2024 has been great for anime fans, covering most genres thoroughly. Action, romance, and isekai have garnered the most attention, and each season features at least a handful of memorable additions to those categories. The winter of 2024 alone had about 20 series divided into these three genres, and there was no shortage of comedy, slice-of-life or harem features either. Unfortunately, 2024 horror anime has been in short supply.

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Best Horror Anime, Ranked
From psychological masterpieces to gore-fests, these horror anime will send chills down the spines of even the most die-hard fans.
In recent years, the genre has been limited to perhaps five representatives, and most have not received much attention. At least 2023 ended on a high note with Dark collectiona two-cour production that turned out to be one of the best horror anime in a long time. While the picks for 2024 are very slim, there are still a couple of options.
Updated October 1, 2024 by Mark Sammut: Fall 2024 has begun, and it should be picking up speed 2024 horror anime portfolio.
Theater Of Darkness: Yamishibai 12
Winter 2024
Also known as Yamishibai: Japanese Ghost Stories, Theater of Darkness is one of the most prolific horror anime of all time, along with being one of the more iconic. The series debuted in 2013 and consists of short episodes covering classic Japanese folktales and spooky stories. Uses mostly stilted imagery and usually ends with a twist, Yamishibai is responsible for some of the anime industry's scariest visuals, making it an easy recommendation for anyone remotely interested in horror.
Well, at least that was the case in the first few seasons; unfortunately, Yamishibai been running on fumes for a while. While unwatchable, recent entries were largely unmemorable, containing at most one or two above-average segments. Season 12 is slightly better than its immediate predecessor, but that's not saying much because Season 11 marked a low point for the franchise. In fact, the stories of Winter 2024 were forgettable, with most of them feeling like retreads of older entries. As said, Yamishibai can still be watched and it's hard to get bored during the 4-minute shorts.
Mysterious disappearances
Spring 2024
A couple of anime from 2024 flirt with horror. Madhouse's upcoming adaptation of Uoto's Orb: About Earth's Movements manga has the potential to be among the year's strongest offerings, and the source material isn't lacking in harrowing moments and brutality. That said, it's horror-adjacent at best. Kaiju No. 8 is primarily sci-fi action, although some of the Kaiju have unsettling designs that wouldn't look too out of place in a horror story.
Finally there is Mysterious disappearancesa mystical manga with a supernatural edge. Again, describing this quality as “horror” is a bit of a stretch, but the manga knows how to create a sense of dread while throwing out some disturbing imagery. Targets the demographic custom, Mysterious disappearances is packed with mature content, not all of which is of the horror variety.
The anime adaptation is mostly good, though its horror elements are too minimal to be recommended on their merits alone. Still, if someone is in the mood for a slightly weird supernatural anime with a touch of mystery and horror, they'll find what they're looking for here. The first two episodes are probably the best of the series so far, but the rest is watchable.
The Grimm Variations
Spring 2024
Except for Yamishibai, The Grimm Variations is the most obvious 2024 horror animeat least according to what has been announced so far. As the title suggests, the Netflix show draws inspiration from the Brothers Grimm's fairy tales; more importantly, the anime seems to retain the dark tone of the original stories, rather than choosing to tell sanitized and family-friendly versions found in, say, Disney films. As said, The Grimm Variations will take six classic fairy tales and give them fresh anime-style spins, resulting in episodes that share themes and basic plot beats with the stories but aren't standard adaptations.
Netflix has revealed the names of all six episodes, and they give an idea of what to expect:
- “Cinderella”
- “Little Red Riding Hood”
- “Hansel and Gretel”
- “The Elves and the Shoemaker”
- “The Town Musicians of Bremen”
- “Piper of Hamelin”
The selection is interesting because the first three episodes cover arguably the most famous tales of the Brothers Grimm; however, the second half of the anime will shift towards more obscure stories, at least in comparison to their predecessors. Although not known for horror comics, Wit Studio is reliable, with the company's resume included Vinland Saga, Attack on Titan, Spy x Familyand Ranking of kings. If nothing else, the animation should be great.
Theater Of Darkness: Yamishibai 13
Summer 2024
- Start date: 15 July 2024
- Steam service: Crunchyroll
At this point, every other season seems to produce a new course Theater of Darkness: Yamishibaiand it's hard to miss a show that's rarely absent. While it didn't exactly overstay its welcome as the episodes are generally watchable, ILCA's anime has struggled for years to consistently come up with outstanding and terrifying stories. The 13th entry is no exception, with the segments released so far being mostly forgettable. Familiarity and predictability are horror's biggest killers, and the show's tricks and narrative devices are so recognizable that the twists are very easy to see coming.
All that said, if Theater of Darkness: Yamishibai didn't exist, 2024 would basically have no horror anime series, at least weekly ones. Regardless of the individual quality of the episodes, the show deserves credit for continuing to fly the flag for the genre, even if the rest of the anime industry ignores it.
