Horror Movies With The Worst Rotten Tomatoes Scores, Ranked By Real Horror Fans
Vote up the horror movies that are better than their rotten reputation.
When you go on Rotten Tomatoes and look up horror films with the worst score… it's not pretty. Some of the scary movies on Rotten Tomatoes are apparently so terrible, they have a 0% critic rating. And although audience ratings are a little more forgiving, even those can go well below 20%. Despite these poor Rotten Tomatoes scores, some people genuinely like horror movies such as Jaws: The Revenge, Homecoming, and the 2016 remake of Cabin Fever, all of which have been panned by critics.
This list highlights the lowest-ranked horror movies on Rotten Tomatoes, but you have a chance to vote up the films critics just don't appreciate enough.
- 1128 VOTESPhoto: Warner Bros. Pictures
Release Date: 2002
Critic Score: 3%
Audience Score: 18%
What It's About: Only in the early '00s could you get away with naming a film Feardotcom and not have it sound like a total joke. In the movie, detective Mike Reilly investigates a series of strange deaths that are all traced back to a website creatively titled feardotcom, which depicts extreme acts of torture and violence. It's then up to Reilly and his team to find the owner of the website before anyone else dies. Surprisingly (or maybe not), the owner is a ghost. You can't say the plot isn't original.
Why Fans Defend It: Fans applaud the film for being one of the first to venture into the world of internet horror. They also like the vengeful ghost trope, reminiscent of Japanese films of the time, and consider the movie to be satisfyingly scary, albeit a little confusing.
- 2172 VOTESPhoto: Sony Pictures Releasing
Release Date: 2005
Critic Score: 4%
Audience Score: 19%
What It's About: Off the coast of Oregon on Antonia Island, an ancient curse puts the lives of the townspeople in danger. As residents Nick Castle and Elizabeth Williams investigate why a fog keeps rolling in and seemingly killing people, they learn that the island was founded by men who swindled and killed a man trying to found a leper colony on the island back in the 1800s. If that's a strange enough plot point, Elizabeth turns out to be a reincarnation of the dead man's wife, and the two fall in ghost love.
Why Fans Defend It: Fans say the film is better than the 1980 John Carpenter original and fun in a “campy” sort of way. The Fog is also filled with jumpscares, but relies more on suspense than horror.
- 3129 VOTESPhoto: BH Tilt/High Top Releasing
Release Date: 2016
Critic Score: 3%
Audience Score: 19%
What It's About: The Taylor family's trip to the Grand Canyon is all fun and games until son Mikey takes some cursed rocks home with him. After that, demons appearing as crows and snakes are found in around the house, and an evil force known as “The Darkness” creates a portal in Mikey's room. The Taylor family learns they must put aside their fears to truly be free of The Darkness. Or something like that.
Why Fans Defend It: Fans describe The Darkness as a “perfectly good” demon movie with a solid performance from Kevin Bacon, who plays the Taylor family patriarch. Reviewers also appreciate that the film doesn't rely heavily on CGI and is scary in a psychological sense.
- 4100 VOTESPhoto: Image Entertainment
Release Date: 2011
Critic Score: 0%
Audience Score: 15%
What It's About: Dennis Quaid plays a murderous mortician, Vaughn Ely, who uses his standing in the community to casually kill people who do him wrong. He gets away with it until a group of scrappy teens band together to take down Vaughn, who has a penchant for burying people both dead and alive.
Why Fans Defend It: Fans enjoyed seeing Quaid play an over-the-top villain after a series of more serious roles. Although some say Beneath the Darknes tries to be a Hitchcock film but fails, others find it “darkly amusing” even if it's not the best horror movie ever made.
- 5100 VOTES
Bless the Child
Photo: Paramount PicturesRelease Date: 2000
Critic Score: 4%
Audience Score: 43%
What It's About: A young girl, Cody, begins showing telekinetic powers and is subsequently pursued by a satanic cult that believes she will become a saint. Meanwhile, Cody's aunt/adopted mother, Maggie, tries to keep her safe with the help of living people and angels. In the end, the movie is your standard story of good triumphing over evil, although a bunch of kids die in the meantime.
