Best Spanish-Language Horror Movies Ranked by Tomatometer

Here you’ll find only the Freshest scary selections from Mexico (Cronos), Spain (The Orphanage), Uruguay (The Silent House), Chile (The Wolf House), and Argentina (Cold Sweat). Inside each film, an underworld teeming with our favorite monsters. Zombies in [rec]! Mad scientists in The Skin I Live In! Vampires in Dracula! (Yep, there was another version to the Universal classic.) Creepy kids in The Orphanage! And In the Devil’s Backbone, maybe something beyond…

We gathered virtually every Spanish-language horror movie we could find, separating the Fresh and Certified Fresh. If you’re wondering about the decided lack of chucapbras and La Llarona on this list, it’s because there hasn’t been a critically-noted movie made yet. Though KM 31 comes closest with its take on Mexican folklore.

And most recently we’ve added the Certified Fresh films When Evil Lurks, Huesera: The Bone Woman, Piggy, and The Count. See where they place with our guide of the Best Spanish-Language Horror Movies by Tomatometer!

#1
#1
Adjusted Score: 102778%
Critics Consensus: Tigers Are Not Afraid draws on childhood trauma for a story that deftly blends magical fantasy and hard-hitting realism - and leaves a lingering impact.
Synopsis: When a girl's mother disappears leaving her on her own, she goings a gang of street children, leading to a... [More]
Starring: Paola Lara, Ianis Guerrero, Rodrigo Cortés, Hanssel Casillas
Directed By: Issa López

#2
#2
Adjusted Score: 101824%
Critics Consensus: A bone-chilling body horror, Huesera offers genre fans a twisted take on What to Expect When You're Expecting.
Synopsis: Valeria's joy at becoming a first-time mother is quickly taken away when she's cursed by a sinister entity. As danger... [More]
Starring: Natalia Solián, Alfonso Dosal, Mayra Batalla, Mercedes Hernández
Directed By: Michelle Garza Cervera

#3

When Evil Lurks (2023)
Tomatometer icon 96%

#3
Adjusted Score: 102102%
Critics Consensus: A hard-hitting horror film whose surface-level frights are just as engaging as its thematic concerns, When Evil Lurks marks a viscerally unsettling addition to the possession horror canon.
Synopsis: When brothers Pedro (Ezequiel Rodríguez) and Jimmy (Demián Salomón) discover that a demonic infection has been festering in a nearby... [More]
Starring: Ezequiel Rodríguez, Demián Salomón, Silvina Sabater, Virginia Garófalo
Directed By: Demián Rugna

#4

La llorona (2019)
Tomatometer icon 96%

#4
Adjusted Score: 100264%
Critics Consensus: La Llorona puts a fresh spin on the familiar legend by blending the supernatural and the political to resolutely chilling effect.
Synopsis: Alma is murdered with her children during a military attack in Guatemala, but when the general who ordered the genocide... [More]
Starring: María Mercedes Coroy, Sabrina De La Hoz, Margarita Kénefic, Julio Diaz
Directed By: Jayro Bustamante

#5

The Wolf House (2018)
Tomatometer icon 96%

#5
Adjusted Score: 98177%
Critics Consensus: Surreal, unsettling, and finally haunting, The Wolf House is a stunning outpouring of creativity whose striking visuals queasily complement its disturbing story.
Synopsis: A young woman takes refuge in a strange house in the woods after escaping from a German colony in southern... [More]
Starring: Amalia Kassai, Rainer Krause
Directed By: Joaquín Cociña, Cristóbal León

#6

Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
Tomatometer icon 95%

#6
Adjusted Score: 105133%
Critics Consensus: Pan's Labyrinth is Alice in Wonderland for grown-ups, with the horrors of both reality and fantasy blended together into an extraordinary, spellbinding fable.
Synopsis: In 1944 Spain young Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) and her ailing mother (Ariadna Gil) arrive at the post of her mother's... [More]
Starring: Sergi López, Maribel Verdú, Ivana Baquero, Álex Angulo
Directed By: Guillermo del Toro

#7
#7
Adjusted Score: 97005%
Critics Consensus: Creepily atmospheric and haunting, The Devil's Backbone is both a potent ghost story and an intelligent political allegory.
Synopsis: After losing his father, 10-year-old Carlos (Fernando Tielve) arrives at the Santa Lucia School, which shelters orphans of the Republican... [More]
Starring: Marisa Paredes, Eduardo Noriega, Federico Luppi, Fernando Tielve
Directed By: Guillermo del Toro

