Read update
- Jordan Peele movies are assuredly among the most treasured when it comes to horror directors working today. The filmmaker's filmography counts on a few hits and fans can't help wondering what is next since a new film by Peele is in the works and coming out in Christmas 2024. Through the years, Peele has, in conversation with various reporters, shared his favorite horror movie recommendations.
Ever since his outstanding directorial debut Get Out, Jordan Peele has been sweeping horror fans off their feet with his incredible innovative works that even got him an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, along with nominations for Best Picture and Best Director. The filmmaker's love for horror is evident through his work, a fact that reflects in the quality of his projects.
Just three movies into his career, the horror director has proved himself to be one of the most refreshing and inventive masters of the field, and Peele's most recent film, Nope, is proof. These are some of the movies that have somewhat inspired the director's work or are simply held close to his heart, from recent projects such as The Witch to classic oldies like A Nightmare on Elm Street.
Updated on May 31, 2023, by Daniela Gama:
Jordan Peele movies are assuredly among the most treasured when it comes to horror directors working today. The filmmaker's filmography counts on a few hits and fans can't help wondering what is next since a new film by Peele is in the works and coming out in Christmas 2024. Through the years, Peele has, in conversation with various reporters, shared his favorite horror movie recommendations.
13 'Critters' (1986)
Critters is a horror movie recommendation by the director that is fit for those who value tension, comedy, and violence in a film of the genre. The plot follows a group of small alien creatures named Crites who, after escaping from an alien prison, land near a farm town on planet Earth.
According to Far Out Magazine, Stephen Herek's 1986 movie is a guilty pleasure of the horror genre to the beloved director. "In retrospect, [it’s] fairly bad, but it gave me a wrong sort of feeling. Those little things were so mischievous and so…evil. They had those evil-ass faces," the director revealed.
12 'Alien' (1979)
Alien is among the most popular sci-fi horrors in the world, and for good reason. The iconic movie, which centers on a crew of a commercial spaceship who accidentally encounters a lifeform, doesn't count on many jumpscares; instead, it is unnerving and unsettling, benefiting greatly from impeccable creature design.
In an entertaining conversation with the YouTube Channel Fear: The Home of Horror, Peele revealed that Ridley Scott's iconic first installment of the Alien franchise might be the best-designed movie ever made, tied only with A Nightmare on Elm Street.
11 'It Follows' (2014)
Maika Monroe is the scream queen in David Robert Mitchell's It Follows. Shortly after a sexual encounter with her new boyfriend, Hugh (Jake Weary), her character is actively pursued by a supernatural bizarre force and is haunted by a nightmarish curse.
To prepare for her dual roles in Us, the undeniably talented Lupita Nyong'o was reportedly (via Insider) asked by the filmmaker to watch a few classic horror features that would get her in the right mood for filming, and the critical success It Follows was one of them.
10 'Under the Skin' (2013)
Although it features very little gore and dialogue (but an iconic opening scene), Under the Skin is undoubtedly a disturbing A24 flick. This science fiction horror film directed by Jonathan Glazer follows an alien disguised as a mysterious young woman (Scarlett Johansson) who seduces lonely men in the evening hours in Glasgow.
When ranking his top favorite horror films in conversation with Fear: The Home of Horror, Peele said: "Under the Skin, for me, is a special film. It has one of those aesthetics that as a filmmaker you watch and you’re like, ‘how did Jonathan Glazer even do that?’ Everything looks so specific, the photography is so beautiful, that movie has a perfect score." With a minimalistic but effective storyline, Glazer's mesmerizing film will hardly leave anyone indifferent.
9 'Jaws' (1975)
Almost 48 years after its premiere, Jaws endures as a highly regarded classic thriller adventure film. The plot follows a group of different men with different expertise — a local sheriff, a marine biologist, and an old seafarer — who team up in order to stop a shark from committing further damage in the beach community off Cape Cod.
Featuring a gripping storyline and amazing monologues, Steven Spielberg's movie's impact on pop culture is undeniable, so much so that Peele was even partly inspired by it when making Nope. According to Insider, he also asked Spielberg for the character Jason to use a Jaws shirt in the movie Us. "The most beautiful revelation with Jaws was the audience’s imagination is far more powerful than what you show them," Peele remarks. "It changes the way we think of how to tell the story of a monster."
8 'Candyman' (1992)
Peele seems to have a special place in his heart for memorable horror movie protagonists, so it only makes sense that Candyman takes a spot on this list. The Bernard Rose-directed flick centers around an urban legend — a murderous soul with a hook for a hand who is accidentally brought to life by a skeptic grad student.
Possibly one of the most unforgettable horror films of the '90s, Rose's film relies on a good story as well as a lot of chilling, atmospheric moments. Love it or hate it, if it wasn't for Tony Todd's Candyman, Peele may or may not have made his way into directing horror. "I think the reason I love the original Candyman is, for better or worse, it broke us out of the box," he revealed in a conversation with Empire Magazine in June 2020. "A Black monster was pretty revolutionary. If there was no Candyman, I don't know that there would be a Get Out."
7 'Let the Right One In' (2008)
Set in the early 1980s, Let the Right One In tells the story of a bullied 12-year-old boy, Oskar (Kåre Hedebrant), who starts to develop a friendship with his strange neighbor, the mysterious Eli (Lina Leandersson) in Blackeberg, a suburb of Stockholm. When Eli reveals her macabre secret, Oskar learns that she is far from the ordinary girl.
Tomas Alfredson's gorgeous, poignant vampire romance has won over many hearts, and Peele's is one of them. Let the Right One In wonderfully combines coming-of-age with horror elements, which is something that makes it stand out immensely among many films of the genre. "One of the most beautiful horror movies of all time," the director remarked (via Indiewire).
6 'A Nightmare on Elm Street' (1984)
American supernatural slasher film written and directed by Wes Craven, A Nightmare on Elm Street also holds up today as it was the first film to introduce to worldwide audiences the legendary horror icon, Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund). When Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp) and a group of her friends are being haunted by a clawed psychopath in their dreams, they must find a way to put an end to it.
The beloved filmmaker has previously revealed that the amazing soundtrack for Us was actually influenced by A Nightmare on Elm Street. On top of that, on his top horror movie bracket in 2022, he said that the iconic slasher movie "kept me awake for a decade of my life." Again, Peele also praised the design of the film, saying it goes down in history as one of the best, along with Alien. As it turns out, the director's adoration for Craven's movie is pretty clear.
5 'Halloween' (1978)
In the year 1963, Michael Myers (Nick Castle), who had previously stabbed his 15-year-old sister to death 15 years prior, escapes from a mental hospital and heads up to the small town of Haddonfield, Illinois to strike again on Halloween night in this John Carpenter 1978 film.
Halloween's Michael Myers' legacy remains intact, standing the test of time as one of the most iconic characters of the genre. Having launched the era of the slasher film, no wonder why it remains so popular. As it turns out, Peele is a big fan of Carpenter's work, and even praised the director via Twitter. According to Far Out Magazine, he also believes that Myers is the scariest horror movie character of all time, saying tha "he’s not even evil; he’s just curious. You know you can’t talk him out of whatever he wants to do. He always does that thing where he’d stab somebody and turn his head — which is the international symbol for ‘fascinating’."
4 'The Shining' (1980)
Stanley Kubrick's The Shining is also a highly popular movie in the genre. It centers around a family who goes on Winter vacation and decides to stay at an isolated hotel that is seemingly haunted by dark forces and sinister presences, influencing the father (Jack Nicholson's memorable role), a writer, and former alcoholic, into violence.
It appears that, when it comes to Peele's evolution as a horror director, The Shining, one of the best psyschological horror films to date, was a crucial movie. The filmmaker has showed nothing but praise towards the movie's subtlety, adding that there was "an attention to almost a subconscious level of perception of something creepy going on," he reflects. "It’s just unsettling and I don’t think anyone’s really done a horror movie that well since" (via Far Out Magazine).
3 'Rosemary's Baby' (1968)
When a young couple, Rosemary (Mia Farrow) and Guy Woodhouse (John Cassavetes), move into an old, sinister ornate apartment building on Central Park West, Manhattan, they soon find themselves surrounded by a bunch of strange neighbors. To make things worse, a series of odd occurrences unfold.
If we sit down and give ourselves time to thoroughly think about it, Peele's Get Out shares many similarities with Rosemary's Baby, so it wouldn't be exactly a surprise to learn that the director was actually inspired by the thought-provoking classic horror movie, according to a Script to Screen interview he gave to UCLA. "Rosemary uses her instincts as a new mother to protect herself and her child," he examined. "On a subtle level, her personality and point of view are helping her out. And it’s the same with Chris. His blackness is what allows him to perceive that something sinister is going on."
2 'The Babadook' (2014)
This terrifying Jennifer Kent directed feature — and an outstanding directorial debut — centers around a troubled widow (Esse Davis) who finds out that her son is actually telling the truth about a creepy children's book monster who manifests in their home through the pages.
Just like It Follows, The Babadoook was also one of the films Nyong'o watched to prepare for her role in Us. A very intense, unsettling film that is also filled with raw emotion, Kent's movie is undoubtedly a favorite for Peele. "It was just a movie about something different than it was about, and it scared the pants off of me," he admitted to Fear: The Home of Horror.
1 'The Witch' (2015)
Set in 1630s New England, The Witch depicts a family of six who is unexpectedly torn apart by dark forces of witchcraft, black magic, and possession. With eerie cinematography and lots of bizarre imagery, Robert Eggers' incredible first feature combines witchcraft elements with its fanatical religious nature.
Analyzing the 1600s Puritan America, The Witch subtly tackles themes of female empowerment as it focuses on Thomasin's struggles and subjugation within Puritan culture. In a conversation with Forbes, the director revealed that he really enjoyed Eggers' film, adding that it features "such an elevated style to it, and it really brought the gravity of introducing us to a real-life actual witch, with a capital W."