Actors have to be able to portray the full range of human emotion in order to get an audience invested in their character and the story, and Florence Pugh has done just that. Like the best actors in the world, Pugh can make fans truly believe she's dealing with grief, pain or trauma. Of course, there are times when the acting seemingly ceases to become acting. That was apparently the case when Pugh made Ari Aster’s Midsommar.

Florence Pugh recently appeared on The Louis Theroux Podcast, where she revealed that all the pain that her character went through in Midsommar honestly had a real impact on her. She realizes now that the movie actually made her "depressed." Despite that, I love hearing that the movie she made right after, an adaptation of a celebrated book, allowed her to put the darkness away, at least for a while. Pugh said…

Midsommar sees Pugh play Dani, a young woman who is traumatized by the death of her family before visiting a rare midsummer festival in Sweden. While there, Dani, still dealing with trauma and depression, witnesses the dark rituals of the cult putting on the festival. This wild tale concludes with a truly depressing ending, one that Pugh and the director don't actually agree on.

Midsommar, like Aster’s Hereditary before it, is an absolutely dark film that is not for the faint of heart and the sort of feature that can really hit you wrong if you’re in the wrong mood while you watch it. Pugh admits she had to envision some pretty terrible things, including the death of her own family, in order to properly portray the character, and the result was depression.

However, for as dark as Midsommar was, it's great hearing that the process of making Greta Gerwig’s Little Women was something else entirely for Pugh. It seems that a much warmer set allowed her to put aside the darkness she was dealing with at the time. Although, she now admits that it didn’t completely solve the problem as, once filming was over, the depression came back. Pugh continued…

While Florence Pugh is great in Midsommar, it doesn’t sound like she’ll be making a lot of movies like it in the future. While she says she’s better now at managing herself and her emotions, and she gets better with every film, it sounds like while this is an experience she’s glad she had, she’s not looking to repeat it. And, quite frankly, I don't blame her.

Look…I’m a seasoned horror fan, but sometimes, there’s such a thing as too much horror. From some of the best horror movies ever to international feats of torture, there are some scary movies that even a seasoned veteran like me in the genre can get freaked out by. Let’s get into it.

Hereditary (2018)

Hereditary is one of Ari Aster’s films – his directorial debut, if you can believe it. And while the movie itself is known for plenty of disturbing moments that resemble cultish behaviour and demonic possession, there are plenty of scenes that stick with you well after the credits roll, like Charlie’s head. Yes, I just put you through that.

Martyrs (2008)

This film, which premiered at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival, was a movie that sparked plenty of outrage. The film follows two young women who want revenge against those who harmed them as children, only for them to wind up in a horrible situation. The movie essentially uses torture in such an aggressive way that you have no choice but to watch it, as it’s literally the plot.

The Fly (1986)

While The Fly in itself isn’t necessarily scary (at least to me), it's one of the best sci-fi horror films, and it’s the kind of movie that made me literally gag at the end of the transformation. I don’t know – there’s just something about watching the flesh literally melt off of someone’s bones that gets to you.

In A Violent Nature (2024)

In a Violent Nature is an exciting movie. It might not be scary to some, but there are certainly some extremely gory moments that are disgusting to watch. However, what really makes this movie stand out is that it’s told entirely from the viewpoint of the killer, so you’re forced into his head to really understand where he’s coming from with killing. That’s what makes it so disturbing.

The Substance (2024)

Oh, you knew The Substance would be on here somehow. The film was so good that it was nominated for the 2025 Academy Award for Best Picture. The movie itself has plenty of great themes, and honestly, anyone should watch it. However, the big moment that might be too much for horror fans is the very end, where Sue becomes a distorted, monstrous combination of herself and Elisabeth, and it’s just a giant hodgepodge of limbs and disgustingness.

Dread (2009)

Dread isn’t about the gore but rather the psychological impact that personal trauma has on you. It follows a college student who is trying to test the causes and limits of fears, and he takes his experiments way too far. At specific points, it just feels like you’re watching people go through absolute torment. You’ll likely feel the need to seek therapy after watching this film.

Midsommar (2019)

Ari Aster is just a master of his craft, and there’s no other film I could point to than Midsommar, where you really get the chance to feel absolutely disturbed. While Midsommar is almost like a comfort movie to me (because I’ve seen it a decent amount), there’s a lot of wicked imagery in there that makes it twenty times more grotesque and fills you with a sense of dread that you can’t deny.

Tusk (2014)

Okay, so Tusk has basically become almost like a horror comedy at this point because of how ridiculous its premise is, but you can’t deny that there are moments in this movie that sit with you. I mean, the very end, just watching someone who was once a human who is essentially turned into a walrus thanks to a crazy person – that’s legit hard to watch and disgusting.

The Descent (2005)

God, okay, so I’m a horror veteran, as I said in my intro, and The Descent is one of those films that I have only watched maybe twice in my life and will stay out of my way never to watch it. The film follows a group on a cave expedition who are attacked by monsters, but what makes this movie twenty times worse is the claustrophobic atmosphere. You feel like you’re stuck in this cave with them, and it’s horrible. It’s like the air is sucked from your lungs.

The Wailing (2016)

There are many great South Korean horror movies, and I highly recommend The Wailing to anyone who enjoys the genre. There’s an illness that is going around in a village that is turning people into deranged, violent killers, and they must figure out how to stop it. But there is some haunting imagery in this movie that sits with you.

Possessor (2020)

Brandon Cronenberg is the son of David Cronenberg, who is known for body horror. So, like father, like son, because he directed the film Possessor. The film itself is an interesting concept about an agent who uses brain implant tech to take the identity of people in order to kill targets. Still, there’s so much body horror in this that I had to look away several times when I first watched it.

Terrifier (2016) (And It’s Sequels)

Do I even need to get into this that heavily? It’s the Terrifier movie. They’re considered the grossest ones of the last decade. Just trust me on this one. Don’t watch with a full stomach.

The House That Jack Built (2018)

The House that Jack Built is a grotesque horror film that follows the life of a serial killer who mainly targets women and uses their bodies in order to form some overarching masterpiece, believing that it’s a gift he has to create such beauty. Yes, it’s just as gross as it sounds.

The Entire Saw Franchise (2004–)

Of course, I have to put the Saw movies here. I’m the kind of person who is okay with slashers, but the Saw films have taken every movie to a new level with the games, the torture, the body-play, and so much more. It’s gotten to a point where I avoid it until it's streaming so I can pause and take a second to breathe.

Speak No Evil (2022)

I’m not referring to the 2024 remake. Speak No Evil is actually the original from 2022, and it follows a Danish family who accepts the invitation of a Dutch family they met on vacation, only for it to turn menacing very quickly. The film itself isn’t gory all the way through, but when it gets there? Ooh, boy, you better look away.

Sinister (2012)

Sinister is often considered one of the best horror films of the 2010s, and for good reason. The film itself, which follows a true-crime novelist who moves into a haunted home that begins to terrorise his family, is more of a slow-burn horror. However, the disturbing imagery that emerges as the film progresses, culminating in a big finale, makes this a tough one to watch for some.

Infinity Pool (2023)

This movie is bizarre in many ways. The central premise is about a couple who wind up in an accident and have to decide either to be executed or watch them get a clone and die. The movie itself has many moments that make you think, “What the heck did I just watch?” But it comes from a Cronenberg, so that makes sense.

Barbarian (2022)

I loved this film when it was first released. Barbarian is about a young woman who goes to an Airbnb for the weekend only to discover it harbours many sinister secrets. This movie will shock you to your core. It’ll probably also make you unintentionally laugh your head off like it did for me, but then it’ll make you jump in surprise at the amount of gore you’ll witness.

The Sadness (2021)

The Sadness essentially turns the zombie trope on its head, where a pandemic is sweeping through Taiwan. Still, instead of morphing the infected into brainless husks, they become truly twisted humans who crave violence, murder, and literally any possible bad thing you can imagine. This, of course, leads to some pretty wicked (and horrifying) gory moments.

Talk To Me (2022)

Talk to Me was one of the best films of 2022, and A24 always delivers with their horror movies. This film, about a group of teenagers who can communicate with spirits through an embalmed hand, pushes gore to new levels. While it does not feature an intense amount, the moments where gore is used are memorable and terrifying, to say the least, and will likely make you pause the film.

The Exorcist (1973)

While The Exorcist isn’t incredibly gory, there are a lot of gross scenes in it that I genuinely cannot watch because it makes me feel icky. For example, watching Regan throw up and the head-turning around is one moment that still sits with me to this day. I really don’t like to think about it.

The Human Centipede (2009)

…do I even need to talk about this?

Alright, well, because I need to put words, The Human Centipede is about a crazy man stitching up people – strangers he steals – for his deranged experiments. And it’s as disgusting as you think it is. Oh no, I’m going to be sick.

I Spit On Your Grave (1978)

I Spit on Your Grave is one of those 1970s films that genuinely attempted to push the boundaries of horror but ultimately took it too far. The film, which follows the story of a woman on a revenge quest against those who sexually assaulted her, has a brutal and horrifying thirty-minute sequence that shows not only her assault but the violence that came from it. It’s a strict watch for anyone.

Men Behind The Sun (1988)

Men Behind the Sun is terrifying for a different reason. Based on a real-life tragedy, the film is based on the horror that occurred during World War II when Japan attacked China. While the movie itself isn’t as gory as some of the others on this list, it really makes you think of what prisoners of war have gone through in modern-day history.

X (2022)

There are so many gory moments in X that I doubt I even need to elaborate on why it’s on this list. It’s undoubtedly one of the best A24 horror movies, without a doubt. The fact that it follows the tale of an adult actor who must fight for her life to escape the house makes it all the more compelling. It’s gory as heck.

Cannibal Holocaust (1980)

I mean, with a name like that, you know it’s going to be bad. Cannibal Holocaust is about how a film shot by a documentary crew was found, and in that film, we see a lot of deranged, twisted, and gory moments thanks to the cannibalistic tribes they ran into. This film is very dark and not for the faint of heart. That is literally all I will say.

A Serbian Film (2010)

A Serbian Film, to me, isn’t scary, but it’s the effects of what happened because of the main character’s choices that make it worse. The central premise revolves around a retired adult actor who accepts a job for a substantial amount of money, only to be drawn into a deranged filming experience that alters everything. It’s messed up, and it's a movie I wouldn't suggest lightly. If possible, please avoid it.

Hostel (2005)

I actually watched Hostel for the first time a few years ago, and yeah, I never want to again. Ever again. The idea of travelling to a hostel and then somehow getting kidnapped and then tortured to death and having to go through absolutely horrible things is something I never want to experience. I don’t need that anxiety in my life.

August: Underground (2001)

I won’t even get into the premise of this film because it’s really horrible. It’s essentially two serial killers filming their victims and the way they kill them. It’s very messed up, very gory, and something that you really, really need to go into without anything in your stomach.

The Thing (1982)

John Carpenter has given us great horror films, and while The Thing doesn’t have a crazy amount of gory moments, the ones they do have are iconic and stick with you for years. I can still vividly remember watching those legs emerge from the head of one of the characters – oh no, I’m going to be sick again.

Malignant (2021)

Malignant is a movie that is completely a slow-burn horror, but my god, it takes a turn really freaking fast at the end. You think it’s going to be a psychological thriller, but NOPE, it turns into a full-on gorefest featuring the back of a head. Yuck.

The Strangers (2008)

The Strangers, which is all about home invasion, is not there to gross you out. No, this film aims to make you squirm. It builds dread in your gut, makes you wait out as long as the victims do for the nail to drop, and unnerves you to the point where you just want to turn off the TV. I’m already shaking thinking about it.

These are just some of my picks for horror films that certainly take the cake for creepiness – or gore. Be careful about what you pick because there’s some twisted stuff online.

I don’t think I’ll ever get over my experience watching the Midsommar ending for the first (and only) time. I felt so incredibly unsettled as the Ari Aster horror movie unfolded into a cult-y nightmare all during a sunny Swedish midsommar festival. However, it also introduced me to the incredible talent that is Florence Pugh, so no regrets. Now, I’ve just learned that the actress actually took her grandparents to go see it back when it was in theaters, and I can’t get enough of how they reacted.

Florence Pugh is always involving her family in her career, and it’s the sweetest thing. Just last week, she made sure to get her whole team together at a special screening for Thunderbolts*, including her granny, and it was adorable. But as Pugh recently recalled, she also took her grandparents to Midsommar. As she tells it:

Midsommar is such a dark watch, I have steered away from watching it since 2019, and I was absolutely obsessed with it when it came out. There’s absolutely no way I could sit in a theater next to my grandparents or parents without getting incredibly stressed out. I totally get it, though. Florence Pugh’s grandparents wanted to be supportive and see the film she worked hard on, and hey, they were pretty lovely with their responses, all things considered. As Pugh continued on Late Night with Seth Meyers:

So much happens in Midsommar that makes it so inappropriate for elders – unless they are big horror fans, of course. Multiple people throw themselves off a huge cliff, there’s a really awkward sex scene towards the end, oh, and the part where she watches her boyfriend burn alive in a suit of bear skin? It's wild! Florence Pugh also has a different view on the final scene than the director, but no matter how you slice it, it’s got messed-up imagery.

Pugh also said this about why she took them:

This is such a great story. You just don’t think about the family of the actor in a movie like Midsommar, and how things go when she wants to show off her work, but there you have it. The Ari Aster movie was a very technical film that required a lot of precision out of the actors, so it makes a lot of sense that she would want to show it to her close family. Earlier this year, Pugh also spoke to the movie being a bit “too much” on her wellbeing, but she remains “proud” of being part of it.

Thankfully for the actress and her family, her new movie Thunderbolts* is a lot more family-friendly. It’s in theaters now.

So…I may have a problem.

As you might have noticed from the headline, I’m starting to realize that Midsommar is my comfort film. At first glance, if you’re not aware of what the movie is about and have only seen maybe a poster or two, you might not think anything of it. But, most know.

Most really know.

I am someone who spends most of her time watching some of the best horror movies ever, so I really started to think more about why I find comfort in a film that is, quite literally, known to make people extremely uncomfortable. So let’s talk about it—I’m considering all of you readers my therapist for the next few minutes, so buckle up!

I’ve Always Loved Horror Movies

If you know me, you’d know I like horror movies. Many people sometimes look at me like I’m crazy when I talk about how I love all kinds of horror, but there is just something so thrilling about horror.

It could be a typical slasher. I’m not the hugest fan of them, but there’s plenty to love regarding ingenuity with kills, creativity and more. Movies like the Saw franchise fit into this category.

Then there are the classics; the ones that really paved the way for modern horror movies. These could be films from the earlier days of cinema, like the classic Nosferatu, or they could relate to the 1970s and 1980s when horror was king. Something I always point to is the Halloween films.

But, there’s always been one kind of horror that I truly love the most, and that is psychological horror, especially when mixed with things we don’t quite understand, such as folklore from another country. I genuinely think that the scariest thing that can happen to someone is when their mind feels like one thing is happening when it’s not, or you don’t know who you are anymore, and psychological horrors take that to another level.

Mix that with traditions from a foreign land and buckets of trauma, and you get Midsommar.

But Midsommar Is The One I Cling To On My Bad Days

Midsommar is the best A24 horror movie – and that’s saying a lot because there are some brilliant A24 horror movies, but nothing has surpassed this one for me. I’m assuming that if you’re here, you know what the movie is about. But if not, the film follows a young woman who travels with her emotionally distant boyfriend and his friends to Sweden for a traditional festival that has dark roots.

If you haven’t watched it, CONSIDER THIS YOUR SPOILER ALERT.

The movie is shot beautifully by the wonderfully talented Ari Aster (this was only his second film). And the acting is phenomenal – because, of course, Florence Pugh pulls it off in one of her best roles. But there’s just something about it that draws me in every time. Now, on days when I feel down, I find myself drawn to it. Often.

It’s A Beautiful Representation Of Grief And What It Does To Someone

Breaking down why, I think the most significant explanation as to what makes me find comfort in this very uncomfortable film is that it’s the perfect portrayal of grief. Of course, outright, we see the way that Dani (Florence Pugh) grieves the loss of her family in the opening minutes of the film, screaming and crying and having panic attacks because that’s typical. It’s what most people would do in this situations

As the film progresses, we see different stages of grief come together that remind me of times I’ve lost someone, or of losing something valuable to me that I really wanted, or experiencing significant pain. We see that silent, distant type of grief. We see how she tries and clings to others to deal with it. There’s that unmistakable pull, that yearning she craves for acceptance when she loses everything – and it’s what leads her to join the women in that May Queen dance around the maypole.

All of those different kinds of grief are hard to portray, and it’s something that anyone, no matter who, can connect with. Maybe that’s why I like Dani so much – because there’s a little bit of her in all of us whenever we have experienced a considerable loss in our lives.

I Also Don’t Mind Seeing The People Who Hurt Her Get What's Coming To Them

I just want to preface this by saying that I don’t condone violence in any way. I may view some of the most violent movies out there and enjoy them, but I’m not saying to go out and physically take care of those who wronged you.

That being said, there is something liberating about watching the people who hurt Dani get taken down one by one.

Granted, there are a few who I don’t think deserve what came to them. Josh (William Jackson Harper), for example, didn’t seem like a bad guy and genuinely looked like he just wanted to do his project and get the heck out of there once he realized that things were a little screwy. But Mark? I didn’t cry for his death when his face was skinned, and he was turned into the “fool” for the burning.

And don’t even get me started on Christian. I hate that man with EVERY fiber of my being. The actor is great! I hope he does a lot more in Hollywood. But I didn’t mind him getting burned in that cabin. Is it traumatizing and a horrible way to die? Of course. Truthfully, though, treating Dani like garbage after she lost her entire family just put a sour taste in my mouth. By the time the commune drugged him, I had lost all sympathy.

Personally, I Think I’ve Just Connected To Dani In Many Ways

Maybe what it comes down to is that I connect with Dani in many ways. I always felt that there are times in our lives when we truly need people around us, and if we don’t, we travel down a dark and dangerous road. Midsommar almost feels like a cautionary tale about that—because Dani didn’t find the family she needed after hers was taken from her, she fell into the one that understood her pain and kept her scared—even if it wasn’t what was healthy.

It’s something that I think all of us have done once or twice: leaning into something we know isn’t great as a coping mechanism. Sure, this movie is that on a much bigger scale, but it’s there all the same. I think I lean into it as comfort because it reminds me that we’re not alone. We are all dealing with our grief and pain, and we need to find ways to understand how to control it. If not, we fall into rabbit holes like this.

I don’t know; I think I might be a little crazy. There are so many upcoming horror films, but often, when I see them, I find myself comparing many to Midsommar and wondering if any will ever surpass that. I don’t think there are any other horror movies that will become a comfort to me like this one has…but movie studios can try to make them.

Until then, I suppose I’ll just look forward to any new A24 horror film. Or maybe book a session with a therapist. Who knows what the future will bring?

The horror genre has undergone a remarkable transformation over the last ten years. From psychological nightmares to nerve-shredding thrillers, each year has delivered something unique—movies that push the boundaries of fear, storytelling, and even artistic expression. And trust me—I’ve been paying attention.

With at least 168 horror movies under my belt in the past decade, I’ve carefully selected the absolute best horror movies from each year. While we’re always looking for upcoming horror movies to keep us on edge, this list celebrates the genre’s finest from 2014 to 2024. These aren’t just your standard scary flicks—they’re the ones that linger long after the credits roll, burrow into your mind, and, most importantly, raise the bar for what horror can be.

So grab your collectible popcorn bucket, (have you seen AMC’s The Monkey bucket?), keep the lights on, and take a deep dive into the most unforgettable horror films of the last ten years.

2014 – It Follows

David Robert Mitchell’s It Follows isn’t just one of the best horror films of 2014—it’s one of the most inventive of the decade. Taking a seemingly simple premise (a supernatural curse that relentlessly pursues its victims) and turning it into a nerve-wracking experience, the film plays with suspense in a way few modern horror movies do. The synth-heavy score, the unsettling cinematography, and the eerie sense of paranoia make It Follows feel like an '80s fever dream filtered through pure nightmare fuel.

While I typically appreciate when good scary movies remain one-off horror films without unnecessary sequels, I can’t deny how excited I am that Neon has greenlit a sequel called They Follow. Returning to this unsettling world with David Robert Mitchell at the helm feels like the perfect way to continue one of horror’s most original nightmares and to comment on one of the most controversial endings in recent memory.

2015 – The Witch

Few horror films have had the lasting cultural impact of Robert Eggers’ debut feature, The Witch. Dubbed “A New England Folktale,” this slow-burn psychological horror is drenched in atmosphere, authenticity, and religious dread. Anya Taylor-Joy’s breakout role, and perhaps one of her best performances, combined with meticulous period-accurate dialogue and stunning cinematography, makes this one of the most unsettling horror experiences of the 21st century.

And let’s be honest—Black Phillip deserves his own award as one of the Scariest Modern Horror Villains.

2016 – Don’t Breathe

If you thought home invasion movies had run their course, Don’t Breathe proved otherwise. This claustrophobic thriller, directed by Fede Álvarez (Evil Dead 2013), flips the script by making the would-be burglars the hunted. The terrifying performance of Stephen Lang as the blind but deadly homeowner makes every moment unbearably tense, and Don’t Breathe is one of the best horror movies of 2016. With barely a wasted frame, Don’t Breathe keeps you on edge, proving that sometimes silence is far scarier than loud jump scares.

2017 – Get Out

Jordan Peele’s Get Out isn’t just one of the best horror films of 2017—it’s one of the most culturally significant horror films of all time. Unsurprisingly, it’s one of the few horror movies nominated for Best Picture, a testament to its impact on cinema and social discourse.

Blending psychological horror with sharp social commentary, Peele masterfully weaves a terrifying story about race, privilege, and identity, all wrapped inside an eerie, Stepford Wives-esque nightmare. From Daniel Kaluuya’s gripping performance to the haunting imagery of the “Sunken Place,” Get Out delivers tension that lingers long after the credits roll. It’s a quintessential Black-led film that redefined the genre, proving that horror can be as thought-provoking as it is terrifying. If you haven’t seen it yet, now’s the time to change that.

2018 – Annihilation

Some might argue that Annihilation belongs in the best sci-fi movie category, rather than horror, but if you’ve seen that bear scene, you know exactly why it belongs on this list. Alex Garland churns out one of his best movies with this cerebral and haunting book-to-screen adaptation of Jeff VanderMeer’s novel. It is a hypnotic fever dream filled with body horror, psychological dread, and existential terror. In one of her most iconic roles, Natalie Portman leads a phenomenal cast through The Shimmer, a visually stunning and deeply unsettling zone where biology mutates in terrifying ways.

2019 – Midsommar

Ari Aster’s Midsommar is the horror equivalent of watching a slow-motion car crash—you know something terrible is coming, but you can’t look away. Set almost entirely in broad daylight, the film weaponizes its bright, idyllic setting to mask its true horror.

Florence Pugh delivers a powerhouse performance as Dani, a woman dragged into a Swedish cult’s sinister rituals by her boyfriend–one of the worst romantic partners in all cinema. The result? It's one of the most disturbing and easily one of A24’s best movies.

2020 – The Invisible Man

Blumhouse and Leigh Whannell took Universal’s classic monster movie concept and turned it into one of the most unsettling thrillers in recent memory. The Invisible Man (available to stream with an Amazon Prime subscription) updates H.G. Wells’ classic with a modern, terrifying twist—a romantic relationship that ends in a really dark place: domestic abuse and gaslighting. Elisabeth Moss carries the film with a gripping, vulnerable performance, making the horror feel all too real. The tension is relentless, and the way Whannell plays with empty space will have you questioning every shadow in the room.

2021 – The Black Phone

Horror and coming-of-age storytelling blend seamlessly in The Black Phone, directed by Scott Derrickson (Sinister). Based on Joe Hill’s work, a short story, the film follows a kidnapped boy communicating with the ghosts of his captor’s past victims through an old rotary phone. Ethan Hawke is chilling as the masked villain known as “The Grabber,” creating a nightmarish presence without over-explaining his backstory. It’s atmospheric, unsettling, and packs an emotional punch.

2022 – Something in the Dirt

If you’re unfamiliar with indie horror power duo Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead (The Endless, Resolution), Something in the Dirt, a horror flick that flew under the radar, is an excellent introduction to their unique brand of cosmic horror. This low-budget, mind-bending film follows two Los Angeles neighbors who stumble upon strange supernatural occurrences in their apartment complex. What starts as a documentary project spirals into paranoia, obsession, and existential dread. It’s a slow burn, but it's a must-watch for those who love thought-provoking horror.

2023 – Evil Dead Rise

The Evil Dead franchise has always been synonymous with relentless, blood-soaked carnage, and Evil Dead Rise keeps that tradition alive. Lee Cronin takes the series in a fresh new direction, moving the setting from a remote cabin to a high-rise apartment—without sacrificing an ounce of the horror. The film delivers gore, possession, and some of the most brutal moments in the franchise’s history. If you love your horror chaotic, Evil Dead Rise delivers in buckets—of blood.

2024 – The First Omen

Prequels rarely manage to capture the essence of the original, but The First Omen proves to be the exception. Set before the events of the 1976 classic The Omen, this film dives into the eerie origins of the Antichrist with a slow-burning dread that builds to a horrifying crescendo. This overlooked gem was easily the best horror movie of 2024 and had some of the most shocking moments I still can’t get out of my head. Blending religious horror with unsettling psychological terror, The First Omen has already made a strong case for being one of the best horror films of the decade—and you can check it out in the comfort of your own home with a Hulu subscription.

A Decade of Horror Excellence

The last ten years have been incredible for us fear freaks, who are always looking for the next great scary movie. From slow-burning psychological terror to blood-soaked slashers and mind-bending cosmic horror, the genre has evolved in ways that continue to push storytelling, visual artistry, and emotional depth to new heights.

Most recently, The Substance, a brutally unsettling body horror film starring Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley, has taken the industry by storm. It has won numerous awards this season and received several 2025 Oscar nominations, and it’s a prime example of how horror is recognized on a larger cinematic stage.

Whether you love your horror cerebral, brutal, or just plain fun, there’s something on this list for everyone. And with another decade of horror ahead of us, one thing’s for sure—the genre is only getting better.

For every heartfelt, sweeping, inspirational storybook romance story, you can find plenty of violent and traumatizing nightmare couplings, too. In both fiction and reality alike, too many innocent victims wanting nothing more than to receive a person's love and support end up suffering a life of abuse and neglect from the person they, unfortunately, chose to spend it with. The following are some of the most essential examples of movie and TV characters you should never get into a relationship with.

Caledon Hockley (Titanic)

Some might call Rose (Kate Winslet) a bad girlfriend, let alone the worst character from the movie Titanic for some of her own childish behaviors and, especially, her affair with Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio). However, nothing she does in James Cameron's Best Picture Oscar winner justifies the way her arrogant, elitist, industrialist fiancé, Cal Hockley (Billy Zane), treats her, ranging from his possessive dominance to his nearly murderous reaction to Rose's relationship with Jack.

Sarah Marshall (Forgetting Sarah Marshall)

In the uproarious, 2008 romantic-comedy movie favorite, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Peter Bretter (writer Jason Segel) fails to realize how little support his eponymous girlfriend (played by Kristen Bell) shows him until after she dumps him for rock star Aldous Snow (Russell Brand), whom we discover she was cheating with. The cop TV show actor may even be a worse ex-girlfriend from how she enviously sabotages Peter's newfound happiness with Rachel (Mila Kunis) by making a move on him when they accidentally book a vacation on the same Hawaiian island.

Ross Gellar (Friends)

For every reason a Friends fan may have had to root for Ross Gellar (David Schwimmer) and Rachel Green's (Jennifer Aniston) on-and-off romance, there are even more reasons why Ross is just the worst. He reveals himself to be extremely possessive when Rachel meets a handsome coworker at Bloomingdale's, refuses to take responsibility for cheating on her ("We were on a break" is still no excuse), and even continues to obsess over her while in relationships with other women.

Rose Armitage (Get Out)

In 2017, Get Out introduced one of modern cinema's scariest female horror movie villains in the form of Rose Armitage (Allison Williams), whose relationship with Chris Washington (Daniel Kaluuya) was a ruse to coerce him into falling prey to her family's racist procedure that would cause him to lose control of his body to a white host. He was only one of several Black people she pulled this horrific con on, as we discover in Jordan Peele's terrifying, Oscar-winning directorial debut.

Billy Loomis (Scream)

While easily one of the most iconic examples of the classic slasher movie trope of the killer boyfriend, Skeet Ulrich's Billy Loomis is an undeserving partner even before the big reveal in 1996's Scream. He constantly pressures Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) into having relations, flirts with other women behind her back, and even belittles her for not fully recovering from her mother's murder only a year afterward.

