Horror from the 2000s: the best movies
24 horror films from the 2000s, ranked by audience rating. The best of the decade, and it still holds up tonight. Updated September 25, 2026
The Legend of the Nahuala leads with 8 out of 10, ahead of Coraline (7,9). Ratings range from 7,1 to 8. All were released between 2000 and 2009.
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The Legend of the Nahuala
Leo San Juan, an insecure child of nine years old, lives eternally frightened by horror stories that Nando tells his older brother. Within these stories it is 'The Legend of Nahuala', according to which, an old abandoned Casona is possessed by the spirit of an evil witch known as the Nahuala.
Coraline
Wandering her rambling old house in her boring new town, 11-year-old Coraline discovers a hidden door to a strangely idealized version of her life. In order to stay in the fantasy, she must make a frighteningly real sacrifice.
Doctor Who: The Waters of Mars
In a Mars base, the inhabitants are being infected by a mysterious water creature which takes over its victims. The Doctor is thrust into the middle of this catastrophe, knowing a larger one is waiting around the corner.
Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust
Legendary dhampir D competes with a motley family of bounty hunters to track down Charlotte Elbourne, a young woman seemingly abducted by undead nobleman Meier Link.
The Others
Grace is a woman who lives in an old house kept dark because her two children, Anne and Nicholas, have a rare sensitivity to light. When the family begins to suspect the house is haunted, Grace fights to protect her children at any cost in the face of strange events and disturbing visions.
Shaun of the Dead
Shaun lives a supremely uneventful life, which revolves around his girlfriend, his mother, and, above all, his local pub. This gentle routine is threatened when the dead return to life and make strenuous attempts to snack on ordinary Londoners.
Let the Right One In
When Oskar, a sensitive, bullied 12-year-old boy, meets his new neighbor, the mysterious and moody Eli, they strike up a friendship. Initially reserved with each other, Oskar and Eli slowly form a close bond, but it soon becomes apparent that she is no ordinary young girl.
Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack
Godzilla has become a distant memory for Japan when the destruction of a US submarine raises alarms for Admiral Tachibana. His estranged daughter Yuri investigates the legend of the guardian monsters, who must rise to protect Japan against the vengeful spirits within Godzilla that seek to destroy both the nation and its people for the suffering they inflicted in the Pacific conflict.
Billy & Mandy's Big Boogey Adventure
When the Boogey Man causes Grim to lose his powers, rank, and title in the Underworld Court for misusing his powers, he plots to seek out Horror's Hand and take over the world. It's up to Billy, Mandy, Irwin, and Grim to get to Horror's Hand before the Boogey Man does.
Saw
Two men wake up to find themselves shackled in a grimy, abandoned bathroom. As they struggle to comprehend their predicament, they discover a disturbing tape left behind by the sadistic mastermind known as Jigsaw. With a chilling voice and cryptic instructions, Jigsaw informs them that they must partake in a gruesome game in order to secure their freedom.
Shutter
When Jane and Tun run over a girl in a car accident, they speed away immediately from the crime scene. However, Tun, a photographer, soon discovers strange shadows in his photos, which unsettles them.
An American Crime
The true story of suburban housewife Gertrude Baniszewski, who kept a teenage girl locked in the basement of her Indiana home during the 1960s.
The Devil's Backbone
Spain, 1939. In the last days of the Spanish Civil War, the young Carlos arrives at the Santa Lucía orphanage, where he will make friends and enemies as he follows the quiet footsteps of a mysterious presence eager for revenge.
Martyrs
A young woman’s quest for revenge against the people who kidnapped and tortured her as a child leads her and her best friend, also a victim of child abuse, on a terrifying journey into a living hell of depravity.
Zombieland
Columbus has made a habit of running from what scares him. Tallahassee doesn't have fears. If he did, he'd kick their ever-living ass. In a world overrun by zombies, these two are perfectly evolved survivors. But now, they're about to stare down the most terrifying prospect of all: each other.
28 Days Later
Twenty-eight days after a killer virus was accidentally unleashed from a British research facility, a small group of London survivors are caught in a desperate struggle to protect themselves from the infected. Carried by animals and humans, the virus turns those it infects into homicidal maniacs -- and it's absolutely impossible to contain.
