20 Best Paranormal Movies That Will Haunt You in Your Sleep

Horror stands as one of cinema’s oldest and most ambitious genres, and it has cultivated a passionate fan following off the back of its ability to leave viewers a terrified, trembling mess. One of its most viscerally horrifying subgenres comes in the form of paranormal movies, with films focusing on unnatural beings like ghosts, spirits, and demons which invade our nightmares and pique our superstitions and fears.

With impeccable special effects, agonizingly suspenseful storytelling, and an ingrained sense of terror that forces us to keep watching no matter how much we want to look away, great paranormal horror films have served as one of the genre’s defining pillars for decades. From timeless classics from over 50 years ago to modern masterworks that reinvent the terror for new generations, it was much more than mere jump scares that made these films the iconic hits that they are today.

20 ‘Longlegs’ (2024)

Directed by Oz Perkins

A recent horror film that has become an instant sensation, Longlegs blends paranormal and Satanic terror with police mystery to create an atmospherically intense and richly rewarding viewing experience. FBI Agent Lee Harker (Maika Monroe) displays exceptional intuition in the field, an asset that sees her land the decades-spanning case of the “Longlegs” killer. In each murder, a father commits murder-suicide on his family with a cryptic note signed by “Longlegs” being left at the scene.

Longlegs touches on several clichés of horror, from the creepy dolls and evil nuns to the Satan-worshipping serial killings, but it intelligently uses a police procedural narrative to offer a refreshing and eerily mystifying angle to the story. Unholy and horrifying, it offers plenty of nightmare fuel to keep horror lovers – or just admirers of great and ambitious cinematic storytelling – on edge for many nights after they watch it.

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19 ‘Mama’ (2013)

Directed by Andy Muschetti

The directorial debut of emerging horror master Andy Muschetti who was expanding his own short film, Mama combines a familiar yet strong genre premise with creepy visuals to be an effective thrill-fest for horror movie lovers. After the death of their parents, two little girls disappear into the woods. When they miraculously re-emerge alive five years later, they are taken in by their uncle and aunt. However, they soon suspect the presence of a malignant force tied to the children.

For all its convoluted narrative twists that are sometimes more ambitious than brilliant, Mama remains an effective horror film capable of leaving a lasting impression upon viewers with the unnatural design of the titular monster. With Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and Jessica Chastain occupying the leading roles, the film is a well-acted thriller that thrives off the back of its scariest and most suspenseful moments.

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18 ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ (1984)

Directed by Wes Craven

Not only a film that has, for decades, haunted people’s nightmares, but A Nightmare on Elm Street has left viewers terrified of going to sleep in the first place. The ghostly horror classic focuses on Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp), a teenage girl who stands off against the dream-stalking spirit of a dead child killer who is murdering her friends in their sleep.

Wes Craven orchestrates a chilling slasher, instilling fear in sleep to play on the audience’s most primal vulnerability, all while brilliantly utilizing a sublime villainous performance from Robert Englund as the notorious Freddy Krueger. Also thriving with a smart and snappy screenplay, a cynical wit, and plenty of blood and gore, A Nightmare on Elm Street is still a masterpiece of fun yet terrifying horror.

17 ‘It Follows’ (2014)

Directed by David Robert Mitchell

Critically acclaimed on account of its ability to mix thrills with a thematically intriguing story, It Follows is one of the more significant and enduring horror movies of the 2010s. It focuses on Jay (Maika Monroe), a university student who, after having sex with her new boyfriend, finds herself being haunted by a malevolent entity. She bands with her friends to figure out how to rid herself of the shape-shifting, ever-nearing curse.

It Follows is a refreshing horror film on account of the originality of its narrative and its exploration of modern attitudes and anxieties towards sex and the inherent risk of transmitted diseases. Complementing its interesting story with an effective and contained minimalism and some creative camerawork, It Follows is one of the best horror films of the 21st century, armed with an ability to creep viewers out long after the credits roll.

