20 Huge Horror Movie Hits NOBODY Expected

20. Get Out

When the first trailer for Jordan Peele's Get Out dropped, few could've ever anticipated that it'd become a bona fide pop-culture phenomenon and Oscar-winning smash hit.

Given that Peele was primarily versed in comedy prior to this, few were expecting him to craft such an effective genre piece, and even when the rave reviews dropped from Sundance a month before release, it still didn't seem like a huge breakout was on the cards. Yet despite its socially conscious premise - ever a turn-off for mainstream audiences - Get Out showed up with its mere $4.5 million budget and ended up grossing a stupendous $255.4 million globally.

That's well over 50 times its cost, ensuring that Peele's film outgrossed far more high-profile releases like Alien: Covenant, Paddington 2, Baby Driver, Pitch Perfect 3, and John Wick: Chapter 2, to name just a few.

Get Out immediately established Peele as a serious force to be reckoned with, and his two subsequent features - Us and Nope - were both strong hits in their own right. A decade ago, though, one half of Key & Peele becoming an iconic horror auteur seemed completely absurd.