Scream show: The horror movies to watch (and avoid) in 2018
Ready for some spooks? Sure, it might be the month of love, but horror in 2018 proved to be a year-long affair. A stack of films dropped throughout the calendar, enough to keep the bedrocks of hell heated. Still, some delivered while others fizzled. Here are the ones worth your time and the ones best left on the shelf.
Watch: Unsane
Steven Soderbergh shot the entire film on an iPhone 7 Plus in roughly a week. The result earned an 80 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes and pulled in $14.3 million on a $1.5 million budget. Mental asylums, experimental techniques, and Soderbergh’s brisk pace made the gamble pay off.
Avoid: Winchester
It’s not like us to follow reviews and ratings (we make those ourselves), but an 11% score on Rotten Tomatoes has to say something about this one. The story also sounds like a weaker version of The Woman in Black, which wasn’t all that impressive in the first place. Not even Helen Mirren can pull this rotten corpse out of the grave. The film underperformed both critically and at the box office, confirming early doubts.
Watch: A Quiet Place
Emily Blunt stars alongside her real-life husband John Krasinski, who also directed. Blunt’s role is one of a sweaty blonde trying to beat off the most uppity spirit in cinematic history. You can’t beat a great hook, and boy does this have one. There’s definite potential for this to rank in as one of the best horror flicks of 2018. It ultimately grossed over $340 million worldwide and launched a franchise that has since surpassed $900 million combined.
Avoid: Truth or Dare
Don’t let the name fool you – the premise of this film is truly unique and most definitely not like all those other genre flicks that depend on a cast of Kardashian look-alikes and a prescribed level of R-rated horror to sell tickets. Post-release consensus landed on mixed-to-negative reviews, with most viewers calling it formulaic PG-13 horror that failed to stand out.
Watch: Hereditary
When Ellen, the matriarch of the Graham family, passes away, her daughter’s family begins to unravel the cryptic and terrifying secrets about their ancestry in this ominous and profoundly disquieting horror flick from Ari Aster (Munchausen). You know it’s going to be a dark ride when the reviews claim that people were “pissing their pants” and “passing out” during screenings. The film grossed over $90 million and now ranks among the decade’s essential horror titles.
Avoid: The House with a Clock in its Walls
We’d typically be on board for Eli Roth (Inglourious Basterds) and his B-movie gore, but considering his last few films have been toilet dwellers, this one’s getting a bit fat nope from us. Did anyone even enjoy The Green Inferno or Knock Knock? Also, who wants to see Jack Black in a horror film? Not us! Final reviews proved mixed, and the film landed as a lesser entry compared to expectations.
Watch: The House That Jack Built
Lars. Von. Trier. Doing. Serial. Killers. And. Murder. We needn’t say more than that. Though, there’s a good argument to be made for double booking your therapist for the week following its release. The film polarized critics at 60 percent on Rotten Tomatoes yet earned praise for Matt Dillon’s performance and its sheer ambition.
Avoid: The Nun
Father forgive me, for I have sinned . . . Those should be the words of Corin Hardy for bestowing us with yet another spin-off that’s inspired by another spin-off of an already crappy movie. Can we not get some new ideas for once, please? The film still managed major commercial success at $366 million despite the mixed reviews.
Watch: Summer of ‘84
This one’s apparently “like Stranger Things but with serial killers”. Who among us isn’t excited by that prospect?! It landed positive reviews for its 80s nostalgia and thrills and appeared on multiple best-of-2018 horror lists.
Avoid: Halloween
Right, we say “avoid”, but let’s face it – we’re all going to check this one out at some point. That’s the crux of the problem with this franchise – they got us hooked from the start and yet every other reboot, remake, rejig, and refuck they throw at us, we continue to lap up like the desperate little horror freaks that we undoubtedly are. Let us remind you, however, that this is the eleventh installment in the series now. That cow might’ve been dry for a long time, but they’re not giving up. The 2018 entry became the highest-grossing slasher at release with $260 million and helped revive interest in the genre.
2018 Horror Box Office Standouts
A Quiet Place cleared $340 million, The Nun reached $366 million, and Halloween hit $260 million. Horror films captured a sizable share of the year’s theatrical market, proving the genre could deliver both critical heat and commercial returns.
Ari Aster's Breakthrough and Lasting Influence
Hereditary marked Ari Aster’s feature debut and quickly launched his career, leading directly to Midsommar. The film now appears on nearly every best-of-decade and 21st-century horror list, cementing Aster as a key voice in elevated horror.
Franchise Legacies from 2018 Releases
A Quiet Place spawned two sequels and a prequel, while the 2018 Halloween revived studio interest in the slasher series. Several titles proved their long-term value by extending beyond a single release.
Innovative Filmmaking Techniques in 2018 Horror
Unsane was shot entirely on an iPhone, while A Quiet Place earned acclaim for its precise sound design. Both films demonstrated how technical risks could heighten tension without relying on traditional budgets.
How 2018 Shaped Modern Horror
The year saw horror gain critical respect while maintaining box office dominance. Elevated entries like Hereditary and technical experiments like Unsane influenced later films that balanced prestige with scares, while franchise revivals kept nostalgic audiences engaged.
Looking back, 2018 delivered a mix of bold experiments and franchise plays that still shape what horror looks like today. Some titles aged better than others, but the year left a clear mark on the genre’s direction.
