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It's wild to think that Nosferatu, the upcoming Robert Eggers take on the classic Dracula tale, is technically a remake of a century old film. Yes, it was in 1922 that director F.W. Murnau shocked the world with his adaptation (well, ripoff) of Bram Stoker's vampire novel, not only making history as an early example of a queer filmmaker's success but essentially creating the Moon Landing of horror movies.

In the hundred-plus years that have followed, the horror genre has seen its fair share of films that, like Murnau's adapt from other stories. In fact, a massive chunk of the category's examples adapt stories from within. To help you parse through the best of those, Popverse has tossed together a list of the best horror movie remakes.

Check it out below, and go see Nosferatu this Christmas.

Best Horror Remake #1: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)

1956's Invasion of the Body Snatchers has actually been remade three different times, but out of all of them, the absolute best has got to be the first. Though the original is still genuinely chilling even to a modern audience, the 1978 remake ups the dread significantly, making the invasion feel even more real and the ending even more bleak than the first time around. Plus, the cast includes scifi greats Donald Sutherland and Spock himself, Leonard Nimoy - what more could you want?

Make sure you're not a pod person and stream Invasion of the Body Snatchers on Tubi (for free!).

Best Horror Remake #2: The Thing (1982)

Not just one of the best horror remakes ever made but arguably one of the best horror movies ever made is John Carpenter's The Thing. Carpenter makes his Thing a different beast entirely than Howard Hawkes's 1951 scifi classic The Thing from Another World, so much so that the film might've been called a "reimagining" had it been made today. Perhaps the biggest change (maybe even improvement?) Carpenter made to the story is the astounding use of practical effects; to sing the praises of which would take more time than we have here.

Make sure you're also not a... whatever it is and stream The Thing on Peacock.

Best Horror Remake #3: Night of the Living Dead (1990)

This remake of George A. Romero's 1968 horror milestone that introduced zombies to pop culture is kind of a zombie in itself. It was "dead," in the sense that it was originally panned by critics, but now lives again as modern horror fans have given it a positive reappraisal. It's also a bit of a legend in that director Tom Savini has an X-Rated cut of the film that he only ever shows to friends, and which this horror nerd would consider eating his own share of brains to get a peak at.

Protect your brains, guts, and whatever else is inside you and stream Night of the Living Dead on Peacock.

Best Horror Remake #4: The Ring (2002)

Maybe one of the bluest films ever made is The Ring, the very first J-horror remake of the kind that dominated early 2000s scream screens. And of those Americanized remakes, The Ring also stands out as the very best, combining mystery and urban legend into a slow-burn that made us all a bit warier of video tapes and phone calls. Sure, maybe the simplicity of the Japanese Samara design is just a tad creepier than the zombified version we see here, but you have to credit Naomi Watts as a particularly commanding scream queen.

Stay close to your phone and stream The Ring on Paramount+.

Best Horror Remake #5: Evil Dead (2013)

Before this film, the idea of remaking Sam Raimi's seminal low-budget thrillride Evil Dead was akin to the idea of remaking Wizard of Oz - you just can't improve something perfect. And yet, Alien: Romulus director  Fede Álvarez pulled off quite a miracle here, upping the intensity of the original and trading some of its cartoonishness for gonzo gore that made even the most strong-stomached horror fan a little gurgly.

Let's just say that, after I watched this film, I was very careful about what I let touch my tongue.

Stay away from the woods and stream Evil Dead on Max.

Best Horror Remake #6: The Invisible Man (2020)

And finally, one of horror's best remakes is also one of its most recent, with this decade's The Invisible Man coming in the last (but not least) position. Blumhouse's update to the 1933 icon upped the fear by making one of the monster's victims the main character, played by an absolutely breathtaking Elizabeth Moss as an all-different kind of final girl. This film and the reaction it got is probably why Blumhouse decided to give director Leigh Whannel their next Universal Monster reboot, The Wolf Man, which this lover of lyncanthropy could not be more excited for. 

See The Invisible Man (er, you know what I mean) streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

In the immortal words of Danny Elfman, "Life's no fun without a good scare." We couldn't agree more, which is why we think you should check out horror aficionado Greg Silber's list of the best horror movies of all time. Or, if you've already seen those classics, check out our list of the most underrated horror movies from the past couple years. And if you've already seen all of those, Let us tell you what to look forward to (or dread) in Popverse's list of upcoming horror movies.