10 Best Horror Movie Remakes Of The 21st Century, Ranked

While some folks may still understandably bristle at the idea of horror movies getting the remake treatment, there have been undeniably great ones in recent history. Following celebrated 20th century horror remakes like “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” and “The Thing,” the 21st century has its own fair share of memorable chillers. Whether it’s Americanized takes on foreign films or updates of longstanding fan-favorites, some of the best horror movies of the 21st century are remakes. With that in mind, we’re taking a look at some of the entertaining scary movie remakes released in 2000 and beyond.

A few caveats to keep in mind for this particular list is that remakes that reuse a title but feature a vastly different story, like 2020’s excellent “The Invisible Man,” are omitted. Other notably enjoyable movies not included here are 2017’s “It” and 2013’s “Evil Dead,” which we would normally recommend but not for the purposes of this list. “It” was previously adapted as a television miniseries, not as a movie, while “Evil Dead” offers a broad retelling, but its post-credits scene suggests it’s in the same universe. 

All right, here are the 10 best horror movie remakes of the 21st century ranked, each providing a fresh take on an established classic.

There is a surprising number of horror movies set around Valentine’s Day, and one of the best horror movies featuring the amorous holiday is the 1981 slasher flick “My Bloody Valentine.” This was then remade in 2009 to take advantage of the latest resurgence in 3D filmmaking for American audiences with “My Bloody Valentine 3D.” The movie features a small-town community terrorized by a serial killer dressed as a miner linked to a mining tragedy over a decade prior. At the center of this mounting murder mystery is Sheriff Axel Palmer (Kerr Smith) and his old friend Tom Hanniger (Jensen Ackles).

3D gimmickry aside, or maybe partially because of it, “My Bloody Valentine 3D” is a lot of fun. Like its ’80s source material, the movie leans into the inherent viciousness of its premise, loading its kills with gratuitous gore and imbuing the character dynamics with heightened melodrama. But the movie also subverts expectations on how this particular version of the story is going to unfold, right down to its climactic confrontation. A deliberately trashy slasher thriller ride, “My Bloody Valentine 3D” hits all the right notes as it retells its tale of small-town carnage.

The 1980 slasher movie “Maniac” is a nasty piece of work, following the perspective of its killer Frank Zito, played by Joe Spinell, who also co-wrote the film. Elijah Wood revisited this concept over 30 years later for the 2012 remake of the same name, starring as Zito. Relocating the gruesome spectacle to Los Angeles, compared to the original’s New York City, the remake also unfolds from a first-person perspective. This iteration of Zito also scalps women that encounters, befriending a woman named Anna, played by Nora Arnezeder in the remake, which affects his murderous habit.

With its inventively immersive perspective, the 2012 “Maniac” is one of the most stylishly shot movies on this list. Even with this modern update, the movie doesn’t avoid just how sadistic the stakes truly are, with the kills still unrelentingly brutal. Wood really holds the whole thing together, with his wide-eyed performance keeping the audience captivated as he turns lethal on a dime. Bringing a truly twisted take on its already cruel source material, “Maniac” takes slasher bloodletting into an arthouse direction.

This may be a divisive inclusion, given how far it deviates from the original, but some would contend that the 2018 “Suspiria” is the best horror remake ever made. Filmmaker Luca Guadagnino takes the broad premise of the 1977 classic by Dario Argento, with American student Susie Bannion (Dakota Johnson) enrolling in a West German dance academy. As increasingly disturbing and violent phenomena occur around the school, it’s revealed that the academy is a front for a coven of witches. This sinister ensemble is headed by Mother Helena Markos (Tilda Swinton), who targets Susie for a fiendish ritual in the inner bowels of the school.

While some argue that the 2018 “Suspiria” remake is better than the original, I won’t personally go that far. What I do appreciate is that Guadagnino’s version looks and feels markedly different from Argento’s film, going with a bleaker color palette and Cold War tension. The movie also does a great job in subverting expectations for those familiar with the original movie, particularly with its sanguine climax. Bringing its own kind of dreary atmosphere rather than Argento’s vibrant vision, the 2018 “Suspiria” offers a distinctly entertaining thrill.

Before reimaginings of “Halloween” or “Friday the 13th,” it was 2003’s “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” that ushered in the slasher remake craze. Directed by Marcus Nispel and produced by Michael Bay, the movie is set in 1973, reflecting its 1974 source material, and it maintains the same basic premise. Protagonist Erin Hardesty (Jessica Biel) is part of a friend group driving through Texas that has a horrific encounter with a hitchhiker. This leads them to the Hewitt family, a cannibalistic clan that includes the masked chainsaw-wielding madman Leatherface (Andrew Bryniarski).

The 2003 “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” brings a slightly more stylish approach to its story, while retaining how mean and nasty the whole thing is. The scariest scenes capitalize on how stealthy Leatherface is, and the remake doubles down on the gore that was only implied in the original. Of all the horror properties remade by Bay’s Platinum Dunes, it stands clearly as the best, keeping things hot, tense, and dark as it proceeds. After slashers saw a resurgence with “Scream,” “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” reminded audiences how vicious the genre could be and was all the better for it.

It may have seemed too early to remake the 2022 Dutch-Danish thriller “Speak No Evil” a mere two years later, but the 2024 version quelled all doubts about its efficacy. Written and directed by James Watkins, the remake follows an American family vacationing in Europe who befriend a British family. Accepting an invitation to stay at their remote English home, the Americans grow increasingly uncomfortable with their hosts’ behavior. As the ensemble realizes the truth about their devious hosts, they try to escape from their ordeal in one piece.

“Speak No Evil” is an Americanized horror remake that actually works, in contrast to forgettable fare like “Pulse” or “The Uninvited.” A big part of that success is Watkins not slavishly sticking to the source material, while staying true to the spirit of the original version. James McAvoy, playing the duplicitous host masterminding this getaway from hell is in fine form as always, having previously proved his horror bonafides in “Split.” Considerably less bleak than the original version, the “Speak No Evil” remake doesn’t compromise its brutal stakes as it offers its own take on the story.

Looking back, Zack Snyder’s best film is his 2004 “Dawn of the Dead” remake, and it’s not even close. Whereas the 1978 original by George A. Romero took place with the zombie apocalypse underway, the remake opens with the start of undead ravenously rising. This brutally intense beginning sets the tone for the rest of the movie, complete with zombies that chase down their prey at a full sprint. Like the original, the movie centers on a small group of survivors who take shelter in a shopping mall, barricading themselves from the undead amassing outside.

The 2004 “Dawn of the Dead” takes its scares seriously, though it does offer its own moments of dark humor with a larger ensemble of main characters. Snyder brings a saturated cinematography to the action, giving the movie a striking visual style that sets it apart from the original and reflects its contemporary aesthetics. But this all takes a backseat to how pulse-poundingly intense the whole ride is, starting and ending particularly strong. The “Dawn of the Dead” remake feels tougher and meaner than Romero’s original, setting the stage for “The Walking Dead” to unleash a resurgence in zombie fiction.

Before “The Lost Boys,” there was “Fright Night” as a classic ’80s teen vampire flick that gave audiences a bloody good time. The 1985 movie received a remake by Disney, of all studios, in 2011, retelling the story of geeky teenager Charley Brewster (Anton Yelchin) getting a vampire as a nextdoor neighbor. This charming bloodsucker, Jerry (Colin Farrell), realizes Charley has learned his secret and targets the teen as he turns more and more members of the community into his undead ranks. Desperate, Charley recruits Las Vegas magician Peter Vincent (David Tennant) to help him vanquish the vampire and save his victims.

While it doesn’t have the same campy charm as the 1985 original, the 2011 “Fright Night” is a surprisingly good remake. A lot of this comes from the strength of its main cast, including Yelchin, Tennant, and Imogen Poots as Charley’s love interest Amy Peterson. But the real standout is Colin Farrell as an all-time great horror villain, both smolderingly sexy and bringing plenty of monstrous menace. Smartly constructed and repurposed to appeal to modern audiences, the “Fright Night” remake is a solidly sanguine take on the story.

The 1998 Japanese horror movie “Ringu” was remade for American audiences as “The Ring” in 2002 by a pre “Pirates of the Caribbean” Gore Verbinski. The movie follows journalist Rachel Keller (Naomi Watts) who learns about a cursed video tape that mysteriously kills anyone who watches it seven days after a viewing. When both Rachel and her young son Aidan (David Dorfman) watch the tape, they have to find a way to be spared of the curse before it’s too late. This leads Rachel to launch an exhaustive investigation into the history of the tape and the haunting figure who appears in its footage.

Over 20 years after debut, “The Ring” has evolved into a horror masterpiece that’s arguably better than its Japanese source material. Verbinski’s American version handles its dramatic scenes more effectively, and Watts is phenomenal in her lead performance. The 2002 movie also provides its own terrifying scares and explores the moral consequences of escaping the central curse on a deeper level than Hideo Nakata’s original. Starting a wave of American remakes of Japanese horror movies, none did this cultural transposition better than “The Ring.”

Before he helmed “The Batman,” filmmaker Matt Reeves crafted his own version of the Swedish horror movie “Let the Right One In.” Retitled “Let Me In,” the 2010 movie offers its own retelling of Owen (Kodi Smit-McPhee), an ostracized boy in 1983 New Mexico, befriending a vampire. After meeting Abby (Chloë Grace Moretz), Owen realizes that she’s a vampire, but he quickly forges a friendship with her that develops into something more. This young romance is challenged by the community discovering Abby’s growing body count, while Owen’s bullies escalate their harassment.

Though it retains the narrative broad strokes, Matt Reeves avoids making a copy-paste remake with “Let Me In.” To really distinguish his version, Reeves leans into the aesthetics and sensibilities of Reagan-era America, complete with a memorable television broadcast by Reagan himself. That added cultural context goes a long way in imbuing the 2010 movie with its own personality, while still bringing plenty of vampiric action. Punctuating its coming-of-age romance with gruesome scares, “Let Me In” respects its source material while making its tale distinctly American.

In remaking the 1922 silent film masterpiece “Nosferatu,” filmmaker Robert Eggers dug up his lifelong love of vampires for his 2024 version. The movie reframes Ellen Hutter (Lily-Rose Depp) as someone targeted by the vampiric Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård) since she was a little girl in 19th century Germany. Years later, Ellen’s husband Thomas (Nicholas Hoult) meets Orlok at his Transylvanian home to sell him property in his hometown before learning his client is a vampire. Orlok brings death and pestilence with him to Germany, prompting Ellen to resort to desperate means to save her community from this undead terror.

Robert Eggers resurrects “Nosferatu” as a scary fever dream, significantly dialing up the sensual themes to the story. This approach is underscored and elevated by Eggers’ penchant for striking art design, with the 2024 remake being his most visually sumptuous production to date. While everyone in the cast does a stellar job, including Depp and Skarsgård, it’s Eggers’ usual collaborator Willem Dafoe who steals every scene that he’s in. Remaking “Nosferatu” is always a tall order, but Eggers proved himself more than ready for the task, while including his usual themes into this retelling.