The best kind of horror movie instantly draws you in. That’s a must for any film — not just in horror — as the opening scene first needs to tell the audience why they have to watch and what they can expect. Horror, in particular, has some of the most notable opening scenes, some of which are even the most gripping in cinematic history.
It truly is the first 10 minutes or so that show audiences that a horror film is going to be a masterpiece. That’s not always the case, especially for some slow-burners, but those minutes really are precious and can instantly tell someone that what they’re seeing is something horrifyingly special. As a horror fan since childhood and still going, there have been 10 films I’ve noticed excelled in their openers and hooked me into the idea that they’re going to be masterpieces right from the start. From a recent modern classic to one of my personal favorite slasher films, here are 10 notable examples where the first 10 minutes clued me into knowing these horror movies were going to be all-time greats.
10
‘Sinners’ (2025)
A closeup shot of Miles Caton as Churchboy with a bloody gash on his face, while standing in a white chapel, in Sinners.Image via Warner Bros.
Starting off, we have the beginning of Ryan Coogler’s masterpiece, Sinners. 2025’s most epic and gripping horror film was a blast of entertainment: thrilling, terrifying, and musically splendid. It teased the ending, as the sole survivor, Sammy (Miles Caton), returned to his father’s church traumatized and gripping his broken guitar. He saw visions of the previous night’s horrifying events while his father was calling to him, telling him to let go of his sinful desire to be with his music.
It’s a visually intense and striking opener, accompanied by a great, suspenseful score and eerie sound design. There are visual parallels shown between Sammy’s pastor father (Saul Williams) and the vampire Remmick (Jack O’Connell), indicating Sammy’s inner struggles with his love of music, faith, and his desire to break free from authority. This becomes an essential part of the story that not only is brought back later but is a core element to the film’s themes. These minutes drop viewers right into the heart of the story and hook them in for one frightening and emotional ride.
9
‘Carnival of Souls’ (1962)
A dirty woman in water Carnival of Souls Image via Herz-Lion International Corp.
Herk Harvey’s 1962 film Carnival of Souls is one of the most inspirational horror cult classics of all time. It was groundbreaking for its innovative story and its eerie, dreamlike atmosphere, which influenced the works of some of the greatest filmmakers, like George A. Romero and David Lynch. Within its first 10 minutes, it instantly establishes the set-up and tense tone, as it sees the main character, Mary (Candace Hilligoss), as she becomes the only survivor after her and her friends’ car accidentally drives off a bridge into a river.
The credits start to roll after the car violently slams into the water, which had a profound effect on me, as it was shockingly dark and the right jolt this film needed to start with. Then, as a soaked and traumatized Mary stumbles upon the shore as the rescue crew goes to help her, a creeping feeling sets in that lasts throughout the rest of the story. It’s truly the most shocking and unnerving opening minutes I’ve ever experienced.
8
‘Black Christmas’ (1974)
Clare (Lynne Griffin) dead in the attic with a plastic bag over her head in ‘Black Christmas’Image via Warner Bros. Pictures
One of the slasher subgenre’s most groundbreaking classics, Bob Clark’s Black Christmas helped define what it means to be a slasher, and is today considered a masterpiece, with many taking note of its dark atmosphere and chilling suspense. It’s perhaps also best remembered for its tense opening few minutes, which feature point-of-view shots of a mysterious stalker as he creeps into a sorority house, gives threatening phone calls to sisters downstairs, and then asphyxiates one girl, Clare (Lynne Griffin), before dragging her body up into the attic.
The POV shots, combined with the already established dark mood, instantly clued me into the type of horror this masterpiece was going to be about. It’s incredibly nail-biting and never drew my attention away for a split second. Black Christmas created an unforgettably eerie experience just within its first 10 minutes and established a high mark for other slasher movies to achieve in their openers.
7
‘Get Out’ (2017)
Image via Universal Pictures
Getting all kinds of acclaim that hadn’t been seen since The Silence of the Lambs, Jordan Peele’s 2017 film Get Out is a psychological thriller masterpiece full of unique twists and unexpected turns. Like any great mystery, it takes its time slowly but effectively, giving neat little foreshadowing bits. Take, for instance, its opening, which features a central character, Andre (LaKeith Stanfield), being stalked and kidnapped by a mysterious assailant in a black knight’s helmet.
There’s no reason or explanation — it’s just sudden and unexpected. It’s the perfect opening few minutes to such a unique and bizarrely unpredictable thriller, which cues you into a mystery where anything could happen. It’s also a bit darkly comedic, which is a testament to Jordan Peele’s genre-bending script, for which he rightfully earned an Oscar.
6
‘Night of the Living Dead’ (1968)
A zombie tries to break into a car in ‘Night of the Living Dead’Image via Continental Distributing
The great George A. Romero elevated the horror genre by creating the modern interpretation of zombies with his 1968 classic Night of the Living Dead. A film still wildly cherished today, it’s as important now as ever thanks to a chilling concept and brilliant social commentary. Its opening 10 minutes, in particular, showed how special and terrifying it was, as it followed the main character, Barbara (Judith O’Dea), and her brother Johnny (Russell Streiner) as they arrive at a cemetery and are attacked by a freshly resurrected zombie.
