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The Best Found Footage Movies of the 2020s (So Far)

The 2020s gave found footage a second life. Lockdown pushed filmmakers onto video calls, streaming made small films easy to find, and a new wave of creators brought back lost tapes, fake broadcasts and analog horror.

These are our picks for the decade so far, in release order. The list will grow as new films come out.

  1. 01

    Host (2020)

    Directed by Rob Savage · 57m

    The lockdown film that kicked off the decade: a séance on a video call, under an hour long and genuinely terrifying.

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  2. 02

    Horror in the High Desert (2021)

    Directed by Dutch Marich

    A missing hiker, a documentary and the footage he left behind. The start of a four-film indie series.

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  3. 03

    V/H/S/94 (2021)

    Directed by Jennifer Reeder, Chloe Okuno, Steven Kostanski, Simon Barrett, Timo Tjahjanto, Ryan Prows · 1h 43m

    The anthology series came back strong, with a cult hideout full of tapes and a rat-man in the sewers.

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  4. 04

    The Medium (2021)

    Directed by Banjong Pisanthanakun · 2h 11m

    A documentary crew follows a shaman in rural Thailand as something darker takes hold of her niece. Long, slow-burning and brutal, produced by Na Hong-jin (The Wailing).

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  5. 05

    The Outwaters (2022)

    Directed by Robbie Banfitch · 1h 50m

    Four friends, the Mojave Desert and memory cards found after they vanished. A divisive, nightmarish trip that gets stranger the longer it goes.

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  6. 06

    Incantation (2022)

    Directed by Kevin Ko · 1h 51m

    A curse, a mother and a chant you are asked to repeat. Taiwan's found footage hit is one of the most disturbing films of the decade.

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  7. 07

    Deadstream (2022)

    Directed by Joseph Winter, Vanessa Winter · 1h 28m

    A disgraced streamer locks himself inside a haunted house, live on air. Equal parts funny and scary.

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  8. 08

    Missing (2023)

    Directed by Will Merrick, Nick Johnson

    The follow-up to Searching: a daughter tracks her vanished mother across apps and accounts from her laptop. A smart, twisty screenlife mystery.

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  9. 09

    Late Night with the Devil (2023)

    Directed by Colin Cairnes, Cameron Cairnes · 1h 33m

    A 1977 talk show goes to hell on live TV. Presented as the recovered master tape of the broadcast, with behind-the-scenes footage.

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  10. 10

    V/H/S/85 (2023)

    Directed by David Bruckner, Mike P. Nelson, Gigi Saul Guerrero, Natasha Kermani, Scott Derrickson · 1h 51m

    Mid-80s tapes tied together by a secret experiment, including a TV news crew caught in the 1985 Mexico City earthquake.

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  11. 11

    Hell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor (2023)

    Directed by Stephen Cognetti · 1h 38m

    The Hell House LLC series returns with a new location, the remote Carmichael Manor - and its old clown mannequins.

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  12. 12

    V/H/S/Beyond (2024)

    Directed by Jay Cheel, Jordan Downey, Virat Pal, Justin Martinez, Christian Long, Justin Long, Kate Siegel · 1h 54m

    The sci-fi themed V/H/S, framed by a documentary about alien-encounter tapes - from a Bollywood star's trailer to a skydiving trip that meets something in the sky.

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More lists

15 filmsFound Footage for BeginnersNew to found footage? Start here: 15 essential films, from Ghostwatch and The Blair Witch Project to Host and Incantation, that fans and critics rank highest again and again.19 filmsAround the WorldFound footage isn't just American: haunted asylums in South Korea, curses in Japan and Taiwan, trolls in Norway and lost tapes from Spain to Chile.17 filmsBeyond HorrorFound footage isn't only horror. Superpowers, moon landings, wild parties, war dramas and screen thrillers - the best non-horror films told through cameras inside the story.16 filmsScreenlife MoviesFilms that play out entirely on computer and phone screens: video calls, livestreams, chats and webcams. From The Collingswood Story and Unfriended to Searching and Host.20 filmsThe 20 ScariestThe scariest found footage movies, ranked by how often they appear across 14 critics' and fan rankings - from The Blair Witch Project and Lake Mungo to [REC], Noroi and Host.17 filmsAlien Found FootageThe best found footage movies about aliens and UFOs: alien abductions, strange lights in the sky, close encounters and missions into space - from The McPherson Tape to Phoenix Forgotten.18 filmsGhost HuntingFound footage movies about ghost hunters, paranormal TV crews and livestreamers who spend the night in haunted places - from Ghostwatch and Grave Encounters to Gonjiam and Deadstream.14 filmsMonsters and CryptidsFound footage monster movies: Bigfoot, trolls, cryptids and creatures caught on camera - from Cloverfield and Trollhunter to Willow Creek, Exists and Frogman.15 filmsInspired by True EventsFound footage movies inspired by real events and real places: the Dyatlov Pass incident, the Phoenix Lights, the Cecil Hotel, the Rendlesham UFO sighting and more.14 filmsLost in the WoodsFound footage horror set in the woods: camping trips, cabins and forests where something is watching - from The Blair Witch Project to Willow Creek, Exists and Crone Wood.