#8

Piggy (2022)
Tomatometer icon 91%

#8
Adjusted Score: 95883%
Critics Consensus: Brought hauntingly to life by Laura Galán's committed performance, Piggy deftly deploys genre thrills in service of sharp social commentary.
Synopsis: With the summer sun beating down on her rural Spanish town, Sara hides away in her parent's butcher shop. A... [More]
Starring: Laura Galán, Richard Holmes, Carmen Machi, Irene Ferreiro
Directed By: Carlota Pereda

#9

Timecrimes (2007)
Tomatometer icon 90%

#9
Adjusted Score: 92105%
Critics Consensus: Timecrimes is a low-budget thriller that's well-crafted and loaded with dark humor and bizarre twists.
Synopsis: Nacho Vigalondo's time-travel thriller opens with Hector spying on a beautiful woman undressing in the woods near his property. Investigating,... [More]
Starring: Karra Elejalde, Candela Fernández, Bárbara Goenaga, Juan Inciarte
Directed By: Nacho Vigalondo

#10

Cronos (1993)
Tomatometer icon 89%

#10
Adjusted Score: 94105%
Critics Consensus: Guillermo del Toro's unique feature debut is not only gory and stylish, but also charming and intelligent.
Synopsis: Antique dealer Jesus Gris (Federico Luppi) stumbles across Cronos, a 400-year-old scarab that, when it latches onto him, grants him... [More]
Starring: Federico Luppi, Ron Perlman, Claudio Brook, Margarita Isabel
Directed By: Guillermo del Toro

#11

Rec (2007)
Tomatometer icon 90%

#11
Adjusted Score: 90845%
Critics Consensus: Plunging viewers into the nightmarish hellscape of an apartment complex under siege, [Rec] proves that found footage can still be used as an effective delivery mechanism for sparse, economic horror.
Synopsis: A reporter (Manuela Velasco) and her cameraman record the horrifying outbreak of a disease that turns humans into vicious cannibals.... [More]
Starring: Manuela Velasco, Ferran Terraza, Jorge-Yamam Serrano, Carlos Lasarte
Directed By: Jaume Balagueró, Paco Plaza

#12

Julia's Eyes (2010)
Tomatometer icon 90%

#12
Adjusted Score: 90764%
Critics Consensus: Smart, suspenseful, and visually distinctive, Julia's Eyes marks another modern Spanish thriller that quickens the pulse while engaging the mind.
Synopsis: The closer she gets to solving her sister's death, a woman (Belén Rueda) with a degenerative eye disease becomes increasingly... [More]
Starring: Belén Rueda, Lluís Homar, Pablo Derqui, Francesc Orella
Directed By: Guillem Morales

#13

The Orphanage (2007)
Tomatometer icon 87%

#13
Adjusted Score: 94056%
Critics Consensus: Deeply unnerving and surprisingly poignant, The Orphanage is an atmospheric, beautifully crafted haunted house horror film that earns scares with a minimum of blood.
Synopsis: Laura (Belén Rueda) has happy memories of her childhood in an orphanage. She convinces her husband to buy the place... [More]
Starring: Belén Rueda, Fernando Cayo, Geraldine Chaplin, Montserrat Carulla
Directed By: J. A. Bayona

#14

The Untamed (2016)
Tomatometer icon 86%

#14
Adjusted Score: 88750%
Critics Consensus: The Untamed attempts some ambitious tonal juggling between fantastical and disturbing -- and draws viewers in with its slippery, inexorable pull.
Synopsis: A couple in a troubled marriage locate a meteorite, initiating an encounter with a mysterious creature. Their lives are turned... [More]
Starring: Kenny Johnston, Simone Bucio, Jesús Meza, Ruth Ramos
Directed By: Amat Escalante

#15

El Conde (2023)
Tomatometer icon 83%

#15
Adjusted Score: 88982%
Critics Consensus: A darkly delirious satire rooted in real-life horror, El Conde finds Pablo Larraín revisiting familiar themes without losing their provocative power.
Synopsis: El Conde is a dark comedy/horror that imagines a parallel universe inspired by the recent history of Chile. The film... [More]
Starring: Jaime Vadell, Gloria Münchmeyer, Alfredo Castro, Paula Luchsinger
Directed By: Pablo Larraín

#16

The Skin I Live In (2011)
Tomatometer icon 82%

#16
Adjusted Score: 88997%
Critics Consensus: The Skin I Live In lacks Almodovar's famously charged romance, replaced with a wonderfully bizarre and unpredictable detour into arthouse ick.
Synopsis: Ever since his beloved wife was horribly burned in an auto accident, Dr. Robert Ledgard (Antonio Banderas), a skilled plastic... [More]
Starring: Antonio Banderas, Elena Anaya, Marisa Paredes, Jan Cornet
Directed By: Pedro Almodóvar

#17

The Platform (2019)
Tomatometer icon 81%

#17
Adjusted Score: 85543%
Critics Consensus: While it may feel muddled at times, The Platform is an inventive and captivating dystopian thriller.
Synopsis: In the future, prisoners housed in vertical cells watch as inmates in the upper cells are fed while those below... [More]
Starring: Emilio Buale, Zorion Eguileor, Alexandra Masangkay, Ivan Massagué
Directed By: Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia

#18

We Are the Flesh (2016)
Tomatometer icon 73%

#18
Adjusted Score: 74312%
Critics Consensus: Visually striking and aggressively confrontational, We are the Flesh may prove as difficult to watch as it ultimately is to forget.
Synopsis: After wandering a ruined city for years, two siblings enter a building and find a man who makes them a... [More]
Starring: Noé Hernández, María Evoli, Diego Gamaliel, Gabino Rodríguez
Directed By: Emiliano Rocha Minter

#19

Disappear Completely (2022)
Tomatometer icon 100%

#19
Adjusted Score: 78261%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: After visiting a crime scene, an ambitious and insensitive tabloid crime photographer falls victim to a mysterious illness that makes... [More]
Starring: Harold Torres, Teté Espinoza, Fermín Martínez, Vicky Araico
Directed By: Luis Javier Henaine

#20

The Darkness (2016)
Tomatometer icon 100%

#20
Adjusted Score: 35963%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: An invisible monster torments a boy living with his father, brother, and sister in a house in the woods; the... [More]
Starring: Brontis Jodorowsky, Aliocha Sotnikoff, Camila Robertson Glennie, Fernando Álvarez Rebeil
Directed By: Daniel Castro Zimbrón

#21

Dracula (1931)
Tomatometer icon 100%

#21
Adjusted Score: 100276%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Soon after beginning work for Conde Dracula (Carlos Villarias), the clerk Renfield (Pablo Alvarez Rubio) learns that his employer is,... [More]
Starring: Carlos Villarias, Lupita Tovar, Pablo Alvarez Rubio, Barry Norton
Directed By: George Melford

#22

The Similars (2015)
Tomatometer icon 95%

#22
Adjusted Score: 95158%
Critics Consensus: A smart homage to genre filmmaking, The Similars is a fun and frightening film that balances socio-political issues with aplomb.
Synopsis: Eight people experience a strange phenomenon while waiting for a bus at a remote station on a rainy October night.... [More]
Starring: Humberto Busto, Gustavo Sánchez Parra, Luis Alberti, Cassandra Ciangherotti
Directed By: Isaac Ezban

#23

Shrew's Nest (2014)
Tomatometer icon 95%

#23
Adjusted Score: 93480%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Monte's agoraphobia keeps her secluded in her apartment until a young man is injured in a stairwell and crawls to... [More]
Starring: Silvia Alonso, Carolina Bang, Nadia de Santiago, Asier Etxeandia
Directed By: Juanfer Andres, Esteban Roel

#24

Sleep Tight (2011)
Tomatometer icon 91%

#24
Adjusted Score: 91564%
Critics Consensus: The strong lead performance, clever plot turns, and the unsettling ending makes Sleep Tight worth stalking.
Synopsis: César is the superintendent of an apartment building and keeps very close tabs on the tenants. He secretly enjoys inflicting... [More]
Starring: Luis Tosar, Marta Etura, Alberto San Juan, Petra Martínez
Directed By: Jaume Balagueró

#25

The Coffee Table (2022)
Tomatometer icon 88%

#25
Adjusted Score: 88941%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Jesús and Maria love each other, endlessly, magnificently, even though they sometimes just don't notice. But hey, now that their... [More]
Starring: David Pareja, Estefanía de los Santos, Josep Maria Riera, Claudia Riera
Directed By: Caye Casas

#26

The Last Matinee (2020)
Tomatometer icon 86%

#26
Adjusted Score: 86361%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: The audience attending the last showing of a horror film in a small downtown cinema are terrorized by a murderer... [More]
Starring: Luciana Grasso, Ricardo Islas, Julieta Spinelli, Franco Durán
Directed By: Maximiliano Contenti

