Horror franchises are some of the longest-running series in all of cinema history. Between killers that return from the grave in each film, prequels, side stories, later franchise reboots, or moving to a TV format, the horror genre is full of incredible high-grossing horror franchises. For some of these franchises, the films date back to the 1970s. Halloween, in particular, is one of the longest-lasting and most successful film series in cinema history. Even newer franchises such as Paranormal Activity and The Conjuring, each having around 10 films, have ranked in high figures over shorter periods. Then, there are franchises like It, which only have two films out, but still drew huge box-office returns.
Updated January 28th, 2023: If you love horror and are curious which of the many film series have been the most successful, you'll be happy to know that we've updated this article with additional content and even higher quality.
Between villains in masks who just refuse to die, cannibals, space aliens, and even paranormal entities, there are some huge money-making franchises in the horror genre. Not everyone loves to be scared, but fans who do are many. It's thanks to them that the creepiest, most terrifying franchises ever have withstood the test of time and continue to do so for decades on. Let’s take a closer look at some of the highest-grossing horror movie franchises of all time.
13 A Quiet Place — $638M
Funnyman John Krasinski showed off his phenomenal dramatic acting chops when he directed, starred and co-wrote the box office slam dunk A Quiet Place, appearing alongside his wife Emily Blunt in a film that follows a family's struggle to survive a ravaged post-apocalyptic world terrorized by blind creatures that locate their victims via their intense hearing abilities. Not only was the adrenaline-pumping picture a knockout with moviegoers, but it was also lauded by critics for its genre blending, unsettling atmosphere and stellar performances; it went on to be nominated for both an Oscar and a Golden Globe.
Due to the overwhelming success of the first flick, A Quiet Place Part II was released in 2020 to similarly glowing reviews, setting the record at the time for the biggest opening weekend for a film during the pandemic. Both a spin-off entitled A Quiet Place: Day One and a direct third sequel are currently in the works with the projects set for a 2024 and 2025 release, which are sure to send its total earnings skyrocketing once again.
12 The Ring — $654M
Fans of the truly terrifying Samara/Sadako and the notoriously cursed videotape may not realize that The Ring franchise contains a whopping 12 films, consisting of 8 Japanese installments, 3 English language adaptations and a Korean remake. The pop culture phenomenon is based off of Koji Suzuki's best-selling Ring novels, and centers on those who are brave enough to watch the haunted footage and their fight to survive after seven days if they fail to pass on the malevolent video to a new victim.
The series made its worldwide cinema debut in 1998 with Hideo Nakata directing, earning universal acclaim and inspiring many Ring remakes, follow-ups, and knock-offs that took audiences everywhere by storm. The spine-tingling masterpiece led to a slew of Western adaptations of J-Horror and resulted in the equally successful 2002 American version featuring Naomi Watts. In 2022 the most recent chapter of the thrilling franchise, Sadako DX, was released, pushing its overall total earnings to $654 million.
11 Final Destination — $665M
Mayhem and destruction seem to be as big a box-office draw as terror and genuine scares. The Final Destination series follows various teenagers who struggle to evade death's clutches when one of them experiences a life-saving premonition. No one ever really makes it out alive in these films, but it's a fun ride to see the many brutal methods in which fate takes its toll. Each kill across the franchise is almost exclusively brutal, with loads of blood and body parts that would be enough to make Michael Myers blush.
The series has been stalled for a while now, with the last entry having been released over a decade ago, but when it comes to horror, nothing is ever really over. This series has made many memorable, and not-so-memorable kills as well. It's because of films like these that fans are forever wary when driving behind a truck carrying timber.
10 Scream — $744 Million
The Scream franchise has been around since 1996, with its sixth installment due this year. In this humor-laced horror series, the villain Ghostface almost exclusively targets Sydney Prescott (Neve Campbell) and her friends. With each installment, a new person dons the iconic mask, each with their own sinister and twisted motives, which are typically linked to trends in horror.
For the most part, new cast members are introduced except for the few adult characters left from Scream (Sidney Prescott, Gale Weathers, and Dewey Riley), who have appeared in all the films. However, as fans have seen in the last film, being a regular doesn't ensure their safety. The latest Scream movie was released last January to rave reviews, pushing the Scream franchise over the $700 million mark.
9 Jaws — $819 Million
When Jaws first premiered in 1975, its success was instantaneous as it became the first film, per Guinness World Records, to reach $100 million at the box office. The franchise was short-lived, though, with only four films. The premise of these movies centers around a great white shark that terrorizes a beach resort town and goes on a killing spree. Even though the shark dies at the end, relatives of the shark seem to haunt the family of Sheriff Brodey, the man responsible for destroying the shark in the 1974 original. Ratings for the subsequent films did not reach as high as the original film, but to be fair, it wasn't an easy film to top.
The idea of a shark attack on innocent families at the beach is a concept largely grounded in reality' even if it hardly happens at all, people are still afraid of it (parly thanks to this film). Not many directors can pull off a daytime horror film, but Spielberg did so with grace and style. Jaws established the then up-start director as a force to be reckoned with behind the camera, one who still rules cinemas to this day.
8 Halloween — $885 Million
One of the longest-running horror franchises on this list is Halloween. Its 13 films have spanned from 1978 to today, and have branched off into multiple narratives. The third installment of the current rebooted series is set to premiere during the fall both in theaters and on Peacock streaming. In this series, we see a villain who cannot seem to stay dead despite experiencing some seriously close calls.
