Best Horror Comedies of 1997

By 1997, horror was officially cool again. Scream had ushered in a new wave of teen-focused, self-aware genre films—and horror-comedy leaned into that resurgence with gleeful abandon. Whether poking fun at genre tropes, resurrecting iconic monsters, or unleashing absurd creature features, 1997’s best horror comedies reveled in their ability to make you laugh and squirm. The result was a year packed with slashers, spoofs, and supernatural silliness that bridged the gap between scares and satire.

The Horror Comedy Landscape in 1997

Horror Reshaped

The success of Scream reshaped horror for the MTV generation. Filmmakers took cues from its ironic tone, fast-paced dialogue, and pop-culture savvy characters. Studios began investing in horror again, while indie creators leaned even harder into the outrageous and absurd. It was a transitional year where horror-comedy thrived both in multiplexes and in the video store underworld.

Meta-Horror Moves Mainstream

Following Scream, horror-comedy no longer had to live in the cult margins. Characters were in on the joke, audiences were too, and playing with expectations became the name of the game. Whether a full-on spoof or a subtle satire, horror-comedies in 1997 delivered scares with a smirk.

Genre-blending Experimentation

1997 also marked a surge in genre-blending experimentation, as horror-comedies embraced everything from sci-fi twists to crime-thriller elements. This was a year where werewolves tangled with suburban angst, undead dentists drilled into body horror, and even Pinocchio got a twisted makeover. The line between horror and humor blurred more than ever, resulting in films that were unpredictable, playful, and defiantly offbeat. With studio backing on one end and gonzo indie vision on the other, 1997 cemented horror-comedy as a space where creativity could run wild—bloody, bizarre, and hilariously self-aware.

Top 10 Horror Comedies of 1997

I Know What You Did Last Summer

Runtime: 1hr 41min

While not a comedy in the traditional sense, its self-serious tone, teen melodrama, and increasingly ridiculous kill setups lend it plenty of unintentional (and now nostalgic) dark humor.

I Know What You Did Last Summer is a slick, teen-centered slasher that follows four friends bound by a deadly secret after they accidentally hit a man with their car and dump his body in the ocean. A year later, they begin receiving ominous messages from someone claiming to know what they did, and the group is soon stalked by a hook-wielding killer. As paranoia sets in and bodies pile up, the past refuses to stay buried. Riding the wave of Scream's success, the film blends polished visuals, attractive young leads, and a classic revenge setup to reignite the slasher genre for a new generation.

Wishmaster

Runtime: 1hr 30min

This gore-soaked fantasy horror film features a wisecracking, malicious genie who grants wishes with horrific twists. It's full of irony, grotesque FX, and campy villainy.

Wishmaster is a supernatural horror film that brings ancient mythology into modern-day mayhem. When a mystical gemstone is shattered, it unleashes an evil djinn—a demonic genie who grants wishes with deadly twists. As the djinn manipulates victims into making ironic, gruesome wishes, he inches closer to unleashing his race upon the world. Combining imaginative gore, outlandish kills, and appearances from horror legends like Robert Englund and Tony Todd, Wishmaster revels in its B-movie roots. It's a campy, effects-driven ride that mixes fantasy horror with a darkly comedic edge.

Jack Frost

Runtime: 1hr 29min

A serial killer gets turned into a homicidal snowman and goes on a pun-filled killing spree. Ridiculous, low-budget, and instantly a cult favorite for its sheer audacity.

Jack Frost is a delightfully absurd holiday-themed horror-comedy that turns a wholesome symbol of winter into a homicidal menace. After a genetic accident transforms serial killer Jack Frost into a living snowman, he returns to the small town of Snowmonton to exact icy revenge on the sheriff who captured him. Armed with killer icicles, deadly snowballs, and a wicked sense of humor, Jack wreaks havoc with cartoonish violence and low-budget charm. With its outrageous premise, cheesy effects, and tongue-in-cheek tone, the film has become a cult favorite for fans of so-bad-it’s-good horror.

The Ugly

Runtime: 1hr 31min

A moody New Zealand psychological horror film with stylized visuals and a sly sense of dark irony. While often disturbing, its melodramatic tone occasionally veers into black comedy territory.

The Ugly is a brooding New Zealand psychological horror film that delves into the fractured mind of confessed serial killer Simon Cartwright. Institutionalized in a grim asylum, Simon agrees to be interviewed by ambitious psychologist Dr. Karen Schumaker, recounting his crimes through disturbingly vivid flashbacks. As Simon describes the “uglies”—hallucinated, blood-drenched figures who goad him to kill—Karen is drawn into his warped reality, questioning whether she can help him or if she’s becoming another pawn in his violent fantasies. With stylized crimson visuals, unreliable narration, and an eerie score, the film blurs the line between victim and monster, offering a chilling meditation on trauma, manipulation, and the corrosive power of guilt.

