Blumhouse is widely considered one of the major production companies for horror movies, and it’s certainly contributed its share of films to the genre. The company was founded by Jason Blum in 2000, but would not become well-known until around 2010. There’s no doubt that Blumhouse is taking the world of horror films by storm, but quantity is not always synonymous with quality. The production company has made a name for itself and it’s likely that it spearheaded at least one of your favorite horror movies, but Blumhouse definitely has its fair share of unsuccessful films as well.

Jason Blum and his company can sometimes be equal parts iconic and inadequate, and the fact that Blumhouse can be behind a cult classic such as Get Out, while at the same time being responsible for a mediocre flick such as Truth Or Dare, is a curious phenomenon. Let’s take a look at some of Blumhouse’s most popular films - the good, the bad, and the ugly.

THE GIFT (2015) - BEST

The Gift was released in theatres in 2015 and quickly became a critically acclaimed success. The film starred Jason Bateman and Joel Edgerton and was also the latter’s directorial debut. Created on a modest budget of $5 million, The Gift would go on to gross an impressive $58.9 million at the box office worldwide.

Four years after its release, The Gift is still regarded today as one of Blumhouse’s most successful films. It strays from the horror genre and is definitely more of a drama/thriller, which makes it all the more unique.

HAPPY DEATH DAY 2 YOU (2019) - WORST

Anyone who saw the trailer for Happy Death Day and later proceeded to see it in theatres knew exactly what they were getting into. The trailer did not make any attempt to portray this wacky film as something it wasn’t, honestly presenting the mixed bag of Happy Death Day. The black comedy was directed by Christopher Landon, written by Scott Lobdell, and marketed as being simply “Scream meets Groundhog Day”.

Happy Death Day was a perfectly fine horror-comedy, but then came the inevitable Happy Death Day 2u. The sequel was released in theaters in February of 2019 and was Christopher Landon’s ambitious attempt at making his campy little horror film into something much bigger and completely needlessly complicated.

THE VISIT (2015) - BEST

The Visit is one of Blumhouse’s most underrated films. It definitely had that signature M. Night Shyamalan quirky twists and turns, and because of that, it stands out among many other Blumhouse films. The Visit his theaters in 2015 and grossed $98.5 million worldwide on a $5 million budget.

The movie follows two children who are sent to visit their grandparents for the very first time. Once they arrive, however, they realize that something is deeply wrong. The Visit is a quality horror movie, working off an eerie, completely disturbing build-up and favoring unnerving moments over jumpscares.

THE PURGE (2013) - WORST

In 2013, when the very first Purge movie hit theaters, the idea seemed completely brilliant and therefore attracted a significant amount of attention. The Purge would become the start of a successful film franchise, and today there are four films and a TV series set in the dystopian-future universe.

Though many improvements were made in the later films, the first Purge movie is often regarded as the worst, as the characters were hard to sympathize with and the whole plot felt like a lackluster waste of a great horror concept.

OCULUS (2013) - BEST

Before Mike Flanagan made it big time as a director and screenwriter, he created campy, simplistic horror films such as Absentia, Hush, and Oculus. The latter hit theaters in 2013 before Flanagan was regarded as a well-respected director.

Oculus was a Blumhouse Production and is arguably one of the company’s most underrated films. It was based on one of Flanagan’s own short films, titled Oculus: Chapter 3 - The Man With The Plan. Though riddled with its share of classic horror movie cliches, Oculus is unique in its own eerie, unsettling way.

OUIJA (2014)  - WORST

Ouija was released in theatres in 2014 and became infamous when critics mercilessly bashed it. Though it was a huge commercial success, Ouija is best known for being a flop in the critical department. The most criticized aspect of this film was its ceaseless use of cheap jump scares and a tedious, predictable formula.

It falls under the categories of Blumhouse’s campy, rather formulaic movies, but it stands out in the crowd for being so famously bad. It was later followed up by a sequel/prequel that managed to far surpass it in quality.

INSIDIOUS (2010) - BEST

Insidious is one of Blumhouse’s most praised, well-known films, and it’s largely responsible for the company gaining traction and popularity in the 2010s. Clever marketing and a substantial amount of hype and anticipation made Insidious one of the most talked-about, successful horror films of its decade.

The film was, of course, the start of a franchise that consisted of other movies that did not live up to the original Insidious’ quality or charm, but this film on its own is definitely known as one of Blumhouse’s finest.

TRUTH OR DARE (2018) - WORST

When the promos dropped for Blumhouse’s Truth Or Dare, the reception was overwhelmingly poor, as the marketing for this movie made no attempt to hide the fact that it was little more than one big horror cliche.

Truth Or Dare made significant waves at the box office, but sits at a pitiful 16% on Rotten Tomatoes. As far as most fans are concerned, this is one of Blumhouse’s worst movies.

GET OUT (2017) - BEST

After years of playing a defining role in the world of television and movie comedy, writer/director Jordan Peele tried his hand at horror with his debut masterpiece, Get Out. The film surpassed Blumhouse’s many other pictures in terms of quality and brilliance and is considered to be a modern masterpiece.

Not only did Get Out largely contribute to redefining the history of horror films, but it also gave Peele his newfound reputation as a master of the macabre.

MA (2019) - WORST

With Octavia Spencer taking on the lead role and an all-star supporting cast, Ma had every right to be much better than it actually was. The film revolved completely around the titular character’s spiral into unbridled insanity and truly showcased Octavia Spencer’s talents.

Unfortunately, Ma disregarded plot and strong writing. In the end, even Octavia Spencer’s iconic, unforgettable performance was not enough to save the film from being the worst Blumhouse offering to date.