A lot of these are horror movies that fall within the slasher subgenre, but there are other categories at play such as thriller, as well. Plenty are by big-name directors like David Fincher and Wes Craven, and they boast recognizable names among their casts. You’ll without a doubt recognize some of the titles on this list, most prominently the horror stints.
But if you stumble upon anything fresh, rest assured it’s well worth your time. These releases run the gamut of success, be it critical or commercial, but there’s some element of qualitative filmmaking at work with each entry on the list. All that said, these are the seventeen best serial killer movies of the 2010s, ranked.
15 Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile
As one of the most notorious American serial killers who ever lived, Ted Bundy confessed to killing over thirty people between 1974 and 1978. The majority of his crimes took place on the West Coast, between California, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. But his killing spree also extended to Midwestern states like Utah and Colorado, along with southern states such as Florida. Therefore, his acts of madness are well-known all throughout the country, and even the world.
Those murderous, titular antics were captured to a tee in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019), starring Zac Effron as the infamous killer. The project was distributed by Netflix, and in spite of some lackluster responses from critics, it stands out as one of their most vital features from recent years. It’s without a doubt worth a watch whether you’re familiar with Bundy’s story or, even better, if you’re indulging for the first time. Just be warned: at times, it’s fairly hard to watch.
14 El Angel
Written and directed Luis Ortega, this Argentine-Spanish true-crime film follows the titular 17-year-old named Carlos, known around high school for his charming demeanor and inherent good looks. He’s spoiled, too, and when he befriends a boy named Ramón, the two team up in the most dangerous of fashions by dabbling in a series of robberies and murders.
El Angel (2018) is among the lesser-known films on the list, even as far as international cinema is concerned from the perspective of American audiences. But it undoubtedly deserves a spot, receiving great acclaim from critics thanks to the rapport of the two leads. You should give it a go for their performances alone, let alone the other quality facets of filmmaking at play.
13 The Guest
After their son dies amid combat in Afghanistan, the Peterson family receives a visit from the titular character: David, a soldier who served alongside their son. The family now consists of the parents, Spencer and Laura, along with the two remaining children, Anna and Luke. Upon his arrival here in The Guest (2014), David develops bonds with the kids. He becomes a mentor to the son, while the daughter contracts a crush on him.
This premise makes for engaging character dynamics through and through, led perfectly by director Adam Wingard. And critics were in seventh cinematic heaven thanks to its high-caliber action sequences and unexpected plot points. Audiences were less enthusiastic, but ultimately, it without a doubt deserves this fifteenth spot.
12 Good Neighbors
Starring Emily Hampshire, Jay Baruchel, and Scott Speedman, this Canadian thriller was written and directed by Jacob Tierney. That makes him an auteur in this regard, having full authorial control over his creative vision when directing Good Neighbors (2010) from the film’s first frame until its intense and poetic finale.
If the film’s premise doesn’t intrigue you — the three, titular neighbors discuss the local crimes of a serial killer while each harboring a secret of their own — there are plenty of other qualitative elements of filmmaking worth writing home about with regard to Good Neighbors. The tactics of editing in post-production bounce seamlessly off the film’s camerawork, like how the performances from its cast perfectly convey the film’s darkly humorous dialogue. This is a thrilling tale for fans of film everywhere, especially if you’re into the movies at hand.
11 The Final Girls
The first of many slashers on the list, The Final Girls (2015) also classifies as a comedy, like many others of its subgenre. And again, like other slashers such as Scream, this entry is also meta. It’s self-referential, in other words, with a plot that focuses on the daughter of a late scream queen from the 1980s. The daughter, named Max Cartwright, is transported along with her friends to a fictional slasher from 1986 called Camp Bloodbath. So, this isn’t just meta by virtue of the references in its dialogue, but also because of its overall premise.