Melissa (The Hangover)

Rachael Harris' character in 2009's The Hangover belittles and manipulates Stu (Ed Harris) to the point that he becomes helplessly defensive of her controlling nature and, even worse, her adultery. Luckily, after meeting and marrying an exotic dancer named Jade (Heather Graham) in a stupor during Doug's disastrous Las Vegas bachelor party, he gains the courage to stand up to Melissa and call her out as a "bad person all the way through to [her] core."

Michael Kelso (That '70s Show)

To be fair, Jackie Burkhart (Mila Kunis) is certainly not without her shortcomings, showing extreme evidence of vanity and narcissism especially in the earlier seasons of That '70s Show. However, she ultimately deserved better than her on-and-off boyfriend, Michael Kelso (Ashton Kutcher, who went on to marry Kunis in real life), who shares those same toxic traits in addition to being a helplessly absent-minded serial womanizer.

Judith Fessbeggler (Saving Silverman)

Dr. Judith Fessbeggler (Amanda Peet) is a psychiatrist in great need of psychotherapy, as evidenced by the way she treats Darren (Jason Biggs), the title character of the 2001 comedy, Saving Silverman. She ruthlessly controls everything in his life, from his wardrobe to the music he listens to, even forcing him to receive cosmetic surgery on his behind, which prompts his lifelong friends, Wayne (Steve Zahn) and J.D. (Jack Black), to stop their impending nuptials.

Martin Burney (Sleeping With The Enemy)

In director Joseph Ruben's 1991 adaptation of Nancy Price's novel, Sleeping with the Enemy, a constant pattern of abuse from her husband, Martin (Patrick Bergin), leads Laura Burney (Academy Award winner Julia Roberts) to fake her death and escape the marriage. Unfortunately, after donning a new identity and settling down in Iowa, where she strikes up a romance with a local named Ben (Kevin Anderson), she discovers that Martin has managed to track her down, not willing to let her go.

Amy Dunne (Gone Girl)

Early on in Gone Girl, director David Fincher's 2014 adaptation of Gillian Flynn's bestselling mystery, it seems obvious to suspect the adulterous and emotionally distant Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) of foul play when his wife, Amy (Rosamund Pike), suddenly goes missing. The truth is, however, that the woman left on her own accord and strategically planted evidence to incriminate her husband, which is in no way a healthy method for dealing with marital woes.

Jack Torrance (The Shining)

In Stanley Kubrick's 1980 adaptation of Stephen King's The Shining, Jack (Jack Nicholson) and Wendy Torrance (Shelley Duvall) do not seem to have a particularly perfect marriage before they become caretakers at the Overlook Hotel. Things grow infinitely worse when the malevolent spirits of the Colorado resort drive Jack to become a vicious, deranged monster.

Rory Gilmore (Gilmore Girls)

Some Gilmore Girls fans believe that the show was ruined by the "will they, won't they" dynamic between Rory Gilmore (Alexis Bledel) and Jess Mariano (Milo Ventimiglia), and not just because it killed her relationship with Dean (Jared Padalecki). The ill-fated romance was merely the first of many selfish mistakes that Rory would make against her significant others that would ultimately cause some fans of the dramedy to completely turn on the character.

Christian (Midsommar)

Ari Aster told Birth.Movies.Death that he wanted to make his sophomore feature, 2019's Midsommar, a break-up movie based on a previous relationship of his, which makes a lot of sense when you consider the volatility of the relationship at the center of the folk horror story. You almost cannot help but feel happy for Dani (Florence Pugh) as she watches the selfish, emotionally stunted, and gaslighting Christian (Jack Reynor) burn to death before her very eyes at the end of the shocking A24 horror movie classic.

Ginger McKenna (Casino)

Sharon Stone's character from the 1995 Martin Scorsese movie, Casino, has just about all the most essential criteria for an unfavorable wife, from her hustling schemes, her greedy motivations, and her adulterous habits. Of course, in addition to being a bad spouse, Ginger is an even worse mother, having tied her daughter to a bed so she could have a night out clubbing on her own.

David McCall (Fear)

While there are quite a few romance movies that try to discredit the fatherly character's disapproval of his daughter's suitor, 1996's Fear is the movie that would teach audiences dad might know what he is talking about. Steven Walker (William Peterson) is the first to suspect that something is off about his daughter, Nicole's (Reese Witherspoon), new boyfriend, David (Mark Wahlberg) and, boy, do his instincts prove correct when he leaves a bloody trail that culminates in a terrifying attack on Nicole's family all for the sake of having her to himself.

Jan Levinson (The Office)

One of the best episodes of NBC's The Office, "Dinner Party," offers an inside look at the torrid relationship between Michael Scott (Steve Carell) and Jan Levinson (Melora Hardin), who invite their Dunder Mifflin coworkers into their condo for a memorable night. The couple's heated dispute over Michael's multiple vasectomies, Jan's obsession with her assistant (an aspiring musician), and more discords ultimately get the cops involved.

Nate Cooper (The Devil Wears Prada)

A good partner supports their significant other's professional career – a concept lost on Nate Cooper (Adrian Grenier) from 2006's The Devil Wears Prada. Grenier would even agree, in a 2021 oral history by Entertainment Weekly, that his character was a "fragile, wounded boy" who was not as grown-up as Andy (Anne Hathaway) and, thus, selfishly criticized her career decisions. Not to mention, reacting to her getting hired at a fashion magazine by asking if it was a phone interview is unforgivably rude.

Asami Yamazaki (Audition)

The premise of Takashi Miike's acclaimed Japanese horror movie, 1999's Audition – in which a widower holds a fake movie casting session to find a new wife – seems to paint Ryo Ishibashi's character as the villain. However, one might agree that his actions, which did come from a place of sincerity, are not worthy of the sadistic, demented punishment that his new lover, Asami (Eihi Shiina), performs on him.

Josh (Companion)

Including Jack Quaid's character from the 2025 sci-fi movie, Companion, might be a bit of a stretch, considering Iris (Sophie Thatcher) is not really Josh's girlfriend but a highly advanced machine he purchased – er, rented. Discovering this helps her realize that the man she thought she loved is a pathetic, selfish, controlling, and violent loser, making this friendly robot the hero of the story.

Lisa (The Room)

In 2003's The Room, Lisa (Juliette Danielle) decides, completely out of the blue, that she no longer loves her "future husband," Johnny (writer, producer, and director Tommy Wiseau), and engages in an affair with his best friend, Mark (Greg Sestero), which ultimately drives Johnny to take his own life. Regardless of the cult favorite's reputation for its thoroughly nonsensical storyline, if there is one earnest analysis we can make about this awesomely cheesy movie, it is that Lisa was wrong to tear Johnny apart like that.

Nate Jacobs (Euphoria)

One of the strongest aspects of HBO's acclaimed coming-of-age drama, Euphoria, is the grounded ways it depicts certain archetypes that are commonly found in the modern high school environment. For instance, Nate Jacobs (Jacob Elordi) – the former boyfriend of Maddy Perez (Alexa Demie) and Cassie Howard (Sydney Sweeney) – is, practically, the teenage poster child for toxic masculinity and internalized homophobia.

Lila West (Dexter)

Sometimes it is crazy to think that one of the worst major villains on Dexter was, at one time, a love interest of Michael C. Hall's titular homicidal vigilante. When his relationship with Rita hits a rough patch in Season 2, Dexter indulges in a relationship with his rehab sponsor, Lila West (Jaime Murray), who proves to be a worse sociopath than he is.

Alex Le Domas (Ready Or Not)

In 2019's Ready or Not, instant classic horror movie final girl Grace (Samara Weaving) discovers she is the target of her in-laws' deadly game of Hide-and-Seek, which her husband, Alex Le Domas (Mark O'Brien), initially tries to help her escape. However, when she rejects him as a result of the trauma his murderous, Satanic family caused (and which he failed to properly warn her about before tying the knot), he betrays her and submits to the ritual to sacrifice her which, thankfully, gloriously backfires on them.

Stacey (American History X)

Derek Vinyard's (Edward Fulong) relationship with his girlfriend, Stacey (Fairuza Balk), in 1998's American History X, seemed to be at its best before his three-year stint in prison when they both were on the same page about white supremacy. After he returns and tries to convince her to leave the neo-Nazi movement with him, she thinks he is nuts to abandon that kind of life, which is an automatic dealbreaker. Good on him.

Jeffrey Fecalman (Family Guy)

In a rare dramatic moment from Family Guy, the animated series addressed the topic of domestic abuse by introducing Quagmire's (creator Seth MacFarlane) sister, Brenda (Kaitlin Olson), and her vile, deadbeat boyfriend, Jeff (Ralph Garman). After suffering to see her submit to Jeff's verbally and physically cruel treatment, Quagmire conspires with Peter (MacFarlane) and Joe (Patrick Warburton) to actually murder him.

Mrs. Griffith (Easy A)

Not only does high school guidance counselor Mrs. Griffith (Friends cast member Lisa Kudrow) cheat on her dear husband and coworker (played by Thomas Haden Church) but she does so with a student. This makes her one of the least likable characters in 2010's Easy A by a landslide.

Jason "J.D." Dean (Heathers)

In 1988's darkly comic high school movie favorite, Heathers, Veronica Sawyer (Winona Ryder) falls for J.D. (Christian Slater). Of course, their relationship is ruined when she discovers he is a homicidal sociopath.

Meredith Blake (The Parent Trap)

In the 1998 remake of The Parent Trap, Elaine Hendrix plays the elitist, materialistic, and, ultimately, evil potential stepmother to Lindsay Lohan's dual roles as estranged twin sisters, Annie and Hallie, who torture her with a series of increasingly brutal pranks. This drives Meredith to force Nick (Dennis Quaid) to choose between her or the siblings and, much to his credit, he promptly ends the relationship by choosing his daughters.

Chuck Bass (Gossip Girl)

There is a case to be made that Ed Westwick's Chuck Bass was one of the more charming characters in the Gossip Girl cast. Of course, this was a façade to downplay his unbelievably toxic and misogynistic behavior, especially at the expense of his girlfriend-turned-wife, Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester).

Jenny “G-Girl” Johnson (My Super Ex-Girlfriend)

In almost any other case, finding out that your significant other is a superhero would be pretty cool. However, in the case of Matt Saunders (Luke Wilson) from director Ivan Reitman's My Super Ex-Girlfriend, it's a nightmare because Jenny Johnson (Uma Thurman), who fights crime as G-Girl, is a needy, jealous, manipulative woman who uses her powers as revenge on Matt after he dumps her.

Adrian Griffin (The Invisible Man)

Writer and director Leigh Whannell brilliantly reimagined H.G. Wells' seminal story, The Invisible Man, into something of a sci-fi version of Sleeping with the Enemy with his 2020 hit. It follows Cecilia Kass (Elisabeth Moss) who, after escaping her marriage to abusive optics engineer Adrian Griffin (Oliver Jackson-Cohen), becomes convinced that he has found a way to continue stalking her and controlling her every move without being seen.

Lori (Total Recall)

Imagine finding out everything you thought you knew about your life was a lie, including your marriage. That is what happens to Douglas Quaid (Arnold Schwarzenegger) in the 1992 sci-fi thriller, Total Recall, who eventually shoots and kills the secret agent he thought was his wife, Lori (Sharon Stone), before quipping, "Consider that a divorce."

Digital visual effects have been an integral part of the filmmaking process for decades but their increased use over the years has had some moviegoers convinced that Hollywood is far too reliant on creating worlds with a computer. Well, allow us to prove to you that practical effects do still exist by highlighting some modern classics that have honored the old-fashioned ways of creating movie magic.

The Substance (2024)

As an eye-opening behind-the-scenes featurette for The Substance proves, director Coralie Fargeat went to great lengths to use as little CGI as possible to realize her vision for the film, which received five 2025 Academy Award nominations, including Best Makeup. Some of the most bizarre and disgusting shots of this intense body horror spectacle were captured on camera with shockingly realistic doubles for body parts, such as when Elisabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore) births her double, Sue (Margaret Qualley), out of her back.

Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018)

One of the most appealing aspects of the Mission: Impossible movies is their intense action sequences, achieved with little to no digital enhancement. Arguably, the franchise's most unbelievable practical stunt comes from Mission: Impossible - Fallout. Tom Cruise trained for weeks to perform a HALO jump out of a plane from 25,000 feet above the ground for a sequence that only required CGI to create the storm raging around Ethan Hunt as he descends.

Jurassic Park (1993)

While considered a revolutionary moment for CGI in movies with its timeless dinosaur creations, the first installment of the Jurassic Park movies also uses practical effects in very impressive ways. While the animatronic velociraptors are among the most famous examples, according to special effects designer Michael Lantieri in a video by Great Big Story, one of the most difficult effects was creating ripples in a cup of water to signal the T. Rex's approach, which was achieved by plucking a guitar string placed underneath the cup.

Inception (2010)

Some of the more surreal moments from Christopher Nolan's dream-exploring adventure Inception obviously could not have existed without CGI. However, as demonstrated in a behind-the-scenes DVD featurette, the scene when Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) engages in a brawl in a hotel that is literally spinning was achieved by rotating a hallway set on an axis and, for shots in zero-gravity, building a vertical hallway set and suspending the actors on wires.

The Shape Of Water (2017)

Guillermo del Toro's Oscar-winning romantic fantasy The Shape of Water begins with an opening credits sequence taking place in a fully submerged building filled with floating furniture. According to THR, the surrounding water was added digitally but the scene was still primarily achieved practically by having puppeteers control the movements of the suspended props.

Spider-Man (2002)

Sam Raimi, creator of the Evil Dead movies, became an inspirational indie film hero with the use of clever, homemade practical effects in the original horror classic and would maintain that sensibility when he helmed one of the best superhero movies, Spider-Man. For instance, as a DVD commentary reveals, the scene when Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) catches Mary-Jane (Kirsten Dunst) and her falling lunch on her tray was captured for real after 156 takes, with some help from an adhesive that kept the tray steadily attached to Maguire's hand.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

The design of BB-8 is so unique that it seems it could only be achieved in a galaxy far, far away but, according to the official Star Wars website, he was filmed practically here on Earth. The rolling droid was constructed for Star Wars: The Force Awakens with magnets and gyroscopes that allowed his head to remain attached as he rolled through the sand.

Apollo 13 (1995)

The zero-gravity sequences from the classic space movie, Apollo 13, are so realistic, it almost seems like director Ron Howard and co. would have had to leave Earth to shoot them. Actually, according to AV Club, they only had to travel about 36,000 feet above ground by building the set in a NASA training craft called the KC-135 (nicknamed the "vomit comet") which authentically creates the feeling of weightlessness by taking gravity-countering dives.

Oppenheimer (2023)

Christopher Nolan said that there were "zero CGI shots" in his Best Picture Oscar winner, Oppenheimer, which dramatizes the development of the atomic bomb. To clarify, as reported in Variety, CGI was used in some instances to improve a visual but not a single shot was entirely created with a computer, including the Trinity Test, which was filmed practically using miniatures that were blown up by the crew.

Mad Max Fury Road (2015)

CGI is primarily used in George Miller's exhilarating post-apocalyptic thriller, Mad Max: Fury Road, to improve certain visuals and remove equipment from the frame. However, as a behind-the-scenes feature found on the Blu-ray reveals, just about every wild, death-defying stunt that takes place in this post-apocalyptic action movie masterpiece was performed on camera and on location, such as the pole-vaulting stunts. Bonus fun fact: the Doof Warrior's guitar was an actual working flame-thrower.

Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (2004)

Director Michel Gondry's Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a film that does not fit neatly into any genre, thanks to its mind-bending fantasy visuals, many of which were achieved practically. For instance, as mentioned in an article from Focus Features' official site, the scene when Joel (Jim Carrey) and Clementine (Kate Winslet) appear to change size while walking around a set is achieved with a distortion chamber, which uses forced perspective to create the illusion that two people on opposite sides of a room are wildly different sizes.

Interstellar (2014)

The one scene from Christopher Nolan's breathtaking space epic, Interstellar, that, most surprisingly, is predominantly shot with practical effects sees Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) in a tesseract that allows him to literally interact with time itself. IndieWire reports that the sequence was achieved by projecting animated images onto thin strands of fabric that surrounded the fully built, life-size set which the actor was suspended inside.

Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)

Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert created a fantastic world (or, more accurately, worlds) for their Oscar-winning, beloved A24 movie, Everything Everywhere All At Once, with a unique combination of CGI and practical effects and the help of a five-person VFX team. As they explain in a video for Wired, the first time Evelyn (Michelle Yeoh) makes an interdimensional jump was done practically by shooting the actor being dragged to another corner of the office building in slow motion.

Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring (2001)

Peter Jackson and Co. easily could have used digital effects to make Elijah Wood's Frodo and other Hobbit characters appear much smaller than Gandalf (Sir Ian McKellan) in the Lord of the Rings movies. Instead, according to Wired, they went the old-fashioned route and used the simple act of forced perspective by placing actors further back in the frame to make them look smaller than the actor placed closer to the camera.

Grindhouse (2007)

Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino teamed up for a double feature that paid tribute to exploitative B-grade flicks of the '60 and '70s but only one of them really stayed true to the era's filmmaking principles. Rodriguez's Planet Terror relies heavily on CGI to create its grotesque world while Tarantino's Death Proof (according to Hagerty) is lauded for adding little to no digital enhancement to its crazy stunts, especially when Zoe Bell hangs on the hood of a car while being chased by Kurt Russell's Stuntman Mike.

The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

All three of Christopher Nolan's live-action Batman movies provide proof of his championing for capturing as many mind-blowing sequences on camera as possible, especially in The Dark Knight Rises. As a Business Insider feature details, the opening sequence, in which Bane (Tom Hardy) hijacks a CIA plane, was performed for real after obtaining permission to drop part of the plane from a helicopter over Scottish land.

1917 (2019)

One might assume that to create the illusion of being filmed in mostly one take, Sam Mendes' 1917 used a great deal of CGI to hide the seams. Truthfully, there were some Oscar-winning digital effects used in some key moments, such as the plane crash sequence, but, as detailed by The New York Times, the explosions from the climactic scene in which Schofield (George MacKay) runs across a field bombarded with bombs were authentic.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

In addition to its breathtaking stunts, such as in the iconic canal scene, one of the most impressive practical effects from Terminator 2: Judgment Day takes place in the director's cut when Sarah (Linda Hamilton) and John Connor (Edward Furlong) remove the T-800's (Arnold Schwarzenegger) chip from his head in front of a mirror. A video by Insider explains that in order to avoid the camera showing up in the mirror's reflection, the scene was instead shot in front of a window with a recreation of the set on the other side and Hamilton's twin sister, Leslie, mimicking her actions.

It (2017)

For his 2017 adaptation of Stephen King's It, director Andy Muschietti was initially planning on using CGI to give Pennywise a lazy eye to make the demonic clown even creepier. However, according to an exclusive interview with Entertainment Tonight, he discovered he did not need to use digital effects because Pennywise actor Bill Skarsgård can move his eye individually – a fact that It: Chapter Two star Bill Hader was frightened to learn on set, as he revealed on Conan.

Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban (2004)

Most of the magic from the Harry Potter movies is, obviously, brought to life with digital effects but there is one memorable, fantastic scene from the third installment, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, that was created on camera. A feature by ScreenRant explains that, for the scene in which Harry (Danielle Radcliffe) accidentally casts a spell that causes his Aunt Marge to blow up like a balloon, actor Pam Ferris wore a special suit and facial makeup prosthetics that could actually inflate.

Spider-Man 2 (2004)

Awarding the Oscar for Best Visual Effects to Spider-Man 2 was a no-brainer based on how realistic Doctor Octopus' mechanical arms look alone. As explained in a DVD bonus feature, CGI was used for most scenes involving Doc Ock's evil appendages but many of their movements were achieved with rigorous puppeteering which actor Alfred Molina was also heavily involved in.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024)

Michael Keaton said that it was important to him and director Tim Burton that the long-awaited Beetlejuice sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, use as many practical effects as possible. EW mentions that, just like in the 1988 original, sandworms were created with stop-motion animation for a scene when Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) and her daughter, Astrid (Jenna Ortega) find themselves on one of Saturn's moons.

The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021)

For Joel Coen's solo directorial debut, The Tragedy of Macbeth, the filmmaker wanted to give the adaptation of William Shakespeare's influential play a distinct look reminiscent of a theater stage. To create this aura, as seen on a featurette posted to YouTube by Apple TV+, life-size sets were built on a soundstage at the Warner lot and surrounded by matte paintings to fill in the backgrounds.

Midsommar (2019)

The secret to the visceral nature of the nightmares Ari Aster brings to life in his second great A24 horror film, Midsommar, is the use of practical effects, such as in the scene when an elderly villager has his face fatally smashed in after surviving a cliff jump. According to Vulture, the gruesome moment was filmed practically with a fake head equipped with pneumatic cylinders that could collapse and reset with the push of a button, allowing for multiple takes with the same prop.

Skyfall (2012)

What makes Daniel Craig's James Bond movies so memorable is the realism of their action sequences, such as the opening scene of Skyfall. A feature about the train fight from SlashFilm details just how challenging it was for director Sam Mendes and co. to shoot the scene on top of a real moving train.

Independence Day (1996)

The visual effects of the classic alien invasion movie, Independence Day, took home a well-deserved Oscar — not just for its convincing CGI but also for its more old-fashioned tricks. For instance, an article from the Director's Guild of America website explains that the destruction of recognizable landmarks like The White House and the Empire State Building was achieved with miniatures.

Tenet (2020)

Christopher Nolan goes above and beyond to create the most realistic and explosive action sequences possible, such as purchasing a real, full-size Boeing 747 only to destroy it. According to ScreenRant, that is how he shot the plane crash scene from Tenet.

Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

Enough time has passed since the 1986 original that Tom Cruise and Co. could have achieved aerial action sequences in Top Gun: Maverick on sound stages and with green screens. Instead, as detailed by IGN, the actors trained for months to actually go up in the air in military-grade jets equipped with cameras for the most realistic shots possible.

First Man (2018)

According to Digital Trends, First Man director Damien Chazelle wanted to shoot Neil Armstrong's (Ryan Gosling) moonwalk without green screens but in a place that could later be slightly augmented in post-production. They chose to shoot the sequence at an Atlanta quarry and some of the only digital trickery involved was to remove elements the filmmakers did not want to be reflected in the actors' astronaut helmet visors.

Barbie (2023)

Before her feet fall flat due to an existential crisis, Margot Robbie's eponymous role is introduced in Barbie with her feet in an inhumanly arched position. Director Greta Gerwig told The Project that his shot was not achieved with CGI but by anchoring Robbie's toes to the ground with double-sided tape.

Mary Poppins Returns (2018)

Emily Blunt made magic with her wonderful portrayal of the iconic, titular nanny in Mary Poppins Returns but that was not the only stellar trick the production pulled. For instance, as a special featurette shared on YouTube by Rotten Tomatoes reveals, the scene in which Mary and the children enter a magical realm through their bathtub was achieved with a slide built underneath the tub that was cleverly concealed with a thick layer of soap bubbles.

The French Dispatch (2021)

Wes Anderson movies like The French Dispatch exist in a world that could only come from the filmmaker's vast imagination. So, how are these striking, surreal images brought to life on camera? A video by Piercefilm Productions reveals some of the drama's most memorable visuals are created with a combination of miniatures and painted backgrounds.

The term “Final Girl” refers to the female protagonist in a slasher film, creature feature, or almost any other kind of thriller who, typically ends up being the last person standing against the main villain or obstacle. We looked back at some of the most iconic characters associated with this trope from some of the best horror movies of all time and came up with this assortment of the horror Scream Queens who come first in our hearts.

Sidney Prescott (Scream)

Neve Campbell's lead role from the 1996 Wes Craven-helmed classic is not actually the sole survivor of Ghostface's murder spree and would appear in several more sequels. However, Sidney Prescott is, essentially, the compendium of all the most inspiring Final Girls to come before her, especially when you consider that Scream was a compendium of all the best slasher movies to come before it.

Nancy Thompson (A Nightmare On Elm Street)

Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp) has a tougher break than most "Final Girls" as she never has a chance to have a moment's rest since sleeping makes her more vulnerable to Freddy Krueger's attack. However, she shows Robert Englund's iconic horror movie villain no mercy in the final act of 1984's A Nightmare on Elm Street, taking down the burned boogeyman Kevin McCallister-style before Home Alone was even conceived.

Sally Hardesty (The Texas Chain Saw Massacre)

Most "Final Girls" earn their merit from bringing their attacker to some sort of justice, which makes Marilyn Burns' role from The Texas Chain Saw Massacre an odd one out since Leatherface (Gunnar Hansen) is still alive and well by the end of Tobe Hooper's nightmarish 1974 classic. Yet, Sally Hardesty's sheer will to survive and ability to ultimately escape his sawblade and flesh-eating family should be commended, especially after all she goes through.

Alice Hardy (Friday The 13th)

It is a shame that, after surviving the events of 1980's Friday the 13th, Alice Hardy never had the opportunity to take on Jason Voorhees – a sentiment actor Adrienne King agrees with. Then again, she is the one who beheads the notorious killer's mother (and one of the greatest female horror movie villains), Pamela Voorhees (Betsy Palmer), essentially setting off Jason's vengeful killing streak, which makes her an undisputed legend of Crystal Lake lore.

Sarah Connor (The Terminator)

While more widely associated with classic action movies thanks to its later sequels, James Cameron's 1984 sci-fi masterpiece The Terminator is a slasher movie in its metallic bones. Thus, Linda Hamilton's Sarah Connor, whose son is destined to lead humanity in a revolt against mechanical overlords, should be recognized as a definitive "Final Girl."

Jess Bradford (Black Christmas)

Many audiences might know Olivia Hussey best from her star-making turn as the female lead of Franco Zeffirelli's 1968 adaptation of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. However, she is also an icon in the horror community for leading Bob Clark's 1974 holiday horror movie favorite, Black Christmas, as a college student who begins to suspect that she and her fellow sorority sisters are being stalked by a homicidal creep during winter break.

Jeryline (Tales From The Crypt Presents: Demon Knight)

Spun-off from the eponymous hit horror anthology TV show, 1995's Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight depicts the modern-day peak of an eternal quarrel between an immortal warrior (William Fichtner) and the demon (Billy Zane) he is sworn to fight against. However, by the end of the film, Jada Pinkett Smith's Jeryline proves to be out to be the true titular hero.

Sienna Shaw (Terrifier 2)

Only a lucky few have survived the many unspeakable acts by Art the Clown (David Howard Thornton), such as Sienna Shaw (Lauren LaVera) in Terrifier 2. Just as quickly as the creepy clown movies' horrifying harlequin became a hall-of-fame slasher villain, she became one of the top "Final Girls" of her generation, ensuring her return in Terrifier 3.

Ellen Ripley (Alien)

In Ridley Scott's terrifying, 1979 space movie masterpiece Alien, Ellen Ripley wound up becoming the sole survivor of the Xenomorph's attack on the Nostromo (unless you count the cat, Jones). Sigourney Weaver would return to the role bigger and better in James Cameron's more action-oriented 1986 favorite, Aliens, for which she earned an Academy Award nomination and a place among cinema's fiercest "Final Girls."

Laurie Strode (Halloween)

There are few horror movie icons more widely beloved as Academy Award winner Jamie Lee Curtis, particularly for her breakthrough performance as Laurie Strode in John Carpenter's riveting smash, Halloween. When the Haddonfield teen first took on Michael Myers in that 1978 classic, the "Final Girl" trope was essentially invented and every slasher movie protagonist has tried to live up to her influence since.

Ginny Field (Friday The 13th Part 2)

The first "Final Girl" in the Friday the 13th movies to take on the one, the only Jason Voorhees in 1981's Friday the 13th Part 2 is Ginny Field. Played by Amy Steel, she is also the one who discovered the horror movie villain's somewhat understandable motivation to avenge the death of his mother, which she cleverly used against him.

Julie James (I Know What You Did Last Summer)

Jennifer Love Hewitt's Scream Queen moment came when she led the cast of 1997's I Know What You Did Last Summer as Julie James. She would reprise the "Final Girl" role the following year in I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, which sees her still suffering the consequences of seemingly causing the death of an innocent man in a car accident.

Maxine Minx (X)

In Ti West's acclaimed 2022 A24 horror movie, X, Mia Goth's Maxine Minx became the only survivor of a massacre on the set of an adult film that was meant to be her big break. Luckily, as revealed in 2024's MaXXXine, she would go on to have a decent career in the industry, which would eventually win her a part in a legitimate horror film but not without a run-in with another crazed killer with a personal vendetta against her and the general moral decline of the '80s.

