Last updated March 2024
Looking for acclaimed Best Horror Movies 2016 worth adding to your watch list? Check out our selection of 30 stellar, must-see Best Horror Movies 2016 available for your immediate viewing pleasure. Universally beloved by IMDB critics and our knowledgeable community of users, these top-tier Best Horror Movies 2016 earn high praise across the board. Help other viewers discover hidden gems by voting for the titles you consider keepers. We value your contributions toward spotlighting the cream of the crop!
Train to Busan (2016)
Plot Summary:
Martial law is declared when a mysterious viral outbreak pushes Korea into a state of emergency. Those on an express train to Busan, a city that has successfully fended off the viral outbreak, must fight for their own survival…
Duration: 118 min
IMDB Rating: 7.6/10
IMDB Votes: 248000
Genere: Action, Horror, Thriller
Country: South Korea
Plot tags: zombie, virus, survival, pandemic, apocalypse, train, epidemic, zombie attack, survival horror, zombie apocalypse, undead, living dead, father daughter relationship, quarantine, train crash, father, self sacrifice, riot, hot chick, brutality, daughter, infection, pregnant woman, selfishness, solidarity
The Wailing (2016)
Plot Summary:
A stranger arrives in a little village and soon after a mysterious sickness starts spreading. A policeman is drawn into the incident and is forced to solve the mystery in order to save his daughter
Duration: 156 min
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
IMDB Votes: 79000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: South Korea, USA
Plot tags: zombie, supernatural, investigation, curse, murder, police, shaman, small town, ghost, daughter, suspicion, possession, obsession, family drama, village, slow burn, devil, murder mystery, police protagonist, twists and turns, asian, terror, demon, husband wife relationship, fever
A Monster Calls (2016)
Plot Summary:
A boy imagines a monster that helps him deal with his difficult life and see the world in a different way
Duration: 108 min
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
IMDB Votes: 92000
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Family, Fantasy, Horror
Country: USA, Spain, UK
Plot tags: bullying, monster, childhood, loneliness, terminal illness, life & death, imagination, courage, boy, single mother, cancer, nightmare, depression, truth, death, child, teenager, destiny, family drama, creature, dream, grief, storytelling, youth, magic realism
The Conjuring 2 (2016)
Plot Summary:
Lorraine and Ed Warren travel to north London to help a single mother raising four children alone in a house plagued by malicious spirits
Duration: 134 min
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10
IMDB Votes: 294000
Genere: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: Canada, USA, UK
Plot tags: haunted house, supernatural, ghost, demonic possession, fear, paranormal investigation, psychic, single mother, supernatural horror, child in peril, demon, haunting, terror, husband wife relationship, family in danger, paranormal, religion, catholic, christmas, possession, paranormal phenomena, nun, house, premonition, danger
Split (2016)
Plot Summary:
Though Kevin has evidenced 23 personalities to his trusted psychiatrist, Dr. Fletcher, there remains one still submerged who is set to materialize and dominate all the others. Compelled to abduct three teenage girls led by the willful, observant Casey, Kevin reaches a war for survival among all of those contained within him — as well as everyone around him — as the walls between his compartments shatter apart
Duration: 117 min
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10
IMDB Votes: 537000
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA, Japan
Plot tags: mental illness, kidnapping, murder, psychopath, psycho, dissociative identity disorder, split personality, insanity, paranoia, serial killer, schizophrenia, violence, abduction, multiple personality disorder, survival, held captive, violent, captive, maniac, kidnapped, teenage girl, plot twist, escape attempt, psychiatrist, super powers
10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)
Plot Summary:
After getting in a car accident, a woman is held in a shelter with two men, who claim the outside world is affected by a widespread chemical attack