#27

Everyone Will Burn (2021)
Tomatometer icon 83%

#27
Adjusted Score: 83303%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: In a small village in Leon, Spain, María José prepares to end her life after failing to get over the... [More]
Starring: Macarena Gómez, Rodolfo Sancho, Ana Milán, Sofía García
Directed By: David Hebrero

#28

The Wait (2023)
Tomatometer icon 85%

#28
Adjusted Score: 85204%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Deep in the Andalusian countryside, Eladio (Victor Clavijo) works as the groundskeeper of a hunting estate owned by the powerful... [More]
Starring: Víctor Clavijo, Ruth Díaz, Luis Callejo, Moisés Ruiz
Directed By: F. Javier Gutiérrez

#29

Witching & B...ing (2013)
Tomatometer icon 83%

#29
Adjusted Score: 83525%
Critics Consensus: Dark, nasty, and delightfully subversive, Witching and Bitching is gross-out genre fun with a heaping helping of warped comedy for good measure.
Synopsis: Jewel thieves flee into the Basque forests and are captured by a coven of witches.... [More]
Starring: Hugo Silva, Mario Casas, Carolina Bang, Carmen Maura
Directed By: Alex de la Iglesia

#30

Juan of the Dead (2011)
Tomatometer icon 83%

#30
Adjusted Score: 83028%
Critics Consensus: Filled with wild splatter slapstick, Juan of the Dead also deftly uses its zombie premise as an undead Trojan horse for insightful political commentary.
Synopsis: When the dead rise and attack the living, Juan starts a zombie-killing business, until he has to save his small... [More]
Starring: Blanca Rosa Blanco, Elsa Camp, Antonio Dechent, Luis Alberto Garcia
Directed By: Alejandro Brugués

#31

Terrified (2017)
Tomatometer icon 82%

#31
Adjusted Score: 53166%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Paranormal researchers investigate strange events in a neighborhood in Buenos Aires.... [More]
Starring: Ariel Chavarría, Maximiliano Ghione, Norberto Gonzalo, Hugo Halbrich
Directed By: Demián Rugna

#32

Thesis (1996)
Tomatometer icon 83%

#32
Adjusted Score: 79520%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: A Spanish film student (Ana Torrent) finds a videotape showing the torture and murder of a missing coed.... [More]
Starring: Ana Torrent, Fele Martínez, Eduardo Noriega, Rosa Campillo
Directed By: Alejandro Amenábar

#33

Infiesto (2023)
Tomatometer icon 80%

#33
Adjusted Score: 24087%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: March 2020. On the first day of the state of emergency, two detectives are called to a small mining town... [More]
Starring: Isak Férriz, Iria del Río, María Mera, Isabel Naveira
Directed By: Patxi Amézcua

#34

Luciferina (2018)
Tomatometer icon 83%

#34
Adjusted Score: 29315%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: A young woman travels into a jungle to find a mystical plant to help her dying father.... [More]
Starring: Victoria Carreras, Gastón Cocchiarale, Agustin Daulte, Sofía Del Tuffo
Directed By: Gonzalo Calzada

#35

Sister Death (2023)
Tomatometer icon 88%

#35
Adjusted Score: 84755%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: In post-war Spain, Narcisa (Aria Bedmar), a young novice with supernatural powers, arrives at a former convent, now a school... [More]
Starring: Aria Bedmar, Almudena Amor, Maru Valdivielso, Luisa Merelas
Directed By: Paco Plaza

#36
#36
Adjusted Score: 47161%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: A blacksmith holds a demon in captivity, torturing it as revenge for his troubles. One day, an orphan girl stumbles... [More]
Starring: Kandido Uranga, Eneko Sagardoy, Uma Bracaglia, Ramón Aguirre
Directed By: Paul Urkijo Alijo

#37

Verónica (2017)
Tomatometer icon 78%

#37
Adjusted Score: 41377%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: A female psychologist who has stopped practicing medicine decides to take the case of Veronica de la Serna, a young... [More]
Starring: Olga Segura, Sofía Garza, Arcelia Ramírez, Horacio Castelo
Directed By: Carlos Algara, Alejandro Martinez Beltrán

#38
#38
Adjusted Score: 77711%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Cowled skeletons of Spanish knights ride again, blinded by crows for their 13th-century savagery.... [More]
Starring: Cesar Burner, Lone Fleming, María Silva, José Thelman
Directed By: Amando de Ossorio

#39
#39
Adjusted Score: 77100%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: A heavy-metal fan (Santiago Segura) and a psychic (Armando De Razza) help a priest (Alex Angulo) seek the infant Antichrist... [More]
Starring: Álex Angulo, Armando De Razza, Santiago Segura, Terele Pavez
Directed By: Alex de la Iglesia

