Nevertheless, numerous films were still regarded as illicit and faced confiscation. Five particularly notorious films stood out for their intense brutality and the various ways they were censored, banned, or edited to appease national censorship boards. Some filmmakers bypassed the ratings board altogether, releasing their films uncut, while others saw their work trimmed to meet the requirements of different countries. Here are five notable horror films from the ’80s that faced bans or censorship during that decade.

Among the most infamous horror films is “Cannibal Holocaust.” Presented as a found footage film, it chronicles the tragic fate of a group of anthropologists who venture into the Amazon rainforest to study a tribe of cannibals, accompanied by a film crew. The movie is notorious for depicting real animal killings alongside convincingly gruesome special effects that show the anthropologists being dismembered.

Over time, “Cannibal Holocaust” has become more accessible, available for streaming on platforms like Shudder. Its cultural influence endures, inspiring filmmakers like Eli Roth, who cites it as an influence for his movie “The Green Inferno.” However, even today, many horror fans find the film too disturbing to watch in one go.

“The Evil Dead” is another film that emerged from the ’80s and has since grown into a franchise renowned for its over-the-top gore, slapstick humor, and wild scenarios. It introduced audiences to the iconic character Ash Williams, played by Bruce Campbell, who became one of horror’s most celebrated heroes. Originally a low-budget, college-students-in-peril-at-a-cabin film, it was marked by unique on-set peculiarities. Despite its humble beginnings, “The Evil Dead” left a lasting legacy. However, its initial release shocked both audiences and censors in the early 1980s.

Time has passed, and the film has become more widely available — you can stream it on platforms like Shudder with ease nowadays. Its cultural impact lives on, too, in the works of directors like Eli Roth, who names “Cannibal Holocaust” as one of the inspirations for his film “The Green Inferno.” Yet even now, it’s still a movie that’s too disturbing to finish in one sitting for many horror mavens.

“The Evil Dead” has spawned a franchise that celebrates ultra bloody gore, slapstick, and outlandish situations dialed up to the 10th power. It also gave birth to iconic final boy Ash Williams (Bruce Campbell), one of the most famous horror heroes of all time. Since the film started out as a low-budget college-students-get-killed-in-a-cabin movie — albeit one where lots of uniquely bizarre things happened on the set — that’s quite a legacy to have. But for censorship boards and moviegoers in the early 1980s, its initial appearance on the world stage was shocking.

The film sports splatter-laden sequences in which limbs go flying, people are hacked to bits, and bodies literally melt down. It also includes a scene in which Cheryl Williams (Ellen Sandweiss) is raped by supernaturally possessed vines in the woods, with the entire group eventually becoming the quarry of a passel of ancient demons. Audiences accused director Sam Raimi of misogyny based on that scene, which he later said he regretted for being “unnecessarily gratuitous,” per the San Diego Reader. The motion picture was subsequently subjected to editing and rejection for its all-around explicit nature.

“The Evil Dead” was banned in Finland, Ukraine, and Singapore, and became one of the most notorious video nasties in the U.K. It was trimmed by 49 seconds to earn an X certificate for its theatrical release there, but it was then banned from home video release in the wake of the Video Recordings Act in 1984. The movie was removed from the list in 1985 after undergoing even more cuts. A completely uncensored version would not hit the British marketplace until 2000, when it received an age 18 classification. In the United States, it was rated X and later downgraded to NC-17.

“Silent Night, Deadly Night” caused many an unhappy holiday headache for its distributors and producers. Releasing a scary film in which a troubled guy named Billy (Robert Brian Wilson) dresses up like Santa Claus to chop his way to revenge after failing to live a normal life is a daunting proposition, to say the least. Billy even slays a nun who treats him poorly during the film. Unshockingly, the movie went through a large number of problems on its way to landing cult classic status.

The film was given an X classification three times by the Motion Picture Association until a final, more severe, edit earned it an R. “Silent Night” would soon suffer through an even bigger controversy when ads intended to air during the late-night hours made it into prime time and the afternoon hours, including a football game; parents protested, and people picketed theaters while singing Christmas carols. While some markets reacted positively to the controversy, Tri-Star caved under the weight of this negative publicity, withdrawing the movie’s advertising. It would go on to pull “Silent Night, Deadly Night” from a number of theaters and cancel its full-scale release. But eventually the film would get its cultural due, spawning several sequels and two remakes, making it one of the best Christmas horror movies to give yourself a holiday fright.

“The Burning” isn’t your typical slasher; it helped boost the careers of future stars Jason Alexander and Holly Hunter, who play summer camper counselors who meet grizzly ends thanks to Cropsy, a hedgeclipper-bearing serial killer. Just like the other constituents of this list, it ran afoul of censorship issues and had to undergo quite the trim to make it out the door. 

To receive its R rating, 45 seconds worth of footage hit the cutting room floor, mainly involving gore. Its original director’s cut wouldn’t be seen until a VHS release in 2001. “The Burning” was also chopped up for its British debut, yet another member of the video nasties list. The film had the unique distinction of being accidentally released uncut on home video in the U.K. through Thorn EMI, making it subject to the Obscene Publications Act and thus confiscation. The company withdrew this version and released the board-approved cut of the film after realizing its mistake. The movie’s original cut made it to home media in the country in 2002, allowing viewers to appreciate the cult classic in its original format.

“Possession” is a classic example of what happens when executive meddling ruins a good movie. The art house film pits spy Mark (Sam Neill) against his divorce-hungry wife Anna (Isabelle Adjani). Anna’s mothering skills toward their son and her behavior have both become more and more volatile and erratic as the months have gone on. She has a secret lover with a shocking origin story, and as Mark learns more about the situation, his own life begins to careen out of control.

The film was initially cut by a third before being released in the U.S., entirely changing its tone. Contemporary critics panned it as a result, mocking both the performances and the plot. In the U.K., it was yet another film dubbed a video nasty. Time and reputation restored the director’s cut and the movie’s reputation, helping audiences figure out why Adjani won an award for Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival and launching it as a chilling arthouse horror classic.