Erin Harson (You're Next)

In director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barrett's You're Next, a dysfunctional family gathering is interrupted by a group of masked assailants who keep their secluded home surrounded with deadly traps and weaponry. Luckily, they have some help from one family member's girlfriend, Erin Harson (Sharni Vinson), who is revealed to have been raised on a survivalist compound, making her one of the most refreshingly resourceful horror movie characters of all time, regardless of gender.

Clear Rivers (Final Destination)

For starters, is there a single horror movie "Final Girl" with a more wicked name than Ali Larter's character from 2000's Final Destination? It was a shame to see the Grim Reaper finally claim her soul in the sequel but her willingness to take that risk to help a new group of doomed characters makes Clear Rivers a legend.

Naru (Prey)

In 2022, Prey was criticized by a few for the "unrealistic" depiction of a petite, young, 18th Century Comanche woman single-handedly taking down a hulking extraterrestrial whose most notable adversary from the previous Predator movies was Arnold Schwarzenegger. Well, any true fan of the 1987 original should know that it takes brains and not brawn to defeat said creature, and Naru (Amber Midthunder) was one of the first humans to realize that instinct and use it to victory.

Dani Ardor (Midsommar)

One of the few "Final Girls" to willfully and effectively adopt the "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em" strategy is Dani Ardor (Oscar nominee Florence Pugh) from 2019's instant A24 movie classic, Midsommar. Not receiving the comfort she needs from her boyfriend, Christian (Jack Reynor), after suffering the horrifying loss of her entire family, she finally finds it when she attends a cultural festival run by a group of Swedish villagers who put a big smile on Dani's face as she watches them burn Christian alive.

Jamie Lloyd (Halloween 4: The Return Of Michael Myers)

Danielle Harris was only at least 11 when she earned Scream Queen status by following directly in the footsteps of the quintessential "Final Girl," Laurie Stroud. Harris stars in 1988's Halloween 4: The Return of the Michael Myers as the orphaned daughter of Laurie Strode, Jamie Lloyd, whose uncle makes her his next intended prey.

Mia Allen (Evil Dead)

Jane Levy proved that an Evil Dead movie without Bruce Campbell's Ash Williams in the lead is still worth hailing to with her performance in Fede Alvarez's 2013 reboot as Mia – an addict whose road to recovery is grossly interrupted by malevolent entities that turn her into a vessel of grueling terror. Luckily, her brother, David (Shiloh Fernandez), manages to cure her possession, leading to one relentlessly brutal final showdown between her and a boss Deadite.

Grace (Ready Or Not)

In Radio Silence's brilliant 2019 horror-comedy movie, Ready or Not, Samara Weaving plays the newly married Grace, who falls prey to a ritual that forces her entire extended family to hunt her to death. While she does receive some help from her brother-in-law and it is ultimately Satan's wrath that saves her, she manages to outrun, outwit, and out-fight many of them and (mostly) maintain her sanity throughout the bloody ordeal.

Adelaide/Red (Us)

Throughout much of Jordan Peele's 2019 sophomore effort, Adelaide (Oscar winner Lupita Nyong'o) has the audience's full support until the shocking Us ending that reveals she was her tethered duplicate Red the whole time, having switched with the real Adelaide decades ago. This marks one of the few instances in which the "Final Girl" (who does manage to save her entire family from the Tethered) is revealed to be the true villain in the end.

Casey Cooke (Split)

One of the various roles that have made Anya Taylor-Joy a great Scream Queen for her time is Casey Cooke from the 2017 M. Night Shyamalan movie, Split. She cleverly uses her own history of abuse as a weapon against her captor... or, more accurately, "captors," since James McAvoy's Kevin Wendell Crumb is a DID patient housing a few unfavorable personalities

Dana Polk (The Cabin In The Woods)

In director Drew Goddard's ingenious horror genre deconstruction The Cabin in the Woods, a group of college students fall prey to strange and terrifying circumstances on a camping trip, unaware it is all part of a ritual that requires people with their common personality types. Dana Polk (Kristin Connolly) absolutely fits "The Facility's" definition of a "Final Girl" but she ends up being the kind who also stands her ground and ends up turning the tables on them, in spite of the apocalyptic circumstances.

Sarah Carter (The Descent)

What makes 2005's The Descent a special kind of horror film that acknowledges grief is that Sarah Carter (Shauna Macdonald) is a protagonist who defies expectations with her resilience. She endures the loss of her husband and daughter, the discovery that her husband was being unfaithful with one of her best friends, and being trapped in an unexplored cavern with man-eating mutants like a total boss.

Kirsty Cotton (Hellraiser)

It's bad enough that Kirsty Cotton (Ashley Laurence) struggles to warm to her stepmother, Julia (Claire Higgins), in Clive Barker's 1987 favorite, Hellraiser. However, learning that Julia was murdering men so that she could reunite with her reanimated lover, Frank (also Kirsty's uncle) who has escaped captivity from a group of sadomasochistic demons is quite a challenge.

Jen (Revenge)

At the beginning of Coralie Fargeat's 2018 feature debut, Revenge (indeed one of the best revenge movies), Jen (Matilda Lutz) comes off as a conceited bimbo. However, after her boyfriend's business partner takes advantage and, instead of offering help, the boyfriend leaves her for dead in the Moroccan desert, she proves to them that she is not one to mess with and to us that she is a resilient hero worth rooting for.

Tree Gelbman (Happy Death Day)

Tree Gelbman is one of the few "Final Girls" who actually does die in her own movie... multiple times. Writer and director Christopher Landon's Happy Death Day is a fun slasher-style take on the time loop movie genre in which Jessica Rothe's protagonist finds herself reliving the same day over and over again and must use her "unlimited lives" to figure out who has been trying to kill her.

Alison Parks (Chopping Mall)

Chopping Mall is a 1986 cult favorite from producer Roger Corman in which a group of teens become locked inside a shopping center with security robots that have gone inexplicably haywire. The way Kelli Maroney's Allison Parks claps back at the machines with their own catchphrase ("Have a nice day!") before making junk out of them makes this awesomely cheesy movie worth a watch.

Maddie Young (Hush)

One of Mike Flanagan's best movies, 2016's Hush, is a creepy, well-crafted thriller about an author named Maddie (Kate Siegel) whose secluded home is invaded by a masked murderer (John Gallagher Jr.). Despite having lost her ability to hear as a teenager, Maddie prevails in her deadly cat-and-mouse game with the stranger using her sharp instincts.

Emerald Haywood (Nope)

If not for its stunningly unique take on the alien invasion movie genre or its clever satirical commentary on the influence of spectacle, the number one reason to see Jordan Peele's 2022 thriller Nope is Emerald Haywood. Keke Palmer's infectious, scene-stealing performance as the ambitious, amateur UFO hunter makes the character a standout "Final Girl" (of sorts) for the ages.

Jessie Burlingame (Wrong Turn)

Wrong Turn – in which six people fall prey to a group of murderous mutants when they become stranded in the middle of nowhere – is one of the more underrated slasher-style thrillers of the early 2000s. In the same breath, Eliza Dushku's character, Jessie Burlingame, is one of the more underrated "Final Girls" of her time, bearing the right amount of intelligence and resilience to be considered a worthy horror movie hero.

Marybeth Dunston (Hatchet)

Some "Final Girls" have remained staples of their respective franchises, even if that means recasting them with different actors. For instance, Marybeth Dunston was originally played by Tamara Feldman in 2006's Hatchet but was portrayed in the next three sequels by Halloween franchise star Danielle Harris.

Ari Aster’s folk horror film Midsommar truly is one of those movies you can only watch once following a young woman and her boyfriend drawn into a violent cult. Even when the A24 movie was first screened, people watching it were dropping F-bombs due to its disturbing nature. Midsommar’s lead, Florence Pugh, says she felt just as affected by her emotional performance going as far as to say, “I abused myself.”

To say that Midsommar is a wild vacation movie where everything goes wrong would be an understatement. Florence Pugh’s Dani is a grieving young woman whose sister undergoes a murder/suicide on herself and their parents. She and her very distant boyfriend are invited by a friend to a Swedish midsummer festival where they experience a bunch of disturbing rituals from commune members. On Reign with Josh Smith podcast, the British actress spoke about the importance of “protecting” herself from fully absorbing a role too much, saying “I abused myself” during Midsommar:

Florence Pugh certainly gave so much emotion in the summer horror flick. In the opening scene when Dani discovers the death of her family, the agonizing cries she gives out as she cuddles into her boyfriend are like nothing you’ve ever seen or heard before. It’s the same with the scene when Dani has a panic attack at the festival with the cult members mirroring her cries. I can understand Pugh diving headfirst into the role to give audiences a memorable performance, but still checking in with herself on whether or not going into her character’s intense headspace is too much for her.

The Oscar nominee has previously spoken about how Midsommar was not an easy film to be in. Other than how “hard” shooting was filming in a hot field of spiders and wasps, Florence Pugh had said playing Dani took a toll on her having to imagine the worst things to play a character in a lot of pain. It proves what kind of dedication an actress is willing to put herself through to give a believable performance.

Despite what an emotionally taxing acting experience shooting Midsommar was, Florence Pugh said she carries no shame with her:

While diving deep into Dani’s mindset may not have been easy for Florence Pugh, she still helped make Midsommar the movie that was on the minds of everyone watching. You could argue it was the Black Widow actress’s best movie of the ‘10s. She was also nominated at the Gotham Independent Film Awards, won the Santa Barbara International Film Festival Virtuoso Award, and placed third as Best Actress with the National Society of Film Critics. After being put through the wringer in the slow-burning horror film, Pugh demonstrated her range as an actress, giving her genuine rising star status.

Florence Pugh’s emotional Midsommar performance as Dani remained in her mind five years after its release. It proves that while actresses can leave a role behind when filming is over, a role can’t always leave its actress. As Pugh “abused” herself to feel what her character felt, she created a portrayal that still resonates with audiences today. If you’re brave enough to revisit what the Oppenheimer actress described as a “beautiful nightmare" of a film, Midsommar is available on your Max subscription.

Movies about trips gone wrong are as old as Hollywood. Some of the funniest, scariest, or most stressful films come from this sub-genre and we are here to celebrate those movies with this list. Whether it's a classic comedy like City Slickers or an action/horror movie like Deliverance, these are our favorite movies about vacations that ended up a total nightmare.

National Lampoon's Vacation

You can't have this list without the all-time classic road trip disaster that is National Lampoon's Vacation. Everyone has been on a family road trip; it's a rite of passage in the United States. Thankfully, most don't go as bad as this Griswold's Chicago-to-California trip to WallyWorld. It's such a classic that it launched a mini-franchise.

Deliverance

There is no movie ever made about a camping trip that goes as bad as Deliverance. The Burt Reynolds-led classic from 1972 has become a cliche for a nightmare of a canoe trip (or really any trip into "the hills." All the guys wanted to do was canoe a river one last time before it was dammed up. The locals had a different idea entirely.

The Great Outdoors

Chet Ripley (John Candy) just wanted to have a classic summer vacation in the woods with his family. Unfortunately, like so many dads before him and after him, the trip went a completely different direction once his obnoxious brother-in-law, played by Dan Aykroyd showed up uninvited with his family. At least Aykroyd has some classic John Hughes quotes in the movie.

The Hangover

It's not usual for a bachelor party in Vegas to go a little sideways, but we sure hope none have gone quite as disastrous as Doug's party in Vegas the night before he got married. What started as a quick shot on the roof of Caesar's Palace in The Hangover, ended with Doug missing, a stolen police car, a surprise wedding, and more. At least almost all of Alan's quotes in The Hangover (by actor Zach Galifianakis) are hilarious.

The Beach

Imagine finding paradise in Thailand while trying to find yourself as a young college-age kid, and then imagine that dream spot becoming a total nightmare. That's what happens in The Beach. Richard (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his friends manage to find the mysterious, beautiful beach, and everything is idyllic—until the community (and its leader) go to extreme lengths to keep the beach a secret.

Home Alone

Home Alone isn't about the vacation itself, it's about the kid left behind as the rest of his family heads to Paris. Things go pretty well for Kevin (Macaulay Culkin) at home as he triumphantly defeats the Wet Bandits, but for the family on vacation, especially Kevin's mom (Catherine O'Hara), it is pretty much a nightmare as she (and they) try to get home to him.

The Cabin In The Woods

There is nothing better as a college kid than finding an out-of-the-way place, like a cabin in the woods, to spend some time partying with your best buds. That is, unless, you're one of the kids in The Cabin In The Woods where everything about your trip is being messed with by some crazy scientists trying to conduct a psychotic "experiment" with cabin... and the kids.

Anyone But You

Imagine finding yourself at a destination wedding with a one-night stand who you detest after things went sour quickly. For Bea (Sydney Sweeney) and Ben (Glen Powell), it's a Shakespeare play come to life. They secretly still really like each other, but neither can let the other know and the idyllic vacation/wedding is anything but. At least at first.

City Slickers

Dude ranches were all the range in the 1990s and the Billy Crystal classic City Slickers is a big reason why they were so popular. It's strange that people had any interest in spending their vacation time at one, given how horrible the trip goes in the movie.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Murder mystery parties are a nightmare even when they go perfectly, or at least they are for some people. Other people seem to like them. Even those people wouldn't love them much if they went the way the party goes in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. Old friends turn enemies in this disaster of a trip that is manipulated by their mysterious, rich friend.

Bad Trip

Eric André and Lil Rel Howery star in Bad Trip and the name pretty much says it all. It's a classic road trip-gone-bad movie as the two stars try to make it from Florida to New York. It's an underrated comedy that had a bunch of problems upon its release and as a result, not enough people have seen it.

I Know What You Did Last Summer

To be clear, pretty much everything that goes wrong in the horror flick I Know What You Did Last Summer is the fault of the selfish college kids on the vacations. We're meant to like them, of course, but it's hard to like any of them after everything they do.

Get Out

Meeting your significant other's parents is always a little stressful. For Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) in Get Out, it starts out actually pretty well. His white girlfriend's parents are perfectly fine, it seems with their daughter dating a Black man, something he was worried about. Of course, things turn into a nightmare when he finds out what is really going on and why her parents are so "cool" about things.

Weekend At Bernie's

Is Weekend at Bernie's really a vacation movie? Well, kind of, right? After Larry (Andrew McCarthy) and Richard (Jonathan Silverman) expose company fraud to their company's owner, Bernie, the boss invites them out to his place in the Hamptons for the weekend. Well, we all know what happens next and while Bernie never intended for it to be a vacation for our heroes, things go from bad to worse when Bernie dies.

Summer Rental

John Candy found his way into quite a few vacation disaster movies. Summer Rental might not be the best-remembered one, but boy is it a disaster. What was supposed to be a nice 5-week vacation in Florida meant to reduce stress turns into the most stressful beach vacation you can ever imagine as literally everything goes wrong.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

There is no worse nightmare than trying to escape to paradise for a while to forget your ex-girlfriend only to find out she's at the same resort with her new, extremely obnoxious boyfriend. That's exactly what happens to Peter (Jason Segel) as he tries to leave his heartache behind in Forgetting Sarah Marshall. At least he meets Rachel (Mila Kunis) who is way cooler than Sarah (Kristin Bell).

The Sure Thing

The Sure Thing has some of John Cusack's most iconic quotes. Of course, that's because he's trying to make the most of a cross-country road trip that turns into a total disaster. Everything goes wrong as he tries to deal with a travel partner who he hates and who hates him. It's also a wonder rom-com as they end up falling in love after bonding over how bad the trip is.

Jurassic Park

Not everyone on the trip to Jurassic Park in Jurassic Park are there for a vacation, but the two kids, Lex and Tim, are there for one. Boy oh boy does it going bad for them! All they thought they were doing is seeing their grandfathers amazing new bio-park. Instead, they are almost eaten again and again!

National Lampoon's European Vacation

The Griswolds returned for their second vacation in National Lampoon's European Vacation. Unfortunately for Clark (Chevy Chase) and his family, things go as bad as they did when they drove to WallyWorld. They aren't in the car as much, but when they are, it's maybe worse when they drive by Big Ben and Parliament for hours.

Couples Retreat

Most couples look forward to a weekend away together. Other couples use time away as a chance to rekindle their relationship and get things back on a good track. The latter is what is happening in Couple's Retreat, but with "vacations" like that, who needs the stresses of home to ruin marriages?

Gotcha!

It was supposed to be a dream summer trip for a college kid exploring Europe in too-often forgotten Gotcha! starring Anthony Edwards. It turns into a Cold War nightmare when Jonathan (Edwards) meets an exotic woman named Sasha (Linda Fiorentino), who turns out to be a spy.

One Crazy Summer

As summer jobs and vacations go, things could be a lot worse than what happens to Hoop (John Cusack) in One Crazy Summer. He finds love with Cassandra (Demi Moore) and makes some life-long friends. But it all comes with some serious challenges along the way that Hoop and his friends must overcome.

A Very Brady Sequel

Taken straight from the classic show, A Very Brady Sequel sees the whole family traveling to Hawaii to rescue Carol from an unscrupulous con man who has kidnapped her. That might not sound like a vacation, but the family still manages to make the most of their time on the islands, but even that goes wrong.

What About Bob?

Psychiatrist Dr. Leo Marvin (Richard Dreyfuss) takes his family on their annual vacation to Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire. It's going as planned until a borderline psychopath patient of Leo's named Bob Wiley (Bill Murray) shows up and does his best to ruin Leo's life and vacation.

Brokedown Palace

You know those announcements at the airport that tell you not to accept things from strangers to take on the plane with you? It seems like common sense, but Darlene (Kate Beckinsale) and Alice (Claire Danes) don't heed that warning and unknowingly smuggle drugs into Thailand and their dream vacation turns into a prison nightmare quickly.

Spider-Man: Far From Home

When you think about movies about bad vacations, superhero stories may not stand out, but Tom Holland/MCU Spider-Man movies break that. Spider-Man: Far From Home starts as an amazing school trip to Venice, but is interrupted in a violent fashion when the Water Elemental attacks the city. It's not what you expect from a school trip, that's for sure. It's far from the final twist in the movie though.

Us

Director Jordan Peele followed up one vacation nightmare movie (Get Out) with another one, Us. Us is an equally disturbing vacation movie, based on a more traditional beach vacation. What makes it worse is that Addy (Lupita Nyong'o) saw it coming. She knew what was up.

Vegas Vacation

Once again the Griswolds, led by Clark, set out to have a good, fun, family vacation, this time in Sin City. Vegas Vacation, like the two previous (actual) vacations in the series, turns into a total disaster for almost everyone except Cousin Eddy. Clark loses all his money gambling, the kids get into all kinds of trouble, and Ellen (Beverly D'Angelo) almost gets seduced by Wayne Newton.

EuroTrip

Things start badly for Scotty (Scott Mechlowicz) when he gets dumped in the most brutal fashion after graduating high school. They get worse when he is cut off from his German pen pal. To save things, he decides to head to Europe to meet her in person. The trip, of course, is a total disaster, at least until the very end, when it gets much better. It takes a lot to get there, though.

Thelma And Louise

People forget that Thelma (Geena Davis) and Louise (Susan Sarandon) were just planning a weekend getaway up to the mountains to escape life for a bit. Instead, their quick jaunt turns into a run from the law after Louise shoots a man assaulting Thelma after a night in a bar. It's an amazing adventure, but it doesn't end the way you want your vacations to end, that's for sure.

Midsommar

Dani (Florence Pugh) has had a rough year after the death of her sister and an increasingly hostile boyfriend. She decides to take up a friend's offer to travel to a midsummer festival that only happens once every 90 years in rural Sweden. Instead of a festival celebrating rebirth and life, it turns out the commune where it is being held is nothing short of a hedonistic nightmare.

Home Alone 2: Lost In New York

In the first Home Alone, the vacationing family are the ones having the real disastrous trip. In the second installment, the trip starts off as a nightmare for Kevin (Macaulay Culkin) but once again really affects his family much worse than it does for him, even though he's the one that has to meet a certain future politician in the movie. Things always seem to work out for Kevin.

In just the past few years, director Ari Aster has delivered some truly scary movies, some of which rank alongside the best horror films of all time. His second feature film, Midsommar, had similar vibes to Hereditary (his first motion picture), as both offered twisted tales featuring characters being consumed by the unsettling worlds they entered. That’s certainly true of Florence Pugh's Dani, the protagonist of Aster's 2019 effort. The A24 film’s lead is now offering up her own interpretation of the movie’s fiery ending.

A “beautiful nightmare," as Florence Pugh described, the film tracks Dani, as she accompanies her boyfriend and others on a visit to a cult in Sweden. The wild ending of Midsommar sees Dani being named the Hårga’s May Queen, who must choose the ninth sacrifice to rid the twisted group of evil. Covered in colorful flowers with that memorable frown on her face, Dani chooses her partner, Christian, after catching him in a sexual ritual. He's then stuffed in a disemboweled bear’s body and forced to become enflamed in the wooden temple with eight other members.

Florence Pugh shared her take on that twisted ending while answering questions with Andrew Garfield -- who she starred alongside in the 2024 movie release We Live in Time -- for the WIRED Autocomplete Interview. She acknowledged the common belief that the character is having a "psychotic break" in that moment, but went on to say that she believes there's more to it:

It’s true that after Dani suffered the loss of her sister and parents due to carbon monoxide poisoning, she felt lost. You could tell even through her interaction with Christian, who she was in a horrible toxic relationship with, that he could hardly comfort her when she needed it most. After the Hårga cult gave Dani comfort in her tears, even if it was all in mimicry, she felt a sense of belonging there and not knowing where else to turn to.

When seeing that child-like smile on Dani’s face while she watches the temple burning -- with her boyfriend in it -- one could get the sense that she’s consumed in the Swedish cult and no longer connected to reality. And, yes, you can argue that Dani is experiencing a psychotic break, in which what looks disturbing to us appears beautiful in her eyes.

While I understand Florence Pugh’s interpretation, I’m leaning more towards Ari Aster’s ending interpretation. The Falling actress believes Dani didn’t know what she was doing by picking Christian as the final sacrifice, feeling that she was more distracted by the fire going up as opposed to doing anything “sinister.”

The Beau is Afraid director said he was inspired to write the movie after experiencing a breakup. He seems to believe in his “perverse, wish-fulfillment fantasy” that Dani was fully aware of what was happening to Christian after being engulfed in flames at the temple. Even if Florence Pugh disagrees with her director’s interpretation, it appears that her vision for her character was what she needed to make the horror film’s ending all the more effective, and I would say it did the trick. You can watch her and Andrew Garfield's interview in full below:

Regardless of how fans interpret the ending, I think most would agree that Florence Pugh is amazing in the Ari Aster flick. Through her performance, she perfectly conveys that the Dani viewers see at the end of the movie is far removed from the person they met at the start of the movie. Needless to say, this is one of A24’s best horror films, and both Pugh and Ari Aster deserve their flowers for putting in the work.

If you dare to revisit it, Midsommar -- one of the ‘10s best movies -- is available to watch on your Max subscription. You can also watch Florence Pugh in the 2024 movie release of We Live in Time with limited showtimes in theaters now.

With the staggering number of great A24 movies we have seen in the last decade-plus, there is no doubt that it is my favorite production company working today. I am always looking forward to upcoming A24 movies because, every time I see that iconic logo appear on the screen, I know that I am about to witness something highly imaginative, emotionally investing, visually entrancing, and, in some cases, even life-changing. The best A24 movies cover various genres but I only took general quality in mind when deciding on the following picks for the beloved, Award-winning studio’s greatest hits available on streaming, as a digital rental, or on physical media.

Love Lies Bleeding (2024)

Director: Rose Glass

Starring: Kristen Stewart, Katy O’Brien

What it’s About: A gym manager falls for an aspiring athlete, but their blissful romance is interrupted by a deadly mistake.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: Glass’ second A24 production after Saint Maud, Love Lies Bleeding, is part love story, part bodybuilding drama, and could be described as neo-Noir but truly defies genre in its unique execution.

How To Watch Love Lies Bleeding

• Stream Love Lies Bleeding on Max
• Rent or buy Love Lies Bleeding on Amazon
• Buy Love Lies Bleeding on Blu-ray on Amazon

Civil War (2024)

Director: Alex Garland

Starring: Kirsten Dunst, Cailee Spaeny

What it’s about: A group of journalists travel across the country, where danger lurks at every turn.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: Perhaps the most potent example of Garland’s flair for grounded executions of horrifying concepts is the haunting Civil War, which imagines a dystopian America divided beyond repair.

How To Watch Civil War

• Stream Civil War on Max
• Rent or buy Civil War on Amazon
• Buy Civil War on Blu-ray on Amazon

The Iron Claw (2023)

Director: Sean Durkin

Starring: Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White

What it’s About: The historic rise of a family of aspiring wrestlers is cut short by a series of heartbreaking tragedies.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: Seen mostly through the eyes of Efron’s wonderful portrayal of Kevin Von Erich, A24’s first foray into sports movies, The Iron Claw, is a biopic that put critics and audiences into a devastating headlock.

How To Watch The Iron Claw

• Stream The Iron Claw on Max
• Rent or buy The Iron Claw on Amazon
• Buy The Iron Claw on Blu-ray on Amazon

Talk To Me (2023)

Director: Danny and Michael Philippou

Starring: Sophia Wilde, Alexandra Jensen

What it’s About: A group of young Australians discovers how to conjure spirits with a mysterious embalmed hand, but their thrilling activity begins to spiral horribly out of control.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: There are only so many demonic possession movies that feel somewhat unique but the Philippou Brothers achieved that rarity with their terrifying feature debut, Talk to Me.

How To Watch Talk to Me

• Stream Talk to Me on Paramount+ with Showtime add-on
• Stream Talk to Me on Hoopla
• Rent or buy Talk to Me on Amazon
• Buy Talk to Me on Blu-ray on Amazon

Past Lives (2023)

Director: Celine Song

Starring: Greta Lee, Teo Yoo

What it’s About: A married Korean native begins to reexamine her life after catching up with a childhood friend.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: Widely considered to be one of the best movies of 2023, Past Lives is a moving tale that explores how the reemergence of long-dormant feelings can cause one to imagine the other ways their lives could have turned out.

How To Watch Past Lives

• Stream Past Live on Amazon Prime
• Stream Past Lives on Paramount+ with Showtime add-on
• Buy Past Lives on Blu-ray on Amazon

Beau Is Afraid (2023)

Director: Ari Aster

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Parker Posey

What it’s About: A deeply paranoid man runs into one uproarious and horrifying roadblock after another while taking a trip to his mother’s house.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: From its opening sequence to the very end of Beau is Afraid, Aster’s absurd and demented odyssey on par with The Wizard of Oz will keep you locked in a chokehold of inescapable anxiety.

How To Watch Beau is Afraid

• Stream Beau is Afraid on Paramount+ with Showtime add-on
• Rent or buy Beau is Afraid on Amazon
• Buy Beau is Afraid on Blu-ray on Amazon

Uncut Gems (2019)

Director: Josh Safdie, Benny Safdie

Starring: Adam Sandler, Idina Menzel

What it’s About: A New York City jeweler lets his self-destructive tendencies get in the way of his attempt to earn the biggest profit possible from a rare opal.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: Howard Rattner is one of the most unlikable movie protagonists in recent memory but Sandler’s performance convinces the audience to root for him in the anxiety-fueled crime drama, Uncut Gems.

How To Watch Uncut Gems

• Rent or buy Uncut Gems on Amazon
• Buy Uncut Gems on Blu-ray on Amazon

Minari (2021)

Director: Lee Isaac Chung

Starring: Steven Yeun, Han Ye-ri

What it’s About: A South Korean immigrant moves his family from California to Arkansas in hopes of achieving a better life in the 1980s.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: Chung’s Oscar-winning, semi-autobiographical drama, Minari, is a moving reflection of the challenges that come from chasing the American dream.

How To Watch Minari

• Rent or buy Minari on Amazon
• Buy Minari on Blu-ray on Amazon

X (2022)

Director: Ti West

Starring: Mia Goth, Jenna Ortega

What it’s About: In the 1970s, a group of amateur filmmakers secretly shooting an adult film on a Texas farm suddenly fall prey to their elderly hosts.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: As a tribute to the best horror movies of the 1970s and a dark reflection of the era’s adult film industry, X is a cleverly nuanced and brazenly disturbing thriller.

How To Watch X

• Stream X on Max
• Rent or buy X on Amazon
• Buy X on Blu-ray on Amazon

Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)

Director: Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert

Starring: Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan

What it’s About: A laundromat owner is suddenly tasked with traveling the Multiverse in order to save humanity and reconcile her dysfunctional family.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: The visually inventive, action-packed, and unapologetically absurd Everything Everywhere All At Once is unlike any Best Picture Oscar winner (let alone any other film) you may have ever seen.

