Scariest Horror Movie Trailers Of All Time

Posted on Oct 17, 2020

22 Horror Movie Trailers That Are Scarier Than Some Entire Horror Movies

Guaranteed heebie-jeebies in three minutes or less.

BuzzFeed Staff

"The trailer for this haunts me to this very day. I can hear that song in the bright morning light, and it will still make my skin crawl when I'm trying to sleep at night."
—j463e065e6 — A24

"The trailer for this haunts me to this very day. I can hear that song in the bright morning light, and it will still make my skin crawl when I'm trying to sleep at night."
—j463e065e6

A24

"The trailer for this haunts me to this very day. I can hear that song in the bright morning light, and it will still make my skin crawl when I'm trying to sleep at night."
—j463e065e6

"The eerie sounds, the spooky atmosphere, the crew visiting the deserted ship...something’s not quite right, but you're unsure of what it is. Then, Ripley is running like hell through the ship and you see a cat with enormous golden eyes...and that big egg. It freaked me out for sure!"
—slyghost86 — 20th Century Fox

"The eerie sounds, the spooky atmosphere, the crew visiting the deserted ship...something’s not quite right, but you're unsure of what it is. Then, Ripley is running like hell through the ship and you see a cat with enormous golden eyes...and that big egg. It freaked me out for sure!"
—slyghost86

20th Century Fox

"The eerie sounds, the spooky atmosphere, the crew visiting the deserted ship...something’s not quite right, but you're unsure of what it is. Then, Ripley is running like hell through the ship and you see a cat with enormous golden eyes...and that big egg. It freaked me out for sure!"
—slyghost86

"I think this one takes the cake! I don’t get scared by trailers, but I remember hearing about how badly people were reacting to this one. Like, it was a really big deal when it came out."
—bree-nb — Warner Bros.

"I think this one takes the cake! I don’t get scared by trailers, but I remember hearing about how badly people were reacting to this one. Like, it was a really big deal when it came out."
—bree-nb

Warner Bros.

"I think this one takes the cake! I don’t get scared by trailers, but I remember hearing about how badly people were reacting to this one. Like, it was a really big deal when it came out."
—bree-nb

"That trailer has always scared the crap out of me, especially because the movie is based on true events."
—ashtinkearton — Screen Gems

"That trailer has always scared the crap out of me, especially because the movie is based on true events."
—ashtinkearton

Screen Gems

"That trailer has always scared the crap out of me, especially because the movie is based on true events."
—ashtinkearton

"My little brother slept in my room for a week after seeing the trailer for this, and I was secretly glad he did — because it haunted me to my core."
—meaghankinnon — Columbia Pictures

"My little brother slept in my room for a week after seeing the trailer for this, and I was secretly glad he did — because it haunted me to my core."
—meaghankinnon

Columbia Pictures

"My little brother slept in my room for a week after seeing the trailer for this, and I was secretly glad he did — because it haunted me to my core."
—meaghankinnon

"This is the scariest movie trailer I have ever seen. The fast cuts with the loud music and quick dialogue had my heart racing. Especially the head banging against the ceiling...I'll never be able to get that scene out of my head."
—mapmmapm — A24

"This is the scariest movie trailer I have ever seen. The fast cuts with the loud music and quick dialogue had my heart racing. Especially the head banging against the ceiling...I'll never be able to get that scene out of my head."
—mapmmapm

A24

"This is the scariest movie trailer I have ever seen. The fast cuts with the loud music and quick dialogue had my heart racing. Especially the head banging against the ceiling...I'll never be able to get that scene out of my head."
—mapmmapm

"Not a particularly great or scary trailer but, for 15-year-old me, it was nightmare-inducing. It felt like Leatherface was chasing you around the theater. It really got under my skin!"
—benjk — New Line Cinema

"Not a particularly great or scary trailer but, for 15-year-old me, it was nightmare-inducing. It felt like Leatherface was chasing you around the theater. It really got under my skin!"
—benjk

