Horror movie franchises have long struggled to maintain high ratings on critical websites such as Rotten Tomatoes. Many initial entries in franchises are well-received before a string of cheap sequels lowers both the overall score and the public opinion of the series as a whole.
This is mostly down to the fact that horror movies are easy and cheap to make. Good horror movies are less so and are much harder to find. Rotten Tomatoes is often cruel to the genre, but there are some franchises that have managed to avoid the pain of a bad Rotten Tomatoes critical score, even if it was mostly down to remaining shorter than other horror movie franchises.
6 The Conjuring Trilogy
The Conjuring universe was one of the defining acts of 2010s horror movies. Drawing in huge box office receipts and even performing well with critics, the adaptations of Lorraine and Ed Warren’s supernatural cases managed to become huge hits. Where spinoff franchises like Annabelle and The Nun may not have always succeeded with Rotten Tomatoes, the core of The Conjuring Universe has been the trilogy of movies about the Warren duo.
Despite a lower-scoring third entry in The Devil Made Me Do It, the movies are well-regarded by critics and have never fallen below 50% on the aggregate website. The wider Conjuring cinematic universe has done less well among critics, but, despite this mixed bag, the franchise remains strong. Three more movies in the cinematic universe are currently planned, with one of them being a fourth main entry in the Conjuring franchise.
5 The Evil Dead
It may surprise fans to know that Sam Raimi’s lunatic horror-comedy blend has retained high scores from critics on every occasion it has been brought to cinema or television screens. From the original two entries and Army of Darkness to the more recent remake and even the Ash vs Evil Dead TV series, there has never been a shaky entry in the franchise.
The darkly comedic horror movies and shows of this franchise made stars of Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi and provided much amusement to fans and critics alike, and the series has never scored below 63%. Three of the five entries in the franchise have managed to score 95% or over with critics, so it is unsurprising that another entry, Evil Dead Rise, will be released in 2023.
4 IT
IT is an iconic franchise, providing fans and critics with fuel for nightmares and a particularly strong hatred of clowns across society. While the series isn’t a particularly long-running franchise, the original 1990 miniseries starring Tim Curry as the iconic Pennywise and the two more recent entries with Bill Skarsgaard as the terrifying clown have all been well-received.
The most recently released IT: Chapter Two as well as the 1990 miniseries both scored in the 60% range for Rotten Tomatoes critics. While it hasn’t consistently managed huge scores critically, the series has been well-received by fans and has performed well at the box office. There are no current plans for the franchise to be revisited on the big screen at this time, but a prequel series about Pennywise is in development on HBO Max.
3 Gremlins
Another short-running franchise that may yet be elongated, Gremlins and Gremlins 2: The New Batch were both well-received by critics and fans, and it is surprising that it has taken so long for there to finally be renewed interest in a third entry in the franchise.
With an HBO Max series and a threequel in development, the series still has life despite last releasing a new entry in 1990. About a set of cute creatures which turn into dangerous and playful monsters if they are fed after midnight and the very reason for the creation of the PG-13 certification for movies, the Gremlins series is not the most terrifying franchise but has been consistently enjoyable so far.
2 The Descent
British horror movie The Descent is notable as one of the most underrated horror movies featuring some of the most underrated characters. After a sequel four years on from the original turned it into a franchise though, it was time to start considering it for a spot among the best critically received horror franchises ever.
Despite being a direct continuation of the story from the first movie, about a group of female hikers going spelunking in a cave system and finding horrifying creatures within, the sequel was not universally loved by critics and currently sits at 51% on Rotten Tomatoes. Currently, there is still no word about any potential third entry in the franchise, which remains surprising after the success of the first two movies.
1 Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters remains one of the most well-received comedic horror movies of all time. The 1984 movie pulled together some of the best comedic talents of the era including Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Dan Akyroyd, and director Ivan Reitman to create a movie that succeeded on every level, including critically. While the sequel was less beloved, it still performed admirably and did well with critics, but the franchise was left alone after this for 27 years.
In the last few years, both a female-led reboot of the franchise and a revisited sequel have all been released. Ghostbusters (2016) and Ghostbusters: Afterlife have had varying levels of success, but this franchise is yet to have an entry particularly disliked by critics, with the lowest Rotten Tomatoes score going to Ghostbusters 2 at 55%.