How To Watch Everything Everywhere All At Once

• Stream Everything Everywhere All At Once on Max
• Rent or buy Everything Everywhere All At Once on Amazon
• Buy Everything Everywhere All At Once on Blu-ray on Amazon

Marcel The Shell With Shoes On (2022)

Director: Dean Fleischer Camp

Starring: Jenny Camp, Dean Fleischer Camp

What it’s About: An adorably naive, talking mollusk becomes the subject of a documentarian’s latest film.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: CinemaBlend’s collective staff pick for the best movie of 2022 was the charming documentary-style comedy Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, which was nominated for a Best Animated Feature Oscar.

How To Watch Marcel the Shell with Shoes On

• Rent or buy Marcel the Shell with Shoes On on Amazon
• Buy Marcel the Shell with Shoes On on Blu-ray on Amazon

Locke (2013)

Director: Steven Knight

Starring: Tom Hardy

What it’s About: A family man and construction manager faces the life-altering consequences of a mistake over the course of one tumultuous night of driving down the highway.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: Told in real time and through a series of phone calls, Locke proves that a premise as simple as watching a man driving for nearly 90 minutes is enough to inspire heart-wrenching drama.

How To Watch Locke

• Stream Locke on Pluto TV
• Stream Locke on Plex
• Rent or buy Locke on Amazon
• Buy Locke on Blu-ray on Amazon

Ex Machina (2015)

Director: Alex Garland

Starring: Domhnall Gleeson, Alicia Vikander

What it’s About: A young computer programmer is selected to test the humanistic appeal of a robot named Ava, forcing him to confront his own humanity in the process.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: Garland’s directorial debut, Ex Machina, is a shocking cautionary tale in the vein of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein that questions what advantages (or disadvantages) could come from artificial intelligence if it does prove to be smarter than us.

How To Watch Ex Machina

• Rent or buy Ex Machina on Amazon
• Buy Ex Machina on Blu-ray on Amazon

Room (2015)

Director: Lenny Abrahamson

Starring: Brie Larson, Jacob Tremblay

What it’s About: A devoted mother known only as “Ma” tries to maintain a fulfilling environment for her young son, Jack, who has spent his entire life with her held captive by a kidnapper.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: Based on the hit novel by screenwriter Emma Donaghue and featuring an astounding, Oscar-winning performance by Larson in the lead, Room is an intense but beautiful thriller about the struggle to overcome boundaries and the fear of what lies beyond.

How To Watch Room

• Rent or buy Room on Amazon
• Buy Room on Blu-ray on Amazon

The End Of The Tour (2015)

Director: James Ponsoldt

Starring: Jason Segel, Jesse Eisenberg

What it’s About: Rolling Stone reporter David Lipsky spends five days interviewing acclaimed, but troubled, Infinite Jest author David Foster Wallace.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: Based on Lipsky’s memoir, Although of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself, The End of the Tour is a staggering, inspiring achievement that never falls prey to pretentiousness and features one of Segel’s best dramatic performances yet.

How To Watch The End of the Tour

• Stream The End of the Tour on Pluto TV
• Stream The End of the Tour on Plex
• Rent or buy The End of the Tour on Amazon
• Buy The End of the Tour on Blu-ray on Amazon

The Lobster (2016)

Director: Yorgos Lanthimos

Starring: Colin Farrell, Rachel Weisz

What it’s About: In a hopelessly bleak dystopia in which monogamy is a lawful priority, a divorced man struggles to find a romantic partner in 45 days or he will be surgically transformed into the animal of his choosing.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: For some, dating can feel like a race against time and the brutal, but hilariously bizarre, absurdist satire The Lobster imagines what would happen if the stakes really were that high.

How To Watch The Lobster

• Rent or buy The Lobster on Amazon
• Buy The Lobster on Blu-ray on Amazon

Moonlight (2016)

Director: Barry Jenkins

Starring: Mahershala Ali, Naomie Harris

What it’s About: A Black man struggles with a neglectful, crack-addict mother, his sense of identity, and his sexuality, receiving little guidance in his childhood from anyone but a drug-dealer named Juan.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: Also starring Alex R. Hibbert, Ashton Sanders, and Trevante Rhodes as the central character at three crucial stages of his life, Moonlight is a deeply moving and beautifully depicted drama that made history as the first LGBTQ+ movie to win the Best Picture Oscar.

How To Watch Moonlight

• Rent or buy Moonlight on Amazon
• Buy Moonlight on Blu-ray on Amazon

Lady Bird (2017)

Director: Greta Gerwig

Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Laurie Metcalf

What it’s About: Christine McPherson longs for a more sophisticated and adventurous existence outside of her California Catholic high school environment.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: Early-2000s teen angst is given a name – “Lady Bird” – in the sleeper hit that is now considered one of the best high school movies for its clever, quirky, and brutally honest commentary on adolescent struggle and its wonderful performances.

How To Watch Lady Bird

• Stream Lady Bird on Max
• Rent or buy Lady Bird on Amazon
• Buy Lady Bird on Blu-ray on Amazon

Good Time (2017)

Director: Josh and Benny Safdie

Starring: Robert Pattinson, Benny Safdie

What it’s About: A young petty criminal goes to increasingly extreme and despicable lengths to get his younger, mentally challenged brother out of his jail.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: The Safdie Brothers show their mastery for breathless, high-energy thrills by crafting Good Time into a one-of-a-kind cinematic roller coaster that reeks of ‘80s, guerilla-style inspiration.

How To Watch Good Time

• Rent or buy Good Time on Amazon
• Buy Good Time on Blu-ray on Amazon

Hereditary (2018)

Director: Ari Aster

Starring: Toni Collette, Alex Wolff

What it’s About: A family’s suffering in the wake of a tragedy slowly curdles into an unexplainable, unmerciful nightmare.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: If Hereditary put cheesy taglines promising hysterics and paralyzing fear on its poster, this signature A24-produced horror movie with an indescribably perfect performance by Collette would have been telling the truth.

How To Watch Hereditary

• Stream Hereditary on Netflix
• Rent or buy Hereditary on Amazon
• Buy Hereditary on Blu-ray on Amazon

Eighth Grade (2018)

Director: Bo Burnham

Starring: Elsie Fisher, Josh Hamilton

What it’s About: A 13-year-old girl tries to fit in with her classmates despite her introverted personality.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: The horrors of a student’s final year before high school should not be underestimated, and that is proven in Eighth Grade – a beautifully authentic commentary on early teenhood.

How To Watch Eighth Grade

• Rent or buy Eighth Grade on Amazon
• Buy Eighth Grade on Blu-ray on Amazon

The Farewell (2019)

Director: Lulu Wang

Starring: Awkwafina, Shuzhen Zhao

What it’s About: A Chinese-American woman attends a family gathering in China for her unsuspecting terminal grandmother disguised as a wedding.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: The premise of The Farewell sounds improbable until you discover the rough, but amusingly funny foreign language film is based on Wang’s own experience with a real Chinese tradition to withhold a relative’s imminent death from them.

How To Watch The Farewell

• Stream The Farewell on Max
• Rent or buy The Farewell on Amazon
• Buy The Farewell on Blu-ray on Amazon

Midsommar (2019)

Director: Ari Aster

Starring: Florence Pugh, Jack Reynor

What it’s About: A grieving young woman joins her emotionally distant boyfriend and his friends on a trip to a seemingly idyllic Swedish festival.

Why It’s One Of The Best A24 Movies: While not known for stories that are thematically bright and sunny, that is the aesthetic Aster chose for his sophomore effort, Midsommar – a unique blend of tranquil visuals with devastatingly twisted moments that make it an unforgettable, skin-crawling trip.

How To Watch Midsommar

• Rent or buy Midsommar on Amazon
• Buy Midsommar on Blu-ray on Amazon

I doubt that these will be the last A24 movies we recommend, so check out our upcoming 2024 movie schedule and any upcoming 2025 movies to see what the company has next in store. You can also keep an eye on what they have in store for the small screen with our upcoming A24 TV shows guide.

The 2010s were a transformative decade for movies as directors like Damien Chazelle, Greta Gerwig and Jordan Peele hit the mainstream, and many actors exploded into stardom or gave career-defining performances in movies like theirs. Now, it’s time to celebrate some of the best films of this decade and the performers who starred in them. 

Emma Stone – La La Land 

This ode to Old Hollywood and modern romance from Damien Chazelle is widely beloved in part because of Emma Stone's performance. If you go back to reviews for La La Land, you’ll see Stone and Ryan Gosling praised for their work as they played Mia and Sebastian, two aspiring artists who fall in love with each other. Notably, Emma Stone won her first Oscar for the film because of the wonderful performance she gave as the up-and-coming actress. 

Kristen Wiig – Bridesmaids

When it comes to Bridesmaids and all its hilarious lines and gags, we all need to say a collective thank you to Kristen Wiig. Not only did the Saturday Night Live alum lead the stellar ensemble cast of this 2011 flick, but she also wrote the movie with Annie Mumolo, and they got an Oscar nomination for it. 

Mahershala Ali – Moonlight

Moonlight, which famously won Best Picture in 2017, is a coming-of-age film that follows Chiron through three stages of his life, focusing on him exploring his sexuality and identity. In it, Mahershala Ali plays Juan, a man who has a pivotal role in Chiron’s early life. Famously, Ali won his first Oscar for his moving performance in this film. 

Daniel Kaluuya – Get Out

Get Out is considered one of the greatest horror movies of all time, and it marked the directorial debut of Jordan Peele. While this film about the deeply dark turn a trip takes after a white woman brings her Black boyfriend home to meet her family is career-defining for its director – as he’s gone on to become quite the name in the genre – it also marked a major breakout for Daniel Kaluuya who played the film’s lead, Chris. 

Amy Adams – Arrival 

Arrival is unquestionably one of Amy Adams’ best movies, and to this day, folks are still livid that she wasn’t nominated for an Oscar for it. She plays Louise, a linguist assigned to decipher and translate an alien language. However, as Arrival’s ending makes abundantly clear, there’s way more to it than that, and one of the major reasons this movie works is because of Adams’ masterful, emotional and nuanced performance. 

J.K. Simmons – Whiplash

In Whiplash, one of J.K. Simmons’ best films, he plays a brilliant and brutal jazz conductor and instructor named Terence Fletcher. During the film, Miles Teller plays a young drummer named Andrew who is determined to become great, and his intense relationship with Terence and the notion of being the best is what makes Damien Chazelle’s film magnificent. On top of its overall acclaim, Simmons also won an Oscar for his performance.

Hugh Jackman – Logan 

Logan was Hugh Jackman’s last ride as the Wolverine, and it was basically perfect. While he’s returned to the role since in Deadpool and Wolverine, Logan still serves as a wonderful conclusion to the iconic X-Man’s story. It was also a game-changing Marvel film, as it brought a level of grit and intrigue that we hadn’t really seen in a movie from this universe before. 

Ben Affleck – Argo 

Much like Good Will Hunting, Argo marked a major milestone in Ben Affleck’s career. It was one of the films that solidified him as a top-tier director, and on top of that, he also starred in the film about a CIA agent disguised as a producer who goes into Tehran on a mission to save a group of Americans. Oh, also, the film went on to win Best Picture at the Oscars too. 

Jesse Eisenberg — The Social Network

The Social Network cast is stacked, however, it wouldn’t be what it is without Jesse Eisenberg’s performance as Mark Zuckerberg at its center. His nuanced performance which is somehow both collected and chaotic compliments Aaron Sorkin’s fast-talking script perfectly, and he expertly helped build up tension in the film that director David Fincher is known for. All around, that made for a perfect, heart-pounding drama about the rise of Facebook.

Leonardo DiCaprio – The Wolf Of Wall Street  

While Leonardo DiCaprio has a long list of career-defining performances, and he and Martin Scorsese have made many great movies together, you can’t deny that his portrayal of Jordan Belfort in The Wolf of Wall Street tops that list. 

Brie Larson – Room

The film Room, which is about a mother and her son escaping captivity, is masterfully led by Brie Larson, who plays Ma. Both she and Jacob Tremblay, who played her son Jack, were praised for their performances, and in 2016, the actress won an Oscar for her work. 

Daniel Craig – Knives Out

Now, I know that Daniel Craig’s tenure as James Bond was still happening in the 2010s. However, an equally important and brilliant role he took on was as detective Benoit Blanc in Rian Johnson’s first whodunnit Knives Out. Now, after leading the cast of Knives Out, Craig has gone on to reprise his role as the Southern detective on multiple occasions, because he loves it and so do we. 

Ryan Gosling – Drive

If you look over Ryan Gosling’s best movies, on one side you’ll find his brilliant comedic films – like Barbie and The Nice Guys – and on the other side, you’ll find his stoic and dramatic performance, like the one he gives in Drive. Put simply, Drive wouldn’t work without the actor’s lead performance, because the entire film hinges on him and his abilities. 

Ryan Reynolds – Deadpool

After years of working to get it made and some well-timed leaked footage, finally, in 2016, Deadpool came out and we got to see Ryan Reynolds in his element as the Merc with a Mouth. 

Casey Affleck – Manchester By The Sea 

In a film about a man returning home to reckon with his past and grief after losing his brother, Casey Affleck gives an emotional and commanding performance. Not only did he win an Oscar for his work in this drama, but it’s also one of the big defining roles of his career. 

Chris Evans – Captain America: The Winter Soldier 

Chris Evans began and ended his tenure as Steve Rogers in the 2010s. While all his outings as the star-spangled man with a plan were excellent, nothing tops his performance as Cap in the political thriller that is the Russo brothers’ Captain America: The Winter Soldier, which is easily one of the best Marvel movies ever made. 

Ralph Fiennes – The Grand Budapest Hotel 

Under Wes Anderson’s precise direction, Ralph Fiennes occupied the pastel world of the Grand Budapest Hotel with grace and style. His fast-talking M. Gustave went on quite the adventure in this film, and he won over the hearts of audiences with his quick wit, smooth charm and impeccable work ethic. 

Natalie Portman – Black Swan 

Throwing it back to the beginning of the decade, Darren Aronofsky’s 2010 psychological thriller Black Swan showed us Natalie Portman’s talents in a new light. While she had been on the scene and in big movies for years, this film marked a major milestone in her career as her performance as a tortured ballerina got her an Academy Award. 

Matthew McConaughey – Dallas Buys Club

Obviously, for a couple of decades before this, Matthew McConaughey was known and beloved for fun movies like Dazed and Confused and How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days. However, in 2013, Dallas Buyers Club marked a notable shift in his career. Not only did he win an Oscar for this dramatic turn as a man who finds out he has AIDS, but he also went on to star in acclaimed projects like Interstellar and True Detective one year later, cementing himself as a magnificent dramatic actor with serious range. 

Jennifer Lawrence – Silver Linings Playbook

Yes, Jennifer Lawrence leading The Hunger Games cast is one of the biggest triumphs of her career. However, amid all of that, she starred in the beloved dramedy Silver Linings Playbook with Bradley Cooper, and that’s the film for which she won her Oscar. This magnificent film about two people learning to live and thrive through grief and mental illness, is a thoughtful and funny film that Lawrence steals with her amazing performance. 

Brad Pitt – Moneyball 

Moneyball is the story about the general manager of the Oakland A’s using his business savvy and what little money his team had to assemble a rag-tag team of MLB players. Brad Pitt plays said manager, Billy Beane, and I mean it when I say the movie really wouldn’t work without him. He’s at the center of it, and he carries it to victory just like his character did with the A’s.  

Chadwick Boseman – Black Panther 

We sadly lost Chadwick Boseman way too early, however, his legacy will live on forever. This is in part because of his performance as the King of Wakanda, T’Challa. Black Panther was a historic moment in modern movie history, and his incredible take on the titular hero is a big reason why. 

Margot Robbie – I, Tonya 

Before I, Tonya, Margot Robbie was beloved for her supporting and ensemble roles in films like The Wolf of Wall Street and Suicide Squad. However, one of the movies that helped solidify her as both a leading lady and super producer was I, Tonya. She played Tonya Harding and produced the film under the banner of her company LuckyChap – which went on to make films like Barbie and Promising Young Woman. 

Florence Pugh – Midsommar

Florence Pugh exploded onto the scene with the haunting Ari Aster film Midsommar. The movie is now considered one of the best horror movies of all time, and a big reason why is Pugh’s performance. 

Saoirse Ronan – Lady Bird

Talk about a dynamic duo. Greta Gerwig and Saoirse Ronan are a match made in heaven, and that was solidified into fact when the actress played the titular Lady Bird in the director’s breakout film. Not only did fans fall in love with Ronan’s performance as the defiant teenage gal, but she also received wide acclaim and an Oscar nomination for it. Plus, it was the beginning of a glorious partnership between her and Greta Gerwig as they then went on to make Little Women together. 

Timothée Chalamet – Call Me By Your Name

These days, when people think of Timothée Chalamet, they likely think of him as Paul Atreides, the leader of the Dune cast. However, before that (and in a different decade) the film that sprung him into the mainstream was Luca Guadagnino’s Call Me By Your Name. The deeply romantic and tender coming-of-age drama was led beautifully by Chalamet, and since then he’s taken on more roles that have helped cement him as one of the top-leading men of his generation. 

Anna Kendrick – Pitch Perfect

If you were a kid in 2012 (like I was), odds are you learned the “Cups” song. The movie about college acapella was a phenomenon in the early 2010s, and it served as a big breakout leading role for Anna Kendrick. Not only was she funny as Becca, but everyone also became aware that she had the singing voice of an angel.  

Lupita Nyong’o – 12 Years A Slave

Lupita Nyong’o’s first feature film was 12 Years A Slave. Her performance in the movie by Steve McQueen won her an Oscar in 2012 and solidified her as a top-tier dramatic performer. Since then, she’s gone on to star in massive blockbusters like Black Panther and A Quiet Place: Day One. 

Joaquin Phoenix – Joker

There have been many amazing takes on the Joker, and Joaquin Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck was a totally new one. In Joker, we see the villain’s origin story, and it’s a film that’s unlike any other DC project. The haunting performance ultimately won the actor an Oscar, and he reprised the part again in Joker: Folie à Deux.

Charlize Theron – Mad Max: Fury Road

The movie is named after Mad Max, and he’s great, don’t get me wrong, but Furiosa steals the show. Charlize Theron’s performance as the driver in Mad Max: Fury Road is fierce and jaw-dropping, and she’s one of many reasons why George Miller’s movie is considered one of the best action films. 

Michael Cera – Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

You can’t have Scott Pilgrim vs. The World without a perfect Scott Pilgrim and that’s who Michael Cera is. He perfectly played the awkward yet heroic protagonist in Edgar Wright’s beloved film, and to this day, it's considered some of his best work.

Matt Damon – The Martian

This Ridley Scott movie is literally about one man who is stuck on Mars. Yes, there are other people in the film trying to save him. However, overall, The Martian is Matt Damon’s movie. He plays the stranded astronaut and scientist, and the heart, charisma, intelligence and even humor he brings to the space drama is unforgettable. 

All around, the 2010s were full of films that are on their way to becoming all-time classics, and it’s in part thanks to the brilliant actors who starred in them. 

Whenever we talk about iconic movie couples, we tend to focus on the happy-go-lucky pairings where everything either ends well or they learn something before the credits roll. But not today. Instead, let’s look back at 32 movies with horrible toxic relationships where couples were doing more harm than good – to themselves and each other. Don’t worry, we’ll still be talking about some of the best romantic comedies of all time, but we’ll also dive into some messed-up relationships at the core of a few great psychological thrillers with unhappy endings, as well.

Gone Girl (Amy And Nick Dunne)

On top of featuring one of the best female villains in film history, David Fincher’s 2014 adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl has hands down one of the most toxic relationships of all time. Amy (Rosamund Pike) and Nick Dunne’s (Ben Affleck) horrible marriage, which leads to one party cheating and the other faking their own kidnapping to frame their “better” half, is one for the ages.

Fatal Attraction (Dan Gallagher And Alex Forrest)

When a relationship starts as an affair and leads to a boiling bunny and a vengeful wife getting all cold-blooded with a gun, you know it’s toxic. That’s the case for Dan Gallagher (Michael Douglas) and Alex Forrest (Glenn Close) in the ‘80s erotic thriller, Fatal Attraction.

Revolutionary Road (Frank And April Wheeler)

If you went into Revolutionary Road thinking that the characters played by Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet would be as lovey-dovey as the actors were in Titanic, you’ve got another thing coming. Sam Mendes’ take on Richard Yates’ 1961 novel is BRUTAL and centers on two people whose hatred for one another is something to behold.

Inception (Cobb And Mal)

Look beyond all the mind-bending visuals, intense action sequences, and myriad theories, and you’ll find a horrible toxic relationship at the core of Christopher Nolan’s Inception. Not even death could bring an end to the misery that was Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Mal’s (Marion Cotillard) tortured marriage.

Sid And Nancy (Sid Vicious And Nancy Spungen)

Chronicling one of the most infamous failed relationships in rock-n-roll history, Sid and Nancy is a tour de force of toxic energy. Centering on the final months and days in the relationship (and lives) of Sid Vicious (Gary Oldman) and Nancy Spungen (Chloe Webb), Alex Cox’s 1986 biopic is a lesson in what happens when a destructive relationship comes crashing down.

Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (Clementine And Joel)

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is without a doubt one of the best movies of the 2000s, but man, it’s one depressing trip. The story about a former couple (played by Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet) who go to extreme lengths to get over a failed relationship will certainly knock you down a peg and leave you never wanting to love ever again.

A Star Is Born (Jackson And Ally Maine)

Every version of A Star is Born has a really messed up relationship at its core, and Bradley Cooper’s 2018 reimagining is one of the most tragic. As soon as Jackson Maine (Cooper) meets Ally (Lady Gaga) in a drag bar, you know how this one is gonna end. Spoiler, it’s not pretty. In fact, it’s tragic in multiple ways.

Blue Valentine (Dean And Cindy)

Derek Cianfrance’s Blue Valentine is one of those great movies you can only watch once because it’s so messed up. Sure, it’s not as extreme as others, but the story of Dean (Ryan Gosling) and Cindy Pereira's (Michelle Williams) relationship over multiple years is grueling, upsetting, and absolutely heartbreaking.

Badlands (Kit And Holly)

Inspired by the story of Charles Starkweather and Caril-Ann Fugate, Badlands is one of those crime movies everyone needs to watch at least once. But be warned, as Martin Sheen’s Kit is a homicidal madman who takes advantage of his young girlfriend Holly (Sissy Spacek) and takes her on a life of crime and killings in America’s badlands.

You've Got Mail (Kathleen Kelly And Joe Fox)

Sure, You’ve Got Mail has one of the best enemies-to-lovers stories of all time, but let’s be real for a second. Tom Hanks’ Joe Fox is a manipulative jerk who toys with Kathleen Kelly’s emotions, puts her bookstore out of business, and orchestrates a scenario where they end up together at the end.

The Graduate (Benjamin Braddock And Mrs. Robinson)

A relationship built on lust instead of love isn’t necessarily a recipe for disaster, but it’s not really a winner either. That’s the case for Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) and Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft) in The Graduate. Sure, it led to an all-time great song, but this toxic and unhealthy relationship is horrible and quite damaging.

Nocturnal Animals (Edward Sheffield And Susa Morrow)

What if you hurt your spouse to such an extent that they later wrote a book in which a character based on you was viciously attacked and murdered in the West Texas desert? Well, that’s what happens in Nocturnal Animals when Jake Gyllenhaal’s Edward Sheffield plays some serious head games with his ex-wife, Susan Morrow (Amy Adams).

Gaslight (Gregory And Paula)

When a movie has a title like Gaslight, you know it’s going to have a remarkably toxic relationship at its core. This 1944 classic, which focuses on the deterioration of Paula Alquist (Ingrid Bergman) and Gregory Anton’s (Charles Boyer) marriage after the husband plays some messed up games with his new wife, is wild, to say the least.

Requiem For A Dream (Harry And Marion)

Harry Goldfarb (Jared Leto) and Marion Silver (Jennifer Connelly) are so preoccupied with chasing the next thrill and high in their messed up lives that they fail to see the damage of their detrimental relationship in Requiem for a Dream. This is one of Darren Aronofsky's best movies but also perhaps his most unsettling, thanks in part to these two.

Natural Born Killers (Mickey And Mallory Knox)

Mickey (Woody Harrelson) and Mallory Knox (Juliette Lewis) love each other in Natural Born Killers, there’s no doubt about it. But this messed up couple shows their love and admiration for one another by killing dozens of people in increasingly violent ways as they embark upon a blood-soaked honeymoon.

Renfield (R.M. Renfield And Dracula)

While there’s no romance shared by R.M. Renfield (Nicholas Hoult) and Dracula (Nicholas Cage) in Renfield, let’s not act like this isn’t the most toxic relationship we’ve seen in a horror movie in recent years. Dracula, who takes and takes from his servant, creates a monster, one that ends up pulling off a lot of heads and bringing chaos to the Big Easy in this blood-soaked comedy.

Kramer Vs. Kramer (Ted And Joanna Kramer)

If you were to watch the Kramer vs. Kramer trailer, you’d probably think this 1979 romantic drama would be a fun and enjoyable watch. Think again! Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep’s on-screen relationship is damaging, so toxic, and so horrible, you’re lucky if you don’t need therapy after coming out the other side.

Midsommar (Dani And Christian)

Ari Aster’s Midsommar is one of the most unsettling horror movies of all time, as well as a drama with one incredibly toxic and horrible relationship. Of course, we’re talking about Dani (Florence Pugh) and Christian (Jack Reynor) whose bond goes from distant to destructive over the course of the movie. Never at any point does it seem like these two get along or care for one another, especially at the end.

Passengers (Aurora Lane And Jim Preston)

The Passengers trailer made it seem as if the 2016 sci-fi drama would be about an unlikely relationship that blossoms in deep space. While that is sort of true, don’t forget that Aurora Jane (Jennifer Lawrence) and Jim Preson’s (Chris Pratt) relationship is built upon a lie, a really, really messed up lie that is unforgivable.

An Education (Jenny Mellor And David Goldman)

Lone Scherfig’s An Education spends most of its 100-minute runtime showing a seemingly normal and healthy relationship shared by Jenny Mellor (Carey Mulligan) and the much older David Goldman (Peter Sarsgaard). But later on we find out that things aren’t as they seem and one of the involved parties has a destructive, heart-breaking secret.

Beauty And The Beast (Belle And Beast)

A tale as old as time, Beauty and the Beast is regarded as one of the best Disney animated movies, but the relationship between Belle and Beast is pretty horrible. While it is noble of Beast to set Belle’s dad free, he essentially holds the young woman hostage in his desolate castle in exchange. Stockholm Syndrome, anyone?

Leaving Las Vegas (Ben And Sera)

Leaving Las Vegas is one of the best Nicolas Cage movies, but it’s also one of the actor’s films where he plays one part of a pretty messed up relationship. While it is true that Ben (Cage) and Sera (Elisabeth Shue) love one another, their lifestyles and personalities also have some pretty detrimental effects on each other and themselves.

Closer (Alice, Larry, Anna, And Dan)

Keeping track of all the couples and their histories in Closer should be an Olympic sport. Mike Nichols’ 2004 romantic drama follows the intertwined relationships shared by Alice (Natalie Portman), Larry (Clive Owen), Anna (Julia Roberts), and Dan (Jude Law), as they play out over several years; years filled with broken hearts, trauma, and toxicity. Great movie, but a serious downer.

The Godfather (Michael And Kay)

Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) is probably one of the most famous mobsters in the history of cinema, but he’s also a pretty rotten guy. Throughout The Godfather (and its sequels), his relationship with Kay Adams (Diane Keaton) has more downs than ups, ever-changing rules, and a lack of trust. The final scene in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1972 epic says it all.

Interview With The Vampire (Lestat De Lioncourt And Louis De Pointe Du Lac)

The way Lestat de Lioncourt (Tom Cruise) takes Louis de Pointe du Lac (Brad Pitt) out of a life of luxury and makes him into an immortal prisoner in Interview with the Vampire is as horrible as it is tragic. These two, though dependent upon one another, hate each other, which doesn’t translate to a happy ending.

Raging Bull (Jake And Vickie LaMotta)

Are there any nice or wholesome characters in Raging Bull? No, not really. But Jake (Robert De Niro) and Vickie LaMotta (Cathy Moriarty) take the cake in terms of characters in a horrible and toxic relationship. The fighting, the head games, and the cussing are all signs of an unhealthy and dangerous marriage.

Death Becomes Her (Madeline Ashton, Helen Sharp, And Ernest Menville)

One of the funniest movies of the early ‘90s, Death Becomes Her is full of some all-time great cinematic characters like Madeline Ashton (Meryl Streep), Helen Sharp (Goldie Hawn), and Ernest Menville (Bruce Willis). However, all three are intertwined in a messed-up love triangle full of pettiness, bitterness, death, and a miracle tonic that extends things way too much.

Forrest Gump (Forrest And Jenny)

Does Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks) love Jenny (Robin Wright) in Forrest Gump? Yeah, we’re certain of that. But does Jenny love Forrest with all her heart? Well, the jury is still out. Throughout this movie, Jenny toys with her childhood friend’s emotions in multiple ways over multiple decades, and is pretty much the movie’s villain at times.

Marriage Story (Charlie And Nicole Barber)

Marriage Story is a brilliant movie that everyone needs to watch at least once. But, boy, Charlie (Adam Driver) and Nicole Barber (Scarlett Johansson) are one horrible and toxic couple. These two, with their jealousies, resentment, and suppressed anger are a time bomb and it’s probably for the best they go their separate ways.

Phantom Thread (Reynolds Woodcock And Alma Elson)

When you have to poison your lover so that he won’t let you leave, you know something’s not right. And that’s the case for Alma Elson (Vicky Krieps) and Reynolds Woodcock (Daniel Day-Lewis in Phantom Thread. Over the course of two-plus hours, this odd and deadly relationship plays out in a way that is particularly toxic.

Nightcrawler (Lou Bloom And Nina Romina)

Lou Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Nina Romina (Rene Russo) in Nightcrawler are probably one of the most disturbing relationships in 21st-century cinema. Lou is using Nina who is taking advantage of the young stringer in a variety of ways. They’re both awful, self-serving people who deserve everything that comes their way.

500 Days Of Summer (Tom And Summer)

You have to feel bad for Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) in 500 Days of Summer, but you don’t necessarily have to blame Summer (Zooey Deschanel) for the deterioration of their relationship, either, Both want different things and have different aspirations. All of that would be fine if they didn’t have detrimental impacts on each other, and their doomed relationship.

As you can see, cinema history is filled with toxic relationships, even in films that turn out to be some of our most beloved romantic comedies.

There are just some movies, that despite how great they are, are just impossible to watch more than once. Either the subject is too heavy, like a holocaust film, or the violence is too much, like some horror movies, or any other number of reasons. This is a list of 32 of those amazing films that you just can't watch a second time. 

Schindler's List (1993)

The Steven Spielberg classic Schindler's List is one of the most difficult movies to watch ever. It's absolutely brilliant in the way it depicts the horrors and personal costs of The Holocaust, and while it's completely gripping and an amazing story, it is really hard to watch, emotionally. I've actually seen it twice after swearing to never watch it a second time, but I don't think I have it in me to watch a third time. 

Hotel Rwanda (2004)

The Rwandan genocide of the '90s is still very raw in that part of Africa. The movie Hotel Rwanda is like other movies about people trying to save people from such events, like Schindler's List, is both heartwarming and completely heartbreaking. You really feel for everyone viscerally when you watch, and because of that, it's really hard to watch a second time. 

The Green Mile (1999)

The Green Mile is a very different story than we are used to coming from the mind of Stephen King. It's not scary, in a traditional sense, but boy is it emotionally fatiguing. Michael Clarke Duncan's performance is what makes this heartbreaking movie about a prisoner on death row. The raw emotion he plays the role with is spectacular but absolutely draining.   

The Zone Of Interest (2023)

The 2024 Oscar winner for Best Sound, The Zone Of Interest, is one of the most worthy recipients of that award in history. The way that director Jonathan Glazer told the entire menacing part of the story with sound is simply incredible. It is also not for the faint of heart. Not seeing the horrors of the Holocaust depicted on screen makes it all the more powerful because it's all in your mind, making it much more real somehow. 

Uncut Gems (2013)

There is little harder than watching one man's decent in desperation and despair, like Howard (Adam Sandler) in Uncut Gems. You want to just reach out and hug and tell him to stop making things worse for himself. Audiences see every bad, desperate decision coming and are helpless to stop it. Sandler's performance is so good, that you completely forget this is the guy who played Billy Madison and is known for being funny more than a dramatic actor. 

12 Years a Slave (2013)

Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave should be required viewing for every American. It should be taught in schools, it's that important. Chiwetel Ejiofor's depiction of the real-life Solomon Northup, a free Black man kidnapped and enslaved for 12 years in the American South. Slavery is America's original sin, one we still are grappling with a century and a half after it ended, and seeing the way Ejiofor and McQueen show it is really, really hard, but really important to do.  

Midsommar (2019)

Horror movies are a lot of different things to different people. They can be campy and fun, or they can be psychologically terrifying. Midsommar is the latter, by a mile. There is nothing "fun" about Midsommar. It's one of the most disturbing movies made in the last decade, and it's a movie that will sit with you for a long, long time. So long, that you probably don't want to put yourself through it again. It's so good at doing what it sets out to do, you never want to see it again. Even star Florence Pugh was greatly affected by it. 

Inside (2023)

2023's Inside is one of those movies I went into knowing virtually nothing about, save for the fact that it starred Willem Dafoe. Wow was that a tough watch to see a man trapped in a gilded prison cell of his own making when Dafoe's character finds himself unable to escape a penthouse apartment he was trying to rob. Dafoe's performance of a man driven to madness is both brilliant and terrifying. 

Manchester By The Sea (2016)

Manchester By The Sea is one of those stories that just when you think things can't get worse, they do. One tragedy after another is revealed as the movie goes on and Casey Affleck's performance is one of the all-time greats in Hollywood history as the man who just can't seem to ever get a break, and is living one of the saddest lives you've ever seen on film. It's such a good movie, but too emotionally draining to watch more than once. 

The Passion Of The Christ (2004)

Even for non-Christians The Passion of the Christ is an incredibly difficult watch. The sheer amount of violence so viscerally depicted is stomach-churning and disturbing. I do think it's worth watching once, despite the controversy that has always surrounded it and its director Mel Gibson, but once is enough. 

The Revenant (2015)

Like a few others on this list, The Revenant is here not because of the story it tells, but rather how it's depicted. It's raw and violent and bloody and disturbing. It's a (mostly) true story, which makes it almost too incredible to believe, and Leonardo DiCaprio puts in one of his finest performances, but it's not a movie you watch over and over. 

The Machinist (2004)

2004's The Machinist is worth watching - and impossible to watch again - for one reason, really, Christian Bale's performance. The actor legendarily lost 62 pounds for the role, playing an emaciated, delusional factory worker who is unable to sleep, ever. It's one of the most incredible acting jobs you'll ever see, and never want to see again. 

Requiem For a Dream (2000)

Watching a decent into drug addiction can be among the most harrowing things to see in a movie and no movie is better (and scarier) for that than Requiem For a Dream. Viewers not only watch Sara's (Ellen Burstyn) downward spiral, but they feel it with Darren Aronofsky's direction and Burstyn's amazing performance. 

Oldboy (2003)

When a movie starts out as unsettling as the 2003 South Korean masterpiece Oldboy and only gets more harrowing from there, you know it belongs on this list. Choi Min-sik is amazing as the man imprisoned in what looks like a hotel room for years. As he learns the disturbing fate of his wife on TV, he sinks further into despair. Things only get worse when he is finally freed from the room. 

Civil War (2024)

Alex Garland's Civil War has garnered huge praise that it is worthy of, but the movie's premise and action are so tough to watch, that I'll likely never see it again. That sickness in my stomach I felt as I watched is both high praise and the reason for my decision. Seeing some of the images of a country at war that you never expect to see is haunting and scary. 

The Whale (2022)

Like other examples on this list, The Whale is carried by the performance of its lead actor, Brendan Fraiser. The Academy Award-winning role is played with such raw emotion, that it's impossible to look away from, yet it's not something I ever want to relive. 

Whiplash (2014)

There was a ton of praise for Whiplash when it was released in 2014, and it's deserving of all of it. The depiction of a student learning drums from an impossible taskmaster is nothing short of fantastic, yet you can't watch the movie and not feel all the violence and mental anguish right in your gut for the runtime of the movie. JK Simmons is terrifying in his role as the sadistic conductor pushing Andrew (Miles Teller) to the brink of sanity. 

Happiness (1998)

Though it's billed as a comedy, Happiness is as dark as a comedy can get. It's praised for its bold decision to cover issues that are rarely talked about, and so disturbing I'd rather not do that here, and the cast, including Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ben Gazzara, Jared Harris, Lara Flynn Boyle, and more. Still, it's hard to watch even once, much less twice.  

Life Is Beautiful (1997)

It's rare for a movie as funny as Life Is Beautiful to be so hard to watch again, but that's exactly what is it. The movie was controversial for the comedic elements within telling a story about the Holocaust, but Roberto Benigni is so good at the tragic clown that it's impossible to appreciate the movie. Even if you never want to see it again. 

American History X (1998)

While some movies are too hard to watch a second time because they are emotionally draining, American History X is impossible to watch again because it's just too disturbing. We don't want to believe that people like Derek Vinyard (Edward Norton) exist, though we know they do and that makes it really hard to digest once, much less twice. 

Leaving Las Vegas (1995)

The level of self-destruction that Nicolas Cage's character in Leaving Las Vegas is astounding. When I saw it, it both repulsed me and made me want a drink, which is disturbing on a lot of levels. It's so heartbreaking to watch anyone so depressed and hopeless as the character is. 

The Pianist (2002)

Like other movies about The Holocaust, The Pianist is incredibly heartbreaking and hard to watch. Unlike movies like Schindler's List, it's really about one man's trials through the whole event and that makes it even more tragic to see everything happening around him. It's not just those murdered in the Holocaust, the survivors are also victims. 

Nightcrawler (2014)

Nightcrawler asks a lot of important questions and despite being almost a decade old, it's still questions we need answers to about the role of the press in our society. For that reason, it's an important movie to watch. The violence and disturbing images make it both critical and appalling to watch and for those reasons, once is enough. 

My Girl (1991)

Everything is tougher when it's kids. The death of a child is among the most heartbreaking things in the world, and My Girl is brutal in that respect. What makes it even harder is how sudden the death is in the movie, making it a wonderful movie, but one that you never want to watch again. 

The Saw Movies

The name of the company that produces the Saw franchise is Twisted Pictures and that name says it all. The horror movies are stone classics in the genre, but for anyone even a little squeamish, these movies are unwatchable nightmares. Even those of us that can stomach them once, have had enough by the end. 

Steel Magnolias (1989)

There is no question that Steel Magnolias has an amazing cast, led by the great Sally Field in one of her best roles. It's still a movie you only want to watch once. It's a little more rewatchable than some of the other movies on this list, but only due to the performances. It's truly one of the most iconic tear-jerkers in Hollywood history. 

The Act of Killing (2012)

Most of this list is fictional movies, but The Act of Killing is a documentary and that makes everything even more visceral. It's not only a true story - and a disturbing one at that - it features the real people involved. It's a naked look at the worst humanity can be and for that it's necessary viewing, but not multiple times. 

Marley & Me (2008)

There are millions of families that can directly relate to Marley & Me, which is what makes it both wonderful and sad. Many people know exactly how important dogs can be, especially to young families, and even though we know in the back of our heads that our dogs won't live forever, yet when we lose them, it really hurts. Marley & Me would be very rewatchable if it ended with the family moving the farm and Marley happily running around. But that's not how it ends and for that, it puts it in the same category as Old Yellar. Once is enough. 

Sophie’s Choice (1982)

There is no question that the role of Sophie Zawistowska in Sophie’s Choice is one of the finest performances of Meryl Streep's career, and that is really saying something. It's a revelation to watch her play this incredibly difficult role, and for that, everyone should see the movie. The "choice" she has to make wouldn't be wished on anyone's worst enemy and for that, we know we can only watch it once. 

Fruitvale Station (2013)

2013's Fruitvale Station forces the audience to confront, viscerally, some of the worst aspects of life in America for African Americans. It's not a pleasant thing to watch, though like others on this list, should be required viewing. It's hard to get through, but completely worth it in the end. It's a movie that will stick with you forever, so once is all you need. 

Mother! (2017)

There is a genre of movie, like Mother!, that are so hard to watch for mothers especially that they deserve their own sub-category of movie. That's not to say it's easy to watch for anyone else. The ending is so disturbing, that I still have nightmares about it, despite loving the movie. 

127 Hours (2017)

Danny Boyle's 2017 film about the harrowing ordeal Aron Ralston (James Franco) went through is so well told and shown that audiences can feel the scariest moments. The scene of Ralston cutting through the nerves on his arm is to this day the most squeamish I've ever felt in a movie. Another movie I absolutely loved, along with many of Boyle's movies, but the only one I never want to watch again. 

Movies scores add so much to films it’s hard to overstate just how important they are. Music can completely change the mood of a movie, or a scene, in ways that little else can. Most movie scores follow a tried and true formula and while we would never discount the importance of such scores, the ones on this list are different. They are meant to be jarring, or at least different enough that they reach new heights in what a film score can be. Here are 32 of the most unconventional film scores we think are among the best of all time. 

Pee-Wee's Big Adventure

We’re all very used to Dany Elfman’s contributions to film scores at this point. He’s been one of the most in-demand composers for decades. That wasn’t always the case, and when Tim Burton brought him in to do the score for Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure, Elfman’s eclectic style wasn’t at all conventional. Elfman came from an art-rock background and by diving into movie scores, he brought a very fresh perspective. It fit Burton’s style perfectly, which explains why they’ve worked together so often since. 

There Will Be Blood

Leave it to Paul Thomas Anderson to think outside the box and bring in Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood to do a soundtrack for him. There Will Be Blood was not Greenwood’s first soundtrack, but it was his first for a major studio production. It’s a haunting, discombobulating soundtrack that adds so much to the movie, that it’s hard to imagine that the film would be as harsh and disturbing as it is without it. 

Birdman

Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s Birdman is unconventional in many ways, not the least of which is the percussion-heavy score by jazz drummer Antonio Sánchez. The pulsing rhythms push the story forward as much as the editing of the movie, meant to be seen as all one take. It’s brilliant. 

No Country For Old Men

Composer Carter Burwell has been scoring the films of the Coen Brothers for decades, but with No Country For Old Men, his score is different, mostly because of how little there is of it. A majority of the movie has no score at all, but that makes the rare times it does appear so much more effective. In all, there are only 16 minutes of music on the soundtrack and even those are minimalist. It evokes a perfect eerieness for the film. 

The Social Network

Trent Reznor had never composed a film score before David Fincher approached him to do the music for The Social Network. Reznor, and his co-composer Atticus Ross, weren’t sure they could do it at first, but Fincher stayed on them and we’re all lucky for it. The pulsating soundtrack, which reminds us of Nine Inch Nails, but definitely isn’t,  is one of the many reasons the movie’s seemingly mundane story crackles to life on screen. 

Tron: Legacy

The original Tron was a groundbreaking film in its use of CGI, and so for the sequel, which was almost three decades in the making, the filmmakers knew they had to make a splash. Hiring EDM legends Daft Punk to score the film was a stroke of genius. While the soundtrack only has fleeting moments of the duo’s signature sound, it’s completely outside the box of what one expects from a soundtrack and fits the movie’s CGI look perfectly. 

28 Days Later

According to director Danny Boyle, he had the post-rock band Godspeed You! Black Emperor “in his head” the whole time he made 28 Days Later. While one of the cult band’s songs, “East Hastings” appears in the film, they did not write the foreboding soundtrack. Still, composer John Murphy's soundtrack evokes GY!BE brilliantly, and it makes for a seriously scary soundtrack, in all the best ways. 

A Clockwork Orange

Groundbreaking composer and musician Wendy Carlos’ first foray into film scoring came in Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange. The combination of her Moog-heavy electronic sounds with the classical music (mostly Beethoven) in the movie is spot on for the dystopian future the film portrays. Carlos would work with Kubrick again on the eerie soundtrack for The Shining as well. 

Punch-Drunk Love

Classical music critic Greg Sandow calls the soundtrack to Punch Drunk Love “sounds” as much as music in his glowing review. He’s completely right, as composer Jon Brion used field recordings as much as music to create the soundtrack, to amazing effect. It’s unlike any other rom-com soundtrack you’ve ever heard, which is what you expect from a movie directed by P.T. Anderson. 

Dredd

Most of the soundtrack to Dredd has a fantastic heavy synth/industrial sound which is pretty unique on its own, but what sets this soundtrack truly apart from others is the music set to the “slo-mo” scenes. The composer, Paul Leonard-Morgan, took inspiration from a Justin Bieber song he heard that was slowed down so much that one minute represented 10 minutes of music in real-time. The ethereal effect is astounding. 

Requiem for a Dream

Kronos Quartet is one of the most avant-garde classical music so if they are going to agree to perform on a soundtrack, you know it’s going to be interesting. The work they do on composer Clint Mansell’s Requiem for a Dream soundtrack is wild and unsettling, just like the movie. It’s impossible to think of the film with any other music. 

Psycho

Without Bernard Herrmann’s legendary score for Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, it’s safe to say that it’s a completely different film. It’s easy to watch Psycho today and giggle at what seems like tropes in the filming and the music (the violin screeching in the shower scene), but you have to remember it was all cutting edge in 1960. It’s one of the scariest scores to one of the scariest films ever. 

Metropolis

Metropolis was originally released as a silent movie in 1927, but in 1984, the great composer Giorgio Moroder reimagined the film with an entirely new and modern score. Moroder wrote the music and enlisted some of his friends, like Freddie Mercury and Loverboy, to perform the music. While it was panned at first, it’s gone on to achieve cult status and is definitely a unique take on an old movie. 

Sicario

The music for Sicario first makes its presence felt in a very real way in the scene just before the main characters cross from Texas to Mexico for the first time. “Presence” is the best way to describe it, because audiences feel the music as much as they hear it. The rumbling bass and minimalist music convey the perfect sense of dread the scene needs. 

The Virgin Suicides

The soundtrack for Sofia Coppola’s The Virgin Suicides, composed and performed by the French electronic duo Air, has been hailed by numerous publications as one of the best of all time, and with good reason. Despite the movie, released in 1999, being set in the 1970s, the music is very much of the era in which it was released, and its bright-yet-dark, fresh sound sets a perfect tone. 

Thor: Ragnarok

Marvel movies aren’t the first place most people would think of looking for a unique soundtrack, but Thor: Ragnarok isn’t a run-of-the-mill superhero movie, either. Director Taika Waititi brought in former Devo leader and long-time film composer Mark Mothersbaugh to do the soundtrack. Mothersbaugh is probably best known for his work on Wes Anderson movies but for Thor: Ragnarok, he incorporated more synth than usual and went out of his way to create a different-sounding Marvel movie, and boy does it work.

Blade Runner

Vangelis, a Greek composer whose career started in the 1960s is best known today for his avant-garde work in the early ‘80s on soundtracks like Chariots of Fire and Blade Runner. His electronic sound was the perfect compliment to the dark future presented in Blade Runner and without it, with a more traditional score, the movie would have been very different. 

Flash Gordon

There are a few reasons Flash Gordon has remained a cult classic over the years and one of the big ones is the amazing soundtrack. Written and performed by Queen, it has remained one of the most interesting soundtracks ever made and is just as listenable as an album as it is backing the movie. 

Rushmore

Composer Mark Mothersbaugh and director Wes Anderson have formed one of the most fruitful partnerships in modern Hollywood. Mothersbaugh's quirky music fits Anderson's style to a T and the music has been as much a part of Anderson's style as the production design and camera angles. When you hear a Mothersbaugh score, you know immediately who wrote it. Their first project together was Bottle Rocket but it was on Rushmore that the former member of Devo found his true voice within Anderson's world. 

Hanna

One surefire way to get a unique soundtrack is to task The Chemical Brothers with creating it. Hanna's soundtrack is spectacular and the pulsing rhythms and dream-like movements drive the movie forward like they are part of the main character's psyche. Without the soundtrack, it just wouldn't have the urgency that it has throughout. 

Friday Night Lights

Post-rock band Explosions in the Sky has a big, bold, triumphant sound. It's a style that fits Friday Night Lights perfectly. It's not the kind of music you'd expect to accompany a movie set in West Texas, or about high school football for that matter, but it just works so well. It moves you as much as the movie does. 

2001: A Space Odyssey

The score for 2001: A Space Odyssey is notable on this list because it's the only one that used predominately previously recorded works. It was very rare at the time for movies to forgo original scores and yet Stanley Kubrick did, choosing to use the music that inspired him to make the movie, rather than the original score by Alex North. It's hard to imagine the ending of 2001 with another other than György Ligeti's "Atmospheres"

Suspiria

One of the most underappreciated soundtracks on this list is Suspiria, written and performed by the Italian prog band Goblins. It's like no other soundtrack on this list and is one of the best to listen to on its own if you are a fan of '70s prog rock, though you've probably never heard anything like it. The 2018 remake of Suspiria also features an incredible and unique soundtrack written by Radiohead's Thom Yorke. 

The Amazing Spider-Man 2

The soundtrack for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is probably the most conventional on this list, but even though it was composed by the great Hans Zimmer, it still falls outside the box of most of his work. Zimmer worked with a supergroup to co-write and record the music that included Pharrell Williams, Johnny Marr, Mike Einziger, Junkie XL, and others. 

The Third Man

In 1949, when The Third Man was produced and released, music in movies was generally written for, and performed by large orchestras. Composer Anton Karas was a zither player, and as such, he wrote much of the music for that unique instrument. It has a jangly, post-war jazz style to it that was very different for its time and it's just lovely. 

The Warriors

The cult classic The Warriors has a soundtrack full of ominous synths and driving beats that composer Barry De Vorzon expertly crafted to fit the style and plot of the movie. While there are a number of pop songs included, it's the score itself that best represents the action on the screen. It is jarring at the best of times and keeps the audience on the edge as the gang navigates the city towards the safety of Coney Island. 

The Revenant

The late Ryuichi Sakamoto was a true pioneer in electronic music. Beginning with the Yellow Magic Orchestra in Japan in the late 1970s, Sakamoto was always pushing the envelope musically, and that includes his work on movie scores, especially The Revenant. For the score, he teamed up with Alva Noto and The National's Bryce Dessner to create something unique and special. 

Forbidden Planet

The soundtrack to Forbidden Planet, written by Bebe and Louis Barron, was like nothing that had come before it. It is considered the first entirely electronic score and it literally set the tone for sci-fi soundtracks for decades. 

Annihilation

The music in Alex Garland's Annihilation is haunting and eerie, just like the movie. Made up more of evocative sounds than a true score, it's still a work of genius by co-composers Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow. The two have teamed up a number of times to work with Garland including the incredible 2024 release, Civil War.

Hereditary

Horror films often incorporate interesting and nontraditional scores and Hereditary is a perfect example. It oozes feeling and dread in the best way. Written by multi-instrumentalist Colin Stetson, who is known for his work with bands like The Arcade Fire and TV on the Radio, the soundtrack is sparse but powerful. 

Midsommar

Midsommar's writer and director Ari Aster found inspiration while writing the movie in the music of electronica artist Bobby Krlic, also known as The Haxan Cloak. Aster naturally hired Krlic to compose the score and it's a home run, and not what you would expect from the movie, yet fitting perfectly. 

The Road

Indie music legend Nick Cave is not someone you might expect to compose the music for a dark, post-apocalypse movie like The Road, yet his work, alongside co-writer and fellow Bad Seeds member Warren Ellis, is as haunting, terrifying, and beautiful as the story the movie tells. 

For those who know me and for those who don't, I'm a huge lover of horror movies. From the best horror movies out there to comedy horror films to anything in between, I will gladly sit down to watch them. But let's be honest – there are plenty of horror films in the past that all of us have seen and thought, "Wow, I am never going to forget this scene because it will haunt me for life." That's what this is all about. Let's get into it. 

The Ending (The Mist)

Yeah, I don't need to explain why The Mist's ending was traumatizing. If you've seen it, you know. If you haven't, consider yourselves lucky. Let's say many people die, and it's not a fun experience.

Michael Hiding In The Closet (Halloween)

There's nothing quite like a classic horror movie villain, and Michael Myers is about as classic as you can get. The film itself is all about Myers on a killing quest, which leads him to Laurie Strode. He chases her throughout her house, and just when we think he's dead, he rises from the floor in one motion, clearly not. This scene remains chilling to this day. 

Andre Realizing Where He Is (Get Out)

Jordan Peele's movies surprisingly have many scenes that really stick with you. One I have to mention is in Get Out when Andre realizes where he is and tries to warn Chris to leave Rose's family's house. He screams and yells at him when the flash goes off on a camera, and his yelling at Chris will always live in my head. 

Regan's Seizure (The Exorcist)

If we're being honest, there are plenty of moments in The Exorcist that I could put on this list. But the one I have to name is when Regan has a seizure due to the demon in her body flailing her up and down. Whether it's the chilling nature of the shot or the fact that the actress suffered severe injuries because of it, it sat with me for a long time. 

Pennywise Gets Georgie (IT)

The IT films are some of the best Stephen King adaptations, but that opening death in IT let me know exactly what I was getting myself into. We all knew Georgie had to die in IT, but in the first film, we are shown how graphic it will be when Pennywise lures him into the sewer and ends him quite violently. 

The First Time We See The Demon (Insidious)

There are plenty of moments in the Insidious films that we could discuss, but I have to point out the red demon—you and I both know which one I'm talking about—that randomly appears behind Josh's head. It's such an effective jumpscare, but my god, does it haunt you. 

The Entirety Of The Human Centipede (2009)

Yeah, I won't even get into this. Just don't watch the movie—or movies—if you don't want to be scarred for life. Ew. 

Justine Biting Her Own Arm (Raw)

Many people forget about Raw in many ways, and I'm not sure why. It was a great film that explored an excellent horror topic and was told brilliantly; somehow, we never got a sequel. Plenty of scenes stand out, but the one I'll never forget is when Justine, instead of biting the flesh of her lover, bites her arm. Yeah, it's pretty gross – but it's a great shot. 

Mike Facing The Wall (The Blair Witch Project)

While The Blair Witch Project might be getting rebooted, there's nothing quite as haunting as the original, where film students are capturing footage in the woods, and they get lost – while their footage is found. In the last shot, Mike is facing the wall, doing nothing, as evil forces surround them. I'm getting goosebumps just thinking of it. 

The First Ceremony (Midsommar)

Ari Aster's films always have moments that make you want to squirm, but the one I have to point out from Midsommar is the first ceremony they do during the festival. The two eldest of the group jump off a cliff, and their lives end rather quickly, but the slow-motion and graphic way they pass sits with you. 

The Scream Of The Innocent (Nope)

Of Peele's three directed features, Nope is arguably the least scary. But that doesn't mean it doesn't have haunting moments, including this one. When Jean Jacket finds its way over Jupiter's Claim, it kills everyone there, sucking them up into its mouth. It's horrifying when you hear the screams of everyone there. 

The Logs (Final Destination 2)

Yeah, the log scene in Final Destination 2 scarred an entire generation from riding behind any truck that has anything that could potentially fall out of it – especially logs. We all know what happens. I'm not going to relive that while writing this, no siree. 

David's First Wolf Transformation (An American Werewolf In London)

There are plenty of great werewolf movies, but An American Werewolf in London is hands down one of the best. The movie isn't scary, but you want to know what it is? When David becomes a werewolf for the first time – that shakes you to your core. His werewolf transformation is genuinely out of this world. 

Seok-woo Realizes He's Bit (Train To Busan)

Train to Busan is one of the best zombie movies out there, and the scene that haunts me the most is definitely Seok-woo realizing he was bitten. It happens so quickly, but through it all, he finds a way to keep his daughter safe despite dying. It's sad as heck and will make you sob. 

Every Torture Scene (Hostel)

I watched Hostel and regretted it immensely, but you know what? You have to live through the pain with me. The film is all about tourists taking shelter in a hostel only to be kidnapped and tortured, and every torture scene in this film made me squirm and still haunts me to this day. 

Freddy Gets Glen (A Nightmare On Elm Street)

Out of Freddy Kreuger's most gruesome kills, this one stands out amongst the rest. Glen, played by Johnny Depp, accidentally falls asleep, but Freddy gets him good – and turns him into a geyser. It's disgusting and still sits with me to this day. 

Chest Popper (Alien)

I mean, obviously. If we're talking about some of the best sci-fi horror movies, Alien is undoubtedly up there. While there aren't that many terrifying moments, the Alien coming out of a person's chest will certainly sit with you for years. 

Casey's Death (Scream)

I see the Scream movie as almost a love letter to former horror movies, but there's no denying some haunting moments. Casey's death in the first Scream film is probably the most prominent because the young woman was innocent and strung up a tree with her insides hanging out. Not the best way to go. 

Katie Lunges Towards The Camera (Paranormal Activity)

There are plenty of great found-footage horror movies out there that I could point to as haunting, but the last scene of Paranormal Activity possibly made everyone in the world jump out of their seats. It concludes with Katie, fully possessed, lunging at the camera before everything cuts to black, and yes, it still makes me jump to this day. 

Redrum (The Shining)

The Shining is great for so many reasons, but one of the best moments is when Danny writes "Redrum" on a door while saying it in a raspy voice, over and over and over again, obviously with "Redrum" spelling "Murder" backward. It's a great foreshadowing of the horrors to come, but also a fantastic haunting moment. 

Red Looking At Jason (Us)

Us is a great Jordan Peele horror movie about doppelgangers, and the ending scene of Us is one of the best for many reasons. Red somehow survives until the end, revealing that she was always a doppelganger who fights to keep her place in the world, trapping the real her below. Jason realizes that at the very end, the last look she gives her son is chilling to the bone. 

The Aftermath Of Charlie's Death (Hereditary)

Hereditary is one of those Ari Aster movies that makes you squirm in your seat, and while I won't get into details of what exactly happens to Charlie, I will say that the aftermath of what we see is enough to make you barf. Flies, dead skin, and much more on the side of the road – and let's not forget the scream of her mother. 

The Lawnmower Scene (Sinister)

The lawnmower scene in Sinister is less than a minute long in a film full of haunting moments, but man, it isn't fun. It shows someone with a camera holding a lawnmower that ends a girl lying on the ground without getting into too much detail. I could have gone my whole life without seeing that. 

The Truth About Norman Bates' Mother (Psycho)

You can't get more well-known horror than Psycho. Obviously, by the end of the film, we all find out the truth about Bates' mother and how he killed her, but it's that chilling smile, the iconic one, that still haunts our nightmares every time. You can't get creepier than that. 

Gage's Death (Pet Sematary)

In many ways, Pet Sematary is the scariest film on this list because it sometimes feels like something a normal person would do out of desperation to bring their loved ones back. The following events in the film happen because of Gage's death, but nothing beats the screams of his family when they realize it. 

Pearl's Final Bow (Pearl)

Both X and Pearl are great films within the same universe, but that last shot of Pearl—otherwise known as the Pearl ending—is haunting. In it, she welcomes her husband home after literally killing so many people and just smiles at the camera for a good couple of minutes. Oof, it just sits with you. 

The Blood Eagle (Midsommar)

Midsommar has so many moments that could be on this list, but The Blood Eagle has to be one to point out. Without going into too much detail so I don't scar whoever is reading this, a tourist at the festival, who had been brought in, is taken out due to an ancient torture ritual called the Blood Eagle. I won't talk about what it is – look it up if you dare, and then get haunted all over again. 

The Spider-Head (The Thing)

The Thing is terrifying in many ways because literally anyone could be the imposter alien. But out of all the haunting moments, the spider-head stands out. Yeah, I'm getting nauseous just writing about it. Ew. 

The Final Transformation (The Fly)

Jeff Goldblum's best movies include The Fly for a good reason: his acting is awesome. However, that last transformation—where his character, fully ingrained with the fly's DNA, fully transforms—yeah, that part is gross and still haunts me to this day. The flesh and the effects—ugh, I'm about to vomit. Be right back. 

Kayako Goes Under The Sheets (The Grudge)

I have to point out this scene from The Grudge. Kayako pops out from underneath a bed and kills someone, dragging them under the covers. It's terrifying, and to this day, I'm still freaked out by it. 

Gabriel Comes Out Of Madison's Skull (Malignant)

Malignant is one of the best movies to watch on Max, and it still freaks me out. The twist comes at the very end when it's revealed Madison had a former twin who ingrained himself in her skull, and then he suddenly emerges from her skull at the very end. It's disgusting and will haunt you for the rest of your life. 

Riley's Possession (Talk To Me)

Talk to Me was one of the scariest films in years and deserved all the praise it got, and of course, I have to point out Riley's possession. It's so violent and quick and sad that you can hardly remember to feel scared once you're traumatized out of your mind. Let's not even get into how he injures himself so badly. 

These are all some incredibly haunting scenes, but maybe I'll go watch some of the best romantic comedies now to feel happier about something. Goodness gracious, I need a palette cleanser. 

Here lies the hopes and dreams of “happily ever after.” While we often go to the movies to see couples ride off into the sunset, it doesn’t always shake out that way. Across Hollywood history, there’s been tons of matches made in heaven, but right now we’re going to focus on those memorable break-ups we’re still not over, and may never get over. But hey, sometimes a truly great break-up in a film can be relatable, cathartic and as we'll see, really big break-ups can lead to even better results later on. Or, the break-up in and of itself is the happy ending. Either way, breakups are part of life, so let the tears pour for these ill-fated couples.

SPOILERS ahead! 

Mia & Sebastian, La La Land 

One of the best finales to a movie is arguably Damien Chazelle’s La La Land ending. After Emma Stone’s Mia and Ryan Gosling’s Sebastian fell in love in the musical comedy, their relationship ultimately falls apart after Mia is cast as the lead in a movie being shot in Paris. After Mia nails her audition, we catch the couple five years later, where both of them have found success in their fields, but are no longer together. In an emotional scene, Mia comes across Sebastian’s booming jazz club and he plays their song as the movie imagines what could have been if they stayed together. 

Joel & Clementine, Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is not only one of the greatest breakup films out there, but the best movies of the 2000s, too. As we learn during the film, Kate Winslet’s Clementine decides to go through a trial procedure to forget her ex Joel after their breakup, which involves an argument that goes wrong regarding their thoughts about children. Within the movie’s apt meditation on breakups, the Eternal Sunshine ending has Joel and Clementine deciding to give each other another shot, knowing full well the outcome could play out the same between them this time. 

Joe & Summer, (500) Days Of Summer 

When (500) Days Of Summer opens, it warns its audience that they are not about to see a love story, but even so, it’s easy to still get swept up in the couple’s romance. While the 2009 movie is told through the eyes of Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s Joe, where he paints Zooey Deschanel’s Summer as the villain, the pairing operates as an interesting commentary on how people can idolize the other and ignore the signals that point to the other not being the right person for them. The breakup in this movie is sad, until Joe gets a poetic second chance with a woman aptly named Autumn. 

Daniel & Miranda, Mrs. Doubtfire 

Mrs. Doubtfire is one of the best Robin Williams movies, especially because of how it handles the realities of divorce. Throughout, the movie follows Williams’ Daniel as he disguises himself as a character named Mrs. Doubtfire in order to spend more time with his three children amidst his separation from Sally Field’s Miranda. Sadly, by the finale, the parents do not get back together. However, the breakup makes way for a sweet message for those who can relate.  

 Annette & Sebastian, Cruel Intentions 

In 1999’s Cruel Intentions, Ryan Phillippe’s Sebastian breaks things off with Reese Witherspoon’s Annette in an especially emotional scene that leaves Annette by herself in absolute tears over him. The whole thing is the result of a bet Sebastian makes with Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Kathryn, where his winnings would be getting her in bed. But, once Sebastian goes to Kathryn to cash in, he learns she had been two steps ahead of him the whole time. This movie definitely lives up to its name! 

Ted & Joanna, Kramer vs. Kramer 

One classic breakup movie we’re not getting over anytime soon is Kramer Vs. Kramer, which centers on a couple’s divorce proceedings and how it affects their young son. Starring Meryl Streep and Dustin Hoffman as the couple, the drama brings a grounded perspective about how marriages can fall apart and how figuring out custody between parents can be a harrowing process. 

Gale & Dewey, The Scream Movies

In between the scares of the Scream movies, a sweet romance blossomed between Courteney Cox’s journalist character Gale Weathers and David Arquette’s Deputy Dewey Riley. However, in 2022’s Scream, we learn that the couple split up due to Gale’s aspirations to live in New York City and Dewey’s substance abuse issues. What makes this breakup a real stab in the chest is when Dewey is killed off later in the movie. 

Theodore & Samantha, Her

Can you fall in love with someone’s voice? That’s certainly true for Her’s Theodore (played by Joaquin Phoenix) once Samantha (Scarlett Johansson) comes into his life. He and the artificially intelligent virtual assistant hit it off during Spike Jonze’s critically acclaimed sci-fi film, but it’s not to be forever. In the end, Samantha chooses to join other AIs once her operating system seeks more knowledge outside of him. 

Ennis & Jack, Brokeback Mountain 

Ang Lee’s 2005 film Brokeback Mountain sees Jake Gyllenhaal’s rodeo cowboy Jack and Heath Ledger’s ranch hand Ennis falling in love in secret before leaving their relationship to live typical heterosexual lives with wives and kids. While they reconnect years after their first encounter, they never have a chance to really live happily with one another, and they have an especially tragic ending to their story by the time the movie concludes. 

Han Solo & Leia Organa, The Star Wars Movies 

One of the most iconic couples in movie history is Harrison Ford’s Han Solo and Carrie Fisher’s Leia Organa, who famously said the lines “I love you,” with “I know.” Unfortunately, when the Star Wars movies continued in 2015 with The Force Awakens, we learned that the couple had parted ways after having issues with losing their son Ben Solo to the Dark Side. Sadly, Han Solo also dies at the hands of Ben as well. 

Dani & Christian, Midsommar

We’re not over this breakup in particular because of how traumatizing it is to experience! Ari Aster’s Midsommar tells the story of a couple, who are strained as is but their vacation to a Swedish midsummer festival really becomes the cherry on top of its demise. The festival is a front for a pagan cult recruiting and the couple cement their breakup when Christian is stuffed inside a bear and burned alive whilst Dani watches in horror and becomes the newest crowned member. 

Rick & Ilsa, Casablanca

An especially classic breakup in cinema is the one between Humphrey Bogart’s Rick and Ingrid Bergman’s Ilsa at the end of 1942’s Casablanca. It’s about former lovers who reunite years after an affair. While one might expect their reunion to lead to the pair rekindling their love, Rick surprises Ilsa at the end of the movie by deserting her as she boards a plane because he feels she would be better off with her current fiancé. 

Peter Quill & Gamora - Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3

One of the sweetest couplings in the MCU once belonged to Chris Pratt’s Peter Quill and Zoe Saldana’s Gamora, who met during the events of the first Guardians of the Galaxy. Sadly for the pair, Thanos’ plot to destroy half the universe caused a major rift between them (quite literally) when Thanos sacrificed Gamora to get the Soul Stone. There seemed to be a silver lining for the couple in Vol. 3 when Gamora returned, but during the final Guardians of the Galaxy movie’s ending, the pair went down separate paths. 

Celeste & Jesse, Celeste and Jesse Forever 

2012’s Celeste and Jesse Forever is a rather ironic title considering Rashida Jones’ Celeste and Andy Samberg’s Jesse don’t get a happily ever after. The movie is about high school sweethearts who marry young and decide to separate years later. Despite their separation, the former couple insist on remaining best friends, making for some funny and rather awkward situations between them. Ultimately, the couple need to let go and move on from each other. 

Gary & Brooke, The Break-Up

After Jennifer Aniston had starred in numerous romantic comedies over the years, the Friends actress changed things up with 2006’s The Break-Up alongside Vince Vaughn. The comedy follows a longtime couple that decides it's not working between them but refuses to move out of their condo. A lot of funny things go down when they become roommates following the breakup. While it could have been a setup for a sweet rekindling, they ultimately stay broken up. 

Oliver & Elio, Call Me By Your Name 

Call Me By Your Name is about 17-year-old Elio (Timothée Chalamet) who meets a handsome doctoral student Oliver (Armie Hammer) while spending the summer in Italy in 1983. The pair strike up a passionate love affair over the course of the sunny months, but sadly for Elio, it was only a fling. At the end of the film, Elio sits tearfully by the fireplace in winter as he learns Oliver has since become engaged. 

Nora & Hae Song, Past Lives 

Past Lives, which was such a powerful 2023 movie that it became one of the 2024 Oscar nominees for Best Picture, is about two childhood friends who cross paths on multiple fronts throughout their lives. Greta Lee plays Nora, a Korean woman who has to say goodbye to her best friend Hae Song (Teo Yoo) as a kid when her family immigrated to New York. As adults, Hae Song visits Nora in the Big Apple, after she’s already been married. There’s a sense that the couple missed out on something special, but as the ending illustrates, they’ll have to perhaps wait for their next life to see their lives align. 

Rhett & Scarlett, Gone With The Wind

One of the most tragic love stories in cinema is certainly 1939’s Gone With The Wind between Clark Gable’s Rhett Butler and Vivien Leigh’s Scarlett O’Hara. With the backdrop of the Civil War behind it, the sprawling epic brings together Rhett and Scarlett during the war’s dire circumstances, leading to their marriage and the birth of their daughter Bonnie Blue. However, when Scarlett’s initial crush Ashley comes between them, Rhett leaves her under the morning fog glow and she is heartbroken. 

Noah & Allie, The Notebook

A particularly sad breakup in the movies comes via 2004’s The Notebook. When the movie begins, two teens, Allie and Noah (Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling) from the opposite side of the tracks fall in love. However, Allie’s parents put a rift between them and they don’t see each other for years. Little does Allie know that after their breakup, Noah wrote to her every day for an entire year and her mother kept them from her. Lucky for this romance, it ends in a happy (yet very bittersweet way) down the road. 

Jerry & Dorothy, Jerry Maguire

In 1996’s Jerry Maguire, which is one of Tom Cruise’s best performances ever, the actor’s character of Jerry and Renée Zellweger’s Dorothy have an incredibly grounded and quite sad breakup scene when they realize they don’t want the same things anymore. The sequence really tugs at the heartstrings because Jerry had started to bond with Dorothy’s young son Ray since their marriage. 

Alice & Dan, Closer

In 2004’s Closer, Jude Law’s Dan leaves Natalie Portman’s Alice heartbroken when he confesses he’s been cheating on her. As she protests the breakup, he admits he’s “selfish” as she cries in his arms. She asks him to make tea, but while he’s preparing it she jets out the door and he never sees her again. 

Nicole & Charlie, Marriage Story

Breakups are always more difficult when children are involved. In 2019’s Marriage Story, audiences get a chance to see the pitfalls that come with divorce as a successful theater director Charlie (Adam Driver), and his wife and actress Nicole (Scarlett Johansson) go through the motions of ending their marriage. 

Bernadine & John, Waiting To Exhale 

In 1995’s Waiting To Exhale, Angela Bassett’s Bernadine, who is the mother of two kids, has spent much of her adult life shelving her career aspirations to raise her children. So we really feel the sting when she finds out that her husband of eleven years has been cheating on her with his bookkeeper and plans to divorce her. Of course, Bernadine gets her revenge by sending her ex’s car up in flames. 

Peter & Sarah, Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Sometimes the worst breakups are about the timing of it all, and we’re definitely not over this super awkward one in Forgetting Sarah Marshall. In the 2008 comedy, Kristen Bell’s Sarah dumps her longtime boyfriend Peter (Jason Segel) while he’s butt naked in their apartment. Then, they both run into each other in Oahu where Peter runs into Sarah and her new man, Aldous (Russell Brand). It’s funny as a movie, but gosh this is a nightmarish scenario! 

Danny & Debbie, About Last Night

In the 2014 movie, Michael Ealy and Paula Patton’s Danny and Debbie relationship blossoms and then falls apart during the movie’s runtime. It all comes to a head during a New Year’s Eve party that leads Debbie to move out. Thankfully, in the case of this movie, the pair do makeup by the end of the film! 

Katie & Hubbell, The Way We Were

1973’s romantic drama The Way We Were, had Barbra Streisand and Robert Redford playing lovers amidst their experiences with the House Un-American Activities Committee. Despite their differing opinions, they fall for each other, get married, and have kids. Their different beliefs ultimately drive them apart, but at least they get an epic kiss goodbye at the end.  

Dean & Cindy, Blue Valentine

Marriage is hard work. In 2010’s Blue Valentine, Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling depicted a rather grounded couple’s story in a narrative that impressively plays with timelines. The working-class romance is a tragic one that puts the spotlight on how ego can be the pitfall of a once passionate love.  

Emma & Adele, Blue Is The Warmest Color

French award darling Blue Is The Warmest Color had us messed up following watching Léa Seydoux and Adèle Exarchopoulos’ Emma and Adèle fall in love only to fall apart. The 2013 movie follows the two women across many years as they become closer, only for some major blemishes in their relationship to lead to an emotional breakup that changes them forever. 

Julianne & Michael, My Best Friend’s Wedding

There’s something romantic about marrying your best friend, as Julia Roberts’ Julianne hopes to do during My Best Friend’s Wedding, but her motivations are so crossed. Throughout the movie, she tries to break up Dermot Mulroney’s Michael with Cameron Diaz’s Kim, but ultimately she realizes Michael is not the one for her. It’s still a sweet wedding as another one of her BFF’s surprises her at his wedding and they dance the night away. 

Su & Chow, In The Mood For Love

There’s nothing quite like the romantic tension that Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung created in 2000’s In The Mood For Love. The movie is about two Shanghainese expatriates Su and Chow, who are already married, but fall into an emotional affair with one another as they learn of each being cheated on by their spouses. However, the tension never explodes into the affair we want it to as the movie ends with Chow confessing his love in a hole in a temple wall rather than to Su. 

Ben & Janine - He’s Just Not That Into You

He’s Just Not That Into You is one of those romantic comedies that follows a series of intertwined couples played by A-list actors. The most cutting arc in the movie is perhaps as Jennifer Connelly’s Janine realizes her husband Ben (Bradley Cooper) has been cheating on her with his yoga instructor Anna (Scarlett Johansson) amidst her slaving over house renovations for their place. After a particularly awkward moment between Ben, Janine, and Anna, Janine figures it all out and sends Ben packing. 

Evan & Kayleigh - The Butterfly Effect 

In 2004’s science fiction thriller, The Butterfly Effect, Ashton Kutcher plays Evan, a man who learns he can travel back in time and alter the past, present, and future. Sadly for Evan, as he discovers this power, he is met with the reality that his love Kayleigh (Amy Smart) often has traumatic fates if he is with her. By the end of the movie, he has to use his powers to make sure they are not together and she never even knew him. What could be worse than a breakup that the other person doesn’t even know about or experienced? 

So much heartbreak!! To keep it rolling, check out the TV breakups we're not over yet next! 

There are some horror movie characters — including some of the scariest villains or even the resourceful heroes they chase after — who are so well defined by the performances that brought them to life, that you cannot imagine any other actor in the role. However, history shows that things could have gone differently had other actors previously considered landed the part instead. Take a look at just how different some of the all-time best horror movies could have been by sifting through some of the fascinating and surprising examples of actors who came close to becoming horror movie icons — including some who did earn that title in other ways.

Kane Hodder (Freddy Krueger In A Nightmare On Elm Street)

As Kane Hodder revealed during ShudderFest’s Horror Royalty panel in 2020 (via Yahoo), before he played Jason Voorhees, Wes Craven considered him to play Freddy Krueger before Robert Englund joined the A Nightmare on Elm Street cast. However, at the end of the ninth Friday the 13th movie, that's actually Hodder's arm wearing Krueger’s claw pulling Jason's mask underground, meaning the actor got to play both roles after all.

Drew Barrymore (Sydney Prescott In Scream)

Seeing an A-lister like Drew Barrymore die in the opening scene of Wes Craven’s 1996 slasher revival was one of horror cinema’s greatest surprises since Janet Leigh’s death in Psycho, just as the actor predicted. Barrymore revealed on Hot Ones that she was offered Sydney Prescott, the lead role of the original Scream cast, but requested to play Casey Becker instead, knowing it would shock the audience.

Christopher Lee (Dr. Loomis In Halloween)

An undisputed Scream King for playing Dracula and starring in other classics like The Wicker Man, Christopher Lee's influence could have cast a wider net with a role in Halloween. According to The Digital Fix, he later said he regretted the chance to star in John Carpenter's seminal 1978 slasher as Dr. Sam Loomis, which was ultimately given to Donald Pleasence.

Bela Lugosi (The Creature In Frankenstein)

Following his success in the title role of 1931’s Dracula, Bela Lugosi was given the chance to play another legendary Universal Monster in that year’s adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. According to The Immortal Count: The Life and Films of Bela Lugosi by Arthur Lennig (via SlashFilm), the actor believed such a grotesque, inarticulate creature was “beneath him,” giving Boris Karloff the chance to embody Dr. Victor Frankenstein’s creation.

Leonardo DiCaprio (Patrick Bateman In American Psycho)

Christian Bale once told GQ that every role he has played was first offered to Leonardo DiCaprio and one accurate example is Patrick Bateman in American Psycho, as Vice’s oral history recalls. Legend has it Gloria Steinem (Bale’s stepmother, coincidentally) convinced DiCaprio that playing the sadistic investment banker would hurt his post-Titanic reputation, but he later told The Morning Call that he passed because felt the script “didn’t mean anything in the end.”

Jean-Claude Van Damme (The Predator In Predator)

The late, 7’2” Kevin Peter Hall played the titular extra-terrestrial hunter in 1987’s Predator and its first sequel, but the original actor chosen for the role was actually the 5’6” Jean-Claude Van Damme. As detailed in oral history by THR, the future Belgian action movie star quit because he did not want to be hidden in the costume, which resembled a large insect at the time.

Jamie Lee Curtis (Regan MacNeil In The Exorcist)

Playing Laurie Strode in Halloween made Jamie Lee Curtis one of the first and all-time greatest Scream Queens, but her years as horror royalty apparently could have started earlier. The Oscar winner told EW that a producer for The Exorcist asked her mother, Psycho’s Janet Leigh if the then-13-year-old could audition to play the possessed Regan MacNeil. Leigh refused on her daughter’s behalf and the role ultimately went to Linda Blair.

Will Poulter (Pennywise In 2017's It)

Bill Skarsgård made one of modern cinema’s scariest horror villains out of his portrayal of Pennywise in the 2017 adaptation of Stephen King’s It. However, as director Andy Muschietti told Deadline that year, he had, at one point, spoken to Will Poulter about the possibility of succeeding Tim Curry as the clownish, shape-shifting entity until the future Midsommar star became “slowly disengaged” from the dark role.  

Jack Nicholson (Father Damien Karras In The Exorcist)

Before playing Jack Torrance in The Shining made him horror royalty, Jack Nicholson read for the role of Father Damien Karras in 1973’s The Exorcist before it went to Jason Miller. At the 2013 Dallas International Film Festival, director William Friedkin said the Oscar winner came up to him and Ellen Burstyn at a restaurant asking to be considered, to which the filmmaker responded, “Jack, if I show you in a priest collar, the whole audience is gonna go up.”

Bette Midler (Annie Wilkes In Misery)

Kathy Bates’ Oscar-winning performance as Annie Wilkes is a key reason why Rob Reiner’s adaptation of Stephen King’s Misery is such a classic. However, the role of the nurse with a morbid obsession over her captive guest, author Paul Sheldon (James Caan), was previously offered to Bette Midler, who told Variety that the character’s violent, unfunny, and irredeemable qualities turned her away from it.

Jeff Bridges (Matt Hooper In Jaws)

When speaking to Vanity Fair about the making of Jaws, Steven Spielberg shared that Richard Dreyfuss was not his first choice to play shark expert Matt Hooper. One of his initial candidates was Jeff Bridges, whose closest contributions to the horror genre have included 1976’s King Kong, Terry Gilliam’s Tideland, and R.I.P.D.

Emma Stone (Margot In The Menu) 

In director Mark Mylod’s 2022 horror-comedy, The Menu, Anya Taylor-Joy plays Margot, one of several guests at an exclusive dinner run by an unhinged chef played by Ralph Fiennes. According to The Film Stage, Taylor-Joy actually stepped in as a replacement for Oscar winner Emma Stone, who was cast in the role was Alexander Payne was attached to direct.

Slim Pickens (Dick Hallorann In The Shining) 

You could argue that the heart and soul (and a few endearing qualities) of Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 adaptation of The Shining is Scatman Crothers’ performance as Dick Hallorann. According to Screen Rant, the musician was not actually the first choice to play the Overlook Hotel’s head chef, which was offered to Slim Pickens, who previously worked with Kubrick on Dr. Strangelove and said he would only take the role if his scenes could be done in fewer than 100 takes.

Alice Cooper (Pennywise in Stephen King's It) 

Before Bill Skarsgård, the definitive image of Pennywise was that of Tim Curry, who was actually just one of several actors considered to play the embodiment of fear in the miniseries adaptation of It from 1990. Perhaps the most fascinating name tossed around, according to THR, was rock star Alice Cooper, who has dabbled in horror on the big screen (such as when he played Freddy Krueger’s father in Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare) and in his music.

Haley Lu Richardson (Dani Ardor In Midsommar)

After appearing in M. Night Shyamalan’s Split, Haley Lu Richardson passed on the opportunity to lead another disturbing movie called Midsommar, which turned out to be one of the best A24 horror movies in the eyes of many. She told Backstage in 2023 that she did not have to courage to watch it yet, but has nothing but praise for Florence Pugh, who ultimately did play Dani Ador in Ari Aster’s sinister sophomore effort from 2019.

Al Pacino (Hannibal Lecter In The Silence Of The Lambs)

While Brian Cox first played Hannibal Lecter in Manhunter, Anthony Hopkins’ became the most recognizable iteration with his Oscar-winning performance in The Silence of the Lambs. However, Jodie Foster revealed to Deadline that there were a few American actors considered to play the cannibalistic criminal psychologist in the Best Picture Oscar winner, including Al Pacino.

Michael Cera (Cole Sear In The Sixth Sense)

When talking to Esquire, Michael Cera recalled auditioning to play Cole Sear in M. Night Shyamalan’s The Sixth Sense without realizing the character was a medium. Upon seeing the thriller, when watching the scene he read for, he noticed how Haley Joel Osment played it very sorrowfully instead of the upbeat and optimistic vibe the future Arrested Development star was going for.

Tilda Swinton (Pennywise In 2017's It)

Her chameleonic talents — best seen in her unrecognizable turn in 2018’s Suspiria remake — have us convinced that Tilda Swinton could have played Pennywise. Indeed, the Academy Award winner’s name was brought up as a possible choice for the fear-devouring clown in 2017’s It, as Andy Muschietti confirmed to Vanity Fair after a journalist jokingly mentioned her.

Sharon Tate (Rosemary Woodhouse In Rosemary's Baby) 

The title role of 1968’s Rosemary’s Baby — a woman who grows suspicious of her new neighbors after becoming pregnant — skyrocketed Mia Farrow into movie stardom. Before Farrow was cast, according to Vanity Fair, writer and director Roman Polanski’s own wife, Sharon Tate, fought hard to play the role herself.

Helen Mirren (Ellen Ripley In Alien)

In an interview with Vulture, Helen Mirren recalls reading the script for Alien and not being able to tell if Ripley, or any of the characters, were male or female. The future Academy Award winner would audition for Ridley Scott’s 1979 sci-fi classic, but the role of Ripley ended up going to Sigourney Weaver.

Chris Evans (Dan Torrance In Doctor Sleep)

Despite making a cameo in Doctor Sleep, The Shining’s original Danny Torrance, Danny Lloyd, is a former child star who no longer acts, which is why Ewan McGregor assumed the role for Mike Flanagan’s 2019 sequel. The filmmaker confirmed on his personal Tumblr account that, before the Emmy-winner was cast, one of the actors he met with was the MCU’s Steve Rogers, Chris Evans.

Shelley Winters (Pamela Voorhees In Friday The 13th)

While the Friday the 13th movies’ centerpiece slasher is Jason Voorhees, the main antagonist of the 1980 original was his vengeful mother, Pamela, played by Betsy Palmer. David Grove, author of On Location in Blairstown: The Making of Friday the 13th, told EW that one of the actors previously discussed to play the iconic female horror movie villain was Shelley Winters, best known for her Oscar-winning performances in The Diary of Anne Frank and A Patch of Blue, and her nominated role in disaster epic, The Poseidon Adventure.

Tobey Maguire (Alex Browning In Final Destination)

On director Jeffrey Reddick’s wish list for the Final Destination cast, he wanted the lead to be Tobey Maguire, who was cast in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man just two years later. However, as the filmmaker shared with Den of Geek, New Line Cinema was not convinced by the choice, which led Devon Sawa to ultimately take the part of Alex Browning.

Michelle Pfeiffer (Clarice Starling In The Silence Of The Lambs) 

Jodie Foster won her second Oscar for playing intrepid FBI trainee Clarice Starling in The Silence of the Lambs, but the part was previously offered to Michell Pfeiffer. The actor told The New Yorker that the “evil” in the film made her nervous, but she does regret turning down the opportunity to reunite with her Married to the Mob director, Jonathan Demme.

Freddie Prinze Jr. (Billy Loomis In Scream)

In an interview with Dread Central, Freddie Prinze Jr. revealed that he and Skeet Ulrich were the final two candidates to play Billy Loomis in 1996’s Scream before the vengeful murderer role ultimately went to the latter. At least Prinze Jr. got to work with writer Kevin Williamson on another teen slasher favorite, I Know What You Did Last Summer, the following year.

