What is the scariest movie ever made? New study tested viewer heart rates to find out

LOS ANGELES — Editor's note: Video at the top of this story is from October 2018. 

What is the scariest movie of all time? It’s a frequently debated topic this time of year, but a new study may have found the answer.

How did they do it? A panel of 50 people were attached to heart rate monitors to measure how their bodies reacted while watching more than 120 hours of the spookiest horror movies.

The team at Broadband Choices then ranked the top 35 scary movies based on the average heart rate of the participants.

After crunching all the data, Broadband Choices said the title of scariest movie goes to 2012’s Sinister, which tallied a terrifying average of 86 beats per minute with a spike of 131 beats per minute after one of the film’s jump scares.

Insidious and The Conjuring weren’t far behind, finishing in second and third place.

The biggest jump scare award was given to Insidious as viewers hit an average of 133 beats per minute at one point.

Here are the top 35 scariest movies based on the heart rate study:

1. Sinister
2. Insidious
3. The Conjuring
4. Hereditary
5. Paranormal Activity
6. It Follows
7. The Conjuring 2
8. The Babadook
9. The Descent
10. The Visit
11. The Ring
12. A Quiet Place
13. A Nightmare on Elm Street
14. Halloween
15. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
16. 28 Days Later
17. The Exorcist
18. Hush
19. It
20. Scream
21. The Grudge
22. The Witch
23. The Blair Witch Project
24. Alien
25. The Thing
26. Poltergeist
27. Annabelle
28. Friday the 13th
29. The Orphanage
30. Dark Skies
31. Wolf Creek
32. The Omen
33. The Shining
34. Get Out
35. Audition

Broadband Choices' team said they reviewed critic lists and Reddit to determine the 50 best scary movies for the panel to watch.

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