Top 20 Look-alike Similar Horror Poster Designs – Part 1

Never let it be said that horror posters don’t strike inspiration. Or maybe it’s “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery”? You may have performed one of those double takes here and there for good reason. Poster art (and in this case horror poster art) has been recycled for ages in one form or another. While some of these are in a similar themes. Others are just plain rip-offs from the original (I know you’ll call em when you see them).

Why does this happen? Well in the case of agencies, sometimes they are so busy churning out new designs that originality is simply not an option. And of course if you take in the idea of marketing…well marketers like to recycle ideas that have worked. In any case, its not the most “white hat” approach to poster design, but it does sometimes imbed a familiar or perhaps “need” to see that film (your not sure why, but you yank it off from the rental shelf and take a chance)

Well, we like the comedy of this particular issue. It reaffirms the nature of some designers in the world. Which is along the lines of “find a good idea and use it again. I will say that there are quite a bit more than these 20, you of course are welcome to call them out below…enjoy!!

01- Feast  | The Blackout |  Creature | Nightmare Man
Oooo….. this one has to take the top place for using a design 1 too many times. The Feast (2005) poster ( I believe) is the original, though that hair hanging over always bothered me as being photoshopped incorrectly. The rest are laughable as purely derivative designs

02- Jeepers Creepers | Amusement
Now this was an interesting steal that borrowed its idea from the well known “Jeepers Creepers” Poster. It was later changed after it receiving so much backlash on it….shame!!!

03- Trick or Treat | Mr. Hush
Brand new off the assembly line, Mr. Hush was maybe a bit “too” inspired by the “Trick or Treat” Poster. Composition? check, Color? check, Title? check. Glow? check!!!

04- Jaws | Piranha
There is not much convert going on here as the early Piranha film was aiming to take a bit of the “Jaws” market to the bank. The poster was later modified but we still remember this early rip, don’t we?

05- Godzilla | Candyman | Seed of Chucky | The Return | Skeleton Key | The Eye
Ok, this is only a sampling of the posters that use the eerie eye theme. I’ve always thought that it meant the designer was being lazy and couldn’t think of anything except closing in on that eye. How bout this, I’ll go to your movie, if you stop looking at me that way!!! Really the only one qualified to “Eye their picture is the movie, “The Eye”! But then Candy man did come first……

06- Cabin Fever | Shrooms | Descent
Ah yes, the clever “it’s a picture of a skull” reveal. Even though the skull idea is nothing new, it’s still cool to see the variations they come up with. “Shrooms” seemed to like that idea, but maybe a little “too” close for comfort. “Descent” was a bit more imagined as it doesn’t pertain to a forest setting.

07- 13 Ghosts | Shutter
The collage of fear, as I like to call it! Really this idea was taken from those fancy ads they came up with in the 80’s. Soon everyone one was making a photo collage out of something.

08- Cold Fish | Natural Born Killers | Death Valley | Copycat | Strawdogs
This is the old reflection in the glasses poster. Cause what is reflected is usually more terrifying than what is presented….(or something like that)

09- Fright Night | Return of the Living Dead
Fright Night ruled the day with their design and then ROTLD had to come along and steal it away. Can you see the similarities…you betcha!

10- Tremors | The Cave
It’s like they took the “Tremors” design and used it as a template, don’t ya think? And you thought we forgot about those nasty earth mongrels, dincha?

Ready for Part 2 of Similar Horror Poster Designs ?

– Posters with derivative art
– Horror Posters that look alike
– Horror Posters with the same design
– Copycat Horror Posters