In a majority of the films, Michael Myers battles Laurie Strode and her family after meeting for the first time in the original movie, the 1978 cult classic that still lives up to this day. With the release of this 13th (and supposedly final) film at the end of last year, the franchise moved that much closer to crossing into the billion-dollar club as playing on both streaming and in theaters didn't seem to hurt its box-office success.
7 Paranormal Activity — $890 Million
The Paranormal Activity franchise started strong with its first few films cruising to the top of the box office. The series, which debuted in 2007, plans on releasing its expected eighth installment in 2023. After moving into a new home, a couple becomes increasingly disturbed by a demonic presence. The presence has a connection specifically to a woman named Katie. The events that happen before and after moving into this house are touched upon in each new film.
The found-footage, demonic-based franchise has grossed over 30 times its original budget, earning it a spot on this list despite negative reviews on most of the films in the franchise. Fans who love this franchise will no doubt love the next installment, but it may be the last according to Entertainment Weekly, as Jason Blum recently expressed his desire to close out the franchise.
6 Hannibal — $924 Million
One of the thriller-suspense franchises on the list centers around the story of a fictional character named Hannibal Lecter, a cannibalistic serial killer and genius who on occasion helps assist the FBI with catching other serial killers. The franchise also covers his crimes and how he became to be a notorious serial murderer himself. The character, based on the character written by Thomas Harris, was most known for the film Silence of the Lambs, which is actually a part of the Hannibal franchise that consists of five films released between 1986 and 2007.
What made the character of Hannibal so captivating was that he wasn't even the main villain of his first two films. In Silence of the Lambs, Lecter is on screen for less than 20 minutes of the film's nearly two-hour run time, yet somehow, there is a daunting sense of his control felt throughout. He may not always be the star, but these are very much his movies.
5 Saw — $1.02 Billion
In this nine-film sadistic franchise, an engineer turned serial killer traps allegedly deserving victims in gruesome traps that force them to suffer through the pain to become reborn. Jigsaw, the villain, handpicks victims who have gotten away with crimes they have committed and forces them to battle for their lives for redemption. The Saw franchise, which first started in 2004, has introduced and brutally killed new characters in each film while bringing back Jigsaw and his apprentices.
The franchise has lost some of its popularity over the years, but not enough to end it. In 2021, Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson signed on to produce and appear in a reboot of the franchise with brand-new characters, doing so in the modest hit Spiral. Additionally, a new installment of the franchise will hit theaters in the fall of 2023. This goes to show that the games are never really over, not when they have such high drawing power.
4 It — $1.17 Billion
From the mind of author Stephen King comes the story behind Pennywise the Dancing Clown. Originally a miniseries from the 80s, the franchise was given a two-film remake in 2017 and 2019: IT and IT: Chapter Two, respectively. The two films were so popular that they were able to debut on a list full of multiple-film franchises. In the franchise, Pennywise returns to haunt the town of Derry, Maine, every 27 years. In IT, he faces off against a group of misfit kids who rally together to fight him back into hiding for another 27 years.
In IT: Chapter Two, the group returns to Derry to rediscover their bonds, so they can put a stop to Pennywise once and for all. At this time, it seems Pennywise's story is over, despite his popularity. However, we'll be seeing the malevolent dancing clown again somewhere down the line as a prequel series is in development from HBO Max.
3 Resident Evil — $1.27B
The Resident Evil franchise is another long-standing franchise, but this one is based on a Japanese video game franchise. The premise follows a special military unit that fights a powerful supercomputer and hundreds of mutated scientists who have turned into flesh-eating creatures after a laboratory accident, but that's just the first movie. The rest of the franchise follows Alice, a genetically engineered woman who travels the ravaged remains of Earth to put an end to Umbrella and its bio-weaponized monsters.
This series is a far cry from the games and largely uses its properties to tell its own story. Regardless, they made a killing at overseas box offices. The seven-film franchise first premiered in 2002, with its most recent reboot having been released in 2021, which was unfortunately poorly received by both fans and critics. The new Netflix series didn't fare all too well either. Could the popular games have reached their end on the big screen?
2 Alien — $1.72B
The sci-fi horror thriller Alien franchise takes us to outer space and introduces a ruthless alien species. In the original film, a crew on a commercial spacecraft investigates a distress signal. They come in contact with an alien species that they unknowingly bring on board their ship. The alien burst out of a crew member's chest and kills off all but one of the crew members setting up subsequent films. The series follows the fight between aliens and humans throughout. The original series consisted of four films that were released from 1979 to 1997 which featured the badass character of Ellen Ripley, played by Sigourney Weaver.
In 2012, the series was given a two-story prequel picked up by the original director, Ridley Scott, but was primarily met with mixed reviews. That didn't mark the end of any Xenomorph-based stories, though, as a new miniseries prequel is expected to air on FX sometime next year.
1 The Conjuring — $2.13B
It's no surprise that the highest-grossing horror franchise to date is that of The Conjuring series. These movies, the first being released in 2013, quickly produced eight films in just as many years. The films follow the real-life cases of Ed and Lorraine Warren, paranormal investigators, who attempt to save people that have been possessed by demonic spirits. Spin-offs of the film follow the origin stories of some of these entities the Warrens have encountered. The most prevalent of which has been Annabelle, the demonic doll that was introduced in the first Conjuring movie.
This beloved series has gained quite the following over the years. At this time, it is uncertain if the Warrens themselves will return for any more films. The franchise looks to be moving forward regardless, with The Nun 2 expected to hit theaters this fall.