Duration: 103 min
IMDB Rating: 7.2/10
IMDB Votes: 348000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: apocalypse, alien invasion, post apocalypse, alien, kidnapping, twists and turns, ufo, bunker, end of the world, strong female character, paranoia, survivalist, bomb shelter, conspiracy theory, captive, underground bunker, car accident, held captive, disposing of a dead body, farmhouse, murder, puzzle, car crash, strong female lead, survival
Don't Breathe (2016)
Plot Summary:
A group of teens break into a blind man's home thinking they'll get away with the perfect crime. They're wrong
Duration: 88 min
IMDB Rating: 7.1/10
IMDB Votes: 294000
Genere: Crime, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA, Hungary
Plot tags: home invasion, kidnapping, trapped, blind man, murder, psychopath, survival, thief, twists and turns, breaking and entering, trap, violence, blindness, characters murdered one by one, held captive, trapped in a building, heist gone wrong, paranoia, robbery, escape, chase, teenage boy, burglar, recluse, burglary
Raw (2016)
Plot Summary:
In Justine’s family everyone is a vet and a vegetarian. At 16, she’s a gifted teen ready to take on her first year in vet school, where her older sister also studies. There, she gets no time to settle: hazing starts right away. Justine is forced to eat raw meat for the first time in her life. Unexpected consequences emerge as her true self begins to form
Duration: 99 min
IMDB Rating: 7.0/10
IMDB Votes: 87000
Genere: Drama, Horror
Country: France, Belgium
Plot tags: cannibalism, coming of age, cannibal, meat, vegetarian, sister sister relationship, teenage girl, school, gore, party, peer pressure, sex scene, university, blood, body horror, murder, defloration, psychology, loneliness, macabre, addiction, twists and turns, plot twist, female student, loss of virginity
The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)
Plot Summary:
Father and son coroners receive a mysterious unidentified corpse with no apparent cause of death. As they attempt to examine the beautiful young "Jane Doe," they discover increasingly bizarre clues that hold the key to her terrifying secrets
Duration: 86 min
IMDB Rating: 6.8/10
IMDB Votes: 134000
Genere: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: UK
Plot tags: supernatural, witch, supernatural horror, autopsy, morgue, demon, witchcraft, corpse, mutilation, dead woman, supernatural power, murder, mysterious death, nudity, crematorium, gore, monster, twists and turns, suffering, evil power, female nudity, bare breasts, father son relationship, blackout, escape attempt
Shin Godzilla (2016)
Plot Summary:
From the mind behind Evangelion comes a hit larger than life. When a massive, gilled monster emerges from the deep and tears through the city, the government scrambles to save its citizens. A rag-tag team of volunteers cuts through a web of red tape to uncover the monster's weakness and its mysterious ties to a foreign superpower. But time is not on their side - the greatest catastrophe to ever befall the world is about to evolve right before their very eyes
Duration: 120 min
IMDB Rating: 6.8/10
IMDB Votes: 33000
Genere: Action, Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi
Country: Japan
Plot tags: godzilla, giant monster, kaiju, monster, destruction, creature feature, giant, creature, military, scientist, evolution, danger, radioactivity, tunnel, reporter, evacuation, biohazard, prime minister, missile, mutant, save the world, dinosaur, battles, end of the world, beast
Under the Shadow (2016)
Plot Summary:
As a mother and daughter struggle to cope with the terrors of the post-revolution, war torn Tehran of the 80s, a mysterious evil begins to haunt their home
Duration: 84 min
IMDB Rating: 6.8/10
IMDB Votes: 30000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Thriller, War
Country: UK, Jordan, Qatar, Iran
Plot tags: supernatural, brutality, danger, war, ghost, supernatural power, mother daughter relationship, djinn, haunted house, paranormal, paranormal activity, female warrior, military, terror, supernatural horror, haunted, iranian, haunting, teenager, children, devil, women, lgbt, mother, feminism
The Girl with All the Gifts (2016)
Plot Summary:
