Best Horror Movies Set In The South Ranked By You

Interview With The Vampire (1994)

This movie is equal parts suspenseful, terrifying, and oddly romantic. Two (beautiful) vampires played by Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt haunt – er, hunt – Louisiana in search of blood to satisfy their appetites. This one's a classic in multiple respects, so we couldn't leave this one off the list.

The Beyond (1981)

This Italian horror flick is on a ton of lists, and rightfully so. It's super freaky. The story follows a young girl who inherits a hotel in Louisiana, and terrifying things ensue, naturally. Turns out, the hotel stands on one of the entrances to hell. Naturally.

House Of 1000 Corpses (2003)

This movie is definitely not for the faint of heart. Like, seriously. If gore freaks you out, then prepared to be scarred for life by this movie. The plot line is pretty straightforward. A group of innocent civilians is captured and tortured by the maniac members of the Firefly clan. Grossness ensues. Critical reception was not very good, but this movie's cult following earns it a spot on our list.

The Devil's Rejects (2005)

How could we include House Of 1000 Corpses and not this one? Same drill: Firefly crazies, innocent people, torture, over-the-top gore. This one had much better critical reception though. Maybe it was that unexpected change of heart by the remaining Firefly clan members at the end? Well in any case, we liked this one too.

The Skeleton Key (2005)

A nurse accepts a job as caretaker of an elderly couple living in an old plantation house in Louisiana. Weird things happen as they usually do, and the nurse uncovers secret after secret until she realizes she needs to get out. But it's too late. She was doomed the moment she accepted that damn job. There's ghosts, disturbing imagery, and hoodoo. It's an A+ Southern horror combo.

Deliverance (1972)

This one's a classic. Set in the backwoods of Georgia, 5 city slickers are harassed and followed by violent residents of the backwoods. The infamous "squeal like a pig" line is from this movie. But the scare factor in this movie isn't from demons or ghosts, it's from the very real possibility of evil people.

10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)

This psychological horror film keeps you on your toes for the entire ride. A young woman in rural Louisiana is knocked unconscious after a car accident and wakes up in a bunker with two unfamiliar men. The owner of the bunker claims the air outside has been poisoned by some kind of nuclear accident. The movie follows her journey to discover who this man is and what's truly going on.

Two Thousand Maniacs! (1964)

Four tourists from the North are convinced to stay in the fictional Southern town of Pleasant Valley by its residents. They're told they'll be "guests of honor" at Pleasant Valley's "centennial celebration." But they soon find out the celebration is definitely not one they want to stick around for, and the townspeople are not who they seem to be. They're actually the ghosts of the original Pleasant Valley townspeople who were massacred by Union troops at the end of the Civil War. Every one hundred years, they come back to take their revenge on the North. It's a wild ride.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

Oh, Leatherface, did you really think we were gonna make a list of the best horror movies set in the South and not include you? This movie is practically the (leather)face of Southern horror. It's terrifying and gruesome. And it's even more horrifying when you remember it's apparently based on a true story. This one definitely deserves a spot somewhere on this list.

The Descent (2005)

Word of advice: Just don't go spelunking. Don't do it. Three women learned this the hard way when they're spelunking adventure in the Appalachians was rudely interrupted by gruesome monsters. But seriously, what did you think you'd see down there? Kittens?

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