30 Coolest '80s Horror Movie Logos

Demons (1985)

The Movie: Gruesome horror produced by Dario Argento. When a group of people are trapped in a cinema in Berlin, they become infected by demons…

The Cool Logo: Horned lettering (naturally) plus a rather brave choice of lemon-y yellow type colour.

Why We Love It: As if the cool fontface wasn't enough, there's the added brilliance of the scratch marks across the logo. We like the attention to detail.

A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984)

The Movie: Young teens - including Nancy (Heather Langenkamp) - are haunted by a nightmare-plaguing phantom called Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund). Never sleep again…

The Cool Logo: Designed by movie title artist Dan Perri (who also designed the logos for The Exorcist and Star Wars among others), it's bulky and bold.

Why We Love It: The letters of 'nightmare' almost look like houses on a street, which is sort of fitting given the subject matter.

Image Source:
Annyas.com

Death Ship (1980)

The Movie: A collection of shipwreck victims are rescued by an ominous black ship that turns out to be a vessel used by Nazis to torture people…

The Cool Logo: A watery number, this one looks like it's been eaten away by the tides.

Why We Love It: The designers clearly knew that the title was strong enough without going overboard (so to speak) on the design, meaning this is a simplistic but still effective logo that doesn't have to work too hard.

Frightmare (1983)

The Movie: Horror icon Jeffrey Combs' movie debut and a schlocky slasher in which drama students steal the corpse of their favourite horror star - and in so doing set off a deadly curse.

The Cool Logo: Like something you'd expect to see on the cover of a horror anthology. Classy, swirly and frightfully pretty.

Why We Love It: It's gloriously gothic, reminding us of Dracula and other Hammer classics. But it's also undeniably American - who else would invent a word like 'frightmare'?

Image Source: Annyas.com

Fury Of The Succubus (1982)

The Movie: Also known as Satan's Mistress , this horror from director James Polakof follows a bored housewife (Lana Wood) who has an affair with a ghost. Just a regular day in suburbia…

The Cool Logo:
Though it's in a fancy typeface that suggests breast-heaving romanticism, there's an edge to this logo - not least because it involves the word 'succubus'.

Why We Love It:
There's a perfect blend of romanticism and horror, which is exactly the tone the film itself attempts to strike.

Image Source: Annyas.com

The Changeling (1980)

The Movie: Composer John Russell (George C. Scott) goes on holiday with his family, only for his wife and daughter to die in an accident on the way. Renting out a secluded house to write music, John's haunted by ghosts…

The Cool Logo: A no-frills logo that echoes the straight-forward approach of director Peter Medak's film.

Why We Love It: When paired with a dusty wheelchair, this logo really pops - understated horror is exactly what Medak's film is all about.

Wolfen (1981)

The Movie: Albert Finney's New York cop investigates a series of murders that look like they've been carried out by a large animal. Which, in horror movie terms, is never a good sign.

The Cool Logo: It's everything a logo for a horror movie about a wolf should be - i.e. completely out of control.

Why We Love It: It's as if the logo's been scratched out by a werewolf.

The Nesting (1981)

The Movie: A reclusive writer (Robin Groves) rents out a stately mansion in an attempt to overcome her agoraphobia - only then she discovers the house was the site of a mass murder in World War II…

The Cool Logo:
A curly creation that sort of reminds us of The Howling , only ickier.

Why We Love It: It's playful while also giving us the heebie-jeebies - that serpentine 's' in particular is a nice touch.

Maniac (1980)

The Movie: Grieving the death of his mother, Frank (Joe Spinell) takes out his rage on innocent young women whom he kills and scalps. When he meets Anna (Caroline Munro), though, could it signal the end of his spree?

The Cool Logo: Out of control (naturally), with an over-sized 'M' rebelling against the typeface for something deliciously unhinged.

Why We Love It: Quite simply, it looks like it was scrawled by a maniac - which it probably was.

He Knows You're Alone (1980)

The Movie: Detective Len Gamble (Lewis Arlt) investigates when it seems that a bride-killing nutjob is on the loose - and is about to target young bride-to-be Amy (Caitlin O'Heaney).

The Cool Logo: A handwritten number with a fun twist - the 'H' becomes arms as a woman hides her face in fear.

Why We Love It: It's almost like a personal note between friends - except this one's telling you that you're about to be killed. Nice.

Josh Winning has worn a lot of hats over the years. Contributing Editor at Total Film, writer for SFX, and senior film writer at the Radio Times. Josh has also penned a novel about mysteries and monsters, is the co-host of a movie podcast, and has a library of pretty phenomenal stories from visiting some of the biggest TV and film sets in the world. He would also like you to know that he "lives for cat videos..." Don't we all, Josh. Don't we all.