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10 Horror Posters That Are Seared Into Our Brains

Whether it’s plastered on a VHS box or in a cinema’s lobby, these are our favorite pieces of key art to go gaga over.
Horror Posters
By  · Published on October 13th, 2019

5. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

Artboard
They don’t make ‘em like this anymore. The key art for A Nightmare on Elm Street perfectly captures the hazy and haunting feeling of this slasher classic. Freddy Krueger’s (Robert Englund) glove is one of the horror genre’s most iconic props and here it’s a twinkling and terrifying spectacle, much like the film itself. The poster perfectly captures the blurred line between dreams and reality, fact and fiction. Its striking visuals are unforgettable and the simple image of Nancy, wide-eyed and horrified is a beguiling invitation to seek the film out and to see how the nightmare has come to life. (Anna Swanson)


4. Sleepaway Camp (1983)

Sleepaway Camp
It’s a tale as old as time – so long as that time spans between the early 80s through the mid-90s. Your browsing the shelves of a video store, venturing into the unknown territory of the horror section, your eyes resting on a box with art that’s tantalizing and alluring. Something dangerous for a 7-year-old to indulge in while their parents are elsewhere. That’s me and this Sleepaway Camp cover. It is the art, especially the discomfort you feel seeing the sopping wetness of the sneaker, each bead of lake water tunneling into your own memories of soaked shoes. But then there is the letter, starting benign enough, slowly transforming into something much darker. You could call it my first taste of epistolary fiction, digging its hooks into my curiosity, especially the extended letter on the back of the original VHS box. Needless to say, it’s one of the many reasons I’m glad my parents never forced me to go to camp! (Jacob Trussell)


3. House (1985)

House
Sometimes a poster tells us nothing about the movie, while also saying a lot about what we can expect from it. That’s the case for this delightful poster for House, which features a disembodied hand ringing a doorbell. Sure, you get the impression that the movie will feature a ghoulish creature causing mayhem for the titular house’s occupants, but the image also states that this isn’t your run-of-the-mill haunted house yarn, either, and invites us through its doors to discover what surprises await in the shadows. (Kieran Fisher)


2. The Thing (1982)

Thething
“Man is the warmest place to hide…” How the hell do you convey Rob Bottin‘s nightmare of mismatched limbs, alien biology, and heaps of K-Y jelly in a poster safe enough to hang in a midwest mall multiplex? You hire Drew Struzan, but instead of the George Lucas design of floating heads, the master illustrator delivers a blinding scream of terror. Oh, and you hire him last minute so he doesn’t have any access to the creature designs and he has to crank it all out over the course of an evening. Yep, that’s right. One of the most memorable pieces of key art was cobbled together in mere hours. He wrapped himself in a parka and had his wife snap a photo for reference. He siphoned a little inspiration from his memory of the original Thing From Another World and imagined what an update might feel like. A few brush strokes later and a legendary image is born. (Brad Gullickson)


1. Jaws (1975)

Jaws

Younger movie fans have missed out on a lot of things over the years thanks to changes in filmmaking and distribution, and the same applies to movie marketing. Posters and VHS/DVD covers were once a primary motivation for seeing a film — posters in theater lobbies caught the attention and made for must-sees, and video rentals were often chosen based strictly off the cover art. When it comes to iconic examples, few can compete on the same level as Jaws. The image is simple as a woman swims on the ocean surface oblivious to the large Great White shark rising up beneath her. Most of us have swam in the ocean making this an extremely relatable fear, and the image has become synonymous with a terrifying watery nightmare. (Rob Hunter)

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Jacob Trussell is a writer based in New York City. His editorial work has been featured on the BBC, NPR, Rue Morgue Magazine, Film School Rejects, and One Perfect Shot. He's also the author of 'The Binge Watcher's Guide to The Twilight Zone' (Riverdale Avenue Books). Available to host your next spooky public access show. Find him on Twitter here: @JE_TRUSSELL (He/Him)