#40

The Passenger (2021)
Tomatometer icon 69%

#40
Adjusted Score: 59920%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: A group of strangers sharing a ride have their trip interrupted when the driver hits a woman hiking in the... [More]
Starring: Ramiro Blas, Cecilia Suárez, Paula Gallego, Cristina Alcázar
Directed By: Raúl Cerezo, Fernando González Gómez

#41

We Are What We Are (2010)
Tomatometer icon 72%

#41
Adjusted Score: 73081%
Critics Consensus: We Are What We Are is elevated horror that combines family drama and social politics, with plenty of gore on top.
Synopsis: When his father dies unexpectedly, Alfredo (Francisco Barreiro) must step up and become the man of the house, providing for... [More]
Starring: Francisco Barreiro, Alán Chávez, Paulina Gaitán, Carmen Beato
Directed By: Jorge Michel Grau

#42

Venus (2022)
Tomatometer icon 71%

#42
Adjusted Score: 58477%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Lucía is a dancer in a techno disco in Madrid. One night, after one of her shows, she steals a... [More]
Starring: Ester Expósito, Ángela Cremonte, Fernando Valdivielso, Federico Aguado
Directed By: Jaume Balagueró

#43

Cold Sweat (2010)
Tomatometer icon 69%

#43
Adjusted Score: 40619%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: A young man's search for his missing ex-girlfriend leads him to an old house filled with stolen explosives and two... [More]
Starring: Facundo Espinosa, Marina Glezer, Daniel De La Vega, Victoria Witemburg
Directed By: Adrián García Bogliano

#44

The Silent House (2010)
Tomatometer icon 68%

#44
Adjusted Score: 68266%
Critics Consensus: Shot in a single take, The Silent House may be a gimmick movie, but it's one that's enough to sustain dread and tension throughout.
Synopsis: Laura and her father stay in a house overnight, but a mysterious noise makes her very frightened.... [More]
Starring: Gustavo Alonso, Florencia Colucci, María Salazar, Abel Tripaldi
Directed By: Gustavo Hernández

#45

Rec 4: Apocalypse (2014)
Tomatometer icon 65%

#45
Adjusted Score: 65036%
Critics Consensus: After a lackluster third entry, [REC] 4 gets the series back on track, at least to the level of the first sequel.
Synopsis: Survivors of a strange contagion which turns humans into ghouls find themselves aboard a ship where a doctor is trying... [More]
Starring: Manuela Velasco, Paco Manzanedo, Héctor Colomé, Ismael Fritschi
Directed By: Jaume Balagueró

#46

In a Glass Cage (1987)
Tomatometer icon 67%

#46
Adjusted Score: 63223%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Years after committing atrocities as a torturer of interned children during the Holocaust, Nazi doctor and certified pedophile Klaus (Günter... [More]
Starring: Günter Meisner, David Sust, Marisa Paredes, Gisela Echevarria
Directed By: Agustí Villaronga

#47

The Chalk Line (2022)
Tomatometer icon 75%

#47
Adjusted Score: 35300%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: After a couple finds a traumatized child of unknown origins, wife Paula must decipher the girl's strange behaviors to unlock... [More]
Starring: Elena Anaya, Pablo Molinero, Eva Tennear, Eva Llorach
Directed By: Ignacio Tatay

#48

Rec 2 (2009)
Tomatometer icon 66%

#48
Adjusted Score: 68147%
Critics Consensus: It lacks the surprising jolt of the first installment, but [REC] 2 almost maintains the original's chilling momentum -- and proves not all horror sequels were made equal.
Synopsis: A doctor and a SWAT team enter a quarantined building where a virus has turned the residents into a pack... [More]
Starring: Jonathan Mellor, Óscar Zafra, Alejandro Casaseca, Pablo Rosso
Directed By: Jaume Balagueró, Paco Plaza

#49

The Wasteland (2021)
Tomatometer icon 69%

#49
Adjusted Score: 48718%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: The tranquility of a family that lives isolated from society is suddenly disturbed by a horrific creature that would put... [More]
Starring: Inma Cuesta, Roberto Álamo, Alejandra Howard, Asier Flores
Directed By: David Casademunt

#50

Don't Listen (2020)
Tomatometer icon 71%

#50
Adjusted Score: 30773%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: After the strange death of his young son at their new home, Daniel hears a ghostly plea for help, spurring... [More]
Starring: Rodolfo Sancho, Ramón Barea, Ana Fernández, Belén Fabra
Directed By: Angel Gómez Hernández

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