Starring Taissa Farmiga and Malin Åkerman with supporting performances from Adam Devine, Thomas Middleditch, Alia Shawkat, Nina Dobrev, and Alexander Ludwig, this goes down as underrated in several fashions. It holds a modest 71% approval rating on critical consensus website Rotten Tomatoes, and it made mediocre money in ticket sales in spite of a relatively small budget. Ultimately, the numbers of success attached to The Final Girls doesn’t at all do the film’s quality justice.
10 The Clovehitch Killer
As the leader of his son’s boy scout troop, the titular character in The Clovehitch Killer (2016) takes his moniker from his favorite style of knot. Still, he leads his family like his troops: with devotion to Christianity. The Burnsides are a churchgoing family living in a small town that is in constant anguish over the crimes of a serial killer who bound and murdered ten woman nearly a decade prior to the plot kicking off. And when 16-year-old Tyler Burnside unearths a collection of photographs kept secret by his father, he and a friend begin putting the pieces together.
Written by Christopher Ford — who also penned the script for Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) — it’s worth noting that The Clovehitch Killer is loosely based off the real-life serial killer known as BTK. And the inspirations for a script translated perfectly onto film, with the project as a whole boasting perfect pacing and convincing performances amid an intriguing premise. It’s bound to hit home for those looking for a thrill.
9 Coyote Lake
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A psychological thriller starring Camila Mendes, Adriana Barraza, and a few less-notable others, Coyote Lake (2019) follows a mother-daughter duo that drug their visitors and kill them in a deserted guest house. It’s an intriguing premise that’s seen into solid fruition, with poignance around every corner of its thought-out and well-paced plot.
It features some of the most impressive performances you’ll read about today, save perhaps for the top few picks. And for the most part, this is a high-quality debut from writer-director Sara Seligman. But in the end, in spite of its emotional resonance, the plot of Coyote Lake comes up just short of delivering the intrigue and entertainment to warrant a higher spot on the list.
8 Summer of 84
In this teen horror comedy (directed by a filmmaking trio known as RKSS, or Roadkill Superstars) protagonist Davey aspires to be “the next Spielberg”. And the movie’s voice is reminiscent of movies from its time period — it’s set in 1984, obviously, specifically in Cape Cod, Oregon — such as E.T. the Extra-terrestrial (1982). The characters even plan to watch Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) and Gremlins (1984) at various points in the film. But these references are amid a statewide search for a serial killer known as the Cape May Slayer, whom Davey suspects to be his neighbor, Officer Mackey.
Well-paced from start to finish with hilarious dialogue and entertaining plot points, this isn’t the kind of film that takes extremes risks in its storytelling. But Summer of 84 (2018) still goes down among the most high-quality horror films of its year. And with regard to serial killer movies, it without a doubt deserves a spot in the top ten.
7 Halloween (2018)
Directed by David Gordon Green, this is by far the greatest entry in the famous horror franchise since the original Halloween (1978) released under John Carpenter’s direction. He also wrote the script and composed the score, the latter role of which he reprised here in Halloween (2018) by Green. That particular American director seemed at first a strange choice for this stint considering his past penchant for comedy projects. But he shined through and through in co-writing a script that perfectly punctuates thrilling moments with hilarious exchanges of dialogue.
This sequel stars Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode — her fourth time reprising the role, fifth time playing the character overall — and it takes place exactly forty years after Michael’s initial killing spree. So, not only is it connected to the original film in its production, its screenwriting process, and musical arrangements. But it’s also directly linked to the first Halloween in its plot, picking up where Carpenter left off and giving fans one of the best slashers of the century. And of course, Michael Myers will always fit the bill of a serial killer.
6 The Columnist
A Dutch black comedy thriller, The Columnist (2019) follows the titular writer named Femke Boot (played by Dutch actress Katja Herbers) as she grows weary of trolls on the internet lashing out for her opinions. They call her names, poke fun at her writing abilities. They even send death threats, and threaten to come to her home. That’s where Femke draws the line.
At first, The Columnist seemed as if its plot would follow Femke as she was attacked by a loser with a laptop who hated her messages and had a penchant for killing. Alas, she turns out to be the character that renders this project applicable for the list. Things really take off toward the midpoint as she kills dozens, perhaps even scores of internet trolls amid an engrossing montage sequence. The horrors of social media and the wastelands of the internet in general are on full display, with behind-the-scenes facets of filmmaking like editing and cinematography hitting home from start to finish.
