Introduction

Horror movies have always been a part of movie nights, and there are many reasons for it to be included in the lives. Movie buffs are fond of horror franchises because of the titillating visuals, suspense, and plain good scares. The following are some best horror movie franchises of all time.

1.  The Conjuring Universe Franchise - $324.1 Million

This is a horror franchise that makes movie goers bite their nails off. It is the second-highest-grossing horror series. It was created by James Wan, and there are many sub-creations related to the original movie. It portrays the supposedly real-life incidents faced by Ed and Lorraine Warren, paranormal investigators. The cases that are shown in this series relate to the possession of families by demons and spirits, while other spin-offs concentrate on the entities the Warrens have come across and the series which links all the franchises. The conjuring series consists of three parts with the third one being released in September 2020.

• The Conjuring (2013)
• The Conjuring 2 (2016)
• The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2020)

The 'Anabelle' series focuses on the creation of a doll that features in the original series of 'The Conjuring'. It consists of three parts while the possibility of a fourth.

• Annabelle (2014)
• Annabelle: Creation (2017)
• Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
• Possible fourth Annabelle film

The Nun series explores the backstory of a demonic Nun which was featured in the second part of the Conjuring. For now, there is only one part, but a second will be announced soon.

• The Nun (2018)
• Untitled The Nun film (TBA)

Other spin-offs feature The Curse of La Llorona which explores a connection of a demon with the doll and the Crooked Man to be announced as its script is under progress. Among all the feature movies of the franchise, the highest-grossing movie is 'The Conjuring' (2013) with $137.4 million.

2.  Halloween Franchise - $308.5 Million

It is considered to be the pioneer for the genre of slasher movies. Halloween is a horror classic franchise, and ranks at the top of the United States box office in horror series. It was created by John Carpenter and Debra Hill. The concept of the franchise focuses on a serial killer who was admitted to a sanitarium after murdering his sister as a child, after 15 years he has escaped and hunts people and kills them on the night of Halloween. It has inspired the making of novels, comics, video games, and merchandise. The franchise comprises of eleven parts and the twelfth to be released in 2021:

• Halloween (1978 film)
• Halloween II (1981 film)
• Halloween III: Season of the Witch
• Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers
• Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers
• Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
• Halloween H20: 20 Years Later
• Halloween: Resurrection
• Halloween (2007 film)
• Halloween II (2009 film)
• Halloween (2018 film)
• Halloween Kills

The 2007 Halloween is the remake of the original one with no connections with other sequels. A direct sequel to the original movie was released in 2018 with no link to other sequels. Halloween (2007) is the highest grossing in the series with $58.2 million earned at the box office.

3.  The Exorcist Franchise - $331.6 Million

This is another horror series based on the novel of the same name. It is a successful franchise commercially and critically. All the five parts are directed by different directors and the original concept inspired the creation of a television series. The first movie won two Academy Awards for the Best Sound and the Best Adapted Screenplay. The following are the five parts of the franchise that explore different story lines in each part while the fourth is the prequel to 'The Exorcist' and the last part portrays the backstory of the beginning.

• The Exorcist (1973)
• Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977)
• The Exorcist III (1990)
• Exorcist: The Beginning (2004)
• Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (2005)

The first movie of the franchise earned $193.0 million at the box office and is the highest-grossing. 

4.  Final Destination Franchise - $263.5 Million

This is a horror series that is different from most other slasher, supernatural or paranormal activity movies. It was created by Jeffrey Reddick, who initially wrote the script for the 'X-files' but proposed it to be a full-feature movie although the concept was inspired by a true event. The movie series encouraged the creation of comics and a novel series. The plot of all this movie series revolves around a group of people featuring one person who foresees impending events of mass deaths of group members. When the group avoids the horrible incidents, then they are killed one by one. It comprises of five parts for movie buffs to enjoy that includes:

• Final Destination
• Final Destination 2
• Final Destination 3
• The Final Destination
• Final Destination 5

The first part was commercially successful and earned $53.3 million, but the highest-grossing movie of the series is 'Final Destination' (2009) with $66.5 million at the box office. 