Even before the zombie attack, I was aware something dark and sinister was about to happen, thanks to this film’s chilling opening score and the eerie opening shots of the car driving up the road, which almost felt like it was creeping up to its doom. Everything about these 10 minutes, of course, has been cemented in the annals of horror history, from the music and camera shots to the suspenseful lead-up to the zombie reveal.
5
‘It Follows’ (2014)
The mangled and mutilated corpse of Annie Mitchell (Bailey Spry) lays on the beach in the early morning light in ‘It Follows’ (2014).Image via RADiUS-TWC
A film that defined 2010s horror, the 2014 monster thriller It Follows is a masterclass in suspense and slow-building dread. It gets right under the skin and terrifies viewers with its amazingly creative concept about a young woman who, after an eerie one-night stand, begins seeing a strange entity that only she can see as it slowly walks towards her. Its opener shows what horrifyingly happens when this entity reaches its victim, as it claims a poor girl named Annie (Bailey Spry).
The setup is perfect in the opener, as we’re not given any indication as to why Annie is acting like she’s being chased. We don’t even get to see her perspective; we just watch helplessly as she flees for her life. Once it cuts to the next morning on a beach as her twisted, mutilated body is left on the ground, I was completely caught off guard and nearly out of my seat. What an absolutely incredible way to start a suspenseful chiller like this. It hooks the viewers instantly with the lingering questions it leaves open.
4
‘Poltergeist’ (1982)
Carol Anne looking at the television in Poltergeist.Image via Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
One of the scariest horror movies ever made, the late Tobe Hooper’s Poltergeist is the ultimate in suburban terror, a haunted house classic that’ll make you think twice about whether you’re really alone in your own house. It wastes no time establishing the horror in its opening minutes, as it follows the members of the Freeling family as they’re trying to sleep. But, they’re not alone, as their youngest daughter, Carol Anne (Heather O’Rourke), is drawn to the living room TV and communicates with supernatural forces.
Poltergeist has been described as a film that starts as a mysterious and oddly whimsical family film, then shockingly switches to straightforward and dark horror, and this opening greatly demonstrates that. This opening starts harmless, with a family peacefully sleeping, but it has subtle hints that there’s something very dark around them just waiting to surface. Once Carol Anne is drawn to the TV, we’re clued in that something strange and scary will eventually happen.
3
‘Jaws’ (1975)
Chrissie Watkins (Susan Backline) is attacked in ‘Jaws’Image via Universal Pictures
When it comes to iconic horror movie opening scenes, Steven Spielberg’s Jaws usually has the others beat. This summer blockbuster spectacular has become a benchmark of the horror genre, an undisputed masterpiece with perfect suspense, action, and intense scares. A huge part of its status in pop culture stems from its first 10 minutes, which features a poor swimmer, Chrissie (Susan Backlinie), as she’s pulled beneath the waves by a shark.
This opener is as perfect as they get. Not only does it establish the tone, setting, and the present danger of the shark, but it’s a masterclass in suspense and showing less to create something more terrifying. We never see the shark or any of Chrissie’s blood; we just watch as she screams and is violently thrashed beneath the surface. As someone who was too afraid to even go jumping into a dark pool at night as a kid, this absolutely horrified me and further enhanced mine, and many people’s, fears of being in the deep ocean. There’s no better way to start a film than this thrilling opener.
2
‘Halloween’ (1978)
A young Michael Myers (Will Sandlin) dressed as a clown and holding a knifeImage via Compass International Pictures
Now, when it comes to tension and atmosphere, director John Carpenter is the master at establishing them. Just take the opening scene of his 1978 slasher masterpiece, Halloween. It starts simply but very effectively, as we see through the POV of a killer as he stalks young Judith Myers alone at her house. After brutally stabbing the poor girl upstairs, the masked killer walks back downstairs, where he’s confronted and unmasked by two adults, revealing himself to be 12-year-old Michael Myers, who stares blankly at the camera.
A film dripping with shocking suspense and dread, Halloween’s most horrifying strength isn’t so much the kills themselves, but the buildup to them, and the opening is a prime example of this. The camera slowly creeps around the Myers’ house through the perspective of the killer. The mood is dark, unsettling, and mounting with suspense as we, the audience, wonder who the killer is and why he’s doing this. The ending to this opener is one of the most shocking in horror history, and it completely caught me off guard the first time I saw it. It perfectly set up the rest of the chilling story.
1
‘Scream’ (1996)
Casey (Drew Barrymore) is terrified while on the phone in the opening of Scream (1996).Image via Dimension Films
What I have at number one is arguably the greatest, most suspenseful, and iconic 10 minutes in any horror movie — the beginning of Wes Craven’s Scream. It features the legendary opening scene where the character, Casey (Drew Barrymore), receives a threatening call one dark night from a sinister voice (Roger L. Jackson) who makes her play his deadly game.
The first time seeing this as a young horror enthusiast blew my mind, and it filled me with a feeling of so much terror that I haven’t forgotten about it since. This opener is truly the stuff of horror movie royalty; it is perfectly set up, tense, and escalates with mounting terror. This opener hit the ground running and instantly became an iconic moment not just in horror but in cinematic history.
Scream
Release Date
December 20, 1996
Runtime
112 minutes
Writers
Kevin Williamson