Mononoke the Movie: Phantom in the Rain
Summer 2024
The medicine seller has made a comeback, this time on the big screen. The 2007s Mononoke is an experimental psychological mystery anime that revolves around four cases investigated by the medicine salesman and has a supernatural element. While not necessarily “scary,” the original show is nonetheless a cornerstone of the horror anime genre, one that brilliantly uses striking visuals and unsettling sound design to create an otherworldly and alien atmosphere.
Mononoke needs no follow-up or redesign, but this concept certainly has room for expansion. EOTA's film is not a sequel or a remake, choosing instead to just tell a different story in this universe. Given that the classic series follows an anthology format, the film should have no problem fitting in. The film was released in Japan and Netflix has picked up the rights, so hopefully a Western debut will happen sooner rather than later.
A sequel is confirmed for 2025.
Lock Zone: Lv. X
Autumn 2024
Well, this show came out of nowhere. Lock Zone: Lv. X is an adaptation of Romy Ooishi's 2020 manga, which focuses on a girl caught in a time loop while pitted against a terrifying monster. The latter is not only extremely dangerous and violent, but also seems to have the ability to control other people. While not exactly the most novel concept, time loop stories are often entertaining, and it's only featured in a small handful of horror anime. While not exactly a masterpiece, the manga is above average and has pretty good art and a lot of gore. The source material certainly lives up to its horror billing.
Expectations should be kept pretty low for this one, especially since the anime is pretty hard to find since it doesn't air on a North American streaming service. Lock Zone: Lv. X is a mostly straight translation of the manga, in the sense that it will be pretty light on animation. As such, the series probably won't get too much attention, especially since it doesn't appear to be airing on a major streaming platform. Still, 2024 horror anime is a rare commodity, so Lock Zone: Lv. X is a welcome addition.
Uzumaki: Spiral into terror
Autumn 2024
A show doesn't make a genre, though Uzumaki: Spiral into terror might as well be a solo carrier 2024 anime horror quota. While mostly good, none of this year's other series are must-see releases, even for die-hard fans of the genre; fortunately, Uzumak i is becoming a glorious exception. With only a single episode airing so far, it would be premature to definitively declare Fugaku's series an all-time great, but the potential is there to reach that standard. If nothing else, this should be the best Junji Ito anime of all time, which is (admittedly) a low bar to clear.
People completely unfamiliar with
Uzumaki
should avoid reading anything else and go for a blind watch.
Let's start with the premise: Spirals attack a Japanese city. While that concept may sound silly on the surface, Uzumaki somehow transforms this simple image into a bone-chilling force that defies explanation. Shuuichi and Kirie begin to notice that spirals seem to form around their average town. Whirlpools attack rivers and tornadoes terrorize peaceful streets; crucially, Shuuichi's father has become obsessed with spirals, to the point of wanting to become one.
Uzumaki mixes cosmic, bodily and psychological horror to create something unique and timeless. The 1998 manga is still considered a horror masterpiece, and the adaptation smartly chooses to preserve as much of the source material's aesthetic as possible. In fact, the anime mostly copies the manga's art, a smart move since many shows have tried and failed to adapt Junji Ito's visual style for animation.
Anime 2024 that horror fans should try
As with most years, anime horror 2024 will be in short supply. The genre simply isn't popular enough to warrant many adaptations, especially since a lot of horror manga seem to lose something in the process of getting animated. A few more shows will hopefully be announced in the coming months, at least to the point of offering fans some projects to get excited about. Is another Dark collection too much to ask?
Due to the limited selection, fans may need to expand their horizons to get their fill of excitement. None of the upcoming anime are horror stories, but they might be able to scratch a similar itch.
Orb: About Earth's Movements and Kaiju No. 8 is not too far removed from the genre, especially the former (which will debut in October 2024). Globes manga has plenty of unsettling moments, though it rarely wants to be downright terrifying. Kaiju No. 8 is primarily an action story, but it can be “horror” in the same way as one Godzilla the film qualifies.
Anime (English title) |
Japanese title |
Season |
Main genres |
Source material |
---|---|---|---|---|
Solo Leveling |
Ore dake Level Up by Ken |
Winter 2024 |
Action, Fantasy |
Manhwa by Chugong |
The Witch and the Beast |
Mayo to Yajuu |
Winter 2024 |
Action, Fantasy |
Manga by Kousuke Satake |
Kaiju No. 8 |
Kaijuu 8-gou |
Spring 2024 |
Action, Sci-Fi |
Manga by Naoya Matsumoto |
Orb: About Earth's Movements |
Chi.: Chikyuu no Undou ni Tsuite |
Autumn 2024 |
Historical, Sci-Fi |
Manga by Uoto |
The murder mystery of the dead |
The murder mystery of the dead |
Autumn 2024 |
Mystery, supernatural |
Game |
Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- Season 3 |
Re: Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu 3rd season |
Autumn 2024 |
Isekai |
Light novel by Tappei Nagatsuki |