The 13 Best Romantic Horror Movies To Gratify Dark Hearts

Dracula and vampires as characters have always been overtly sensual, however, Bram Stoker's Dracula truly takes the cake as one of the most sexual and romantic horror movies of all time. A film brought magnificently to life by visionary director Francis Ford Coppola, Bram Stoker's Dracula oozes sexual tension in every romantic minute of the film, leading to some of the strangest and most sadistic instances of gothic romance the world has ever seen. Gary Oldman as the titular Dracula brings a power, grace, and elegance to the character that audiences had yet to see at that point, and his performance as one of the most sensual vampires of all time is legendary.

Masterfully mixing elements of body horror and dark romance, David Cronenberg's The Fly is a deep, dark, and sadistic horror romance film that showcases true love, and the length that love will push humans.  When a science experiment goes terribly wrong, Seth Brundle played with magnificent brooding sexuality by Jeff Goldblum slowly begins to morph into a horrifying fly, while his romantic partner Veronica Quaife, played with a stoic and powerful presence by Geena Davis must bare witness to his complete and utter physical breakdown. The Fly is arguably one of the best romantic horror movies of all time, because it executes both the horror and romance to utter perfection.

Bizzare gothic romance is at its peak when it is in the hands of visionary director Guillermo del Toro, and it could easily be argued that his greatest venture into romantic horror movies is his 2015 ghost story, Crimson Peak. With a star-studded cast including Jessica Chastain, Tom Hiddleston, and Mia Wasikowska, Crimson Peak delivers an outstanding, freaky, and terrifying horror love story that will send audiences down the depths of hell with spooky ghosts and terrifying monsters, all while showcasing that the real monsters are never the dead. Memorable, psychologically revolting, and sexual, Crimson Peak is peak horror romance filmmaking. 

In 2013 when Warm Bodies was announced, it is safe to say that nearly no one took it seriously. A horror romance movie where said romance is between a human and a zombie? Many audiences thought this premise was laughable, to say the least. Yet, somehow, Warm Bodies managed to do the unthinkable and delivered a fun, fresh, funny, and frightful film that was as heartwarming as Nicholas Hoult's zombie body was cold. The ridiculousness lies in the film's charm, and for those who can accept the film and its whacky premise for what it is, they will be treated with a superb horror love story.

While the romance in An American Werewolf in London may not take center stage over the transcendental werewolf story being told, it is without a doubt the beating heart that makes the film run. Masterfully mixing elements of horror, romance, comedy, adventure, and drama, the film covers the entire gambit of emotions from start to finish, and delivers one of the most acclaimed and lauded horror films of all time. Love makes the world go round, and with a newfound love in his life, this werewolf will stop at nothing to protect it or die trying.

Zombies and romance movies may seem like a bit of an odd bag, but somehow in Edgar Wright's Shaun of the Dead, he manages to make this spoof of a zombie film better than nearly any zombie film in history, while having the heart of a romance film. It could be argued that two romances are going on simultaneously throughout this incredible horror film, one with the titular Shaun's girlfriend who wants to leave him, and one with his best friend Ed. A film that highlights the importance of relationships, love, and passion, but also happens to have some of the gnarliest zombie violence of all time, Shaun of the Dead is a miracle film that by all accounts shouldn't work, but miraculously does.