Sometimes, what's scary in a horror film comes from paranormal activity, zombies, or aliens—but more often than not, the evil that can live inside us is the most frightening. That's exactly the kind of chilling terror that movies about serial killers elicit.
As long as our culture has had an eerie obsession with serial killers, there have been movies made about them—dating back to the noir era of Hollywood. From '70s slasher movies to the psychological thrillers that dominated the '90s and more recent true-crime dramatizations about the hunt for a killer or the inner workings of their psyche, there are plenty of great serial killer movies within the horror subgenre. Whether you want to watch a thrilling drama or a good old-fashioned, straight-up nightmare-inducing horror movie, these are the best serial killer movies. (And for even more recommendations of what to watch, we suggest you check out our list of the best true-crime TV shows.)
The Best Early, Classic Movies About Serial Killers
'Arsenic and Old Lace' (1944)
This film, dating back to 1944, is about nice old ladies mercy-poisoning dudes deemed "unmarriageable" to save them from lives of loneliness. It's a twist on the standard spinster storyline that's funny enough for scaredy cats—scaredy cats who like Cary Grant.
'Badlands' (1973)
If you love the "lovers on the run" trope, Badlands is among the gold standard—though it'll make your skin crawl. From American master Terrence Malik, it's set in the sprawling plains of the Dakotas and Montana, and a story about American ideals and flaws, following a 15-year-old girl (Sissy Spacek in a tour-de-force performance) and her affair with a much older man (Martin Sheen), who takes her on the road with him and embarks on a murder spree.
'Halloween' (1978)
Jamie Lee Curtis followed in her mother Janet Leigh's footsteps and became a scream queen in her feature film debut, playing OG final girl Laurie Strode. In Halloween, she faces off against convicted killer Michael Myers after he escapes from the mental health facility where he's been for 15 years. With his violent killing spree taking place in the fictional Illinois suburb of Haddonfield, seemingly idyllic towns may start to give you the creeps.
'Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer' (1986)
This low-budget '80s movie initially caused a lot of controversy. About the titular serial killer (Michael Rooker), whose character was informed by real-life murderers Henry Lee Lucas and Ottis Toole, and his nomadic travels with a prison buddy (Tom Towles) and his sister (Tracy Arnold), it garnered an X-rating upon its initial release. At the time, the rating was reserved primarily for pornography, making the film one of the first to lead to the creation of the NC-17 marker. Ultimately, it was ahead of its time in its grittiness, and the kind of movie that makes you reflect upon our culture's obsession with killers.
'Peeping Tom' (1960)
A man murders women and films their dying expressions, which sounds highly modern, actually, despite its 1960 release date. This film is considered the first slasher flick, predating even Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Halloween, so it should be on every horror cinephile's watch list.
'Psycho' (1960)
The foundation on which all other thrillers worth their salt were built. Alfred Hitchcock's classic is about a murderous man (Anthony Perkins) with an Oedipus complex and the woman (Janet Leigh) unlucky enough to stop at his motel.
'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' (1974)
Does Texas Chainsaw Massacre remain one of the scariest movies of all time? It just might! Tobe Hooper's independent, low-budget film follows a van of unsuspecting young people and the hitchhiker they pick up as they break into the wrong farmhouse. Watch it, get freaked out by Leatherface, and notice how many now-classic horror movie tropes you pick up on.
The Best '90s Serial Killer Movies
'Kiss the Girls' (1997)
In this '90s movie, Morgan Freeman plays Alex Cross, the ace forensic psychologist created by James Patterson in his popular novels. Cross teams up with a woman (Ashley Judd) who narrowly escaped the clutches of a serial killer to bring the bad guy to justice.
'Natural Born Killers' (1994)
Natural Born Killers features a screenplay written by Quentin Tarantino, so you know how it goes: loads of violence, some might say gratuitous, but tempered with satire and a cool, psychedelic style. Following a couple on a murderous bender out on the road, you'll watch the film and have thoughts about why we, as a society, romanticize crime.
'Scream' (1996)
Scream blew up slashers with its smart satire, while still creating a great entry into the subgenre. The film from Wes Craven smartly plays with horror tropes—and has continued to with each installment in the franchise—and keeps things fun with its biting sense of humor, even when Ghostface is on the hunt. Remember: The call always comes from inside the house.
'Serial Mom' (1994)
A more comedic take on the serial killer, the Pope of Trash, John Waters, helms this dark comedy. Meet Beverly (Kathleen Turner), an unassuming suburban housewife who kills anyone who crosses her.
'Se7en' (1995)
Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman give ace performances in this murder mystery as detectives tracking down a killer who seems to love a good theme (in this case, murdering people who embody the seven deadly sins in rather gruesome ways). It's one of David Fincher's many serial killer movies and has inspired countless procedurals.
'The Silence of the Lambs' (1991)
Is there a more classic movie murderer than Hannibal Lecter and his skin suits? While the cannibalistic character created by novelist Thomas Harris has been brought to the screen several times, few performances compare to Anthony Hopkins's. Keep the remote nearby—you're going to want to watch 87 percent of it on mute.
The Best 2000s Serial Killer Movies
'American Psycho' (2000)
Endlessly quotable and still highly fascinating for its depiction of the high-rolling lifestyle of 1980s masters of the universe, the film adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis's novel shows toxic masculinity at its most deadly. It's especially scary given how well—besides the trophy business cards—this portrayal of yuppie guys who work in finance holds up decades later.