Why Fans Defend It: Fans of the film compare it to other horror movies with religious themes like The Exorcist and The Omen, and consider Bless the Child to be an above-average film with solid acting and beautiful cinematography. Some wonder if the religious overtone turns off viewers.
- 6100 VOTESPhoto: Freestyle Releasing
Release Date: 2008
Critic Score: 2%
Audience Score: 18%
What It's About: Molly Hartley is nearly killed by her mother shortly before her 18th birthday. Haunted by her mother's actions, Molly learns that her mom's motive was to break a pact with the devil that would bind Molly to him once she turns 18. It's a decent premise for a horror movie, but the PG-13 rating and predictable plot water down what could have been a terrifying film.
Why Fans Defend It: Although The Haunting of Molly Hartley doesn't have a huge fan base, some viewers enjoy Haley Bennett's performance as well as the film's nods to '90s movies like The Craft and Cruel Intentions. The general consensus: it's good enough.
- 7106 VOTESPhoto: Warner Bros. Pictures
Release Date: 2008
Critic Score: 0%
Audience Score: 29%
What It's About: In a somewhat alternate take on The Ring, characters in One Missed Call begin receiving voicemails from the future letting them know the exact date and time they're going to die. For some reason, the characters keep following through on their plans, even when they're at the location they were warned they would die. However, instead of Samara crawling out of a TV, the voicemail victims vomit red candy. Yes, it's confusing.
Why Fans Defend It: While it may not have the strongest plot, fans applaud the eeriness of the film along with its special effects and acting. Fans also argue that anyone would be terrified if the events of the film happened to them, which is what you would hope for in a horror flick. It also has an offbeat but original ending.
- 878 VOTESPhoto: Rogue/Relativity
Release Date: 2016
Critic Score: 0%
Audience Score: 17%
What It's About: Architect Dana Barrow (Kate Beckinsale) moves into a 19th century mansion with her husband and son, only to discover that the home has a disturbing past. Dana witnesses tormented spirits in a secret room in the house known as “The Disappointments Room,” and as she struggles to figure out what's real and fake, she must fend off the spirits before completely losing her mind.
Why Fans Defend It: The film is criticized for too many loose ends, but fans love the acting, especially on the part of Beckinsale. It's also a safe bet for who like the haunted house trope. The Disappointments Room might have fared better if it had been promoted as a psychological thriller rather than a straight-up horror movie.
- 978 VOTESPhoto: Lions Gate Films
Release Date: 2004
Critic Score: 4%
Audience Score: 20%
What It's About: After losing their son Adam in a car accident, Paul and Jessie Duncan agree to let scientist Dr. Richard Wells create a clone of the boy. As one might expect, the cloning seems to work, but after Adam's eighth birthday, he begins showing violent traits and having disturbing flashbacks to a life the original Adam never lived. As it turns out, Dr. Wells doesn't have the best of intentions, and another soul might be living inside Adam.
Why Fans Defend It: Fans of Godsend commend Robert De Niro and Greg Kinnear's performances. They also point out that cloning was a hot topic at the time the film was released, but also acknowledge the film might have done better if it had been a true horror movie.
- 1070 VOTES
The Apparition
Photo: Warner Bros. PicturesRelease Date: 2012
Critic Score: 3%
Audience Score: 24%
What It's About: Four college students perform “The Charles Experiment” in an attempt to summon the spirit of Charles Reamer. However, the friends realize they're in over their heads once the apparition begins killing them off. Even the final girl turns out not to be a final girl, which makes for a rather anticlimactic ending. The Apparition also ends in a Costco, which doesn't exactly add to the suspense.
Why Fans Defend It: While critics found the film predictable, fans consider it original and suspenseful. Some even suggest the movie needs to be watched more than once to fully understand its nuances. Fans do consider it more of a horror movie for teens than adults.