New Line Cinema

"Not a particularly great or scary trailer but, for 15-year-old me, it was nightmare-inducing. It felt like Leatherface was chasing you around the theater. It really got under my skin!"
—benjk

"It captured all the horrifying tension of the movie with minimal context. All those creepy figures following you and not knowing why or how things were going to turn out...it scared me for weeks before we finally went to see the movie."
—jmalbing1 — RADiUS-TWC

"It captured all the horrifying tension of the movie with minimal context. All those creepy figures following you and not knowing why or how things were going to turn out...it scared me for weeks before we finally went to see the movie."
—jmalbing1

RADiUS-TWC

"It captured all the horrifying tension of the movie with minimal context. All those creepy figures following you and not knowing why or how things were going to turn out...it scared me for weeks before we finally went to see the movie."
—jmalbing1

"Not a single jump scare, but the moment the man silently walked into the room behind her, I FLIPPED OUT as a kid."
—lewisb4c2c66cb7 — Rogue Pictures

"Not a single jump scare, but the moment the man silently walked into the room behind her, I FLIPPED OUT as a kid."
—lewisb4c2c66cb7

Rogue Pictures

"Not a single jump scare, but the moment the man silently walked into the room behind her, I FLIPPED OUT as a kid."
—lewisb4c2c66cb7

"I still haven't watched the whole movie because the trailer alone scared me so much!"
—e4ada6546c — Warner Bros.

"I still haven't watched the whole movie because the trailer alone scared me so much!"
—e4ada6546c

Warner Bros.

"I still haven't watched the whole movie because the trailer alone scared me so much!"
—e4ada6546c

"My family did a lot of road trips growing up, so I’ve stayed at a lot of motels like that. The trailer made me realize how vulnerable we were, which was terrifying."
—amberh4cc750528 — Screen Gems

"My family did a lot of road trips growing up, so I’ve stayed at a lot of motels like that. The trailer made me realize how vulnerable we were, which was terrifying."
—amberh4cc750528

Screen Gems

"My family did a lot of road trips growing up, so I’ve stayed at a lot of motels like that. The trailer made me realize how vulnerable we were, which was terrifying."
—amberh4cc750528

"The trailer for this one terrified me because it made the movie look like a lighthearted comedy for the first half of the trailer, then suddenly BOOM — grandma and grandpa want to kill you. The 'Get in the oven' moment? TRAUMATIZING."
—hiitsnicetomeetyou — Universal Pictures

"The trailer for this one terrified me because it made the movie look like a lighthearted comedy for the first half of the trailer, then suddenly BOOM — grandma and grandpa want to kill you. The 'Get in the oven' moment? TRAUMATIZING."
—hiitsnicetomeetyou

Universal Pictures

"The trailer for this one terrified me because it made the movie look like a lighthearted comedy for the first half of the trailer, then suddenly BOOM — grandma and grandpa want to kill you. The 'Get in the oven' moment? TRAUMATIZING."
—hiitsnicetomeetyou

"This trailer scared the crap out of me back in the day! Yes, the CGI looks pretty shabby now, but back then it was terrifying! This trailer was scarier than the actual movie!"
—stormwatcher — DreamWorks Pictures

"This trailer scared the crap out of me back in the day! Yes, the CGI looks pretty shabby now, but back then it was terrifying! This trailer was scarier than the actual movie!"
—stormwatcher

DreamWorks Pictures

"This trailer scared the crap out of me back in the day! Yes, the CGI looks pretty shabby now, but back then it was terrifying! This trailer was scarier than the actual movie!"
—stormwatcher

"They pretty much gave the entire movie away in the trailer, so a lot of the scares are present there...but it still works!"
—monikap6 — Summit Entertainment

"They pretty much gave the entire movie away in the trailer, so a lot of the scares are present there...but it still works!"
—monikap6