An American Werewolf in Paris

Runtime: 1hr 45min

A belated, tonally lighter sequel to the 1981 classic. While it lacks the bite of the original, it doubles down on humor, romance, and ’90s absurdity.

An American Werewolf in Paris is a loose sequel to the 1981 cult classic, blending horror, comedy, and late-’90s teen energy in a European setting. The story follows Andy, an American tourist who falls for a mysterious woman in Paris—only to discover she's part of a secret society of werewolves. After being bitten, Andy grapples with his transformation while uncovering a plot involving genetically enhanced lycanthropes. Though it lacks the groundbreaking practical effects of its predecessor, the film leans into its campy tone, mixing CGI-fueled creature action with irreverent humor and a Euro-club atmosphere, resulting in a wild, if uneven, horror-comedy romp.

Tromeo and Juliet

Runtime: 1hr 47min

Troma’s ultra-trashy, ultra-gory Shakespeare parody reimagines the bard’s tale as a splatterfest full of incest, mutations, and punk rock. It’s as irreverent as horror-comedy gets.

Tromeo and Juliet is a gleefully grotesque, punk-infused reimagining of Shakespeare’s classic tragedy, filtered through the outrageous lens of Troma Entertainment. Directed by Lloyd Kaufman and co-written by James Gunn, the film swaps Renaissance romance for sleazy New York grit, replacing swords with chainsaws and iambic pentameter with profanity-laced narration. Amid bizarre body horror, incestuous twists, and surreal violence, Tromeo and Juliet fall madly in love across warring families, leading to a climax as chaotic as it is gory. Equal parts parody, exploitation, and anarchic art, the film embraces shock value and absurdity, delivering a no-holds-barred love story that’s as disgusting as it is darkly hilarious.

The Night Flier

Runtime: 1hr 37min

Stephen King’s vampire-on-a-plane story is played straight, but the sheer weirdness and bleak, over-the-top tone give it an undercurrent of gallows humor.

The Night Flier is a moody, vampire-themed horror film based on a short story by Stephen King. It follows cynical tabloid reporter Richard Dees, who investigates a series of grisly murders at small rural airports, all seemingly connected by a mysterious black airplane and a bloodthirsty, nocturnal pilot. As Dees digs deeper, his obsession grows, and he begins to question whether the killer is truly human. With its bleak atmosphere, grisly imagery, and a strong performance by Miguel Ferrer as the jaded journalist, the film blends investigative noir with supernatural horror, delivering a grim meditation on voyeurism, exploitation, and the cost of chasing monsters—literal and figurative.

Fever Lake

Runtime: 1hr 33min

Starring Scream’s Corey Haim, this campy, cursed-cabin slasher is slow, wooden, and unintentionally hilarious. A so-bad-it’s-good staple.

Fever Lake is a low-budget, made-for-TV horror film that follows a group of teenagers who ignore dire warnings and head to a remote lake for a weekend getaway—only to awaken an ancient curse tied to the land. As strange visions and violent deaths begin to plague the group, they realize the lake holds a dark, supernatural force that feeds on fear and rage. Starring a post-Full House Corey Haim, the film leans heavily on genre clichés like creepy townsfolk, ominous legends, and doomed teens. While it lacks polish and originality, Fever Lake offers a slice of ‘90s horror nostalgia with a campy, late-night cable vibe.

Leprechaun 4: In Space

Runtime: 1hr 36min

Yes, the leprechaun goes to space. Yes, it's just as insane as it sounds. Laser battles, exploding bodies, and Irish puns in zero gravity—horror-comedy absurdism at its finest.

Leprechaun 4: In Space catapults the mischievous killer leprechaun into the most ridiculous setting yet—outer space. This time, the gold-obsessed villain interrupts a military operation on a distant planet, where he plans to marry an alien princess and become king of the galaxy. As a ragtag crew of space marines tries to stop him, they encounter grotesque mutations, laser battles, and a leprechaun who’s as deadly as he is absurd. Abandoning all pretense of seriousness, the film fully embraces its B-movie roots, blending sci-fi parody, slapstick gore, and absurd one-liners into a chaotic, knowingly trashy ride that’s become a cult favorite for its sheer audacity.