16 ‘Drag Me to Hell’ (2009)

Directed by Sam Raimi

Few horror filmmakers are as creative and freewheeling as Sam Raimi, with his underrated cult classic Drag Me to Hell marking one of the better horror flicks of this century. In a bid to prove she can make difficult decisions at work, loan officer Christine (Alison Lohman) denies an elderly lady an extension on her home loan. When the lady retaliates by placing a curse on Christine’s soul, the young woman must fight to save herself from eternal damnation.

The film was a critical and commercial success upon release, largely thanks to its ability to conjure up genuine thrills while still maintaining a relatively light and, at times, even comedic approach to its story. Still, Drag Me to Hell is undeniably defined by its most terrifying sequences, making for a movie sure to haunt viewers’ dreams from its opening to its shocking conclusion.

15 ‘The Others’ (2001)

Directed by Alejandro Amenábar

A twisty, winding psychological horror, The Others excelled as a subversive haunted house horror movie that coasted on Nicole Kidman’s compelling central performance. Taking place in 1945, it follows a devoted Catholic who moves to the English coast with her two young children who suffer from a rare photosensitivity disease while waiting for word on her husband in the war. As odd occurrences start to transpire around the house, Grace (Kidman) starts to believe something paranormal could be at work.

With an elegance that isn’t necessarily characteristic of horror, not to mention an intelligent and engrossing screenplay to boot, The Others excelled with its narrative nous alone. However, with The Others also boasting a magnetic, atmospheric chill that can have an immersive effect, it is shocking as it is tight and tidy to be an impressive and underrated horror flick.

14 ‘Suspiria’ (1977)

Directed by Dario Argento

One of the greatest horror movies of the 1970s which distinguished itself with a rich sense of style, Suspiria has become a true classic of the genre. It follows Suzy Bannion (Jessica Harper), an aspiring ballerina from America who travels to Germany to attend a prestigious dance academy, where her stay becomes plagued as a mysterious and malevolent entity haunts the establishment, sparking an idea that a supernatural conspiracy could be at play.

While the film has some genuinely unnerving scenes, what truly made it stick in the viewers’ minds was its breathtaking visual display, with Dario Argento using color to striking effect, creating a surreal atmosphere of gripping intensity. The end result is a strangely beautiful horror film that excels as an aesthetically entrancing masterpiece with a solid horror story to boot.

13 ‘Poltergeist’ (1982)

Directed by Tobe Hooper

Poltergeist made television a thing to be feared. When the youngest of the Freeling family, Carol Anne (Heather O’Rourke) begins chatting with the static on the TV, there is something wrong. Eventually, the rest of the house becomes a horror show as well and it is overrun by malevolent ghosts who want to abduct Carol Anne.

Released in 1982, Poltergeist has become a timeless horror classic with its consistently terrifying tone which remains just as scary today as it was the day it was released. In addition to being a terrific paranormal horror film, Poltergeist is also one of the all-time great haunted house movies, one that not only gave viewers nightmares, but left them in a cold sweat when their television sets went to static as well.

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12 ‘Smile’ (2022)

Directed by Parker Finn

The directorial debut of Parker Finn, adapting his 2020 short film Laura Hasn’t Slept into a feature-length horror hit, Smile proved to be incredibly effective as an unnerving, creepy demon possession flick. It follows Rose (Sosie Bacon), a psychiatrist who believes she is being haunted by a supernatural threat after she witnesses the bizarre and harrowing suicide of one of her patients.

Smile‘s use of jump scares, mounting suspense, and eerily off-putting performances offered more than enough horror to keep audiences awake at night for fear of what they would see in their dreams. As a fresh entry into the world of horror cinema, Smile was a landmark box office success, making well over $200 million worldwide, and has a sequel scheduled to be released in October.

