10 Hidden Gem Vampire Horror Movies

6. Near Dark

Kiss of the Damned
DeLaurentiis Entertainment Group

One of the most beloved, famous vampire movies of all time is 1987's The Lost Boys. But while Joel Schumacher was wowing audiences with that picture, that same year saw Near Dark somewhat fly under the radar.

From future Oscar winner Kathryn Bigelow, Near Dark follows a family of vampires who drive around in a blacked-out RV in the day, then feast on locals by night. To be fair, that's a pretty smart plan, and to make this all the more entertaining, there's a belting cast of familiar '80s faces - with Bill Paxton, Jenette Goldstein, Jenny Wright and Lance Henriksen amongst the key cast here.

The plans of these bloodsuckers are thrown for a loop when Wright's Mae ends up falling for one of the group's intended meals. That meal is Caleb Colton (Adrian Pasdar), and, after becoming infected, he ends up joining our vampires on their crusade as tensions rise over Caleb's unwillingness to kill.

As Near Dark plays out, Caleb and Mae have their eye on a life away from the rest of the horde, but Mae's long-time travel companions aren't so keen to let her slip out of their grip.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.