Strange Circus
The erotic novelist Taeko is writing a morbid story of a family destroyed by incest, murder and abuse. Her assistant, Yuji, sets on a mission to uncover the reality of this story, but the reality might be too much to bear.
![[REC]](https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w342/hgyJR4sgMsee6xMFM3xYiG6cDCh.jpg)
[REC]
A television reporter and cameraman follow emergency workers into a dark apartment building and are quickly locked inside with something terrifying.
The Orphanage
A woman brings her family back to her childhood home, which used to be an orphanage, intent on reopening it. Before long, her son starts to communicate with a new invisible friend.
Constantine
John Constantine has literally been to Hell and back. When he teams up with a policewoman to solve the mysterious suicide of her twin sister, their investigation takes them through the world of demons and angels that exists beneath the landscape of contemporary Los Angeles.
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
The infamous story of Benjamin Barker, a.k.a Sweeney Todd, who sets up a barber shop down in London which is the basis for a sinister partnership with his fellow tenant, Mrs. Lovett. Based on the hit Broadway musical.
Alone
When Pim and Ploy, twins conjoined at the stomach, are separated, the operation leaves Pim the surviving sister, haunted by Ploy's vengeful ghost.
Thirst
A respected priest volunteers for an experimental procedure that may lead to a cure for a deadly virus. He gets infected and dies, but a blood transfusion of unknown origin brings him back to life. Now, he’s torn between faith and bloodlust, and has a newfound desire for the wife of a childhood friend.
Audition
Seven years after the death of his wife, widower Shigeharu seeks advice on how to find a new wife from a colleague. Taking advantage of their position as a film company, they stage an audition. Interviewing a series of women, Shigeharu is enchanted by the quiet Asami. But soon things take a twisted turn as Asami isn’t what she seems to be.
What to know before choosing
Horror is the worst-rated genre in the catalog, and that has almost nothing to do with its quality. Its films are seen by audiences who did not choose them — the dragged-along friend, the curious — and those rate low. A horror film at 6.8 out of 10 is already very good, which is why the rating floor is lowered here. Watch the year too: the genre reinvents itself in roughly ten-year waves, and two films a decade apart do not frighten in the same way.
The 2000s are the digital tipping point: the decade in which effects stopped being remarkable and became invisible. Its films therefore age better than those of the decade before, whose computer imagery gives the date away instantly. It is also the last decade conceived entirely for the cinema rather than the home screen.
Frequently asked questions
How were these 24 films chosen?
They come from the TMDB catalog, filtered on audience rating and on a minimum number of votes — without that second filter, a film rated 9 out of 10 by eleven people would outrank a classic. No place is for sale: no platform, distributor or studio can enter this list other than by being well rated.
Which film in this list is rated highest?
The Legend of the Nahuala (2007), with 8 out of 10 from 257 audience votes.
Where can I watch these films?
Taro eira shows, film by film, which platforms carry it in the US and at what price — subscription, rental or purchase. The per-platform lists are further down this page.
How often does this list change?
It is recomputed every day. Ratings move slowly, catalogs move fast: availability is what mostly pushes titles in and out.
Do I need an account?
No. Taro eira is free, asks for no account and no subscription, and the two-or-three-question flow works without installing anything.
See also
- Horror
- Horror from the 2020s
- Horror from the 2010s
- Horror from the 1990s
- Horror from the 1980s
- Horror from the 1970s
- Horror before 1970
- Action from the 2000s
- Adventure from the 2000s
- Animation from the 2000s
- Comedy from the 2000s
- Crime from the 2000s
- Documentary from the 2000s
- Drama from the 2000s
- Family from the 2000s
- Fantasy from the 2000s
- Biopic from the 2000s
- Musical from the 2000s
- Romance from the 2000s
- Sci-fi from the 2000s
- Thriller from the 2000s
- War from the 2000s
- Western from the 2000s
How this list is built
Films come from the TMDB catalog, filtered on audience rating and vote count, then cross-checked against real availability in the country. No paid placement, no partnerships. How we choose the films.
Film data and posters: TMDB. This app uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB.