Despite the wider distribution, numerous films were still treated as forbidden treasures, becoming contraband and at risk of seizure. Five particular films stood out for their extreme brutality and the varied censorship battles they faced. Some filmmakers bypassed ratings boards entirely, opting to release their uncensored visions, while others had their work clipped down to comply with national regulations. Whether meticulously edited or outright banned, here are five horror classics from the ’80s that faced significant censorship hurdles.

Among the horror genre, few films have reached the notorious status of “Cannibal Holocaust” since its debut. Presented as a found footage narrative, it depicts the grim fate of a group of anthropologists venturing into the Amazon rainforest to document a tribe of cannibals. The film is infamous for featuring real animal killings alongside disturbingly realistic gore effects, showing the anthropologists meeting a gruesome end.

Over the years, “Cannibal Holocaust” has become more accessible, now available for streaming on services like Shudder. Its influence persists, inspiring filmmakers like Eli Roth, who credits it as a muse for “The Green Inferno.” Nevertheless, it remains a challenging watch, often too unsettling for horror fans to endure in a single viewing.

The flick is a rarity in that it managed to have actual legal repercussions for its production crew. Director Ruggero Deodato’s native country of Italy accused him of murdering his actors to make his special effects look more realistic, and he had to produce one of the living stars in court to prove no harm had come to them. The charges were dropped, but “Cannibal Holocaust” was still banned in several countries, including Italy, Australia, Norway, and Iceland. It received an X rating by the U.S.’s Motion Picture Association and would make the video nasties list in the United Kingdom. 

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.