5.  Underworld Franchise - $222.4 Million

The original horror-action series of movies created by Len Wiseman, Kevin Grevioux, and Danny McBride. It also inspired the creation of video games and comic books illustrating the story of the original movie. The movies are about battles and conflicts between vampires and the Lycan (humans who transform into wolves) clan. The third edition is the prequel of the series exploring the discovery of the on-going war while the last part shows that humans have discovered the existence of both species and are trying to eliminate them. The franchise consist of five parts:

• Underworld (2003)
• Underworld: Evolution (2006)
• Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (2009)
• Underworld: Awakening (2012)
• Underworld: Blood Wars (2016)

The first version of the franchise earned $52.0 million while the fourth part is the highest-grossing edition of the franchise with $62.3 million. Despite being critically only a moderate movie it is a successful franchise and has a strong base of fans.

6.  The Purge Franchise - $215.5 million

This series is about the concept of a dystopian community where once, annually, crimes are legal, The Purge is a franchise depicting this concept created by James DeMonaco. This horror-action series displays a new America where all crimes including murders are legal, once annually, for 12 hours and people have built their houses with the design of being a safe house to survive the night. The franchise is applauded for its concept, performances, and sequences critically. The franchise consists of four parts and a fifth hinted by the creators.

• The Purge (2013)
• The Purge: Anarchy (2014)
• The Purge: Election Year (2016)
• The First Purge (2018)

The first part grossed $64.5 million and the most successful edition is The Purge: Election Year (2016) with $79.0 million. 

7.  Blade Franchise - $204.8 Million

It is a television and a film series based on a comic series created by Marvel. The character, Eric Brooks/Blade, was originated by Marv Wolfman and Gene Colan. The character hunts and kills vampires as his mother was bitten by one when she was in labor with him (he becomes  a human-vampire hybrid that possesses the supernatural abilities of the vampires without any of their weaknesses; except for the requirement to consume human blood). All three parts are directed by different directors Stephen Norrington, Guillermo Del Toro, and Goyer respectively. All three editions are connected discovering the battles of vampires, reapers, and humans.

• Blade (1998)
• Blade II (2002)
• Blade: Trinity (2004)

A three-episode TV series was released in 2016, inspired by the original movie franchise. The first part of the series earned $70.1 million, however, the highest-grossing edition is the sequel Blade II (2002) with $82.3 million. 

8.  Fright Night Franchise - $46.2 Million

This is a classic terrorizing movie series originally written by Tom Holland. The franchise portrays the discovery of a vampire living in a neighborhood and a fake vampire hunter is on the verge of stopping him. An Indian remake also followed the first part of the movie and a remake of the original movie also took place in Hollywood in 2011. It is adapted in the forms of video games, stage play, novels, and comics. The franchise comprises of four movies:

• Fright Night (1985)
• Fright Night Part 2 (1988)
• Fright Night (2011)
• Fright Night 2: New Blood (2013)

The first movie earned $24.9 million making it the most successful part of the franchise. 

9.  Hellraiser Franchise - $48.5 Million

It is a multi-media franchise consisting of comics, books, and additional merchandise. It is a classical horror movie series based on a novel. It received positive responses throughout the series from critics and the audience. It follows the storyline of a puzzle box that opens to the Hell gateway of Cenobites, which feed off human souls. The character of the cenobite 'Pinhead' is focused on this series and became a symbol. The series consists of ten movies:

• Hellraiser (1987)
• Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988)   
• Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth (1992)
• Hellraiser: Bloodline (1996)   
• Hellraiser: Inferno (2000)   
• Hellraiser: Hellseeker (2002)  
• Hellraiser: Deader (2005)   
• Hellraiser: Hellworld(2005)    
• Hellraiser: Revelations 2011)  
• Hellraiser: Judgment (2018)    

Its first movie is the highest-grossing edition of the franchise with $14.6 million. 

Conclusion

The genre of horror holds a special place in the cinema industry as it challenges creativity. It is an exciting form of art combining several aspects to make the audience horrified.

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