'Disturbia' (2007)
This modern retelling of the Hitchcock classic Rear Window focuses on a teen stuck at home on house arrest who witnesses evidence that his neighbor is secretly a serial killer—but can't seem to convince anyone else of that fact.
'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' (2011)
David Fincher's 2011 adaptation of Stieg Larsson's best-selling book in the Millennium series is bleak. But then, it's about a serial killer in an icy Swedish landscape, so that's appropriate. Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara star as the reporter and hacker duo on the case, each giving compelling performances.
'Identity' (2003)
In this psychological thriller, a group of strangers stranded together in a roadside motel during a rainstorm start dying one by one and quickly realize there's a serial killer in their midst. The real killer, though, is the movie's twist ending.
'Monster' (2003)
Charlize Theron transformed herself and is completely unrecognizable in this terrifying yet tragic movie about Aileen Wuornos. Inspired by the true story of the serial killer, the film, directed by Patty Jenkins, explores the painful circumstances that led to her murdering seven men.
'Perfume: The Story of a Murderer' (2006)
How to make a movie about a serial killer so sinister but also so lush? Set it in France and cast Ben Whishaw as a murderer hell-bent on creating the ideal scent—one young woman's corpse at a time. It might just persuade you to never wear deodorant again.
'Untraceable' (2008)
In this tech thriller, an FBI agent races to identify a serial killer who live streams their murders for the world to watch. To add to the ick factor, the victims only die when the view count on the streaming video hits a certain threshold, commenting on the internet's voyeuristic culture.
'Zodiac' (2007)
Another David Fincher film, this 2000s hit tells the true story of California's Zodiac Killer, a man who terrorized couples (and the police department, with his cryptic letters and ciphers) in the Bay Area in the 60s and 70s. The case remains unsolved, and the A-list cast (Robert Downey Jr., Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo) all over stellar portrayals of how much ire the mysterious killer brought law enforcement and the press.
The Best Recent Serial Killer Movies
'Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile' (2019)
Zac Efron is terrifyingly good in this biopic about Ted Bundy, based on Bundy's ex-girlfriend's book The Phantom Prince: My Life with Ted Bundy. Lily Collins plays Bundy's then-girlfriend, Elizabeth Kendall. The title refers to the words used by a judge while sentencing Bundy to death.
'Freaky' (2020)
This slasher-comedy answers a fun hypothetical: What if a serial killer (played by Vince Vaughn) and his latest victim, high-schooler Millie (Kathryn Newton) ended up switching bodies? Modern scream queen Newton is an absolute delight.
'In the Shadow of the Moon' (2019)
This slow-burning Netflix hit centers on a police officer (Boyd Holbrook) eager to get his big break as a detective. He becomes obsessed with a female killer who returns to kill every nine years—and finds himself caught in her web.
'Longlegs' (2024)
An FBI agent (Maika Monroe) investigates a mysterious serial killer (Nicolas Cage) who has terrorized the Pacific Northwest for decades, murdering families with a daughter whose birthday falls on the 14th. As she dives into his trail of Satanic ciphers, the case and truly eerie film from Osgood Perkins—one of 2024's best horror movies—becomes a beast that goes in directions you'll never expect.
'My Friend Dahmer' (2017)
Reason No. 1 to see it: My Friend Dahmer stars a Disney kid (Ross Lynch a.k.a. Austin Moon from Austin Ally) acting against type, this time as Jeffrey Dahmer, who murdered at least 17 men and boys from the late '70s to the early '90s. Reason No. 2: It's a disturbing, empathetic coming-of-age film looking at the early life of a serial killer, as told by his high school friend (Alex Wolff), based on his graphic memoir of the same name.
'Red Rooms' (2024)
To call Red Rooms a chilling thriller would be an understatement; the viewing experience will leave you unsettled like no other. The Canadian film is set in Montreal, where it follows a model/hacker ( Juliette Gariépy) who has a penchant for online gambling, the dark web, and a particular alleged serial killer. Every day, she attends the trial proceedings of a man accused of brutally torturing and murdering several young girls, streaming footage of the horrific events in what are known as "red rooms," or chats on the dark web. Her investment in the case at first seems unclear, but soon enough, her intentions—and the film's—become more clear, though the entire runtime, you'll be nervous to know just how far it's going to go.
'Strange Darling' (2024)
All you need to know about Strange Darling is that it's better to know nothing about Strange Darling when you watch it. Stunningly shot in 35mm with a palette of bright colors and an homage to '70s and '80s serial killer B-movies, it's a quixotic, little horror movie that became a word-of-mouth success when it was released into theaters with little marketing in summer 2024. If you're eager for a bit of insight into the plot, all you need to know is that the film is told out of order, but sees a one-night stand turn into a hunt to the death.
'Summer of '84' (2018)
This '80s-era horror movie is reminiscent of Stranger Things, but even more terrifying. A kid (Graham Verchere) believes his police officer neighbor (Rich Sommer) might be a serial killer, and so he and his friends team up to investigate—and then things get really scary, really fast.
The Best International Serial Killer Movies
'Cure' (1997)
This Japanese film by Kiyoshi Kurosawa is legendary for its disturbing twist on the psychological horror-thriller. A detective investigates a series of shocking murders, all committed by seemingly random citizens who never have explanations for why they were killed.
'Memories of Murder' (2003)
This Korean horror movie, which is based on a real-life string of serial killings from the 1980s, follows two rural detectives as they struggle to solve the cases of several missing women. Helmed by Parasite director Bong Joon-Ho, it's arguably the best movie in his filmography and inspired David Fincher when he made Zodiac.