John Lithgow (Seth Brundle In The Fly)

Jeff Goldblum gave one of his best performances as half-man, half-insect Seth Brundle in David Cronenberg’s 1988 remake of The Fly. Before he was cast, however, the role was offered to Goldblum’s The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension co-star John Lithgow who told In Magazine (via IndieWire) that he “didn’t want to play something so grotesque.”

Johnny Depp (The Invisible Man In The Invisible Man) 

In 2016, The Wrap reported that Johnny Depp was up to star in the title role of a modern reimagining of The Invisible Man. That was until the immediate failure of the Dark Universe convinced Universal to go in a different direction with its monstrous properties, allowing Leigh Whannell to introduce his own modern interpretation of H.G. Wells’ classic thriller.

Drew Barrymore (Carol Anne Freeling In Poltergeist) 

Drew Barrymore broke through at age 7 with her role in E.T. the Extra-terrestrial, but she actually met Steven Spielberg when auditioning for another film. She recalled to Ellen Degeneres how she was considered for, but ultimately not given the role of Carol Anne (which did go to Heather O’Rourke) in 1982’s haunted house classic, Poltergeist.

Lee Marvin (Quint In Jaws)

Steven Spielberg’s first choice to play Quint in Jaws was actually Lee Marvin, but the Oscar winner (for 1965’s Cat Ballou) was not interested, as the filmmaker recalled to Vanity Fair. Thus, the role of the intrepid shark hunter was given to Oscar nominee Robert Shaw.

Anne Lockhart (Laurie Strode In Halloween)

It is impossible to imagine other than Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode — the one Haddonfield babysitter who survives Michael Myers’ killing streak in the original Halloween. However, according to Biography, one of co-writer and director John Carpenter’s first choices was Anne Lockhart of Battlestar Galactica fame before she passed on the role.

Jodie Foster (Margaret White In 2013's Carrie)

As Vulture reported in 2012, Jodie Foster was approached to star alongside Chloe Grace Moretz in a remake of Carrie as the titular telekinetic’s overbearing mother, Margaret White. The part ultimately went to Julianne Moore, who, coincidentally, was Foster's replacement to play Clarice Starling in 2000's Hannibal.

Kirsten Dunst (Clear Rivers In Final Destination)

As Final Destination director Jeffrey Reddick shared with Den of Geek, he had a wish list for the unique 2000 horror flick’s cast that included Kirsten Dunst as Clear Rivers. Instead, that role would end up going to Ali Larter, who came back for Final Destination 2.

We would honestly love to peek into an alternate universe in which one of these actors got the iconic horror movie role they were up for, just to see how creepy it might have turned out.

So I decided to rewatch Midsommar for the first time in years, and I noticed a bunch of stuff I hadn't seen before. 

I know what you'll say – "Alex, you talk about Midsommar all the time, saying how amazing it is and how it's one of the best A24 horror films." Yes, you are right. I still wholeheartedly believe that and am waiting for the day that Ari Aster decides to do another horror film because he is skilled at what he does when it comes to scary movies – even if Beau is Afraid was so weird and made me think it was horror sometimes. 

But believe it or not, it's been some time since I've seen this film. I watched it a few times back in 2019 and 2020, but other than that, I have not revisited this movie because of just time in general and so many new films coming out. So, one lonely night, I decided to rewatch this "comfort" horror film of mine. 

And while, yes, it still got under my skin just as much, there were plenty of things I noticed this time around. And I have to talk about it. 

Major spoilers down below for Midsommar!

The Human Mask Is Directly Made From Mark's Skin – Not Just Molded After It

Maybe it's just the fact that I've seen Will Poulter's face so much in the last few years (especially during his time in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3), but I never really realized that the literal mask that the Swedish man is wearing when they attack Josh is Mark's skin. 

At first, I think I was stunned overall at the fact that William Jackson Harper was killed off so quickly in the movie, but it took a few watches to sink in that they had skinned Mark and wore his face. I knew his innards were gone by the film's end – since they stuffed straw into him – but I never knew that face was his until now.

It makes sense because he was the person who asked the Swedish celebrators what the kids were playing at the beginning of the film, and the man said, "Skin the Fool." In this film, Mark is the fool – mainly when he uses a sacred tree as a bathroom break, and it angers the natives there. Everything has begun to make sense. 

The Tapestry At The Very Beginning Foreshadows Midsommar's Story 

I think it's hard for me to remember the beginning of Midsommar because one of the opening scenes is so jarring – when we see Dani's sister with the tube up her mouth. I'm shivering just thinking about it. 

But before all of that, we are given a tapestry that shows exactly what will happen in the upcoming movie, every bit, but upon the first watch – or even the second, you don't realize it until you get to the rest of the film and notice that it's the same as the tapestry. 

Christian's Drink Is A Different Color Than The Others

This is almost a "blink and you'll miss it" moment, but when you pay attention, Christian's drink during one of the meals is a different color than the others around him. 

The moment we see that and recognize it, you can recall that earlier in the movie, we saw that there was a mating ritual that was inscribed on the walls of the place they are staying in – where a woman places her menstrual blood in the drink of the man she wants to be with, as well as a pubic hair in his food. 

Gross, I know, but it's cool to see that this is what happens in the film, where Christian drinks that and pulls out a pubic hair that is from Maja. 

There Are So Many Mirrors

I noticed this a little more towards the end of the film, but did you ever see that there are mirrors everywhere in Midsommar? 

We first get a glance at Dani's parents in a mirror. We see her pained expression through mirrors multiple times. We watch conversations through mirrors – why are there so many mirrors? 

These mirrors represent the characters' internal feelings rather than a reflection of themselves. What they are feeling on the inside, the fears that are eating them up. Most mirrors connect to Dani (played by the incredible Florence Pugh), so it makes sense why we would see so many reflections in relation to her. 

The Apartment That Dani Is Resting In Had A Bear Poster In It

I'm not entirely sure if it's Dani's apartment she is resting in or Christian's, but when we see Dani look up from the bed when Christian comes to get her before a party, we see that there is a bear poster hanging above it, where a little girl is touching the bear. 

This foreshadows the ending of Midsommar, where Christian has been drugged up and placed into the inside of a bear skin to burn down with the rest of the sacrifices to purge evil from the Swedish commune.  

Why There Are No Subtitles For Certain Scenes

I enjoy a lot more movies and shows doing this now. I first noticed this trend when I watched 2021's West Side Story and the incredible West Side Story cast, but I didn't realize it was also in this film – and probably many others, if we're being honest. 

When I first watched Midsommar, I wondered why there were so few subtitles. But now, upon rewatching it, I finally realized that it was supposed to make the viewer feel like Dani – we are the outsiders, just like her, unsure of what is going on and trying to figure out how to survive this without losing her mind. We are the ones asking questions that seem to have no answer. And that is just fantastic storytelling. 

We Never Find Out What The Cult Symbols Mean

There are plenty of clichés in horror movies – heck, most of them have been used in the best horror movies ever – and I've noticed that we often are given strange symbols that tend to allude to the macabre or of a supernatural nature. 

But in Midsommar, we need to be explained as to what these ruins mean. At least in other horror movies, we are informed of some history behind them, but here? They are just that – ancient Swedish symbols that we assume have something to do with the ceremonies, but we never find out what they mean in the film. That's up to us to do our research. 

Even then, it only adds to the fact that we are the outsider. It makes me uncomfortable just thinking about it. 

The Flowers On Dani's Crown Move With The Drugs In Her System

I think the first time I watched this film, I was still in shock at what I was seeing, so much so that I never noticed that the flowers on Dani's May Queen crown move – as if they are breathing with her. 

Obviously, this is due to the drugs in her system, but it's fascinating for the audience to be able to witness that feeling at the same time. Not only that, but we see other parts of the movie where plants, dead animals, or something else are moving. 

Drugs are the instant catalyst, but you can also interpret it as Dani being in such a new, strange place with strange customs that she can't keep herself mentally straight at first – hence leading to her seeing things moving, growing on her, as if she is slowly becoming one with the commune. 

Midsommar is one of those films anyone should watch, but particularly for big horror fans, this is a film that makes you think every time you watch it. 

I would gladly recommend rewatching this film if you can – and yes, you will probably feel just as uncomfortable, but I promise that noticing all these tiny details is worth it. Ari Aster, I need your next film now. 

In the real world, there are people who face true horror every day when they face and struggle to cope with the unimaginable loss of a loved one. I believe that many of the best horror movies are the ones that attempt to capture this kind of experience, funneled through themes of a more heightened or supernatural means. The following are some of my picks for the most acclaimed and frightening thrillers that deeply and tastefully incorporate the topic of grief into their stories.

The A Quiet Place Movies (2018-2024)

Director: John Krasinski, Michael Sarnoski

Starring: Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Lupita Nyong’o

What they are about: The presence of vicious extraterrestrials that hunt their prey with sound forces the human race into silence.

Why they are great horror movies about grief: Each installment of this acclaimed, apocalyptic horror movie franchise – including the Abbott Family’s struggles in A Quiet Place and A Quiet Place Part II and the New York-set prequel spin-off, A Quiet Place: Day One – boasts strong themes of loss and the struggle to cope in a place where you feel you have no voice.

How to watch the A Quiet Place Movies

Lake Mungo (2008)

Director: Joel Anderson

Starring: Rosie Traynor, David Pledger

What it’s about: A family speaks to a documentary crew about the strange occurrences in their home that have led them to believe their deceased teenage daughter is trying to reach them.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: The underrated Australian found footage horror movie favorite Lake Mungo is a rare example of a thriller in which the characters hope they are being haunted after experiencing an untimely tragedy.

How to watch Lake Mungo

• Stream Lake Mungo on Amazon Prime
• Stream Lake Mungo on Tubi
• Buy Lake Mungo on DVD on Amazon

No One Will Save You (2023)

Director: Brian Duffield

Starring: Kaitlyn Dever

What it’s about: A lone young woman experiences a close encounter with beings from another planet.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: The ominous title of Hulu’s inventive alien invasion film, No One Will Save You (which is dialogue-free and brilliantly relies on its sound design to create tension), not only refers to the protagonists’s quarrel with otherworldly creatures but also her solitary, ostracized existence following a harrowing incident.

How to watch No One Will Save You

• Stream No One Will Save You on Hulu

Anything For Jackson (2020)

Director: Justin G. Dyck

Starring: Sheila McCarthy, Julian Richings

What it’s about: Audrey and Henry discover a way to bring back their grandson by kidnapping a young woman and inserting his soul into her unborn child.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: The lengths a person would go to reunite with a deceased loved one are explored in Anything for Jackson – a chilling twist on demonic possession movies that is also available with a Shudder subscription.

How to watch Anything for Jackson

• Stream Anything for Jackson on AMC+
• Rent or buy Anything for Jackson on Amazon
• Buy Anything for Jackson on Blu-ray on Amazon

Antichrist (2009)

Director: Lars Von Trier

Starring: Willem Dafoe, Charlotte Gainsbourg

What it’s about: After their infant son’s death, a couple tries to repair their relationship at an isolated woodland retreat.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: Another thriller with satanic themes that follows the devastating effects of losing a child is Antichrist – a bizarre and shocking movie that was, according to NPR, inspired by Lars Von Trier’s own experience being hospitalized for anxiety.

How to watch Antichrist

• Stream Antichrist on Kanopy
• Buy Antichrist on Blu-ray on Amazon

The Final Girls (2015)

Director: Joshua John Miller

Starring: Taissa Farmiga, Malin Akerman

What it’s about: A young woman is (sort of) reunited with her late actor mother when she and her friends are transported into the world of the ‘80s slasher movie, Camp Bloodbath, and meets her mom’s character.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: The only horror-comedy movie on this list is The Final Girls, which, according to Creative Screenwriting, Joshua John Miller based on the experience of watching his own late father, Jason Miller, in the 1973 classic, The Exorcist.

How to watch The Final Girls

• Rent or buy The Final Girls on Amazon
• Buy The Final Girls on Blu-ray on Amazon

The Babadook (2014)

Director: Jennifer Kent

Starring: Essie Davis, Noah Wiseman

What it’s about: A widowed mother suspects she and her son are being preyed upon by a ghastly storybook character.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: What makes the eponymous entity from The Babadook one of modern horror’s greatest villains is how it could be interpreted as a manifestation of the main character’s pain and resentment, which she must learn to live with by the end of the film.

How to watch The Babadook

• Stream The Babadook on Netflix
• Stream The Babadook on Pluto TV
• Rent or buy The Babadook on Amazon
• Buy The Babadook on Blu-ray on Amazon

The Changeling (1980)

Director: Peter Medak

Starring: George C. Scott, Trish Van Devere

What it’s about: A music professor rents a Seattle mansion that is also occupied by the spirit of a boy needing his help to reveal the mystery behind his death.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: Arguably, the most horrifying scene from the haunted house classic The Changeling is its first, in which John Russell witnesses his wife and daughter’s death – a tragedy he attempts to cope with by helping the ghost haunting his house.

How to watch The Changeling

• Stream The Changeling Tubi
• Rent or buy The Changeling on Amazon
• Buy The Changeling on Blu-ray on Amazon

The Descent (2005)

Director: Neil Marshall

Starring: Shauna Macdonald, Natalie Mendoza

What it’s about: On a cave-diving expedition, a group of friends become trapped in unexplored territory with vicious nocturnal creatures.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: Also beginning with the death of the main character’s spouse and child, The Descent is considered one of the best horror movies of the 2000s for the way the underground maze symbolizes grief's seemingly inescapable nature – made more apparent in Neil Marshall’s unrated director’s cut, featuring a more unsettling, heartbreaking, and widely preferred alternate ending.

How to watch The Descent

• Stream The Descent on Amazon Prime
• Stream The Descent on Tubi
• Buy The Descent on Blu-ray on Amazon

Don't Look Now (1973)

Director: Nicolas Roeg

Starring: Julie Christie, Donald Sutherland

What it’s about: Following their young daughter’s fatal drowning, a married couple takes time away in Venice, but the painful memory only continues to haunt them through logic-defying circumstances.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: Grief can lead to (or even be a form of) obsession and both are central themes of one of the best horror movies of the 1970s, Don’t Look Now – a mind-bending, Hitchcockian nightmare based on Daphne Du Maurier’s story.

How to watch Don’t Look Now

• Stream Don't Look Now on Pluto TV
• Rent or buy Don’t Look Now on Amazon
• Buy Don’t Look Now on Blu-ray on Amazon

A Ghost Story (2017)

Director: David Lowery

Starring: Casey Affleck, Rooney Mara

What it’s about: The spirit of a deceased composer, literally dressed in a white sheet, continues to haunt his wife in the years after his death

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: The conceit of the acclaimed A24 movie A Ghost Story sounds a bit comical from a visual standpoint but this interpretation of the afterlife achieves a transcendent, deeply thought-provoking exploration of the need to preserve one’s legacy beyond life and the healing power of time.

How to watch A Ghost Story

• Stream A Ghost Story on Max
• Rent or buy A Ghost Story on Amazon
• Buy A Ghost Story on Blu-ray on Amazon

The Invitation (2016)

Director: Karyn Kusama

Starring: Logan Marshall-Green, Tammy Blanchard, Emayatzy Corinealdi, Michiel Huisman

What it’s about: Years after he and his former wife lose their son, a man attends a dinner party hosted by his ex and her new lover where he becomes overwhelmed with the feeling that something is wrong.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: The insurmountable challenge to accept one’s grief is explored in one of the greatest horror movies from a female director, The Invitation – a scintillating masterpiece of slow-burn horror praised for its brazen depiction of desperation’s potentially dangerous influence.

How to watch The Invitation

• Stream The Invitation on Amazon Prime
• Stream The Invitation on Tubi
• Buy The Invitation on Blu-ray on Amazon

Hereditary (2018)

Director: Ari Aster

Starring: Toni Collette, Alex Wolff, Milly Shapiro, Gabriel Byrne

What it’s about: Following a horrific tragedy, a woman and her family’s struggle to cope escalates to increasingly damaging levels.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: Sometimes, the struggle to process grief stems from a strained relationship with a deceased loved one, which Hereditary initially addresses before evolving into a hopeless downward spiral that is considered one of the best A24 horror movies ever.

How to watch Hereditary

• Rent or buy Hereditary on Amazon
• Buy Hereditary on Blu-ray on Amazon

Midsommar (2019)

Director: Ari Aster

Starring: Florence Pugh, Jack Reynor

What it’s about: Longing for comfort from her longtime boyfriend, a grief-stricken young woman follows him and his friends to Sweden for a seemingly idyllic cultural festival.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: Ari Aster further cemented himself as a modern trauma auteur with his sophomore effort, which wastes absolutely no time establishing the source of our protagonist’s grief, only to show her finally achieve solace in a most unsettling way in the bittersweet (emphasis on “bitter”) Midsommar ending.

How to watch Midsommar

• Stream Midsommar on Max
• Rent or buy Midsommar on Amazon
• Buy Midsommar on Blu-ray on Amazon

The Night House (2021)

Director: David Bruckner

Starring: Rebecca Hall, Sarah Goldberg, Vondie Curtis-Hall

What it’s about: A widowed teacher’s own uncertainties about the afterlife make it difficult to cope with her husband’s suicide, until she begins to suspect his spirit lingers in their lakeside home.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: CinemaBlend's Eric Eisenberg chose The Night House as the best horror movie of 2021 for its profound symbolization of the darkness people struggle to overcome in the wake of tragedy, as expressed in its chilling final reveal which Hall requested to have changed from the original script.

How to watch The Night House

• Rent or buy The Night House on Amazon
• Buy The Night House on Blu-ray on Amazon

The Orphanage (2007)

Director: J.A. Bayona

Starring: Belén Rueda, Fernando Cayo

What it’s about: A woman searches for her missing son, whom she believes was abducted from the home for orphaned children where she grew up.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: From producer Guillermo del Toro, the Spanish-language thriller The Orphanage sees our protagonist’s desperate search go as far as calling – something parents of missing children have been known to do in real life – which results in some dark discoveries.

How to watch The Orphanage

• Rent The Orphanage on Amazon
• Buy The Orphanage on Blu-ray on Amazon

Pet Sematary (1989)

Director: Mary Lambert

Starring: Dale Midkiff, Denise Crosby, Fred Gwynne

What it’s about: A doctor loses his young son not long after learning a burial ground that can resurrect the dead lies near his new home.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: Stephen King’s 1983 novel Pet Sematary, which was first adapted for film in 1989, sees the grieving protagonist make a decision that may seem unimaginable to some, but sympathetic to others who may wonder if they would do the same despite its dire consequence.

How to watch Pet Sematary

• Stream Pet Sematary on Paramount+
• Stream Pet Sematary on Pluto TV
• Rent or buy Pet Sematary on Amazon
• Buy Pet Sematary on Blu-ray on Amazon

Run Rabbit Run (2023)

Director: Daina Reid

Starring: Sarah Snook, Lily LaTorre

What it’s about: Single mother Sarah tries to understand why her daughter, Mia, suddenly prefers to be called “Alice.”

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: Writer Hannah Kent told HorrorBuzz that Run Rabbit Run, one of the best horror movies on Netflix, is about the uncomfortable topics that some parents are forced to confront and how they can be linked to painful memories or mistakes.

How to watch Run Rabbit Run

• Stream Run Rabbit Run on Netflix

We Are Still Here (2015)

Director: Ted Geoghegan

Starring: Andrew Sensenig, Barbara Crampton

What it’s about: When a married couple senses a spiritual presence in their new home, they immediately suspect it is their son, who recently died in a car crash.

Why it is a great horror movie about grief: While the spiritual presence in We Are Still Here is not the one its main couple hopes for, their hope to reunite with their son gives the indie ghost story an unexpected level of depth and heart.

How to watch We Are Still Here

• Stream We Are Still Here on Amazon Prime
• Stream We Are Still Here on Tubi
• Buy We Are Still Here on Blu-ray on Amazon

For me, the best kind of scary movies are the ones that address real, uncomfortable topics amid the escapist fantasy elements. As such, I consider these horror films that address grief to be among the strongest.

Florence Pugh truly is one of the most phenomenal actresses of our generation. You may already know some things about this Oscar nominee, like her excellent ability to hide her British accent for roles or being an award nominee since her debut in The Falling. But have you ever noticed the uncanny frown she brings on the big screen that can easily make audiences feel for her characters? Fans have that memorable frown in their minds, and so does the British actress herself, as she explained where that striking facial expression comes from in movies like Midsommar.

It’s no wonder that fans can’t help but notice Florence Pugh’s signature frown that she displays in a lot of her movies. As she sells each performance of hers, the pain of her characters becomes our pain as we watch. While speaking to BBC Radio, the Fighting with My Family actress speaks honestly on where that frown of hers comes from.

See, now I can’t unsee that frown of hers. It’s almost like what you’d see in an animated character where their whole mouth just falls so low to show how sad they are. It’s one thing if this was an acting choice on Florence Pugh’s part, but that truly is the way that she shows her discontent. It's all the more reason why no one should ever try to make this 27-year-old actress cry or our hearts will break with hers.

When you think about it, Florence Pugh really does have a tendency of playing characters who have gone through the wringer. The “beautiful nightmare” from Midsommar had her character, Dani, lose her family in a murder-suicide plot by her sister and left in the clutches of a sinister cult with her unfaithful boyfriend. Filming this movie was no cakewalk for her, as she recalled how intense that iconic crying scene was for her in that she and the other actresses in the scene continued to sob even as the cameras stopped rolling. 

The role truly did take a toll on Pugh, as she never played someone with so much pain before and would imagine the worst things to help her get into character. It’s no wonder that critics and audiences praised this gifted actress’s performance. To hear the actress herself talk about how she nailed that frown, take a look at the video below.

Other than Midsommar, Florence Pugh’s frown played a role in other prominent films of hers. In Little Women, she played Amy, who grew up in the shadow of Jo and her other older sisters who seemed to have had life figured out for them. Amy also didn’t have the best luck in romance, as she was promised to a rich man she didn’t love, only to fall for Laurie, who fawned over Jo. That frown was ever present in the heartbreaking scene of telling Laurie that she spent her entire life loving him only for him never to see that until she was engaged to another man. We also saw a down Pugh in the sisterly bond she shared with Scarlett Johansson in Black Widow when Natasha told her younger sister, Yelena, how much their time together has meant to her. I would probably pull the same face too in those scenes.

Florence Pugh’s frown is apparently not forced or controlled when portraying sadness in her movies. It’s a face that breaks our hearts but helps her achieve such a memorable performance. Her 2023 movie releases include Oppenheimer, which has been going through a censorship controversy, and Dune: Part Two, which premieres on November 3rd.

Haley Lu Richardson, who graced us with her presence being part of the season two cast of the HBO miniseries The White Lotus, has had a prominent film career. She had a supporting role in Edge of Seventeen only for her breakout role to be in the independent drama Columbia and a starring role in the romantic drama Five Feet Apart alongside Cole Sprouse which Richardson says changed her the most out of any role. However, one role that could have taken even more of a toll on her would have been the lead in Ari Aster’s Midsommar if she didn’t turn down the audition. Although she recently explained why it was the right decision for her at the time. 

You may remember Midsommar with leading lady Florence Pugh’s character traveling with her boyfriend and friends to Sweden for a midsummer festival only to discover they’re among a sinister cult. Unpregnant star Haley Lu Richardson spoke to Backstage’s In the Envelope: The Actor’s Podcast about how her “one that got away” role was for the lead in Ari Aster’s Midsommar that she passed on due to turning down the horror film’s audition.

The Gotham Independent Film Award nominee continued saying that she didn’t want to be, yet again, “going around and crying at these disturbing things” and ended up not taking the meeting. She did play an intense role in M. Night Shyamalan's twisted and terrifying movie Split where she and her friends get abducted by a man with multiple personalities into an underground facility trying to find a way to break out. Even if it’s all just pretend, actors still have to mentally prepare themselves to get into character and portray the overwhelming emotions their characters are feeling. So it’s understandable that after just doing Split that she didn’t want to repeat the process of keeping herself terrified. 

The main lead in Midsommar may have been a role that had gotten away, but Haley Lu Richardson said she had no regrets about turning it down as she believed everything happened for a reason. Not to mention, she felt that Florence Pugh pulled off a great performance. In a way, Richardson would have been right about the mental anguish she would have had to endure. Florence Pugh once explained how the role took a toll on her in putting herself in “shit situations” to better bring out the trauma her character went through after losing her family to a murder-suicide carbon monoxide poisoning. 

And we can’t forget about that Florence Pugh's intense yet iconic crying scene, where the Black Widow star and the rest of the girls in the cult crying, screaming, and heaving with each other that brought them further connected. Pugh explained that even once the cameras were off, everyone was still crying with each other due to how emotionally draining the experience was. So, something tells me that anything The White Lotus star experienced filming Split would have been ten times more extreme if she took on the Midsommar role. 

While Haley Lu Richardson turned down Midsommar, she didn’t need to be in that movie to achieve success. She plans on starring and executive-producing the upcoming Netflix movie Love at First Sight based on the best-selling novel The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight. Until then, you can watch Richardson in season two of The White Lotus on your HBO Max subscription. Plus, if you’re curious about seeing Midsommar, then you can watch this folk horror film on your Paramount+ subscription.  

There may come a time in the future when the list of the best horror movies may include writer/director Ari Astor’s Midsommar. An indie hit upon its 2019 release, the Florence Pugh-led film saw the actor winding through an emotional maze of terror and catharsis, wowing audiences in the process. While Pugh is amazing in the role of Dani, she admits that there was a price to pay, as she described an acting process that really put her through the wringer. 

Well, Florence Pugh described it a lot more colorfully when she sat down to guest star on the podcast Off Menu with Ed Gamble and James Acaster. Here’s how Pugh described the situation, and how it sort of inspired her to fall down a minor acting rabbit hole: 

Starting off the film in intense grief over the death of her family, Dani’s journey only brings her more trauma and misfortune as the tale goes on. Even Midsommar’s auditions were wild, so Florence and the rest of the cast probably had an inkling of an idea as to where things could head. 

Then again, as she recalled in her story about shooting the film, Florence Pugh did end up falling into the darker corners of her imagination. While that was great for the movie itself, it did leave the actor with a bit of apprehension when wrapping her time on set. 

Going on to discuss when she left Midsommar’s production for Little Women, Florence Pugh even noted that when she spotted the field they were filming on her flight, she felt a great deal of guilt. Just as she’d never played that sort of pain in a character before, Pugh was actually wondering if Dani was going to be ok after the movie’s events. 

Though she and Ari Aster disagree on what Midsommar’s ending potentially means, there’s no moving past the fact that we don’t really know what happens to Dani that shocking finale. It's an ambiguity that's stuck with audiences, and after the intense experience she went through bonding with her character, it even left Florence Pugh lingering on the subject a little longer than she'd ever done before.

Through various Midsommar behind the scenes stories, the intensity of Ari Aster’s second film has become well known to horror fans. Between environmental challenges, and the emotional content of the picture, the sum total experience was something that wore many cast and crew members out. Florence Pugh could possibly be the May Queen of that very title herself, thanks to the story she’s just told about how she brought Dani to life. 

If for some reason you either haven’t seen, or would like to revisit Midsommar, you can check it out pretty easily. Through a Showtime add-on to your Paramount+ subscription, or any other service that offers the option, you can currently stream the Ari Aster folk horror hit. Meanwhile, audiences can see Florence Pugh in far less harrowing scenarios through her latest film, A Good Person, which is in theaters now. 

Loads of spoilers below for Scream VI, so tread very lightly if you haven’t yet watched Ghostface’s latest reign of terror!

The Scream franchise has always served as a reflective microcosm of the entire horror genre, with iconic director Wes Craven and Kevin Williamson initially honing in on slasher flicks. Scream VI filmmakers Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett continued expanding on that concept in the most meta ways possible, opening up a Pandora’s Box of far-reaching horror references and easter eggs, all while confidently weaving through Ghostface’s own Stab-tethered history to build out their latest gore-soaked whodunnit. This is not a movie to look away from for even the slightest second. 

To name every single outside reference within Scream VI would take many more viewings (which would boost its franchise-topping weekend box office), and likely a ton of insight from everyone involved behind the scenes. So for now, we’ll have to settle with the selection of favorites laid out below while waiting on that next trip to the theater. 

References Galore Part 1: Wes Craven

Considering 2022's Scream featured a full-on "For Wes" celebration scene, it stood to reason that the directors would find new ways to honor Wes Craven’s cinematic history in their latest feature. And boy howdy, were there a lot of nods, with most popping up at the subway station and within the trains. Obviously A Nightmare on Elm Street’s Freddy Krueger was on display, but keen-eyed fanatics likely also caught costumes based on Craven’s other work, including Shocker, The Last House on the Left, Deadly Friend, The People Under the Stairs and even Eddie Murphy and Angela Bassett’s Vampire in Brooklyn characters made an appearance.

