While the genres may seem like the complete opposite of one another from a glance, horror and comedy have been complimenting each other for years and bringing out the best in one another. Horror comedies like Shaun of the Dead, The Menu, and What We Do in the Shadows have become wildly celebrated and are some of the most acclaimed and versatile horror experiences out there. However, many great horror comedies find themselves leaning much more towards the comedic side as opposed to the horror side, sometimes not even attempting to have genuine horror or scares.
This makes the films that do successfully balance horror and comedy together that much more notable, as it gives the audience feelings of levity and laughter one moment before having them on the edge of their seat in tension the next. Several of these films manage to be so effective in their scares that they sometimes aren’t even considered horror comedies, yet they still undeniably have key moments and aspects that make them a hilariously fun time.
10
‘Malignant’ (2021)
Directed by James Wan
James Wan has been a massively influential creative in the realm of horror, creating some of the most celebrated and terrifying horror movies of the 21st century in Saw, Insidious, and The Conjuring. However, his latest original horror film, Malignant, manages to play into his own conventions to make for a strangely hilarious time that still utilizes Wan’s inherent strength for great scares. It makes for such a stark departure from his previous, largely grounded horror films that the unexpected comedy and campy tone manage to work that much more.
While the entire film plays with this sort of goofy, campy tone, Malignant enters full comedic overdrive during its final act, when all the secrets are revealed, and it becomes a wild, chaotic gorefest that manages to be visceral, hilarious, and terrifying. Still, the film does a great job of building up the tension and scares leading up to this final moment, with a lot of great lighting that plays around shadows and distinct editing that keeps audiences guessing and in the dark.
Malignant
- Release Date
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September 10, 2021
- Runtime
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111 minutes
9
‘An American Werewolf in London’ (1981)
Directed by John Landis
An iconic 80s horror comedy that combines the classic comedy and writing of John Landis with some of the most disturbing and effective transformation sequences of all time, An American Werewolf in London is a brilliant mixture of scares and laughs. Landis as a whole is more often celebrated and recognized for his various great comedy films, including The Blues Brothers, Coming to America, and Animal House, with An American Werewolf in London largely being no different.
However, this horror comedy doesn’t shy away from fully delivering on the horror front, with its exceptional use of practical effects and visual mastery bringing out the true terror of transforming into an uncontainable beast. The makeup work proved to be so effective in its horror that the film would end up winning an Academy Award for Best Makeup, and even over 40 years later, individual werewolf scenes are still deeply unsettling and difficult to watch.
8
‘Slither’ (2006)
Directed by James Gunn
Before director James Gunn became wildly acclaimed for his various superhero movies and spearheading the new DC Universe, he created one of the wildest body horror comedies of the 2000s in Slither. While the film certainly gets a lot of inherent scares and horror mileage out of its frequent gore, body horror, and overall disturbing premise, it also manages to include great dialogue-based comedy and an unexpectedly emotional romance. Even in the world of horror, a lot of Gunn’s distinct writing and directorial stylings are on full display in this quirky directorial debut.
The practical, body horror effects certainly take the cake in terms of the disturbing horror aspects of the film, ranging from the smaller, brain-eating parasites to the massive amalgamation creature in the finale. Between all the disturbing deaths and concepts, however, there is a tongue-in-cheek sense of comedy and charm that manages to make the overwhelming horror and gore feel more lighthearted and fun in its execution.
Slither
- Release Date
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March 31, 2006
- Runtime
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95 minutes
7
‘The Return of the Living Dead’ (1985)
Directed by Dan O’Bannon
Zombie movies are one of the easiest and most prominent concepts when it comes to the realm of horror comedy, as films like Shaun of the Dead and Zombieland have shown off the limitless potential of comedy within a zombie apocalypse. However, much more rare is a horror comedy that is able to maintain the inherent terror and dread of zombies while still finding effective comedy, a feat most prominently established by one of the titans of zombie filmmaking, The Return of the Living Dead.
The film is one of the most effective when it comes to both the inherent absurdity and fun of the living dead as well as the horror and gore inherent in a horde of flesh-eating zombies. Even as the zombies get into all sorts of goofy shenanigans, they never lose an inkling of their inherent fear factor, as the threat and dread of the undead is as terrifying as ever in the film. Still, this was one of the first prominent examples that showed just how hilarious a zombie movie could be, and forever changed the genre as a result.
Return of the Living Dead
- Runtime
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91 minutes
- Director
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Dan O’Bannon
6
‘Get Out’ (2017)
Directed by Jordan Peele
Considering Jordan Peele‘s background and expertise in the realm of comedy, it was always assumed that his directorial debut, Get Out, would have a lot of great comedic moments, yet nobody was quite ready for just how terrifying the horror film would actually be. The film’s exceptional filmmaking single-handedly transformed the legacy and icon status and Peele from a comedic figurehead to one of the most prominent and must-watch horror visionaries of the modern era.
