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Texas Chainsaw Massacre Movies in Order
All 9 Texas Chainsaw Massacre films split across four incompatible timelines. Watch the 1974 original first, then pick a line: the original continuity, the Platinum Dunes remakes, the Texas Chainsaw 3D timeline, or the 2022 Netflix legacy sequel. Release order covers everything, and an optional 2023 game rounds out the franchise.
Texas Chainsaw Massacre Movies in Order: complete list
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Why this order?
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is not one series but four mutually incompatible timelines, and three different films each claim to be the one true direct sequel to the 1974 original: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986), Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013), and Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022). That is why a story-chronological order across all nine films is mathematically impossible, and why release order with this map in hand is the default. Whatever you do, start with Tobe Hooper's The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), spelled with a two-word Chain Saw: it is the only film every timeline agrees happened.
The original continuity runs from 1974 into The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986), a hard swerve into black comedy with Dennis Hopper, then Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990), a loose sequel with a new Sawyer family lineup. Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1995), Kim Henkel's quasi-remake with early Renรฉe Zellweger and Matthew McConaughey, hangs on only loosely: its opening intertitle dismisses films 2 and 3 as "two minor, yet apparently related incidents". It premiered at SXSW in 1995 as The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre and is for completionists only.
The Platinum Dunes remake line is self-contained and skips 1974 entirely: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) reboots everything in 1973, and The Beginning (2006) is a prequel to that remake, not to the original. The Texas Chainsaw 3D line jumps from 1974 straight to Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013), which picks up minutes after the first film and ignores every other entry, with Leatherface (2017) as a prequel to 1974 inside this timeline only. The Netflix legacy line is simply 1974 followed by Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022), set 48 years later and erasing every other sequel.
The 2023 game is an optional, Kim Henkel validated prequel set five months before the original film. Streaming rotates monthly and only the 2022 film has a stable home on Netflix, so check current listings for the rest. A24 is developing a new film from Curry Barker and a TV series, and a rotoscoped animated reimagining of the 1974 film is targeting 2027, but none of these has a confirmed release date. Fans of the four-timeline puzzle should also see Halloween, the only slasher franchise more tangled than this one.
Timeline 1974-2023
Every entry by release year: rows that share a year are a cluster, and the long droughts are called out on the rail.
- 1974 The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
- 12-year gap
- 1986 2
- 4-year gap
- 1990 Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III
- 5-year gap
- 1995 Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation
- 8-year gap
- 2003 The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
- 2006 The Beginning
- 7-year gap
- 2013 Texas Chainsaw 3D
- 4-year gap
- 2017 Leatherface
- 5-year gap
- 2022 Texas Chainsaw Massacre
- 2023 The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
Where to play it today
- Netflix
- Peacock
- Shudder
- Tubi
- Amazon Prime Video
- Apple TV
Availability changes often and varies by region - links search each platform for The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
Frequently asked questions
How many Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies are there?
There are 9 Texas Chainsaw Massacre films, released between 1974 and 2022, split across four separate and mutually incompatible continuities. A canon-adjacent 2023 video game is an optional extra, and several announced projects, including an untitled A24 film, do not have release dates yet.
What order should I watch the Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies in?
Watch the 1974 original first no matter what, then pick a timeline: the original continuity (1974, 2, III, The Next Generation), the Platinum Dunes remake line (2003, The Beginning), the Texas Chainsaw 3D line (1974, 3D, Leatherface 2017), or the Netflix legacy line (1974, 2022). For everything, use release order, since the four timelines contradict each other and no single story order exists.
Is Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022) the original movie?
No. Three near-identical titles trip people up: The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974, two-word Chain Saw) is the original, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) is a full remake, and Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022, no The) is a Netflix legacy sequel set 48 years later. Netflix search often lands newcomers on the 2022 film by mistake.
Is The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning a prequel to the 1974 original?
No, this is a common misfiling. The Beginning (2006) is a prequel to the 2003 Platinum Dunes remake, set in 1969 inside that rebooted timeline. It has no connection to the 1974 original.
Why are there two movies called Leatherface?
They are unrelated films in different timelines. Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990) is the third entry in the original continuity, while Leatherface (2017) is a prequel to the 1974 original within the Texas Chainsaw 3D timeline.
Is a new Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie coming out, and is the 2027 date real?
A24 announced an untitled film written and directed by Curry Barker in April 2026, produced with Spooky Pictures, Exurbia Films, and ImageNation, but it has no release date, and the 2027 dates circulating on YouTube and fan sites are speculation. A24 is also developing a TV series with JT Mollner attached to direct and Glen Powell producing only, with no acting role reported. The one project actually targeting 2027 is a rotoscoped animated reimagining of the 1974 film from Dark Sky Films and Exurbia. The original also returns to US theaters for one night on August 18, 2026 via Fathom Entertainment.
Is The Texas Chain Saw Massacre game canon?
The 2023 asymmetric multiplayer game is canon-adjacent prequel material validated by franchise co-creator Kim Henkel, with its main mode set in April 1973, five months before the 1974 film. Official support ended on May 13, 2025, but it remains purchasable and playable on PS4, PS5, Xbox, and PC. A 1983 Atari 2600 game and a 2006 mobile game also exist, but they are historical footnotes only.
Last verified · Sources: en.wikipedia.org, hollywoodreporter.com, deadline.com, variety.com, justwatch.com
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