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While many film lovers associate fall - with an emphasis on Halloween in October - as the ultimate time of the year for great horror, the fact of the matter is summer has a pretty good claim of ownership of the genre as well. Not only is it a major season for horror movie releases, but there have been plenty of horror movies that have sought to employ the heat of summer as a pivotal part of the story as well.
From promiscuous teenagers being hunted down at Camp Crystal Lake to the terrifying waters off Amity Island housing a giant, man-eating beast, the characters in these famous, fearsome flicks have hoped to escape the heat and found themselves needing to escape much, much more. With the 2023 summer starting to near its end, here are some of the best summer horror movies to help you cling on to the warm weather a little longer.
Updated on July 22, 2025, by Ryan Heffernan:
Summer is the time for cinematic blockbusters, and while genres like action dominate the season, horror has always held a certain sway for audiences. That trend is set to continue this year too with the Australian demonic horror movieTalk to Meon track to be a genre hit while the upcoming release ofThe Meg 2: The Trenchcould offer some genuine monster movie fun for lovers of old-fashioned B-movie horror.
14’The Meg' (2018)
While it may not have stuck the landing as well as many would have liked,The Meghad a certain B-movie charm about it which made it work rather well. The premise also proved to be rather intriguing to moviegoers, with the ridiculous monster horror movie grossing over half a billion dollars ($530 million) worldwide.
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It follows a group of marine scientists who embark on a desperate rescue mission in the newfound depths of the Mariana Trench, which turns out to house a living megalodon. Treading in the footsteps of shark movies likeJaws, it presented a summer stunner of horror fun, and while it may have missed its mark a little, its success ensured a sequel that could excel where its predecessor wavered.
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From directorJim Jarmusch,The Dead Don’t Dieispresented asa zombie horror parodythat combined undead thrills with bitingly self-aware comedy. It is set in a small American town called Centerville which is soon overrun with rampaging zombies, leaving the inept local police department to try to control the spiraling situation.
The film featured an all-star cast and was propped up by its bone-dry wit and a thematic sharpness about what the zombie genre started as and what it’s become. Its meshing of genres and meta-humor did prove to be too much for some viewers, as the film divided fans and critics alike, but as a zombie summer satire, it provided something different to engage with.
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12’The Hills Have Eyes' (1977)
A true cult classic of horror entertainment,The Hills Have Eyeswas an enjoyably pulpy offering from horror masterWes Cravenloaded with great thrills and a dark sense of humor. It follows a vacationing suburban family en route to Los Angeles who becomes the target of cannibalistic savages when they become stranded in the Nevada desert.
While it’s not exactly a masterpiece of terrifying cinema, it does provide some genuine thrills and earned a surprisingly decent remake in 2006. With its lenient tone and its indulgence in summertime scares,The Hills Have Eyesbecame a hit summer release of 1977 and proved to be a pioneering horror film leading into the 1980s.
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11’The Final Girls' (2015)
A loving ode to slasher cinema that has a great deal of fun with the horror genre at large,The Final Girlsshould have become a cult classic for lovers of old-school flicks like the originalFriday the 13thmovies. It follows a young girl who, after the death of her mother who was a scream queen from the 80s, finds herself sucked into the world of her mother’s most popular movie “Camp Bloodbath.”
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In order to survive the movie world nightmare, Max (Taissa Faminga) and her friends must rely on their knowledge of horror movie tropes to outwit the slashing villain. In addition to having some great scares and a lot of laughter, the film also boasted a surprising emotional weight which made it stand out in the genre.
10’I Know What You Did Last Summer' (1997)
While critics beratedI Know What You Did Last Summerfor its formulaic story which arrived a decade after the slasher genre heyday, they did concede genre diehards would be appeased, and how right they were. A celebratedcult classic of teen horror pulp, it follows a group of kids who, one year after accidentally killing a fisherman and disposing of his body, are haunted by a mysterious killer who torments them about their past crime.
Jennifer Love Hewittoccupies the starring role of Julie, withRyan Phillipe,Sarah Michelle Gellar, andFreddie Prinze Jr.playing the rest of the targeted crew. It wasn’t particularly terrifying, but there was a charmingly fun tone thrown over proceedings which made the summer slasher pop more than it probably should have.
Watch on Hulu
9’Jeepers Creepers' (2001)
Early2000s horror is littered with cult classic gemswhich took established genres and played to their strengths while offering something with a bit of an unusual or original spin.Jeepers Creepersdid just that, following two siblings on their way home from college for the summer who find themselves being relentlessly pursued by the flesh-eating creature Jeepers Creepers.
After engrossing audiences with a spectacular start, the film then settles in as a good old-fashioned monster movie with the demonic villain the star of the show. Its success sparked a series of sequels and reboots, though none have matched the simple ingenuity and genre purity of the original.
Watch on Prime Video
8’Us' (2019)
Jordan Peeleannounced himself as an unexpected horror maestro with 2016’sGet Out. His follow-up film only re-affirmed his brilliance in the genre withUsan equally inventive, ambitious, and terrifying societal horror following Adelaide Wilson (Lupita Nyong’o) as she vacations with her family to the beachfront house she was raised in.
As a lingering terror from her childhood bubbles away through the first part of the movie, an eerie suspense is established which doesn’t let up even when the visceral, petrifying horror explodes on screen. Peele uses staples of the American summer like the beach and the fairground well to set up a familial atmosphere that always feels as though it’s masking an ominous threat.
7’Sleepaway Camp' (1983)
The criminally undiscovered slasher sensation of the early 80s,Sleepaway Camprode off the coattails of teen camp slashers likeFriday the 13thwhile daring to be so much more. It follows a traumatized and targeted teenage girl who attends a summer camp with her cousin where it becomes apparent that anyone who messes with her soon gets their just deserts.
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Panic grows into paranoia at the camp as more and more gruesome deaths occur. The plot line, while throwing some twists into the works, is largely formulaic, but it does feature a truly shocking ending and makes use of some striking weirdness to leave a lasting impression.
Watch on Peacock
6’It' (2017)
Itis filled with both terror and summer nostalgia. The film follows seven children living in Derry, Maine, in 1989 who are terrorized by a shape-shifting monster disguised as the infamous deadly clown Pennywise (Bill Skarsgård) who is able to take the form of their greatest fears.
With the monster haunting them throughout the course of the summer, the kids begin to realize that they need to take matters into their own hands to defeat the evil and save the children of their town. The film’s visual terror was well complimented by grounded character drama which saw all the young actors turn in fine performances as terrified kids banding together.
5’The Cabin in the Woods' (2011)
Standing as a parody, a comedy, and a genuine horror thriller,The Cabin in the Woodshit all the right notes to become one of the more universally admiredhorror movies of the 2010s. It tracks a group of college students who venture to an isolated cabin deep in the forest for a summer getaway.
As the horror ensues, the group realizes that they are not only being attacked, but they are also being controlled by a mysterious body for their own sinister reasons. Their fight for survival is suitably intense, but also genuinely funny and self-aware as the filmmakers subvert the tropes of the genre with glorious results.
