Entertainment
This Texas location is the 3rd most popular horror film site in the US. See full list
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We’re in the heart of spooky season, and few things are spookier than horror movies.
From slashers to psychological thrillers, classics to modern plot twists, horror films have terrified — and simultaneously entertained — Americans for generations and will likely continue to do so for generations to come.
And for some brave souls, simply watching these movies isn’t enough. They choose to bring the screen to life by visiting horror movie filming locations.
Location booking platform Giggster has analyzed the country’s most popular horror movie filming locations to reveal the spookiest states — according to entertainment media, that is.
What level of spookiness does Texas achieve in horror films? One Texas film site is among the most Googled around the world. Here’s a breakdown of the data.
Top 10 cities with most horror movie film locations
In its analysis, Giggster gathered data on the U.S. cities in which the most horror movies are filmed. The data was then adjusted to population to even the playing field.
Jersey City, New Jersey topped the list, with its most recent movie being the psychological thriller “Smile” (2022). The city isn’t new to such filming, though. It also served as the backdrop for “The Toxic Avenger” (1984).
| Ranking | City | State | Number of Horror Movies (Overall) | Number of Horror Movies per 100,000 residents |
| 1 | Jersey City | New Jersey | 386 | 132.35 |
| 2 | Los Angeles | California | 2,410 | 63.07 |
| 3 | Washington | District of Columbia | 324 | 47.72 |
| 4 | Atlanta | Georgia | 208 | 40.72 |
| 5 | New Orleans | Louisiana | 144 | 39.55 |
| 6 | Pittsburgh | Pennsylvania | 93 | 30.67 |
| 7 | Orlando | Florida | 92 | 28.68 |
| 8 | Richmond | Virginia | 59 | 25.74 |
| 9 | St. Louis | Missouri | 67 | 23.78 |
| 10 | Glendale | Arizona | 54 | 21.27 |
Top 10 states with most horror movie film locations
On that state level, Maine earned the title of home to the most horror movie film locations after adjusting for population. This comes as little surprise, considering it’s the home state of the legendary horror writer Stephen King. Movie adaptations of King’s “Pet Sematary” (the original 1989 film, not the 2018 remake), “Thinner” (1995) and “Graveyard Shift” (1990) were all filmed in Maine, as well as other films like “Pod” (2015), “Island Zero” (2018) and “The Langoliers” (1995).
| Ranking | State | Number of Horror Movies (Overall) | Number of Horror Movies per 100,000 residents |
| 1 | Maine | 149 | 10.68 |
| 2 | California | 3,826 | 9.82 |
| 3 | New Mexico | 133 | 6.29 |
| 4 | Louisiana | 275 | 6.01 |
| 5 | Nevada | 189 | 5.92 |
| 6 | New York | 1,117 | 5.71 |
| 7 | Vermont | 34 | 5.25 |
| 8 | Rhode Island | 54 | 4.93 |
| 9 | Washington | 324 | 4.15 |
| 10 | New Jersey | 381 | 4.10 |
Texas horror film site is 3rd most popular
Can you really consider yourself a horror movie fanatic if you haven’t watched “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” franchise?
There are now nine movies that follow serial killer Leatherface and his family, with the first released in 1974 and the most recent in 2022. And even two years after the last film, it remains popular. Giggster found the term “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” has garnered around 280,700 Google searches from around the world.
Today, visitors can even dine at Hooper’s Café inside the Kingsland home.
| Ranking | Filming Location | Movie (Year) | Area | State | Google Searches |
| 1 | Overlook Hotel | “The Shining” (1980) | The Timberline Lodge | Oregon | 516,900 |
| 2 | Camp Crystal Lake | “Friday the 13th” (1980) | Camp No-Be-Bo-Sco | New Jersey | 374,200 |
| 3 | Texas Chainsaw House | “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (1974) | Kingsland | Texas | 280,000 |
| 4 | Amity Island | “Jaws” (1975) | Martha’s Vineyard | Massachusetts | 173,600 |
| 5 | Michael Myers’ House | “Halloween” (1978) | Pasadena | California | 110,900 |
| 6 | Exorcist Steps | “The Exorcist” (1973) | Georgetown | Washington, D.C. | 98,800 |
| 7 | The Exorcist House | “The Exorcist” (1973) | Georgetown | Washington, D.C. | 59,300 |
| 8 | Buffalo Bill’s House | “The Silence of the Lambs” (1991) | Perryopolis | Pennsylvania | 33,000 |
| 9 | Elm Street House | “A Nightmare on Elm Street”(1984) | Los Angeles | California | 25,600 |
| 10 | Allison’s House | “Hocus Pocus” (1983) | Salem | Massachusetts | 22,410 |
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