In the future, a strange fungus has changed nearly everyone into a thoughtless, flesh-eating monster. When a scientist and a teacher find a girl who seems to be immune to the fungus, they all begin a journey to save humanity
Duration: 111 min
IMDB Rating: 6.6/10
IMDB Votes: 64000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: UK
Plot tags: zombie, pandemic, post apocalypse, apocalypse, infection, zombie apocalypse, end of the world, military, zombie child, children, undead, virus, scientist, teacher, feral child, social commentary, distopia, experiment, post apocalyptic, gas mask, abandoned city, epidemic, living dead, disease, chase
Hush (2016)
Plot Summary:
A deaf woman is stalked by a psychotic killer in her secluded home
Duration: 82 min
IMDB Rating: 6.6/10
IMDB Votes: 150000
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: serial killer, trapped, home invasion, survival, deaf, female protagonist, obsession, violence, deafness, masked killer, brutality, murder, murderer, writers, isolation, deaf mute, blood, macabre, cabin in the woods, disability, monster, crazy, destiny, insanity, mute
Better Watch Out (2016)
Plot Summary:
On a quiet suburban street tucked within a 'safe neighborhood', a babysitter must defend a twelve-year-old boy from strangers breaking into the house, only to discover that this is far from a normal home invasion
Duration: 89 min
IMDB Rating: 6.5/10
IMDB Votes: 44000
Genere: Comedy, Horror, Thriller
Country: Australia, USA
Plot tags: home invasion, christmas, evil child, holiday horror, babysitter, snow, murder, teenager, winter, killer child, survival, psychopath, plot twist, prank, new year, monster, serial killer, killer, youth, rescue, fear, coming of age, breaking and entering, creepy kid, xmas
A Cure for Wellness (2016)
Plot Summary:
An ambitious young executive is sent to retrieve his company's CEO from an idyllic but mysterious "wellness center" at a remote location in the Swiss Alps but soon suspects that the spa's miraculous treatments are not what they seem
Duration: 146 min
IMDB Rating: 6.4/10
IMDB Votes: 107000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Germany, Luxembourg, USA
Plot tags: cure, patient, therapist, hospital, dark secret, spa, capitalism, macabre, slut, experiment, torture, boobs, capitalist, nubile girl, sauna, doctor, lust, car crash, nurse, health, employee, water, blonde, swimming pool, boss
Lights Out (2016)
Plot Summary:
When Rebecca left home, she thought she left her childhood fears behind. Growing up, she was never really sure of what was and wasn’t real when the lights went out…and now her little brother, Martin, is experiencing the same unexplained and terrifying events that had once tested her sanity and threatened her safety. A frightening entity with a mysterious attachment to their mother, Sophie, has reemerged
Duration: 81 min
IMDB Rating: 6.3/10
IMDB Votes: 140000
Genere: Horror, Mystery
Country: USA
Plot tags: mental illness, ghost, macabre, supernatural, paranormal, darkness, child in peril, monster, brother sister relationship, depression, violence, sibling relationship, paranormal phenomena, mental institution, trap, locked in a basement, mother daughter estrangement, redheaded woman, parenthood, haunted, blood, haunting, little boy, mental patient, female friendship
The Good Neighbor (2016)
Plot Summary:
Two high school filmmakers decide to create the illusion of a haunting on an unsuspecting neighbor
Duration: 98 min
IMDB Rating: 6.3/10
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: found footage, hidden camera, twists and turns, court, prank, bullying, revenge, neighbor, lawyer, home invasion, old man, crime gone awry, surveillance, spy, obsession, suicide, brutality, secrets, psychiatry, adaptation, basement, dog, halloween, loner, computer
The Shallows (2016)
Plot Summary:
An injured surfer stranded on a buoy needs to get back to shore, but the great white shark stalking her might have other ideas
Duration: 86 min
IMDB Rating: 6.3/10
IMDB Votes: 142000
Genere: Action, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: shark, survival, surfing, animal attack, creature feature, trapped, stranded, killer shark, ocean, shark attack, beach, sea, great white shark, island, strong female character, rescue, courage, death, female protagonist, surfer, beautiful scenery, underwater, fear, tough girl, danger
A Dark Song (2016)
Plot Summary:
A determined young woman and a damaged occultist risk their lives and souls to perform a dangerous ritual that will grant them what they want
Duration: 100 min
IMDB Rating: 6.2/10
IMDB Votes: 21000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery
Country: Ireland, UK
Plot tags: occult, ritual, black magic, occult ritual, angel, supernatural, female protagonist, magic, isolated house, folk horror, desperation, demon, paranormal phenomena, danger, transformation, lie, loss of son, witch, witchcraft, loss of control, terror, possession, woman in danger, supernatural horror, paranormal activity
Before I Wake (2016)
Plot Summary:
About an orphaned child whose dreams - and nightmares - manifest physically as he sleeps
Duration: 97 min
IMDB Rating: 6.2/10
IMDB Votes: 51000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: subconscious, supernatural, dream, orphan, child, nightmare, adoption, monster, supernatural power, supernatural ability, danger, insomnia, terror, little boy, youth, grief, supernatural horror, haunted, xmas, teenager, ghost, macabre, torture, past, house
The Eyes of My Mother (2016)
Plot Summary:
A young, lonely woman is consumed by her deepest and darkest desires after tragedy strikes her quiet country life
Duration: 76 min
IMDB Rating: 6.2/10
IMDB Votes: 14000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: death of father, dead body, loneliness, serial killer, violence, dark past, gore, curiosity, unsettling, friendship, friends, mother, father, family relations, farmer, society, anatomy, alienation, estranged father, estrangement, mysterious past, psychopath, macabre, torture, darkness
I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016)
Plot Summary:
Fifteen-year old John Cleaver is dangerous, and he knows it. He’s obsessed with serial killers, but really doesn’t want to become one. Terrible impulses constantly tempt him, so for his own sake, and the safety of those around, he lives by rigid rules to keep himself “good” and “normal”. However, when a real monster shows up in his town he has to let his dark side out in order to stop it – but without his rules to keep him in check, he might be more dangerous than the monster he’s trying to kill
Duration: 104 min
IMDB Rating: 6.2/10
IMDB Votes: 16000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: Ireland, USA, UK
Plot tags: serial killer, murder, teenager, small town, murderer, investigation, violence, stalking, mental disorder, fear, serial murder, supernatural power, adolescence, gore, hunt down, man boy relationship, research, profiler, macabre, supernatural, sociopath, killer, masked killer, psycho killer, teen superhero
The Love Witch (2016)
Plot Summary:
Elaine, a beautiful young witch, is determined to find a man to love her. In her gothic Victorian apartment she makes spells and potions, and then picks up men and seduces them. However her spells work too well, and she ends up with a string of hapless victims. When she finally meets the man of her dreams, her desperation to be loved will drive her to the brink of insanity and murder
Duration: 120 min
IMDB Rating: 6.2/10
IMDB Votes: 19000
Genere: Comedy, Horror, Romance, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: witchcraft, witch, magic, manipulative woman, spell, love potion, love, looking for love, burlesque, painting, exploitation, tarot card, occult, sex scene, murder, suicide, feminist, female nudity, women, pagan, femme fatale, female protagonist, lovers, ritual, poison
Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016)
Plot Summary:
In 1965 Los Angeles, a widowed mother and her two daughters add a new stunt to bolster their séance scam business and unwittingly invite authentic evil into their home. When the youngest daughter is overtaken by the merciless spirit, this small family confronts unthinkable fears to save her and send her possessor back to the other side
Duration: 99 min
IMDB Rating: 6.2/10
IMDB Votes: 72000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: macabre, supernatural, possession, occult, ghost, demon, supernatural horror, ouija board, spiritualism, teenager, witchcraft, survival, monster, paranormal, spirit, haunted house, devil, death, murder, storytelling, haunted, exorcism, ouija, ghost child, witch
The Neon Demon (2016)
Plot Summary:
When aspiring model Jesse moves to Los Angeles, her youth and vitality are devoured by a group of beauty-obsessed women who will take any means necessary to get what she has
Duration: 117 min
IMDB Rating: 6.1/10
IMDB Votes: 102000
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA, Belgium, Denmark, France
Plot tags: fashion, teenage girl, cannibalism, obsession, model, murder, lesbian, beauty, jealousy, 16 year old, surrealism, rape, necrophilia, rivalry, lust, fashion model, female masturbation, bare breasts, female rivalry, female orgasm, female sociopath, blood, photographer, motel, female nudity
The Belko Experiment (2016)
Plot Summary:
In a twisted social experiment, a group of 80 Americans are locked in their high-rise corporate office in Bogotá, Colombia and ordered by an unknown voice coming from the company's intercom system to participate in a deadly game of kill or be killed
Duration: 89 min
IMDB Rating: 6.1/10
IMDB Votes: 57000
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: game of death, human experiment, social experiment, last man standing, trapped in a building, trapped, most dangerous game, office, survival, struggle for survival, murder, trap, experiment, manhunt, psychopath, killings, killing spree, psycho killer, hostage, violence, brutality, corporation, office worker, mass murder, manipulation
The Boy (2016)
Plot Summary:
A nanny, working for a family whose son has just passed away, finds herself put in charge of caring for a lifelike doll that the couple treat as a real child
Duration: 97 min
IMDB Rating: 6.0/10
IMDB Votes: 100000
Genere: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada, China
Plot tags: doll, haunted house, supernatural, plot twist, violence, twists and turns, nanny, macabre, murder, mansion, governess, brutality, boy, hidden room, suicide by drowning, american abroad, haunted, serial killer, puppet, terror, old dark house, toys, ghost, imaginary friend, evil doll
The Purge: Election Year (2016)
Plot Summary:
Two years after choosing not to kill the man who killed his son, former police sergeant Leo Barnes has become head of security for Senator Charlene Roan, the front runner in the next Presidential election due to her vow to eliminate the Purge. On the night of what should be the final Purge, a betrayal from within the government forces Barnes and Roan out onto the street where they must fight to survive the night
Duration: 108 min
IMDB Rating: 6.0/10
IMDB Votes: 108000
Genere: Action, Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: murder, distopia, election, politics, survival, vigilante, revenge, social decay, class differences, fighting the system, gunfight, death, brutality, resistance, violence, political campaign, female politician, social injustice, church, showdown, experiment, supernatural, gory, dystopia, vengeance
The Void (2016)
Plot Summary:
In the middle of a routine patrol, officer Daniel Carter happens upon a blood-soaked figure limping down a deserted stretch of road. He rushes the young man to a nearby rural hospital staffed by a skeleton crew, only to discover that patients and personnel are transforming into something inhuman. As the horror intensifies, Carter leads the other survivors on a hellish voyage into the subterranean depths of the hospital in a desperate bid to end the nightmare before it's too late
Duration: 90 min
IMDB Rating: 5.9/10
IMDB Votes: 41000
Genere: Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Canada
Plot tags: body horror, monster, hospital, insanity, cosmic horror, another dimension, macabre, murder, mutation, human experiment, small town, isolation, gore, survival, violence, doctor, police officer, tentacle, blood, pregnant girl, brutality, nurse, supernatural, basement, mad doctor
Morgan (2016)
Plot Summary:
A corporate risk-management consultant must determine whether or not to terminate an artificial being's life that was made in a laboratory environment
Duration: 92 min
IMDB Rating: 5.8/10
IMDB Votes: 46000
Genere: Action, Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: twists and turns, cloning, moral dilemma, genetics, surveillance, violence, robot, death, artificial intelligence, chase, experiment, female robot, isolation, secret laboratory, humanoid, brutality, danger, escape, adaptation, storytelling, scientist, suicide, interrogation, lethal injection, fight