Eli Roth graduated from NYU Film School, and after working behind the scenes on a number of projects throughout the late '90s, he finally got his shot at directing his own feature with 2002's Cabin Fever. This filmmaker has been a staple of the horror genre ever since, directing some of the most outrageous and terrifying horror movies of the last two decades.

Update November 25, 2023: This article has been updated by Samuel Cormier in honor of the release of Roth's latest film, Thanksgiving.

Roth's early projects have the particular aesthetic of ramping up the blood and gore, and he was one of the leading figures in the horror subgenre of torture porn. Roth has attempted to go outside his comfort zone, tackling action remakes and even family films. His latest film, Thanksgiving, is a return to his horror roots. Here are Eli Roth's directorial films, ranked.

8 Death Wish (2018)

Death Wish is a hard entry to discuss. The film's original release date was pushed back following a mass shooting at a Las Vegas concert, and its eventual release debuted in theaters just one month after the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. For a movie that focuses heavily on a vigilante enacting revenge through extreme use of gun violence, being released so closely to these real life tragedies shined an awful light on the film. Roth directs a perfectly fine action film despite its controversial subject matter. Ranking among the lesser films in the Death Wish franchise, the negativity surrounding the movie tainted its release as well as its ranking on this list.

Death Wish is currently streaming on TBS and TNT, and available to rent on digital platforms like Prime Video, Apple TV, and more.

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7 Knock Knock (2015)

Knock Knock delivers Eli Roth's take on the home invasion film that has frequented the horror genre since its inception. Keanu Reeves stars as an architect named Evan, recovering from a recent surgery alone at home. He is met at his front door in the middle of the night by two young girls seeking shelter from the rain. The events that ensue inflict mental and physical torment on Evan as the girls threaten his life through violence and blackmail. The movie is lauded much more for Reeves' performance than Roth's directing, a saving grace of an otherwise lackluster film. One of the intruders is played by Ana de Armas, making her English-language film debut.

Knock Knock is available to rent or buy on Prime Video and other digital platforms.

6 Hostel: Part II (2007)

The sequel to his 2005 hit film Hostel, this follow-up, aptly titled Hostel: Part II, takes the concept of the first film and dials up the blood and gore to eleven. Using the same story as the first film, the movie explores rich people in Europe paying large amounts of money to inflict pain and torture on American tourists. The biggest complaints about the film were its similarities to the original without offering much newness other than heaps of blood. The critics led Roth to rant on his MySpace at the time, offering up alternative reasons for the film's lack of success.

Hostel: Part II is currently streaming for free on The Roku Channel and Pluto TV, and is available to rent or buy on all digital platforms.

5 The House with a Clock in Its Walls (2018)

Eli Roth's first step into the young adult genre comes in the form of 2018's The House with a Clock in Its Walls. It also marks Roth's most star-studded cast, featuring Cate Blanchett and a great Jack Black. This fantasy comedy strays far away from Roth's typical blood-and-gore horror films and allows the director to flex some of his other creative muscles. While the overall film falls short of the 1973 novel on which it is based, it is a breath of fresh air seeing Roth's broader display of talent.

The House with a Clock in Its Walls is currently streaming on FuboTV and FXNow, and available to rent or buy on digital platforms.

4 The Green Inferno (2013)

The Green Inferno is the furthest thing from the previous family-friendly film on this list. An homage to cult classic horror films like the controversial Cannibal Holocaust (and its title a wink to the film-within-a-film referred to in it), this movie focuses on a group of students who find themselves in the clutches of a cannibalistic tribe in the Amazon. While the film did not enjoy major success in theaters due to its intense subject matter, horror enthusiasts loved it, and it shows just how talented Eli Roth can be in his element.

The Green Inferno is currently available to rent on digital platforms like Apple TV.

Related: The Best Movies About Cannibals, Ranked

3 Thanksgiving (2023)

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Eli Roth goes back to his roots with Thanksgiving, a dark and gory slasher comedy. Following a Black Friday stampede that resulted in the death of several people, an ax murderer starts assaulting and abducting people in Plymouth, MA. It is soon discovered that this mysterious killer might be seeking vengeance for someone he lost in the incident. This film joins Hostel in that it also contains critiques of society: consumerism and the hypocrisy that some traditional celebrations have become.

The film has been praised for its smart and comedic rewriting of slasher tropes and for exploring a traditional American holiday that does not often get its own dedicated film. Based on Roth's iconic fictitious trailer that was included in the 2007 double-feature Grindhouse, the success of this film might be the birth of a franchise, according to Roth himself.

Thanksgiving is currently playing in theaters.

2 Hostel (2006)

Hostel came out during a time in which gruesome, bloody torture was about to consume the horror genre for the next five years, thanks in part to the Saw franchise. It also marks Eli Roth's sophomore directorial outing. The film features a trio of friends as they traverse Europe seeking out parties, sex, and drugs, eventually ending up at a hostel in Slovakia. The men find themselves entranced by a duo of women they meet at a party; two individuals who will lead them to the real horror the city has to offer.

The men find themselves kidnapped and in the middle of a business in which wealthy men and women can pay for victims to torture and mutilate. Within the film is a message about the societal taboos of paying for flesh, whether that be for sexual purposes or, in this case, torturous ones; offering a plot that is deeper than you might think. Overall, it is just a well-directed bloody good time.

Hostel is currently streaming for free on Pluto TV and Prime Video's Freevee, and is available to rent or buy on digital platforms.

1 Cabin Fever (2002)

Eli Roth's best directorial outing thus far also happens to be his first. Cabin Fever hit theaters in 2002 and follows a group of college students as they vacation in a secluded cabin in the woods. The friends quickly become ill as a flesh-eating virus begins infecting them. Where the movie succeeds is in its simplicity: Cabin Fever is essentially a love letter to classic low budget horror films of the past, such as Evil Dead, Deliverance, and Night of the Living Dead. The film is a glimpse at the talents Roth would go on to display in future projects. The movie even received the sequel treatment under the direction of rising horror director Ti West.

Cabin Fever is currently streaming for free on The Roku Channel, and is available to rent or buy on all digital platforms.

If you're a fan of Eli Roth or interested in his latest achievement, the film Thanksgiving, check out our interview with him below: