Saw
2004 · MovieTwo strangers wake up chained to pipes in a decaying bathroom with a corpse on the floor between them. A tape recorder explains the rules.
Ranked by HorroRated · Updated October 16, 2026
Best Horror Movies of 2004
HorroRated has reviewed 11 horror movies released in 2004, ranked here best first. Saw, Shaun of the Dead and Dawn of the Dead (2004) lead the list.
Two strangers chained in a filthy bathroom launched a whole franchise when James Wan's Saw arrived in 2004. That same year the dead got funny in Edgar Wright's Shaun of the Dead and got fast in Zack Snyder's Dawn of the Dead, where survivors make a last stand among the stores of a Milwaukee mall.
2004 horror movies, best first
11 films- Pick
PickShaun of the Dead
2004 · MovieShaun works at an electronics store and has been a disappointing partner long enough that his girlfriend ends their relationship on the same day the zombie apocalypse begins outside his window.
Dawn of the Dead (2004)
2004 · MovieAna escapes an overnight outbreak and finds shelter in a Milwaukee shopping mall with a small group of survivors as the world outside collapses.
Seed of Chucky
2004 · MovieChucky and Tiffany's child tracks down its parents on a Hollywood movie set and wants to understand which of them it takes after.
Alien vs. Predator
2004 · MovieA billionaire's expedition drills down to a pyramid hidden under the ice near Antarctica, arriving just in time for an ancient ritual in which young Predators prove themselves against Xenomorphs. The humans are stuck in the middle.
Open Water
2004 · MovieA couple surfaces from a scuba dive to find the boat gone. Nothing visible in any direction but open ocean.
The Grudge
2004 · MovieAn American care worker enters a house in Tokyo and disturbs something inside that then follows her.
Resident Evil: Apocalypse
2004 · MovieThe T-virus has escaped Raccoon City and the corporation is planning to contain the situation by erasing the city entirely.
Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid
2004 · MovieA pharmaceutical research team travels deep into Borneo searching for a flower rumored to extend life. The jungle has other priorities.
The Stepford Wives (2004)
2004 · MovieJoanna Eberhart's career implodes and her husband relocates the family to the perfect suburb of Stepford. The wives there seem engineered rather than merely content.
Exorcist: The Beginning
2004 · MovieA former priest working an archaeological dig in Kenya uncovers a buried Byzantine church. Something was sealed inside it.
No 2004 films match that filter right now.
2004 in Horror, by the Numbers
- Reviewed
- 11 films: 2 Legendary, 1 Highly Recommended, 3 Recommended, 4 Worth a Look and 1 If You're Curious
- Average score
- 2.9 of 5 tapes, against 3.3 across all 519 movies in the archive
- Leading subgenres
- Survival Horror (4 films), Action Horror (3)
- HorroRated Picks
- Saw and Shaun of the Dead
- Made outside the US
- Shaun of the Dead (United Kingdom)
- Streaming in the US
- 8 of 11, 3 of them free, as of November 10, 2026
Ranked by HorroRated score, then Picks, then newest release. How the year lists work
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Frequently Asked Questions About 2004 Horror Movies
What is the best horror movie of 2004?
Two films from 2004 share HorroRated's top verdict, Legendary, and all are HorroRated Picks: Saw and Shaun of the Dead. They're tied, so the list shows the newest first, starting with Saw.
What's the best zombie movie of 2004?
Shaun of the Dead (Legendary) is HorroRated's top-rated zombie movie of 2004, ahead of Dawn of the Dead (2004). Compared with the rest of the archive, 2004 leaned hardest on zombies: 3 of the 11 films on the list. The most common kind that year is survival horror, with 4.
Which 2004 horror movies are part of a franchise?
Six of the 11 films come from franchises with a HorroRated watch-order guide, a bigger share than in most years: Saw, Seed of Chucky, Alien vs. Predator, Resident Evil: Apocalypse and Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid, plus 1 more.