2023 Film Named the 'Scariest Horror Movie' of the Last Five Years
Since 2020, critics and audiences alike have been giving more acclaim to the horror genre. In just 2026 alone,Ryan Coogler's vampire masterpiece Sinners took home a total of four Oscars, andAmy Madigan got the Oscar for playing the creepy but charming villain Aunt Gladys in Weapons.
That being said, some newer horror movies have more nightmarish scenes than others, even if they are not necessarily better films. For instance, Colliderreleased a ranking of the top "25 scariest horror movies of the last 5 years."
The ranking, published on April 1, featured popular scary movies like 2025's 28 Years Later, The Black Phone from 2021, Barbarian from 2022, 2022's Terrifier 2, Smile, also released in 2022, and Talk to Me, released in 2023. Collider crowned 2023's When Evil Lurks as the scariest horror movie released since 2021. According to the publication, the unique possession film, directed by Demián Rugna, is almost constant with its upsetting, disgusting moments.
When Evil Lurks, starring Ezequiel Rodríguez and Demián Salomon, has a rating of 96 percent on Rotten Tomatoes.
Demián Rugna Opened up About His Film in a 2023 Interview
In a 2023 interview with Sinister Cinema Reviews, Rugna noted that the film involves a mass possession, creepy children, and a zombie-like plague. He said he likes the fact that it's difficult to classify what exact sub-genre the horror film belongs to.
"I love the idea that you have some difficulty to classify [the movie]. Because I'm all the time trying to think about something fresh in the movies that I grow and this is my goal. Because I am a horror fan, so I mean, I want to sit in my chair and watch a movie and do not know what I'm watching," explained the director in the 2023 interview.
He also said that the film's shocking moments are necessary plot points within the movie, as opposed to violence for violence's sake.
"The gore and the shock moments are pushing the script, it's pushing the story," said Rugna, who also wrote When Evil Lurks.
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This story was originally published April 30, 2026 at 6:22 PM.