5 Scream 4
Several characters from prior entries in the franchise reprise their roles here in Scream 4 (2011) — Neve Campbell as Sidney, Courtney Cox as Gale, and David Arquette as Dewey. But from Emma Roberts as Jill to Hayden Panettiere as Kirby, the new members of the cast arguably stole the show. At the very least, they provide the movie with a sort of charm and originality that had been missing from the series for over a decade, resulting in a bit of franchise fatigue that resulted in a hiatus.
But of course, everything else returned in valiant fashion as well, from the script by Kevin Williamson to the direction under Wes Craven. This felt like the true sequel fans were pining for after the first two entries in the series, and as the Ghostface killer ran wild once again here in the fourth installment, audiences across the country found themselves cheering alongside the self-referential characters in the actual film.
4 Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts
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Directed by Mouly Surya, this Indonesian western thriller coined the term “satay western” for its tonal focus on feminism and the setting of rural Indonesia. Its plot follows a woman who’s raped by a group of men, and as she executes her revenge tour, one of her victims comes back to haunt her.
It’s an engrossing premise that’s seen into solid fruition, with admirable direction and impressive performances. And although Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts (2017) came up short of a nomination for Best Foreign Language Film at the 91st Academy Awards, it nonetheless received widespread praise from critics and audiences alike. It ultimately comes in within the list’s top five.
3 The Forest of Love
Distributed by Netflix, this Japanese crime thriller was written and directed by Sion Sono. And off the bat, it’s worth noting that The Forest of Love (2019) boasts a rare 100% approval rating on critical consensus website Rotten Tomatoes. It’s a lengthy watch, but worth it every step of the way thanks to enticing visuals and a generally stylistic approach to storytelling. Sono pulls no punches when it comes to off-the-wall dialogue and risky shot selections. And the result is a dynamic combination of filmmaking tactics that entertains from the film’s first frame until its animated finale.
Its plot was inspired by the real-life serial killer Futoshi Matsunaga who ran amok in Kyushu, Japan throughout the 1990s and 2000s. It doesn’t feature the killer as its protagonist, though. Kippei Shiina leads the cast as a screenwriter named Joe Murata, and he performs brilliantly along with Shinnosuke Mitsushima as Shin and Kyoko Hinami as Taeko. Their performances alone warrant The Forest of Love a spot on the list.
2 Marshland
A Spanish crime thriller, Marshland (2014) follows two homicide detectives as they investigate the disappearance of two teenage girls — sisters, in fact. The men in charge must put aside their aggressions with one another, learn to work together, and end the killings at hand. This results in wonderful character dynamics that are highlighted by brilliant performances, with the lead characters driving the film’s quality through and through.
It made great money at the worldwide box office, and it arguably impressed critics to a more notable extent. Marshland holds a 92% approval rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, among the most impressive scores on the list. Plus, it swept the 29th Goya Awards, winning in ten total categories. And with good reason. This is essential viewing for those looking to indulge in more films about serial killers, in the end landing at number two overall.
1 The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Starring Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara with supporting efforts from thespians such as Stellan Skarsgård, Robin Wright, and Christopher Plummer, everyone performs to an absolute tee in this thriller that’s based on the novel of the same name. It was directed by David Fincher from a screenplay by Steven Zaillain — two absolute legends of their respective crafts. And they proved to be quite the duo, as The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (2011) hits home on nearly every qualitative level of filmmaking you could fathom.
Its tone is established from the start thanks to careful color palettes and a resounding score. The latter of those two elements was helmed by two men, Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor, noteworthy due to their scoring The Social Network (2010) one year prior. Also by David Fincher. They would team up with director twice more after The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, but this remains among their best works. Its plot is involved from the start, and best worth experiencing for yourself. You can rest assured, though: this number one spot is well-earned in the end.