Since its establishment in 1928, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Hollywood has handed out awards for artistic and technical merit in the film industry. Winning an Academy Award is one of the most prestigious honors a movie can receive.
Horror is not typically a movie genre one would associate with the Oscars. Horror films elicit fear and bring to life our worst nightmares, which is not something that is necessarily celebrated or awarded. However, many horror movies throughout the decades have gone on to win an elusive Oscar, some even making history.
10 Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde (1931) Won Best Actor
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is the 1931 film adaptation of the 1886 novel The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. Fredric March plays the title character, a doctor who experiments with drugs to unleash his evil side.
The film was released before movie censorship and was a great success that garnered three Academy Award Nominations. March took home the Oscar for Best Actor for his portrayal of the tormented Jekyll and devious Hyde.
9 Rosemary's Baby (1968) Won Best Supporting Actress
Rosemary's Baby is a psychological thriller that focuses on Rosemary Woodhouse, played by Mia Farrow, a young mother who is convinced her elderly neighbors are a part of a Satanic cult. Ruth Gordon, who played Minnie Castevet, one of the neighbors, won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Rosemary's Baby has been heralded as one of the greatest horror movies of all time. It even gained recognition for cultural significance by the Library of Congress and was selected for preservation in 2014, in the National Film Registry.
8 The Exorcist (1973) Won Best Adapted Screenplay
Despite the casting of unknown actors, and a plague of misfortunes during production, The Exorcist remains one of the greatest horror movies ever made. It received mixed reactions from audiences alike, and yet it became one of the highest-grossing horror films of all time.
It was nominated for ten Academy Awards and became the first horror film to be nominated for Best Picture. Although the film did not win Best Picture, it won Oscars for both Best Original Screenplay and Best Sound.
7 The Omen (1976) Won Best Original Score
The Omen was one of the highest-grossing films of 1976, despite a mixed reception. The Thorns are a young couple who are ready to welcome their first child. When the baby dies at birth, unbeknownst to the mother, Mr. Thorn adopts another baby to replace their dead child.
The couple names the child Damien and after a series of unfortunate and suspicious events, they come to suspect that Damien is the Antichrist. The film won an Oscar for Best Original Score and spawned several installments, including a remake in 2006.
6 Alien (1979) Won Best Visual Effects
Alien is a science fiction horror film about an extraterrestrial that is set loose on a spaceship. Sigourney Weaver plays the memorable role of Ripley, one of the only surviving crew members of Nostromo after the alien attack.
Although at the time when critics were not that favorable to the science fiction genre, the film won an Oscar for Best Visual Effects and launched Weaver's acting career. It also grew into a media franchise with movie sequels, toys, comic books, and more.
5 The Fly (1986) Won Best Makeup
The Fly, starring Jeff Goldblum, is a remake of a 1958 film based on a short story by George Langelaan. In the film, Goldblum plays a scientist, who after a failed experiment, begins to turn into a fly.
The movie was praised for its special effects and makeup looks created by Chris Walas and Stephan Dupuis. Their work turning Goldblum into a hybrid fly creature earned an Academy Award for Best Makeup.
4 The Silence Of The Lambs (1991) Won Best Picture
The Silence of the Lambs is an American psychological horror film that was considered a sleeper hit at the time. However, the film gained critical acclaim, in part, due to the stellar performances of Anthony Hopkins and Jody Foster.
The film won the "Big 5" at the Oscars including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay. It remains the only horror film to ever win the prestigious award for Best Picture.
3 Misery (1991) Won Best Actress
Misery is the 1990 film adaptation of a novel of the same name by Stephen King. The film focuses on Annie Wilkes, played by Kathy Bates, an obsessive fan who holds her favorite romance novelist captive in her remote home.
Bates' portrayal of Annie Wilkes won her an Academy Award for Best Actress. Stephen King has even stated that Misery is one of his favorite film adaptations of his novels. It is the only film based on a Stephen King novel that has won an Oscar.
2 Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) Won Great Costume Design
Bram Stoker's Dracula is the film adaptation of the gothic horror novel Dracula written by Bram Stoker. The 1992 adaptation is a welcome departure from the previous, campy portrayals of Dracula and in essence, saves the character.
The film was nominated for four Academy Awards and won the Oscar for Best Costume Design, Best Makeup, and Best Sound Editing. It is the only Dracula adaptation film to ever win an Academy Award.
1 Get Out (2017) Won Best Original Screenplay
Get Out is an American horror film, written and directed by Jordan Peele. The movie focuses on Chris, a young African-American man who travels with his girlfriend to visit her white family. The movie takes a sinister turn when Chris discovers unsettling secrets about the family.
Not only did Get Out win Best Original Screenplay, but it was also nominated in 3 other categories, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor. It was a historic win for Peele as he become the first African American man to win for Best Original Screenplay.