11 ‘Last Night in Soho’ (2021)

Directed by Edgar Wright

While it isn’t classified as a horror film, Edgar Wright‘s ghost story draws clear inspiration from the genre while creeping under audiences’ skin with much more than just evil spirits. Last Night in Soho follows Eloise (Thomasin McKenzie) a clairvoyant girl who moves to London to attend a fashion course at an illustrious arts school where her connection to the area’s ugly past threatens to drive her mad as she begins experiencing the life of an aspiring singer who had her room in the 1960s.

While the film’s ghoulish, faceless ghosts can certainly garner a fright, it’s Last Night in Soho‘s thematic focus on misogyny and abuse that made it particularly striking. It also didn’t hurt that the film had a spectacular soundtrack of ’60s hits, flaunted Wright’s trademark dedication to style, and served as a wonderful testament to classic horror which fans could both adore and fear.

10 ‘Talk to Me’ (2023)

Directed by Danny and Michael Phillipou

The modern age of horror cinema has seen a number of stunning instant classics arise, but few have had such immediate success as Talk to Me. Following a group of friends as they conjure spirits with an embalmed hand for thrills, its sudden shift to paranormal terror has entrenched it among the best and most popular horror movies to be made in recent years.

The debut film of Michael and Danny Philippou, it hearkens back to classic horror movies from decades past while being imbued with some new ideas that make it completely of its time. Further enhanced by its aspirational dramatic heft, Talk to Me is a deeply unsettling film capable of rattling even the most hardened horror fans and is destined to become one of the best paranormal horror movies, if not of all time, then of its era at the very least.

9 ‘Paranormal Activity’ (2007)

Directed by Oren Peli

An ingenious mix of simple yet suspenseful narrative, low-budget innovation, and the haunting, invasive feeling exuded from its home-camera gimmick, Paranormal Activity is a true masterpiece of found footage horror. As one of the 21st century’s earlier horror hits, it focuses on a young couple who move into a new house where a series of strange happenings inspire Micah (Micah Sloat) to set up cameras to document what is occurring.

Steadily building the tension as the weird events that occur become increasingly hostile, much of the film’s agonizing torment actually stemmed from the lingering moments where nothing was happening. A stressful, heart-stopping horror film, Paranormal Activity remains an acclaimed hit of the genre and one of the most intense and terrifying paranormal horror films of all time.

8 ‘The Ring’ (2002)

Directed by Gore Verbinski

An American adaptation of the 1998 Japanese horror film Ringu, The Ring fast became a horror hit in the early 2000s. It follows Rachel (Naomi Watts), a journalist covering the death of four teenage girls who investigates a cursed videotape that kills people seven days after they watch it, and must find answers to save herself after she views it out of curiosity.

Fascinatingly, the film went into production without a finished script, but it found momentum in Gore Verbinski’s arresting atmospheric suspense and Watts’ outstanding central performance. The Ring tapped into the internet phenomenon of chain mail horror years before it bled into the mainstream consciousness, becoming a superstitious, paranormal hit of urban legend terror and nightmarish visual terror.

7 ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ (1968)

Directed by Roman Polanski

A true timeless classic of horror cinema which was famous for its terrifying, psychological impact which saw it linger in the mind long after the credits have rolled, Rosemary’s Baby mixes demonic horror with family drama to horrifying effect. It focuses on Rosemary Woodhouse (Mia Farrow), the wife of a stage actor who moves into an apartment building with her husband where strange occurrences plague her as she falls pregnant, leading her to grow suspicious of her neighbors.

With a violent and overbearing satanism an underlying threat throughout Rosemary’s Baby, it gradually builds a sickening dread as the sinister plot of the complex’s tenants unfolds. Powered by Farrow’s phenomenal central performance, Rosemary’s Baby doesn’t just thrive as one of the scariest paranormal movies of all time, but as a great example of female-led cinema as well.

6 ‘The Conjuring’ (2013)

Directed by James Wan

Throughout the 2010s, the horror genre had a massive resurgence, with more genre films becoming mainstream hits the longer the decade went on. One of the great, early major success stories for 2010s horror was 2013’s The Conjuring which follows a family who move into a haunted house and turn to demonologists Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) to investigate the curse’s origin.