Summit Entertainment

"They pretty much gave the entire movie away in the trailer, so a lot of the scares are present there...but it still works!"
—monikap6

"Aesthetically gorgeous and chilling. It made you think, 'What the heck is going on?!' It was just super well done with great music, and it didn't give too much away."
—savannahg4e56476eb — 20th Century Fox

"Aesthetically gorgeous and chilling. It made you think, 'What the heck is going on?!' It was just super well done with great music, and it didn't give too much away."
—savannahg4e56476eb

20th Century Fox

"Aesthetically gorgeous and chilling. It made you think, 'What the heck is going on?!' It was just super well done with great music, and it didn't give too much away."
—savannahg4e56476eb

"The classic teaser trailer with the clapping game honestly scared me more than the entire rest of the movie did."
—kstory7 — Warner Bros.

"The classic teaser trailer with the clapping game honestly scared me more than the entire rest of the movie did."
—kstory7

Warner Bros.

"The classic teaser trailer with the clapping game honestly scared me more than the entire rest of the movie did."
—kstory7

"An example of the movie being pretty disappointing, but the trailer being great!"
—6eor6e — Warner Bros.

"An example of the movie being pretty disappointing, but the trailer being great!"
—6eor6e

Warner Bros.

"An example of the movie being pretty disappointing, but the trailer being great!"
—6eor6e

"The trailer for this was so gosh darn creepy. The thing with the owl had me looking everywhere for owls for weeks."
—qpatti2 — Universal Pictures

"The trailer for this was so gosh darn creepy. The thing with the owl had me looking everywhere for owls for weeks."
—qpatti2

Universal Pictures

"The trailer for this was so gosh darn creepy. The thing with the owl had me looking everywhere for owls for weeks."
—qpatti2

"It gave me nightmares for days, and was a good preview to the actual nightmare that is the entire movie."
—saranyas2 — Davis Films

"It gave me nightmares for days, and was a good preview to the actual nightmare that is the entire movie."
—saranyas2

Davis Films

"It gave me nightmares for days, and was a good preview to the actual nightmare that is the entire movie."
—saranyas2

"The trailer for the first one — I have slept with the light on ever since."
—snoopie — FilmDistrict

"The trailer for the first one — I have slept with the light on ever since."
—snoopie

FilmDistrict

"The trailer for the first one — I have slept with the light on ever since."
—snoopie

"When she’s peeking out from the door in the floor...that image gave me nightmares."
—sjoker — Sony Pictures Releasing

"When she’s peeking out from the door in the floor...that image gave me nightmares."
—sjoker

Sony Pictures Releasing

"When she’s peeking out from the door in the floor...that image gave me nightmares."
—sjoker

"Okay, so it was in the '70s and I was like 4 years old, but I woke up late and went to my parents' room. They were watching TV late at night. I saw a trailer for this and it damaged me permanently. The cradle slowly spun around to reveal a twisted claw, and that has been the centerpiece of many a nightmare of mine. Still, it also fueled my lifelong love of horror...so, silver lining?"
—laribmcmanus — Warner Bros.

"Okay, so it was in the '70s and I was like 4 years old, but I woke up late and went to my parents' room. They were watching TV late at night. I saw a trailer for this and it damaged me permanently. The cradle slowly spun around to reveal a twisted claw, and that has been the centerpiece of many a nightmare of mine. Still, it also fueled my lifelong love of horror...so, silver lining?"
—laribmcmanus

Warner Bros.

"Okay, so it was in the '70s and I was like 4 years old, but I woke up late and went to my parents' room. They were watching TV late at night. I saw a trailer for this and it damaged me permanently. The cradle slowly spun around to reveal a twisted claw, and that has been the centerpiece of many a nightmare of mine. Still, it also fueled my lifelong love of horror...so, silver lining?"
—laribmcmanus

Some entries have been edited for length and/or clarity.

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