is actively boring.

“The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” was, of course, an all-time horror classic. Part 2 was a fun spin on the original. But much later on, “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning” was just unnecessary. Not only is this film a prequel, but it’s essentially a prequel to a remake of the original. It’s predictable at every turn, consistently showing first-hand why not every character needs a backstory. Like its predecessors, “The Beginning” contains plenty of blood and guts, but this time needlessly so. There’s never any fear, just gore for gore’s sake, and that’s not scary, just gross.

One in a long line of comedy horror films that fail to ever be funny or frightening. “Ice Cream Man '' is a strange tonal mish-mash of childish adventure with R-rated horror and cringe-inducing jokes. As the title implies, the antagonist is an ice cream man, and he’s serving up ice cream with a very special — and horrific — ingredient. One of his best customers is Tuna, the film’s young protagonist, who is meant to be fat, but whose actor is basically wearing the equivalent of a shirt stuffed with a pillow. The film frequently becomes boring when the Ice Cream Man is not on-screen, and when he does appear, his kills are so goofy that it’s almost impossible to be scared.

“Thinner” is a 1996 film directed by Tom Holland. No, not that Tom Holland. The Tom Holland that directed the first “Child’s Play” movie and the 1985 “Fright Night” - and to say that “Thinner” pales in comparison to these earlier works is to put it mildly. Based on a Stephen King novel, the movie follows a lawyer named Billy, who hits and kills a woman while driving. The woman’s father puts a curse on him, causing him to lose weight at an alarming rate …hence the title. The prosthetics used to create both the obese and frail Billy are comical at best and, with a cast of unlikable characters, there’s absolutely no one here to root for.

Even if the beginning of this movie manages to get under your skin, it’ll be hard not to find the whole thing laughable by the time a priest is exorcizing a flip phone. “One Missed Call” is a remake of a Japanese horror film of the same name, and it actively makes that film look better. Though its predecessor was criticized for overusing common horror tropes, the American “One Missed Call” is generally considered to be one of the worst J-Horror remakes of all time. With terrible CGI, a forced twist, and no scares to speak of, it’s no wonder that this movie holds the distinction of being probably the worst reviewed film of 2008.

“The Happening” is a movie that’s so controversial, even its star eventually failed to defend it. Mark Wahlberg, who plays protagonist Elliot Moore in the film, has called it a “really bad movie,” even telling Amy Adams that she “dodged a bullet” by not getting a role in the film. Director M. Night Shyamalan hasn’t been quite as disparaging of the movie, but even he has admitted that it has some serious inconsistencies in tone. Although we live in a world where natural disasters and global warming pose a constant threat to our everyday lives, “The Happening”s plant takeover still feels a little too ridiculous to fear, and its kills too hilariously exaggerated to take seriously.

If you saw the Razzie nominated “Jaws 3-D” and thought it couldn’t get worse for the killer shark franchise…think again! “Jaws,” “Jaws 2,” and, yes, even “Jaws 3-D” all took around two years to make. Their successor, “Jaws: the Revenge,” took less than nine months. If this rushed production schedule doesn’t convince you of the movie’s poorer quality, maybe its rudimentary shark prop will. Or maybe the fact that the shark roars. While the first “Jaws” film completely changed how an entire generation viewed sharks, “Jaws: the Revenge” was more likely to inspire theater walk-outs than fear.

Sometimes a horror film is intentionally comedic… and sometimes it’s “The Wicker Man.” The 2006 film was a remake of the 1973 film of the same name, as well as a loose adaptation of the David Pinner novel, “Ritual.” Although it was meant to be a serious adaptation of the sources it drew from, it landed more in the “so bad, it’s good” territory, even spawning a popular meme. This was due in part to Nicolas Cage’s over the top performance as Edward Malus, which often made audiences laugh more than scream. At least we can say we were entertained! Just not in the right way.

It’s hard to believe that “Leprechaun” was originally meant to be a straight horror film before Warwick Davis was cast in the titular role. The gold-obsessed villainous protagonist has sharp pointed teeth and permanently arched brows, but is far from fearsome. Thankfully, Davis’s decision to have fun with the role and lean into the inherent comedy of the character saves the movie from being unwatchably dull. Where else can you see a horror villain killing with a pogo stick? Seriously, who else but the Leprechaun would sing a song while fatally pogo-ing someone? This film spawned a franchise, so being scary clearly isn’t everything.

Films like “The Parent Trap,” “Mean Girls,” and “Freaky Friday'' made Lindsay Lohan a household name to the millennial generation, but by the mid 2000’s she was beginning to tire of her pop-y teen girl image. During this period she took on more mature — or at least, disturbing— roles, including “Bobby” and the 2007 horror movie “I Know Who Killed Me.” Unfortunately, while “Bobby” was nominated for a SAG award, “I Know Who Killed Me” won eight categories at the Razzies - including Worst Actress. This psychological thriller, whose convoluted plot features an abducted woman seemingly becoming another woman, provided no thrills, few scares, and very little entertainment. It’s become a bit of a campy cult classic, so it’s got that going for it, at least.

With a title like “The Bye Bye Man,” this movie seemed doomed from the start. The 2017 film plays out like an amalgamation of classic horror tropes it doesn’t know what to do with, with the most obvious being its callback to villains like Candyman or Bloody Mary through the titular Bye Bye Man. According to legend, you’re not meant to say, or even think, this character’s name or else very, very bad things will happen. The Rotten Tomatoes critical consensus pulled no punches, describing the movie as being “as short on originality as it is on narrative coherency or satisfying scares.”

“Manos: The Hands of Fate'' probably would have faded into obscurity had it not been for “Mystery Science Theater 3000.” The popular comedy commentary series featured the movie in one of their episodes, introducing its hilariously bad quality to an entirely new generation. The plot, which is centered around a family who get caught up with a cult, may sound good on paper …but the execution is anything but. The film has a rock bottom critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and is considered one of the worst films ever made. Although it provides a few laughs from its poor quality, “Manos' ' fails to provide any good scares, and, after a while, becomes boring enough to drive a person (or robot) crazy.

Alfred Hitchcock’s classic “The Birds” terrified audiences in the 1960s. But this no-budget bird-brained horror flick from 2010 flies in with bad acting, worse graphics, and an unappealing amateur filmmaking style. Even if the idea of a mass bird attack frightens you, it’s unlikely that you’ll be jumping out of your seat at the sight of “Birdemic”s antagonists. The awful CGI images were clearly layered into the movie in post-production along with repetitive squawking noises. Although we all may be inclined to believe the movie is simply an elaborate joke, director James Nguyen has insisted that his avian horror is meant to be taken seriously.