- 1163 VOTESPhoto: Animus Films
Release Date: 2009
Critic Score: 0%
Audience Score: 33%
What It's About: If you like horror movies about crazy ex-girlfriends, look no further than Homecoming. When former high school football star Mike returns to his small hometown with his new girlfriend, Elizabeth, his old girlfriend, Shelby (played by Mischa Barton), is less than pleased. After a maybe-planned accident leaves Elizabeth in Shelby's care, it's revealed that the former homecoming queen will do anything, including murder, to keep Mike.
Why Fans Defend It: Homecoming is basically a millennial mashup of Fatal Attraction and Misery, and that's more than enough to keep most viewers entertained. Fans of The O.C. also enjoy Barton's grittier performance (learning how to shoot a gun in the Season 2 finale of her former show came in handy for this role).
- 12104 VOTESPhoto: IFC Midnight
Release Date: 2016
Critic Score: 0%
Audience Score: 12%
What It's About: In this remake of the 2002 cult classic, friends Paul, Marcy, Karen, Bert, and Jeff spend the weekend at a remote cabin in the woods, but their plans go awry when they're exposed to a flesh-eating virus. The film follows a conventional horror movie plot of characters being killed off one by one, but there's no “final girl” in this movie. Just a lot of vomited blood and skin falling off.
Why Fans Defend It: Fans don't exactly rush to the defense of this remake, but it's generally agreed that it's worth a watch if you're a fan of the Cabin Fever franchise. Those who don't completely hate the film give props to its cinematography and music.
- 1375 VOTESPhoto: Lions Gate Films
Release Date: 2005
Critic Score: 1%
Audience Score: 11%
What It's About: Paranormal investigator Edward Carnby comes upon an artifact from a Native American tribe that unlocks an alternate dimension containing millions of monsters who can only be destroyed by light. If that sounds convoluted, it is. Critics found the film difficult to follow, and even an A-list celebrity like Christian Slater couldn't save Alone in the Dark.
Why Fans Defend It: Fans consider the film a solid afternoon B-movie to watch on a lazy day in a love/hate sort of way. They also enjoy the performances given by Slater and Tara Reid, who plays Slater's girlfriend.
- 1466 VOTESPhoto: Artisan Entertainment
Release Date: 2003
Critic Score: 3%
Audience Score: 10%
What It's About: College students Simon, Greg, Alicia, Karma, and Cynthia plan to attend a rave on Isla del Morte (Island of the Dead), which tells you right then and there it's not going to be a good time. The group is attacked by zombies along with an immortal priest wearing a human face mask, but the good guys prevail, thanks to dynamite and sword fights.
Why Fans Defend It: “Fans” of House of the Dead point out the fact that it's so bad it's good for some laughs.
- 15100 VOTESPhoto: Altitude Film Distribution
Release Date: 2023
Critic Score: 3%
Audience Score: 50%
What It's About: The perfect film if you want to ruin your childhood memories, Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey finds the residents of the Hundred Acre Wood turning to murder after Christopher Robin abandons them and heads off to college. Even when Christopher returns, a now-deranged Pooh and Piglet are hellbent on killing anyone who crosses their path, including Christopher.
Why Fans Defend It: Although critics bashed this film, it's become a modern-day cult classic among fans. Reviewers say the movie is the best horror film they've seen in a decade, truly scary, and provides “quality gore” for viewers.
- 16116 VOTESPhoto: Universal Pictures
Release Date: 1987
Critic Score: 0%
Audience Score: 15%
What It's About: Jaws: The Revenge is, not surprisingly, about a shark seeking revenge. In this fourth and final franchise installment, a now widowed Ellen Brody realizes that her family is being targeted by a great white shark and flees Amity Island for the Bahamas. Unfortunately for Ellen, a shark out for revenge knows how to follow a boat to the Bahamas, and chaos ensues.
Why Fans Defend It: Although the film has been criticized for being “illogical” and “tension-free,” fans love Michael Caine's performance, and that the filmmakers took the franchise to a different setting. The film's nostalgia factor also helps, and some consider this sequel superior to Jaws 3D.
