It's generally accepted that horror films are scary and comedy films are funny. However, some of the best films blend genres and include elements of both. Horror films with comedy elements create a complex emotional experience for viewers, which is part of what makes them so memorable.
Some horror-comedies lean a little more towards one genre or the other, but all the films in this subgenre have one thing in common: they provide a fresh take on tried-and-true horror tropes. The comical aspects these films employ lend a welcome sense of humanity to the worlds that are plagued by boogiemen, zombies, or serial killers.
8 Shaun Of The Dead Delivers Zingers And Zombies
This British horror-comedy is truly a classic. The eponymous Shaun is a wayward everyman who works a dead-end job. As if his general dissatisfaction with life wasn't enough, he also gets dumped by his girlfriend, Liz. Things seem like they couldn't get any worse for Shaun, but they do: a zombie outbreak occurs in London.
Shaun and his equally-unambitious best friend, Ed, decided to fight their way through the outbreak to rescue Shaun's mom and Liz. Shaun of the Dead has an excellent balance between gruesome zombie elements and memorable one-liners.
7 Dark Shadows Is A Tim Burton Classic
Dark Shadows is a zany vampire comedy. It is one of the many collaborations between Tim Burton and Johnny Depp. Depp plays Barnabas Collins, a centuries-old vampire who awakens in 1972. The culture shock he experiences is funny, but the humor surrounding his dysfunctional family is even funnier.
The patriarch takes it upon himself to protect the modern humans from his arch-enemy, a witch who is responsible for turning him into a vampire. Great Tim Burton films typically feature impressive theatrical makeup, and Dark Shadows is no exception. Depp's pale white complexion and creepy prosthetic fingers bring subtle horror elements to life.
6 Zombieland Is A Post-Apocalyptic Comedy
In a world where zombies have overrun the human race and survivors are known only by the names of their hometowns, Zombieland delivers reliable jokes at every turn. Zombieland definitely leans more towards the comedy side, but the convincing zombie makeup and ongoing horror-violence give it balance.
Woody Harrelson stars as the tough-but-likable Tallahassee who leads a ragtag band of young adults through the crumbling landscape of post-apocalyptic America. Zombieland was a fan favorite and a box office success. It even spawned a sequel ten years later.
5 Hocus Pocus Has A Cult Following
Some films get more popular with age, and that is certainly true for Hocus Pocus. This 1993 film about three witchy sisters is part horror, part comedy, and even part musical. Bette Midler stars as the leader of the pack, and Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy round out the trio.
The witches may steal the souls of children, but the rich comedic aspects of Hocus Pocus make it appropriate for the whole family. Hocus Pocus continues to appear on must-watch lists for perfect Halloween horror movies, even nearly thirty years after its release.
4 Beetlejuice Is Ad-Libbed And Anticlimactic
Beetlejuice is more about the premise than the plot, but that hasn't stopped fans from loving it since its 1988 release. Michael Keaton stars as the eponymous evil ghost who is employed by other ghosts to drive an annoying family out of their house. The humans have no idea what's coming their way when Beetlejuice comes into their lives.
Keaton ad-libbed a staggering 90% of his lines in Beetlejuice and is convincingly scary when all decked out in horror makeup. The aesthetics of this off-color movie is Tim Burton's signature style mixed with the iconic style of the '80s, which makes Beetlejuic a winner.
3 Scary Movie Is A Campy Parody
Scary Movie is the quintessential horror-comedy because it parodies many iconic horror films. The joy of watching Scary Movie is in hunting for the references behind all the funny details, especially for longtime fans of the horror genre. The Halloween and Scream franchises are both referenced, as are many stand-alone horror films.
The premise of Scary Movie is simple: a group of teens acted together in the accidental killing of a man and they are stalked by an inept serial killer a year later. Scary Movie was the brainchild of the Wayans Brothers. They brought audiences plenty of comedic gold in the '90s and got the new millennium off to a hilarious start with the birth of this franchise.
2 Mars Attacks! Had A Star-Studded Cast
The stars aligned in Tim Burton's unique, colorful '90s movie about hilarious alien invaders from Mars. Jack Nicholson stars as the President of the United States, but he's just the beginning of the impressive cast list for this oddball horror-comedy. Mars Attacks! also verges into sci-fi territory, making it a multi-genre adventure that's sure to appeal to a wide range of fans.
Jack Black, Annette Benning, Pierce Brosnan, Glenn Close, Danny DeVito, and many more familiar faces worked together to make Mars Attacks! one of the silliest horror movies around. Mars Attacks! received mixed reviews from critics at the time of its release, but it has become a campy cult classic in its own right over the years.
1 Ghostbusters Is The Genre's Gold Standard
The original Ghostbusters has something that few other horror-comedies have: a coveted spot on the National Film Registry as a movie of cultural significance. Ghostbusters was among the highest-grossing comedies of the '80s and was nominated for multiple awards. Even nearly four decades later, this hilarious tale of paranormal bounty hunters is still as fresh as ever.
It has spawned cartoon shows, comics, and movie reboots, and even served as inspiration for elements of Netflix's popular series, Stranger Things. Though it has been replicated and referenced countless times, the original '80s film still stands as an indomitable classic of the horror-comedy genre.