Horror by Country
Every culture has its own way of conjuring fear. From American slashers to Japanese onryō, Italian giallo to Korean revenge cinema, explore how horror takes shape around the world.
54,273 films across 175 countries.
North America
23,299 films
North American horror cinema spans from Hollywood's foundational Universal Monsters and slasher cycles to Canada's pioneering body horror movement led by David Cronenberg, while Mexico contributes a rich tradition of supernatural folklore horror and masked wrestler monster films that blend indigenous mythology with Gothic sensibilities. The region is distinguished by its commercial innovation in practical effects, its cyclical reinvention of subgenres like the zombie and slasher film, and its unique ability to channel societal anxieties through both mainstream studio productions and groundbreaking independent movements.
Europe
10,833 films
European horror cinema encompasses a diverse range of influential movements and styles, from the Gothic Hammer Horror productions of Britain and the visceral giallo films of Italy to the transgressive extremity of French New French Extremity and the folkloric dread of Scandinavian cinema. This region's horror is distinguished by its artistic sophistication, cultural specificity, and willingness to push boundaries through philosophical depth, visual poetry, and unflinching examinations of violence, sexuality, and social decay.
Asia
10,177 films
Asian horror cinema is distinguished by its emphasis on psychological terror, supernatural folklore, and atmospheric dread rather than gore, with Japan's J-horror movement popularizing vengeful spirits and cursed technology, South Korea blending social commentary with visceral scares, and Southeast Asian countries like Thailand and Indonesia drawing from local mythology and religious beliefs. The region's horror is characterized by slow-burn tension, ambiguous narratives, and the lingering presence of the past haunting the present, often exploring themes of guilt, tradition versus modernity, and societal anxieties through ghostly manifestations and family curses.
South America
1,970 films
South American horror cinema, particularly from Brazil and Argentina, emerged prominently in the 1960s-80s with Brazil's "Cinema Marginal" movement producing transgressive, politically-charged films like José Mojica Marins' Coffin Joe series, while Argentina developed a sophisticated tradition of psychological horror and supernatural thrillers that often explored themes of political oppression, social decay, and urban alienation through a distinctly Latin American lens of magical realism and Catholic imagery.
Oceania
928 films
Australian horror cinema emerged prominently in the 1970s-80s with the "ozploitation" movement, producing distinctive outback survival horror films like Wolf Creek and Wake in Fright that exploit the continent's vast, unforgiving wilderness as a source of dread. The region's horror is characterized by isolation anxiety, man-versus-nature themes, and a gritty realism that reflects Australia's harsh landscape and colonial history, often featuring protagonists trapped in remote locations facing both human and environmental threats.