A suitably terrifying picture, The Conjuring is a flawless example of haunted house horror and proved to be such a hit with fans that it spawned a successful extended franchise. Further adding to the nightmarish horror of the demonic evil and the visual frights, The Conjuring was reportedly based on true events that the real-life Warrens investigated in the 1970s.

5 ‘The Babadook’ (2014)

Directed by Jennifer Kent

A cult hit of an Australian horror movie that has gradually built up its audience as the years have gone on, The Babadook served as the directorial debut of Jennifer Kent. Following a widowed single mother as her son begins to act strange and speaks of a monster coming to get him, it focuses on an ominous picture book called “Mister Babadook” and the monstrous evil that comes to life from within it.

The film won international praise not only for its horror mastery, but also for its depiction of grief and loss which gave it a heart-wrenching story of family woe as its core. As for its terrifying magnificence though, Kent masterfully manufactured a truly shaking horror film without having to rely on jump scares or copious gore to leave audiences dreading the titular villain long after the movie had finished.

4 ‘The Blair Witch Project’ (1999)

Directed by Eduardo Sánchez and Daniel Myrick

Still standing as the magnum opus of the found-footage subgenre over two decades after its release, The Blair Witch Project remains one of the most viscerally terrifying movies ever made. It follows three film students who seek to make a documentary about the legend of the Blair Witch, and venture into the supposedly haunted woods to find out more about the myth only to find themselves lost and being stalked by a wicked and malevolent force.

The low-budget documentary approach gave The Blair Witch Project a jarring, grounded realism which elevated the horror by only giving audiences a very narrow viewpoint of what was unfolding. It allowed the imagination to run wild with all manner of dreadful thoughts, and also led to a very real sense of motion sickness which made many patrons in theaters physically ill.

3 ‘Hereditary’ (2018)

Directed by Ari Aster

A groundbreaking debut from modern horror maestro Ari Aster, Hereditary became an instant classic with a startling reputation as being one of the greatest and scariest movies ever made. The famed horror flick follows a grieving family mourning the loss of an elderly relative who begins to fear they are being haunted by a demonic entity as they discover more of their disturbing ancestry amid a series of worrying occurrences.

The narrative takes some deeply disturbing turns to build an unbearable sense of dread which serves as an embodiment of nightmarish terror. Hereditary‘s commentary on loss, guilt, and family is brilliant, not only in its depth but also in how it works into the horror, further enhancing it as the story unfolds right up until its scarring ending which has undoubtedly led to nightmares for millions of viewers around the world and marked Hereditary as one of the best supernatural horror movies ever made.

2 The Shining (1980)

Directed by Stanley Kubrick

As one of the most renowned horror movies of all time, The Shining has endured for decades as a genre-defining masterpiece capable of generating an immense and weighted sense of dread that hangs heavy over the audience. From acclaimed filmmaker Stanley Kubrick, it follows a young family who relocates to the remote Overlook Hotel to serve as the resort’s winter caretakers where the patriarch begins to go mad as the hotel’s violent intent unravels.

With a runtime of 146 minutes, the film utilizes an agonizingly slow pace to draw out every ounce of dread and eerie suspense. It may not be the most immediately terrifying movie, but The Shining does prove to be an exhausting, lingering nightmare that can haunt viewers long after the credits roll.

1 ‘The Exorcist’ (1973)

Directed by William Friedkin

When young Regan (Linda Blair) becomes possessed by a demon, her family calls for an exorcism to vanquish the evil. As Regan’s condition worsens, she wreaks havoc on her household as she battles the demon for power over her very being, all while two Catholic priests work tirelessly to exorcise the demon from her body.

The Exorcist broke barriers for the genre, becoming an instant and lasting phenomenon that incited widespread fanfare and spectacle while also inspiring derision and even legends of a cursed production. Despite all the hysteria surrounding the film though, the one thing about The Exorcist that has endured is its masterful execution of paranormal horror, something that has made the movie the scariest film of all time in the eyes of many who have seen it.

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