Office Killer

Runtime: 1hr 22min

Cindy Sherman’s art-horror satire of corporate culture features Carol Kane as a mousy proofreader turned cheerful murderer. It’s dry, creepy, and laced with pitch-black comedy.

Office Killer is a darkly comic psychological horror film that turns workplace drudgery into a descent into madness. Directed by famed photographer Cindy Sherman, the film stars Carol Kane as Dorine, a timid and socially awkward copy editor who snaps after budget cuts force her into a remote work-from-home arrangement. As her isolation deepens, so does her homicidal streak—transforming her mundane office into a morbid shrine of corpses and control. Blending deadpan humor with grotesque visuals, Office Killer satirizes corporate culture, repression, and the thin line between routine and rage, offering a grimly stylish look at how even the quietest worker can become the most dangerous.

Underrated Picks Worth Your Time

Killer Tongue

Runtime: 1hr 40min

A woman possessed by an alien parasite develops a murderous, morphing tongue. It’s colorful, campy, and completely bonkers.

Killer Tongue (1996, widely released in 1997) is a bizarre, camp-soaked horror-comedy that defies categorization. The story follows Candy, a bank robber hiding out in a desert convent with her four poodles after ingesting contaminated alien material. As the mutation kicks in, she sprouts a monstrous, sentient tongue with a murderous appetite—and her dogs turn into drag queen henchmen. Blending body horror, sci-fi weirdness, and flamboyant absurdity, the film is loaded with surreal visuals and over-the-top performances. With its gender-bending grotesquery, splatter humor, and offbeat tone, Killer Tongue is a cult oddity that delights in its own madness, appealing to fans of the outrageously unhinged.

Campfire Tales

Runtime: 1hr 33min

A horror anthology that mixes ghost stories and urban legends, often with ironic twists.

Campfire Tales is a horror anthology film that weaves together urban legends and eerie folklore through the framing device of a group of teens stranded after a car crash. As they wait for help, they tell scary stories to pass the time—each segment exploring a different chilling scenario, from a newlywed couple stalked by a hook-handed killer to a motorcyclist’s ghostly revenge. Featuring early performances from stars like Amy Smart and James Marsden, the film delivers a mix of jump scares, dark twists, and nostalgic ‘90s atmosphere. While it plays familiar beats, Campfire Talescaptures the timeless thrill of telling spooky stories in the dark, making it a fun and creepy throwback for anthology fans.

Aberration

Runtime: 1hr 33min

A woman battles mutant lizards in a cabin. Equal parts creature horror and comedic creature-feature throwback.

Aberration is a creature-feature horror film that blends isolation, paranoia, and gnarly monster mayhem. Set in a remote mountain cabin, the story follows a woman named Amy who returns to her childhood home to escape her past—only to discover the house is infested with aggressive, mutated lizard-like creatures. As the attacks escalate and the creatures multiply, she teams up with a quirky biologist to survive the siege. With practical effects, a darkly humorous tone, and a growing sense of claustrophobia, Aberration delivers B-movie thrills and gooey creature chaos, carving out a cult reputation as a pulpy, low-budget gem from the tail end of the ’90s horror boom.

Horror Highlights & Trivia

• Wishmaster’s Monster Parade: The film was packed with genre cameos—Robert Englund, Tony Todd, Kane Hodder—all adding horror cred and fan-service charm.

• Jack Frost’s VHS Success: Despite being panned, Jack Frost became a video rental hit thanks to its killer snowman gimmick.

• Leprechaun 4 Goes Galactic: The franchise’s leap to space predated Jason X, proving Warwick Davis’s rhyming fiend was always ahead of the absurdity curve.

Where to Watch These Today

• Streaming:

  • I Know What You Did Last Summer – Prime Video

  • Wishmaster – Tubi, Shudder

  • Jack Frost – Plex, Prime Video

  • Tromeo and Juliet – Tubi, Pluto TV

  • Leprechaun 4: In Space – Peacock

• Physical Media:

  • Lionsgate’s Vestron Video label released Wishmaster and Jack Frost on Blu-ray with commentaries and features.

  • Tromeo and Juliet is available through Troma’s collectors’ series.

Closing Thoughts

1997 was the year horror-comedy unapologetically embraced camp, gore, and self-parody. Riding the wave of Scream and guided by indie weirdness, it became clear that horror didn’t need to scare instead of entertain—it could do both at once. From snowmen slashers to murderous leprechauns and sarcastic genies, horror-comedy in 1997 was unhinged, unforgettable, and ready to laugh through the blood.