All Lee Cronin Movies, Ranked By Scariness
Lee Cronin is quickly becoming a household name among horror fans ever since he reinvigorated the Evil Dead franchise with Evil Dead Rise (2023), a horror movie that followed in the footsteps of its predecessors with brutal horror and dark, campy humor. Now, with Lee Cronin’s The Mummy (2026) out, it’s led some audiences to wonder who the director is and, more so, what he’s made.
Cronin is a well-rounded horror director with the three films he’s made thus far. Plus, his work with Evil Dead Rise also gave him the chance to executive produce the next two franchise films, Evil Dead Burn (2026) and Evil Dead Wrath (2028). Cronin knows a thing or two about what’s scary, and these three films prove that. Here are all of Lee Cronin’s movies, ranked by how scary they are.
The Hole in the Ground is Lee Cronin’s first film and follows a mother and son who move to the countryside of Ireland. However, she begins to suspect her son isn’t who he seems when he starts acting strangely. It’s a simple premise, but one that allows for easy scares as the young boy acts more and more bizarre.
There are a lot of early influences on what would become signature Cronin scares, such as the shapeshifting creatures that move in a jerky motion. While The Hole in the Ground has its scary moments, suspense is much more the focus of this film, and because of that, it’s easy to get sucked in. It will make you think twice if a relative starts acting strangely, but not scary enough to make you keep the lights on at night.
Cronin’s latest film, his version of the classic monster story, leans more into a possession tale as a family tries to solve what happened to their recently discovered daughter, who went missing in Egypt almost a decade prior. Lee Cronin’s The Mummy has its fair share of gross-out moments and uncomfortable horror, but its greatest strength is also a divisive weakness.
In many ways, the movie feels like an Evil Dead film, which means that it will be utterly terrifying to anyone unaware. However, seasoned horror fans are familiar with these tropes, so some scares may not hit as well as others, hence why it’s in the middle of this list.
There’s so much to appreciate regarding what Cronin provided with Evil Dead Rise. The film follows a family trying to survive after they accidentally read from a cursed book that leads to demons possessing the tenants of an apartment building. It’s a bloody movie that honors Raimi’s past works while making a name for itself.
Without Evil Dead Rise, it’s easy to assume the franchise would’ve been dead in the water. Not only is it bloody, but the scenes are also genuine and leave viewers squirming in their seats. Even with moments of dark humor, there’s an unshakeable tension in Evil Dead Rises that puts the viewers on edge, so when a scare does happen, it guarantees a jump every single time. For this reason, it ranks as Lee Cronin’s scariest movie to date. Evil Dead fans, this one shouldn’t be missed.