The ever-present comedy of Get Out acts as a brilliant method of easing tensions and lowering the guard of the audience before truly delving into its disturbing and harrowing horror elements. It makes the absolute best out of both its comedy and its horror to create one of the most defining and effective horror experiences of the 2010s, one whose influence and impact on horror is still felt to this day. While Peele would continue to create a wide array of great horror movies in the years after, Get Out still stands as his best balance between sheer horror and effective comedy.
Get Out
- Release Date
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February 24, 2017
- Runtime
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1 hour, 44 minutes
5
‘American Psycho’ (2000)
Directed by Mary Herron
Wildly controversial upon its release for its gruesome kills and following of its psychopathic main character, American Psycho has only further grown in prominence since its release as a defining cult classic of the era. However, even with all the ruthless murders and sickening concepts in the film, American Psycho simply wouldn’t be the memorable classic that it is without its sadisticly dark sense of satirical humor. Christian Bale‘s lead performance as Patrick Bateman finds the perfect mix between charmingly hilarious and disturbingly depraved, making for the perfect force of both comedy and dreadful horror.
Individual sequences like Bateman’s gruesome murder of Paul Allen (Jared Leto) manage to be just as hilarious as it is disturbing, as it doesn’t hold back in terms of the shocking portrayal of murder, yet manages to have comedic fun in the process. The film’s comedic strengths have only further been compounded in the modern era following the film’s increased influence in internet culture and memes, yet even without the advent of the digital era, the film is still wildly hilarious in its execution.
4
‘The Substance’ (2024)
Directed by Coralie Fargeat
The recent body-horror smash hit that took the world by storm, The Substance completely abandons any sense of subtletly with its story and messaging, creating an experience that fully embraces all the disgusting, horrific, and hilarious aspects of its premise. The film brilliantly understands that, just because an individual sequence can be considered funny in its execution, this doesn’t take away from the uncomfortability or horror of the scene, especially in the realm of body horror.
Nowhere in the film is this more brazenly apparent than in its final act, where nearly everything on-screen is covered head-to-toe in crimson red blood in a sequence that is fully in-touch with both its inner comedy and horror. The high-concept film shows that going all out and not having any restraints can make for a highly cathartic and entertaining experience, as its inherent ridiculousness simultaneously adds to the horror and the comedy of the film.
The Substance
- Release Date
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September 20, 2024
- Runtime
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140 Minutes
3
‘The Evil Dead’ (1981)
Directed by Sam Raimi
One of the original icons of independent horror and pushing the barriers in terms of shocking and gruesome content, The Evil Dead is surprisingly goofy and hilarious in its execution, despite the overwhelmingly visceral gore in the film. It makes sense that the series would take a more prominent shift into horror-comedy, as the campy elements of the original film help give it a distinct personality and charm that has persisted in the decades since its release.
However, just because the film has a campy tone and some non-serious moments doesn’t take away from the genuine horror on display, as its overwhelming gore and genuine scares make it a largely compelling horror film. The film’s scares and campy comedy go hand-in-hand to make the film one of the most distinct and individual horror experiences of the 80s, being the type of manic and unrestrained horror that could only have been accomplished with the scope and scale of an indie film.
2
‘Barbarian’ (2022)
Directed by Zach Cregger
Following the success of Jordan Peele’s jump from sketch comedy to layered horror, it would only make sense that other sketch comedy titans would take similar steps to creating compelling horror comedies. One of the most effective modern examples is Zach Cregger, a founding member of The Whitest Kids U’ Know creating one of the most memorable horror movies in recent years in Barbarian. Barbarian is deeply intelligent with its utilization of both horror and comedy, often playing with the expectations and assumptions of the audience to create maximum scares as well as hilarious jokes.
A lot of the inherent comedic strength comes from the film’s shocking twist and shift in perspective partway through, as it abandons the terrifying setup to follow a new character going through a comedic downfall. The film largely abandons its horror roots for this moment to be a full satirical comedy, maintaining this wit and charm even when the stories intertwine and the tension-fueled horror returns to center stage.
Barbarian
- Release Date
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September 9, 2022
- Runtime
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102 minutes
1
‘Scream’ (1996)
Directed by Wes Craven
A masterfully crafted satire of the slasher genre that simultaneously plays to the strengths of a horror slasher perfectly for maximum tension and scares, Scream is a one-of-a-kind experience that is pitch perfect in both horror and comedy. The film’s witty, dynamic dialogue always manages to get a laugh from the audience, directly catering to die-hard horror fans with frequent references and intelligent characters. However, the film frequently and seamlessly shifts between effective comedy and top-notch scares, catching the audiences off guard when it goes all in on horror for a scene.
Many still consider the film’s legendary opening to be one of the scariest opening kills in horror movie history, yet part of what makes the scene so brilliant is how it expertly utilizes both comedy and horror together for maximum impact. Many other horror comedy movies simply approach the genres separately, yet Scream is deeply intelligent with its utilization of the two to directly complement one another and increase their impact through execution. This is a facet that is largely shared with the rest of the series, but this initial entry is easily the best when it comes to balancing top-notch scares with top-of-the-line comedy.
Scream
- Release Date
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December 20, 1996
- Runtime
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112 minutes
