To be very honest, I should not be the one writing about horror movies. I am that person, who doesn’t let others watch those movies, because I’m too scared. That’s exactly why I wanted to bring you all the toned-down versions of the freaky genre – animated horror movies. In the hope that animated movies might balance a cartoony vibe into horror and won’t make me scream my lungs out, I started charting this article.
Only after I started to research this, I found out that animated ones are equally horrifying in their own way. So, you could probably say, I dug my own grave. Some of the best-animated horror movies are listed here in no particular ranking. Here are the 25 animated horror movies for you to watch this Halloween.
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Top 25 Animated Horror Movies
1) Hotel Transylvania
Let us start with the popular one. It’s funny and at the same time a bit scary for kids. The story follows Dracula, who operated a high-end resort away from the human world. Dracula goes into protective mode when a boy discovers the resort and falls for the count’s teenage daughter.
2) Mad God
This animated horror movie follows an Assassin. The assassin travels through a nightmare underworld of tortured souls, ruined cities and wretched monstrosities. These were forged from the primordial horrors of the unconscious mind of Phil Tippett, the world’s preeminent stop-motion animator. It’s scary!!!
3) The Addams Family
Members of the mysterious and spooky Addams family -Gomez, Morticia, Pugsley, Wednesday, Uncle Fester and Grandma -are readily preparing for a visit from their even creepier relatives. Trouble soon arises when shady TV personality Margaux Needler realizes that the Addams’ eerie hilltop mansion is standing in the way of her dream to sell all the houses in the neighborhood. The eccentrically macabre family moves to a bland suburb. In here, Wednesday Addams’ friendship with the daughter of a hostile and conformist local reality show host exacerbates conflict between the families. Comedy, and eerie!
4) Wendell & Wild
The story follows two scheming demon brothers, Wendell and Wild. The two enlist the aid of 13-year-old Kat Elliot to summon them to the Land of the Living. But what Kat demands in return leads to a brilliantly bizarre and comedic adventure like no other. An animated fantasy that defies the law of life and death, all told through the handmade artistry of stop motion.
5) Frankenweenie
When a boy’s beloved dog passes away suddenly, he attempts to bring the animal back to life through a powerful science experiment. What if the brilliant Victor Frankenstein used his science to bring back his lost pet instead of creating the familiar monster named after him? ‘Frankenweenie‘ tackles that wild plot within a heartwarming movie that’s perfect for young and old viewers alike. Victor and his reanimated dog Sparky reunite, but things go awry once Victor’s friends look to revive a whole swath of other dead animals. You’ll definitely want to see how Victor and his pup fix their mess in this gorgeously animated film.
6) Batman: The Long Halloween, Part One
Held hostage by the powerful Falcone crime family, Gotham City is rife with crime and corruption. Adding to the chaos is the mysterious Holiday killer, who has been targeting the underworld and leaving a trail of terror – and body bags. Where are all the Batman enthusiasts? This is definitely made for you.
7) Wicked City
‘Wicked City’ follows two agents, a male human and a female demon. These two attempt to protect a signatory to a peace treaty ceremony between the human world and the demon world from radicalized demons. This is 1987, Japanese adult animated horror-action dark fantasy. This will leave you stunned and horrified like no other animated film.
8) Seoul Station
Zombies. Lots and lots of bloodthirsty, rampaging zombies. That’s what you can expect to see when you finally sit down to watch this gory film unfold. ‘Seoul Station‘ follows a desperate father that’s on the lookout for his missing daughter. Right in the middle of discovering her whereabouts and the problematic life she now lives, he gets caught up in the madness surrounding an ongoing zombie outbreak. Anyone who’s already sat through the equally exciting ‘Train to Busan‘ needs to see this prequel film.
9) The Spine Of Night
‘The Spine Of Night’ is an epic fantasy set in a land of magic that follows heroes from different eras and cultures battling against a malevolent force. This is a 2021 American adult animated horror dark fantasy film. This film traces the centuries-long journey of a magical plant that bestows terrible power upon the user, as it inspires despots, empires, and black magic.
10) Batman: The Long Halloween, Part Two
This animated horror movie is a sequel to ‘Batman: The Long Halloween, Part One’. The killer known as Holiday continues to stalk the Falcone crime family while a new class of costumed criminal rises in Gotham City. Batman suspects that a former ally might be the serial killer. With each calculated crime, the stakes rise as tensions boil over between the Falcone and Maroni crime families. As Batman, James Gordon and Harvey Dent race to solve the deadly puzzle, a breach at Arkham Asylum brings villainous players into the game.
11) Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust
When a girl is abducted by a vampire, a legendary bounty hunter is hired to bring her back. If the original ‘Vampire Hunter D‘ captured your imagination, then you’ll most certainly love ‘Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust‘. D takes on an insurmountable task of seeking out a vampire nobleman who’s responsible for kidnapping a young woman. The visuals for this one are far superior to its predecessor, so you’ll enjoy all the frantic battles that occur on-screen even more.
12) Igor
It is the first computer-animated horror comedy film for MGM. This is an animated fable about a cliché hunchbacked evil scientist’s assistant. The assistant aspires to become a scientist himself, much to the displeasure of the rest of the evil science community. ‘Igor‘ features Cusack as the titular Igor, who lives in the kingdom of Malaria where others of his kind serve as assistants to evil scientists. In trying to achieve his dream to become an evil scientist, Igor accidentally creates a sweet female monster named Eva.
