watchdarkly

Editorial · Ranked List

Every Insidious Movie, Ranked by Score

By Alan Willey ·

The Insidious franchise spans 15 years and six films, from James Wan's 2011 original to Jacob Chase's Insidious: Out of the Further, released August 19, 2026. Ranked on the Darkly curator scale, the 2011 original leads at 7.8 overall, ahead of Chapter 2 at 7.7 and The Red Door at 7.2. Out of the Further lands at 7.0, fourth of the five we have scored, and it is the least frightening entry on our Fear axis at 5.5. It is also the only Insidious film with a first-hand jump scare count on record: we counted 13 while watching it. Each film below carries its five-axis profile of fear, gore, atmosphere, intensity, and overall.

  1. 01

    Insidious(2010)

    James Wan's original is still the best film in the series at 7.8, and the reason the franchise exists. Fear 8.0 and Atmosphere 8.2 lead the franchise on both axes: the Further worked best when it was new, and the film's first hour of escalating haunting remains the template every sequel chases. Near-bloodless at Gore 2.5, which became the series signature.

  2. 02

    Insidious: Chapter 2(2013)

    Chapter 2 scores 7.7, barely behind the original. Wan turned the haunting into a time-folding mystery that revisits the first film from the other side, and Patrick Wilson gets to play the threat instead of the victim. Atmosphere holds at 8.1; the scares are a step less sharp at Fear 7.7.

  3. 03

    Insidious: The Red Door(2023)

    The Red Door, Patrick Wilson's directing debut, brought the Lamberts back after two prequels and scores 7.2. It is a quieter, more deliberate film about what suppressing the Further for a decade costs a family, with Atmosphere at 8.0 and the franchise's gore ceiling at a still-restrained 3.0.

  4. 04

    Insidious: Out of the Further(2026)

    Out of the Further, the 2026 entry from Jacob Chase, scores 7.0 with new characters and a new mechanic for crossing over. We counted 13 jump scares first-hand while watching it. At Fear 5.5 it is the least frightening scored entry, and its Atmosphere of 6.6 is a clear step down from the Wan films, but a dental-office set piece pushes further into body horror than this series has ever gone, on a franchise-typical Gore of 1.0.

  5. 05

    Insidious: Chapter 3(2015)

    Chapter 3, Leigh Whannell's directing debut, moved the series to a prequel about Elise's return and scores 6.8, last of the scored entries. Fear 7.2 and Atmosphere 7.5 are respectable, but the Lambert-free story is thinner, and the film leans harder on its jolts than either Wan entry.

Free account

Watching through the Insidious films? Track where you are.

Save the ones you haven't seen to your watchlist, log the ones you have, and keep your own 5-axis scores in one place. No ads, no algorithm.

Free · takes a minute

Common questions

What is the best Insidious movie?
On the Darkly curator scale, the original Insidious (2011) scores highest at 7.8 overall, ahead of Chapter 2 at 7.7 and The Red Door at 7.2. Insidious: Out of the Further (2026) scores 7.0 and Chapter 3 scores 6.8.
What order should I watch the Insidious movies in?
Release order works and is how the scares were designed to land: Insidious (2011), Chapter 2 (2013), Chapter 3 (2015), The Last Key (2018), The Red Door (2023), Out of the Further (2026). Story-chronological order for the Elise arc is Chapter 3, then The Last Key, then the original and Chapter 2, then The Red Door. Out of the Further follows new characters in the present day, so it works in either order.
Is Insidious: Out of the Further scary?
It is the least frightening entry we have scored in the franchise, at 5.5 on our Fear axis against the original's 8.0. We counted 13 jump scares first-hand while watching it, and its most confronting material is a dental body-horror sequence rather than its hauntings.
How many jump scares does Insidious: Out of the Further have?
13, counted first-hand by Watch Darkly while watching the film. No external jump scare database has published a count for it.
Why is The Last Key not in the ranking?
Insidious: The Last Key (2018) is in the Darkly catalog but not yet curator-scored, so it does not appear in this ranking, which orders films by their Darkly overall score. We publish a score only after watching a film in full; unscored means not yet watched by us, not judged and found wanting.
Are the Insidious movies gory?
No. The franchise runs on hauntings and jump scares rather than blood: gore scores range from 1.0 (Out of the Further) to 3.0 (The Red Door) on our 0 to 10 scale. It is consistently one of the least gory mainstream horror franchises.