What's The Scariest Movie Ever According To Science?

Science of Scare revealed the scariest horror movie ever

Since 2020, The Science of Scare Project has been selecting 250 film enthusiasts to watch a series of English-language horror films while wearing heart rate monitors. The results are then analyzed to determine which movies caused the highest spikes in heart rate. 

In the latest project in 2023, a new scoring system was introduced that combines heart rate and heart rate variance to create a Science of Scare score out of 100. The winner of this year's project was...DRUM ROLL PLEASE.... Sinister. The movie follows the story of a true-crime writer who moves his family into a home where a family was brutally murdered, only to discover that a supernatural force may be at work.

Now I know it's not the most scientific experiment ever, but still, while I enjoyed the movie, if I had to guess what was number one, Sinister would not have even entered my head. While it had a few good moments, it's a surprising film to see top the list in my view!

But the beauty of horror movies lies in its subjectivity. What terrifies one person may not faze another, and vice versa. So while Sinister may not have been anywhere near my top pick, I can certainly appreciate it.

According to the findings, the movie received an impressive overall scare score of 96/100, with the highest recorded heart rate spike reaching 131 BPM — more than double the average resting heart rate of 64.

Coming in a close second was the 2020 film Host, followed by Skinamirink in third place. 

As for the scariest scene in a movie, it was the fourth-place film “Insidious” that had viewers’ hearts racing with a heart rate spike of 133 BPM during the biggest jump scare. Although it did not reveal the particular scene! But I think we can guess, right?

The top ten included movies such as The Conjuring, Hereditary, and The Exorcism of Emily Rose. Also making the cut are Smile, Hell House LLC, Skinamarink and Talk To Me. All leaving their mark on the heart rates of the participants.


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