13) Constantine: City Of Demons
This animated horror movie centers on the adventures of a supernatural detective John Constantine. A decade after a tragic mistake, Chas Chandler and occult investigator John Constantine set out to cure Chas’s daughter, Trish, from a demonically induced coma. It is a gripping, bloody tale of the occult. If you are a monster person, then this horror film is just the pick for you.
14) Resident Evil: Vendetta
‘Resident Evil: Vendetta’ is a 2017 Japanese adult computer-animated biopunk action horror film. It is set in the same universe as the ‘Resident Evil’ video games. It is the third CG film, preceded by ‘Resident Evil: Degeneration‘ (2008) and ‘Resident Evil: Damnation‘ (2012). Chris Redfield enlists the help of Leon S. Kennedy and Rebecca Chambers to stop a death merchant, with a vengeance, from spreading a deadly virus in New York.
15) The Wolf House
‘The Wolf House’ is a Chilean stop-motion animated horror film. It was directed by Cristobal León and Joaquín Cociña. The movie had its world premiere at the 68th Berlin International Film Festival on February 22, 2018. The movie tells the story of Maria, a young woman who takes refuge in a house in southern Chile after escaping from a German colony. She is welcomed into the home by two pigs, the only inhabitants of the place. Like in a dream, the universe of the house reacts to Maria’s feelings. The animals transform slowly into humans, and the house becomes a nightmarish world.
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16) Batman: Gotham By Gaslight
The film was released for a world premiere screening at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. during the “DC in D.C.” event on January 12, 2018. Batman: Gotham by Gaslight was the last film to be released in Benjamin Melniker’s lifetime. A longtime DC film producer who died a month later at the age of 104. The movie starts in an alternative Victorian Age Gotham City. Batman begins his war on crime while he investigates a new series of murders by Jack the Ripper.
17) Dante’s Inferno: An Animated Epic
The hellish tale of ‘Dante’s Inferno‘ got turned into a game by Electronic Arts and Visceral Games back in 2010. Then the game got the animated movie treatment called Dante’s Inferno: An Animated Epic, which came out a lot better than expected in practice. Just like the source material it’s based on, this film focuses on Dante’s demon-filled journey toward saving his love from the nine circles of Hell. Prepare your eyes for bouts of brutality and creepy monster designs that’ll stay with you long after this film concludes.
18) The Little Vampire
‘The Little Vampire‘, is a 2017 3D computer-animated vampire film. It was directed by Richard Claus and Karsten Kiilerich. The movie is based on the children’s book series of the same name by German writer Angela Sommer-Bodenburg. Rudolph, a 13-year-old vampire, meets Tony, a mortal boy his age who loves old castles, graveyards and vampires. Tony helps Rudolph to fight against a notorious vampire hunter, and together they save Rudolph’s family and become friends.
19) Unicorn Wars
‘Unicorn Wars‘ is a 2022 Spanish-French anti-war animated horror movie. This story tracks two brother teddy bear soldiers, Azulín, who yearn for unicorn blood to be beautiful forever; and Gordi, who just wants to be accepted and liked. In ‘Unicorn Wars’, filmmaker Alberto Vázquez resorts to animated fantasy to ponder over the origin of evil.
20) Happy Halloween, Scooby-Doo!
Scooby-Doo and the team gather again to solve the mystery of gigantic proportions and save Crystal Cove. This Scooby-Doo animated film sticks out as a strong watch due to its darker tone, gorgeous animation, and engrossing plot. If you loved the original Scooby-Doo cartoons, then you’ll most definitely appreciate everything on offer here. If you are done watching this, then watch, ‘Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island’.
21) Coraline
It’s easy to understand how someone can come to despise their current standing in life and the depressing world they inhabit. This film follows a young woman named Caroline that has those very same sentiments – her world becomes all the better once she comes upon a hidden door that transports her to a much better rendition of her world. But when she comes to learn that this new world’s inhabitants don’t want her to leave, Caroline must escape their wrath and get to the bottom of its baleful mysteries.
22) ParaNorman
It’s all about a young kid named Norman that’s a spirit medium (someone who’s able to talk to the dead) – he’s forced to use his powers to save his small Massachusetts community from a witch’s curse. This stop-motion animated film touches on the topic of death with great care and entertains in the process.
23) The Nightmare Before Christmas
Jack Skellington is a whole legend and shall forever be treated as such. That iconic character has become a staple of everyone’s childhood thanks to his amazing starring role in this animated movie classic. ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas‘ takes viewers on a wild ride through “Halloween Town” and “Christmas Town” as Jack becomes obsessed with taking over Santa’s signature holiday. A whole lot of warm and funny moments ensue as Jack runs into a huge obstacle in the form of Oogie Boogie and his young troublemakers.
24) Monster House
Every neighbourhood has that one creepy old house that gives off the spookiest vibes whenever you stare at it too long. ‘Monster House‘ takes that whole belief and turns it into a highly entertaining watch. Mitchel, Spencer, and Sam are the three curious tykes at the heart of this film that make an attempt to thwart an evil house before it harms all the young trick-and-treaters in the neighborhood. Just imagine an animated version of The Goonies with a horror theme attached to it and you’ll have a good idea of what this film is all about.
25) Corpse Bride
How would you and your loved ones react to you marrying a dead woman? ‘Corpse Bride‘ delves into that wild possibility with a film that features the voice talents of Johnny Depp and Emily Watson. Johnny’s character gets dragged down to the underworld after wandering into the forest in a bid to practice his wedding vows. After finding out that his living wife is set to get wed to a surly individual, he fights to find a way to get back above ground and get out of his newfound relationship with a dead woman.
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