Inarguably the best Wes Craven winky-wink, though, is the name of the store that Samantha and Tara run into while being chased by Ghostface: Abe’s Snake Bodega. A suggestion that came from the singer of the band Ice Nine Kills, as explained by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin to Dread Central, Abe Snake refers to the one-off pseudonym that Craven used when he co-wrote, directed and produced the X-rated 1975 film The Fireworks Woman, which was crafted between Last House on the Left and The Hills Have Eyes. He also had a role in the porn flick as an otherworldly entity, but went uncredited for it.

The Addams Family Figures And Costumes

Before anyone involved with Scream VI could possibly know Jenna Ortega's Wednesday would go on to become one of Netflix's most successful original series, the crew slipped a pair of callbacks to the creepiest, kookiest clan around, the Addams Family. Not only was one of the frat party attendees dressed up as Wednesday, but Tara's psychologist Dr. Stone (Henry Czerny) had a collection of Addams Family figurines on a table in his office. 

Invasion Of The Body Snatchers Footage

Speaking of Tara’s doc, he was busy watching the 1956 original Invasion of the Body Snatchers when Ghostface rudely interrupted with a knife to the face. This was a particularly fun and on-the-nose reference, as it was the scene in which Kevin McCarthy’s Dr. Miles Bennell is screaming “You’re next!” at the drivers whizzing by. Additional horror connection: the scene is also featured in Joe Dante’s Gremlins, while the 2011 film You’re Next was directed and written by Adam Wingard and Simon Barrett, respectively, who both worked on V/H/S, which also boasted Scream VI’s directors as part of its creative collective. That last part is probably an incidental callback, but still worth bringing up.

Psycho 2 Praise

Anyone who celebrated the sight of the Psycho poster inside Samantha and Tara’s apartment was in for a bigger treat later in the film, as Mindy and Kirby’s horror movie convo taps into the idea that Richard Franklin’s surprise sequel Psycho II is a pretty damned great and underappreciated franchise offering. Norman Bates’ motherly obsessions clearly don’t have direct ties to Scream VI’s vengeful daddy twist, but I imagine Detective Bailey had some Bates-adjacent issues as a strapping young lad.

Appreciation For Friday The 13th Beyond The First Movie

Mindy and Kirby’s chat delivered another applause-worthy moment when the topic of Friday the 13th favorites was broached. Kirby noted the original, which is itself almost a nod to the question that got Drew Barrymore’s character killed in the first Scream’s cold open. But Mindy shared that she liked Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter the best for its Corey Feldman-ness, which is a barely-ever-expressed opinion in the world at large, much less within scripted worlds where the first two Friday films are the only ones to ever draw praise. Which isn’t to say I agree with Mindy on that front, but I love some variety, so I also applaud the use of Jason Takes Manhattan footage popping up early on as a fun welcome to New York City. (Not to mention the Jason costume on the subway train, and the early nods to Friday in one of the trailers.)

Twin Peaks Font

Richie’s fan movies, which played on the Ghostface shrine’s sheeted screen during the final sequence, wrapped with credits that used the same two-toned font as David Lynch’s Twin Peaks logo. He also used Scream and Stab’s signature needle drop, Nick Cave’s “Red Right Hand,” as the accompanying tune, further proving Richie didn’t have a bone of originality in his body.

Flowery Midsommar Nods

Ari Aster's heady psychological horrors are on largely different wavelengths than the Scream films, but that didn't stop the directors from paying homage to the hyper-disturbing 2019 folk horror Midsommar. Not only was someone wearing a modified version of the flower dress worn by Florence Pugh's Dani, but the first time Jack Quaid's Richie appears via online picture, a similarly colorful flower crown was drawn around his head.

References Galore Part 2: Stephen King

Even though Stephen King doesn’t intrinsically have anything to do with the Scream-verse, it would be genre blasphemy to bring out this many visual easter eggs without at least a handful paying respect to the King of Horror and the plethora of adaptations he’s inspired. Viewers can see costumes paying homage to Carrie’s titular blood-covered teen, IT’s Pennywise and Georgie, The Shining’s Grady twins (which were exclusive to Stanley Kubrick’s film), and Children of the Corn characters. I believe The Black Phone’s Grabber mask also popped up at one point, with that film being adapted from the story by Joe Hill, King’s like-minded son. 

A Nope Callback Just Eight Months After Its Release

Hollywood isn’t always great with timing and references, but in wisely paying homage to modern-day horror mastermind Jordan Peele, Scream VI managed to feature a character dressed as Keke Palmer’s character Em from Nope, despite releasing just eight months after the sci-fi thriller hit theaters. To be sure, the costume designers also deserve props for the characters donned in Us jumpsuits.

The Directors' Own V/H/S Short

For anyone who wondered why Jenna Ortega was dressed up as a pirate during Scream VI's frat party, that was one-third of a reference to Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin's aforementioned work on the found-footage anthology V/H/S. Their segment, titled "10/31/98," featured a foursome of friends who made a fatal mistake in seeking out a costume party, instead stumbling upon a cultish ritual. In the segment, the camera-holding Gillett was dressed in a teddy bear costume (which can also be seen at the frat party), while Bettinelli-Olpin was in pirate garb. EP Chad Villella appeared as the Unabomber in V/H/S, which was also meant to be represented in Scream VI, but that plan fell through. 

Murder Party Costume

Arugably the least intuitive easter egg in Scream VI was delivered by Jack Champion's Ethan, who went to the frat party dressed as Chris Sharp's put-upon protagonist in the 2007 horror comedy Murder Party. That enjoyable (if not entirely wonderful) micro-budget feature was written and directed by Jeremy Saulnier, who went on to deliver the inarguably great and hard-hitting Blue Ruin and Green Room. 

Criminally Rare In The Mouth Of Madness Sighting!

One of John Carpenter's least celebrated genre works, In the Mouth of Madness has earned a cult following in the years since its under-appreciated arrival in 1994, but still remains one of his least referenced flicks compared to such influential flicks as They Live, Escape from New York and The Thing (among others). So I think I can speak for Sutter Kane when showing appreciation for whoever chose to dress someone on the train up like Sam Neill's John Trent during the point when he's in the asylum and has drawn crosses all over himself. 

While not a reference to movies or franchises, per se, Scream VI also gets props for giving a spotlight to the wide world of horror podcasts. The core apartment's living room features a big poster for The Last Podcast on the Left, which not only references Wes Craven's first horror flick in its title, but is also likely the horror/true crime podcast with the most brand awareness at this point, boasting various multimedia tie-ins. (One can only assume that the guys would have tackled the Woodsboro case at some point.) As well, one of the characters' bedrooms has a poster for the podcast We Hate Movies, which also isn't strictly about horror, but has covered a wide variety of genre efforts over the years, from The Prophecy to Halloween Ends.

Again, this wasn't a fully exhaustive and comprehensive list of all the references that popped up in Scream VI, but rather just the ones that I personally enjoyed the most. Not that I didn't also love seeing Pinhead, Chucky and Tiffany, the Babadook and more being represented. Now how long do we have to wait to see how all of this gets topped in Scream VII?

There are many stereotypical tropes that appear in horror movies, but one of the most overused is the “final girl”: the last character alive to confront the killer.

Once upon a time, the final girl was a shell of a character who could only defeat the monster thanks to luck or coincidence. But in more modern horror movies, we see final girls who not only defeat their monster but completely flip the trope on its head.

We have to give homage to the OG final girls, like Laurie Strode and Sidney Prescott, but this article is about totally badass final girls from horror movies that came out more recently. Oh, and there are spoilers ahead, so beware!

Tess Marshall (Georgina Campbell - Barbarian)

From the first scenes of Barbarian, Tess Marshall is a very self-aware woman. When she first enters the double-booked Airbnb, we can see Tess assessing her surroundings, locking doors behind her, and learning as much as she can about her potential attacker. Even though her co-habitant, Keith (played by It leading man Bill Skarsgård) is actually harmless, Tess demonstrates that she’s not going to be taken by surprise if danger comes her way.

When the real danger is revealed in the form of a “monster” in the basement, Tess must flex her survival skills in very different ways. Unlike the men who fall victim before her, Tess learns how to understand her capturer. Rather than dismiss them as a monster, Tess is empathetic towards her, and that’s what really saves her.

Dana (Kristin Connolly - The Cabin In The Woods)

The Cabin in the Woods subverts nearly every horror stereotype in the book, but the movie’s final girl, Dana (Kristin Connolly) bends the horror rules in more ways than one.

As pointed out here, and in other horror flicks like Scream, the final girl is usually a virgin who outwits the monster because of her purity or moral superiority. That’s not Dana, a college student who’s just getting over a fling with one of her professors. Dana also has a co-final girl/guy, Marty—who just might be the first comic relief character to ever make it to the final scenes of a scary movie.

Dana further subverts the stereotype by letting the world burn at the end. She realizes it’s too late to save herself, but it’s not too late to bring everybody else down with her. The scene of Dana and Marty smoking a joint as Apocalypse rolls in is one of my favorites in all horror films.

Grace (Samara Weaving - Ready Or Not)

One of my favorite final girls of recent memory is Grace Le Domas from the 2019 horror film, Ready Or Not. Grace starts out as the victim of her in-laws’ murderous hide-and-seek tradition, but by the end of the film it’s clear she actually found some enjoyment in participating in the ritual.

Grace’s triumphant exit at the finale of the film solidifies the fact that she dodged a huge bullet with this family, both literally and metaphorically. What’s more satisfying than throwing your wedding ring at your abusive ex?

Maddie (Kate Siegel - Hush)

One of my favorite horror movies is Hush, which stars Mike Flanagan-verse actor Kate Siegel as Maddie, a deaf woman under the attack of a home invasion.

Maddie’s attacker can tell that she’s smart, but it’s clear he sees her as a weak opponent. Maddie fights him tooth and nail until the bitter end, using her creativity and resourcefulness to come out on top.

Also worth noting—Maddie’s cat survives until the end of the movie as well. Double final girls.

Emerald Hayworth (Keke Palmer - Nope)

The “final girl” is usually white—characters who are people of color, gay, or serve as the comedic relief are often the first to be taken out and rarely survive to the end of the movie.

Jordan Peele’s 2022 horror film, Nope completely flips the script with Emerald Haywood, a queer woman of color played by Keke Palmer. As expected, Palmer brings her real-life sense of humor to her character, providing many of the film’s most comedic lines.

Not only does Em survive to the end, she actually gets to be the one to expose Jean Jacket to the world. She’s truly a final girl like no other.

Erin (Sharni Vinson - You’re Next)

You’re Next might follow some horror tropes to a T—for example, in the opening scene two characters die after having sex—but the horror film’s final girl, Erin, is anything but expected.

If I were a paid hit man, I probably wouldn’t expect my target to be skilled in apocalypse survival. But, that’s what the masked assassins get with Erin, who was raised in a doomsday survivalist compound.

Erin beats out multiple attackers in hand-to-hand combat, and knows how to booby trap the hell out of a vacation home. And don’t let this girl get her hands anywhere near a blender. You’re Next completely scraps the idea of a damsel in distress and instead gives us a badass woman with no qualms about doing whatever it takes to survive.

Jay (Maika Monroe - It Follows)

This horror film about a sexually-transmitted possession stars Maika Monroe as Jay, the newest victim of an entity that passes from person to person via intercourse.

It Follows is kind of a play on the entire “if you have sex during a horror film you’ll die” trope, but like all the films on this list there’s a twist. You can escape from the entity by passing it on to someone else.

While the movie has a somewhat ambiguous ending, Jay survives to the end by passing the entity on to others. It’s implied she’ll have to keep passing the entity on in order to survive, but she’s more than capable of doing so.

Tree Gelbman (Jessica Rothe - Happy Death Day)

Jessica Rothe carries Happy Death Day, a time loop horror movie where the only way to make it to tomorrow is to kill the person who’s about to kill you.

It’s a confusing concept, but Tree Gelbman is a very smart final girl. She solves the mystery of her predicament much faster than other fictional characters do (in Groundhog Day, it took Phil like, a year to break the loop). She also successfully takes out a serial killer and hangs herself in her quest to break the loop. 

Tree even gets a sequel, appropriately titled Happy Death Day 2U.

Dani (Florence Pugh - Midsommar)

The real horror of this movie isn’t the cult—it’s the chains of an unfulfilling relationship. 

Ari Aster’s cult favorite, Midsommar, stars Florence Pugh as Dani, a girl with a traumatic family history and an emotionally neglectful boyfriend. At first, Dani seems like the victim of the murderous Swedish cult they encounter while on a trip with classmates. But, as Dani becomes indoctrinated into the cult herself, she finds herself empowered by the community and sense of belonging she’s found.

Does Dani become the “anti-hero” of Midsommar? It’s hard to say. Like most of the final girls on this list, that’s up to viewer discretion to decide.

All of these final girls are well-worth the title, and have added something great to modern horror movies.

In October, A24 kept up its tradition of fun exclusive screening room features with the A24 horror movie marathon. For only $6, A24 fans got access to six of its movies: The Witch, Lamb, Hereditary, Saint Maud, Midsommar, and Green Room. 

Many consider The Witch, Hereditary, and Midsommar the best modern horror movies. Some may even argue that these films are some of the best horror movies of all time. Paying $6 once to see these horror films felt like a deal. All of them are available to stream on various apps, including on Paramount+.

Despite being able to see them on multiple streaming platforms already, it felt like a fun way to celebrate the 2022 Halloween season. 

The A24 horror movie marathon allowed me to rewatch some of my favorite horror films and was an introduction to some new favorites. The marathon spurred a few thoughts about these movies and A24.

Warning: The Witch, Lamb, Hereditary, Saint Maud, Midsommar, and Green Room spoilers ahead.  

Villain Is In The Eye Of The Beholder 

We all know that the only difference between a hero and a villain is who tells the story. The A24 horror movie marathon makes this even more clear. For example in Midsommar, and in real life, cults are bad. However, Ari Aster allows us to understand the cult's motives and traditions in a way that makes us see that, from their perspective, they aren’t the villains. He also shows the villain-esque deeds of some of the cult’s victims. 

The American characters are completely disrespectful to this culture and its sacred traditions. They just see these events as a fun vacation and a way to exploit the cult, either for a project or for a hookup. Christian (Jack Reynor) may be one of the worst boyfriends ever. You feel sympathy for him and the other characters who die, but you can also see why the cult may consider them the villains of this story.  

Lamb also takes a similar path of asking the question of who is the hero and who is the villain in this story. Are either of them the bad or good guy? Maria (Noomi Rapace) and Ingvar (Hilmir Snær Guðnason) are grieving the loss of a child. That kind of pain is unimaginable, but their actions throughout Lamb are basically criminal and morally questionable. They force another set of parents to grieve the loss of a child.

They kidnap a child from her mother, Maria kills the mother, and tries to deny the child its true nature. If Ada wasn’t a hybrid lamb-child, and simply a child, the film would have a different tone. However, because Ada is a hybrid, and you see how much Maria and Ingvar love her, you see this as a sort-of adoption story instead of an abduction story.

However, the ending kind of snaps you into reality and leaves you wondering: was Ada’s biological father justified in his actions? If Ada’s biological father was Liam Neeson looking for his daughter, you might be rooting for him.

The Movies That Scare Me The Most Are The Ones Where The Villain Wins

People may debate whether Hereditary or Midsommar is the best Ari Aster film, but I think they’re both great. However, Hereditary scares me a lot more. One reason that Hereditary is so scary, to me, is because the cult and demon win.

Yes, the cult wins in Midsommar but the results are a little more complicated. Hereditary also starts the film by proposing the question does having no control over your life or destiny make a story more tragic? And my answer is absolutely.  Peter (Alex Wolff) and his family are cursed and doomed from the start. They can’t avoid their fate. 

Knowing they’re fighting a losing battle makes the watch and Hereditary ending all the more frightening and devastating. I love horror films, so I’ve seen a lot. The only ones that actually scare and haunt me are the ones where the villains win. Mainly, because it just sucks to see a character fight so hard and still end up losing to the bad guy.

Most horror films end with at least one final girl surviving, or the death of the villain (until he or she magically returns in a horror franchise). Even in a horror movie, one survivor or the destruction of a villain gives some sense of hope. When the monster or villains win, it leaves a hopeless feeling. Even if you’re watching a fictional world, you kind of don’t want to end it with the feeling that the bad guys will win in the end. That’s terrifying. 

Horror Movies Shouldn't Be Ignored When Award Season Arrives 

Horror films have been nominated for Oscars, but it’s rare. This is a flaw in the award nomination system because so many horror films deserve award-season recognition. They have great performances and brilliant writing, and sometimes they have gorgeous cinematography. 

Most of the A24 horror movie marathon films should have been taken more seriously by major award shows, such as the Oscars. There is so much to admire, appreciate, and praise in these films. Being a horror film shouldn’t discredit their filmmaking achievements. 

The Witch is such a lush film that the costume and set design should have been nominated for more awards. Toni Collette kills all of her performances. Once again, Hereditary proves that she should have more Oscar nominations and wins. Florence Pugh makes you completely depressed in Midsommar. Give her an award for her performance. The list of great horror performances that the Academy has snubbed is endless.  

Ari Aster Is Good At Leaving Clues To The Characters’ Fates 

Hereditary and Midsommar are two of the movies I had seen before starting the marathon. While rewatching them, I noticed the clues a lot more. Aster basically tells you what's going to happen in both films. With the art tapestry in Midsommar, he gives a lot of details about the rituals before they happen. You’re also given a lot of clues about the Midsommar ending, including a clear image of a burning bear in one of the art pieces. 

Hereditary could have had a red flashing light sign appear every time he gives a clue about the eventual fate of the Graham family. If he did this, you'd see a red flashing light every few minutes. For the next Ari Aster film, I’ll be looking out for every clue about the fate of the main characters. Based on the past films, he'll tell us if we look close enough.  

Is This Marathon Organized By A Theme? 

While watching the six films, I tried to see if the order of the movies has any sort of pattern. I could easily see thematically how The Witch and Lamb work together. However, Hereditary and Saint Maud were a little harder to figure out their connection, except maybe obsession and worshipping of an unknown entity. By the time we got to Midsommar and Green Room, I couldn’t see any thematic connections. 

The only maybe connection is young people suddenly dying after thinking something would be fun. Lamb and The Witch making sense together makes me believe there was definitely a theme to the order and pairings of the movies, but I think that some are more obvious than others. 

Other Thoughts 

These six movies had my mind racing and my heart pacing. Therefore, the thoughts continue...

• All these films end with a final image of the protagonists. That’s just a little cool thing I noticed. 
• Despite the tragedy of both Midsommar and Hereditary, I found myself wanting to know what happens next. 
• I did not expect to love Lamb as a film as much as I did. Now I have a slight obsession with baby Ada -- aka the new baby Annette (for me). 
• Midsommar is a movie I loved the moment I watched it. Hereditary I enjoyed it but didn’t love it. Rewatching it, I may now like it more than Midsommar. 
• However, I still really like both films and now need the next Ari Aster film to come out tomorrow. 
• I had seen Green Room prior to the A24 horror movie marathon and didn’t consider it a horror movie. It felt like more of a suspense film. Rewatching it, I definitely can see now why it could be considered a horror film. 
• In fact, the concept is the most realistic of these six films, so that almost makes it scarier than them. 
• I hope this becomes an A24 annual tradition but with six different horror films each year. 
• I also want other A24 holiday marathons, why not the thinking man’s Christmas with a bunch of films on religion or family? Just an idea.

The A24 horror movie marathon was a great way for current, new, and future fans to see some of the best A24 movies. I would gladly do it again and share more thoughts. However, I will probably only watch Hereditary again in a daytime setting. You just never know if you've been cursed. 

Florence Pugh has had a quick rise to fame following her 2019 breakout role in Midsommar, which has led her to become a Marvel star and reportedly one of Dune Part Two’s latest additions. Unfortunately, being in front of the spotlight has led to Pugh facing the internet's wrath regarding her dating life, again. The actress’ “blissful” Ibiza vacation was disrupted by rumors she has split with her boyfriend of three years, Zach Braff, because she is enjoying time with Midsommar co-star Will Poulter overseas, which she attended with other friends, also of the male variety. 

After photos of Florence Pugh at the beach alongside a group of friends, including Will Poulter, Archie Madekwe, Harris Reed and Chet Lo, among others, the internet began to speculate that Pugh perhaps ended things with Braff for Poulter. Pugh took to her Instagram stories to set things straight, penning this: 

Alongside the note, Florence Pugh went on to point out a number of paparazzi photos that surfaced online that were not depicting her vacation in a factual light. Many of the images apparently cropped out the other friends she was with while next to Will Poulter, making it look as if she was on a private vacation with him. She cleared things up with a few images, including this one of her Midsommar co-stars: 

Florence Pugh also pointed out that while the paparazzi was snapping photos of them, she was snuggling with one of her best friends Olive, and her “nipple kept popping out.” Yet, the photographers didn’t catch that. Pugh claimed the paparazzi was “hiding behind some poor family, waiting for the optimum time of ‘let’s make a fake relationship happen.'" 

After the photos hit the internet, one viral comment on Twitter said they would “support” Florence Pugh and Will Poulter dating because he is “better than that expired man,” referencing 47-year-old Zach Braff, whilst another user called her longtime boyfriend a “senior citizen.” Many of those people likely didn’t think Pugh could see their comments, but she clearly did and called out the gossipers to put a stop to the bullying of the Scrubs actor and rumors about Poulter. 

Florence Pugh and Zach Braff have long been bullied for being in a relationship with a 21-year age difference. Back in 2020, Pugh also made a point to address negative comments about their relationship, saying she was “upset” to see commenters “hurling abuse” at them, politely asking people to not tell her who she should or should not love as it is not their place. While addressing rumors about Will Poulter on Tuesday, Pugh also said:

Although Florence Pugh did not mention Zach Braff specifically, just last month she posted a cute photo alongside Braff on her social media, wishing him a happy birthday and calling him a “beautiful human being” who she is lucky to witness his “incredible talent.” Now that Pugh has indeed addressed the rumors amidst her vacation, let’s focus back on her upcoming movies, including the very exciting and creepy Don’t Worry Darling alongside Harry Styles and Chris Pine, which hits theaters on September 23.  

If you’re looking for the best A24 horror movies, then this is the list for you. There are plenty of upcoming A24 films, but to me, I love to check out the ones that have already come out – mainly their amazing horror films.

Sure, there are plenty of other upcoming horror movies from other studios that you could look out for, or you can watch some of the best horror movies, but I have to say that A24 is always giving us some great ones – and this list just proves it.

From smaller, independent films to wide releases that have captured our attention, here are the best A24 horror movies, ranked.

14. Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022)

Bodies Bodies Bodies stars the impressive cast that includes Amandla Stenberg, Pete Davidson, Maria Bakalova, and more, and tells the story of a group of rich twenty-somethings who get trapped in a mansion when a hurricane comes through, and decide to play a game called “bodies bodies bodies” that takes a murderous turn throughout the night.

Let me just say that I laughed my ass off while watching this movie, and I mean that in the best way. There’s a lot that this film does that’s so unbelievably silly, and other moments that are genuinely scary as heck that made me turn my head away from my television screen. I don’t think it’s good enough to be in the top 10, but it’s certainly a fun one to view.

13. MaXXXine (2024)

Man, I really wanted to love this movie. Like, so much. But it just didn’t turn out the way I really thought it would.

That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy MaXXXine. It’s the final story in the X trilogy (with the other two films above this one in ranking), and follows Maxine as she takes on Hollywood and yet another killer that is taking out young women. It’s a really fun movie with plenty of blood and a good conclusion to the trilogy that we’ve seen play out the last few years.

That being said, I think there could have been even more gore and it didn’t feel up to the same amount of scares as the previous two films in the trilogy, which is why it ranks at thirteen. Even so, Mia Goth’s performance is still unbeatable. She’s just that good.

12. X (2022)

X is a great horror film starring Mia Goth and Jenna Ortega about a cast and film crew who are gathered in Texas to film a porno. Soon, a killer starts to shake things up for the main players.

X is utter madness. Really, so much better than I thought it was going to be. I went into this film with zero expectations because I trusted that A24 would, at the very least, make a good horror film, but I didn’t expect it to blow me away as much as it did. It almost feels like an ode to slasher films of old with its major bouts of horror, blood, and intensity. MaXXXine is the direct followup to this film.

11. I Saw The TV Glow (2024)

Very few people have brought up the amazing I Saw the TV Glow,and it’s driving me insane because this movie is so ridiculously good.

The film stars Justice Smith and Brigette Lundy-Paine as two teenagers whose lives begin to slowly unravel when their favorite TV show is cancelled – and honestly, I would be the same way.

Jokes aside, this film is surprisingly good. I don’t think it’s top-ten quality, which is why it’s at eleven, but it deserves to at least get talked about because the performances are stellar and the story itself is actually really original. It doesn’t go the way you would expect it and the ending is one of the best I’ve seen in a while. Give it a shot if you haven’t.

10. Men (2022) 

This folk horror film is certainly one to remember. Men follows the tale of a woman who goes away on vacation but finds herself increasingly disturbed by the men that live in the village, until these disturbances turn into something a little more sinister.

I think the thing I like about Men is that it really doesn’t rely on a lot of crazy gimmicks to make you uncomfortable. Yes, the ending turns into something you would never really expect, like most A24 horror movies, but the suspense that builds it is built purely on human interaction and that is something that is hard to do in a horror movie. And it just keeps growing and growing until you can’t take it anymore.

9. Pearl (2022)

Remember X? Now, if you enjoyed the main antagonist of that movie, then Pearl is for you. It tells the origin story and how she got to be the person she became in X – and all the bloody goodness that came with it.

I can’t say much about Pearl without revealing major details in X, so all I’ll say is that it’s even better than its predecessor and provides so much more lore that I never would have expected from just watching the original film. And yes, it’s about as weird as it gets. I would re-watch this film – if it didn’t creep the heck out of me in so many ways. It’s top 10 quality, for sure.

8. Heretic (2024)

This movie delivered and more. Heretic, starring Chloe East, Sophie Thatcher and Hugh Grant, is a horror film about two missionaries who travel to a man’s house to speak the good word of the Mormon Church, but discover that they’re just another part of his ongoing revelation into the world of religion according to him.

I think Heretic actually leans more into horror-comedy a lot of the time, but it’s definitely one of the best A24 horror films. The story is fun, the suspense is killer, and Hugh Grant is utterly terrifying in the villain role. Without giving anything away, you will never be able to look at blueberry pie the same way again after watching Heretic.

7. Under The Skin (2013)

Under the Skin, starring the wonderful Scarlett Johansson, tells the story of a mysterious young woman who seduces men using her looks, but there’s more to her than just her pretty face.

It’s one of those films where Johansson should have been nominated for an Oscar. She was outstanding in this film. Not only that, but the story is genuinely petrifying. The whole point is the idea of not really knowing who you’re with, whether that be a friend, lover, or even a family member, which is what makes her so scary here. The only reason I rank it at seven is that sci-fi horror doesn't really fit in with a lot of other A24 films, but this one stands out.

6. The Killing Of A Sacred Deer (2017)

The Killing of a Sacred Deer stars Colin Farrell and Barry Keoghan in the story of a cardiac surgeon meeting a teenage boy who has a strange connection to his past. Through the friendship which grows, he brings the boy home to his family - and not long after, they begin to succumb to illness.

This is such a fantastically well-written film, from start to finish. I have to give credit where credit is due, and give it up to Barry Keoghan, because his part was the absolute best. Number six feels like a good spot for this movie, because while the story is a little slow to start, the performances are some of the best in A24's horror films and are really tough to beat.

5. Green Room (2015)

Oh, you want gore? You want horror? This film is the one to watch. Green Room is a horror-thriller that follows a punk band that witnesses something they weren’t supposed to. This, in turn, leads to them getting captured by a group of Neo-Nazis, who plan to off them one by one. Now they have to fight to survive.

I would rank this higher than five if the movie weren’t as gruesome as it is - there is such a thing as too much blood, but the difference between this and X is the brutal reality of the deaths, which make this movie so terrifyingly real. It feels like something that can happen. Oftentimes, horror films are filled with impossible realities, such as mysterious ghosts or demons, but being captured, tortured, and killed? Yeah, that stuff happens in real life, which is what makes Green Room so scary and a good spot for number five.

4. Talk To Me (2023)

I had my doubts about whether Talk to Me would be truly frightening, but I couldn't have been more mistaken. It stands out as one of the most remarkable horror movies in recent years, easily earning a spot on this list.

The plot centers around a group of teenagers who get almost a high from an embalmed hand that’s used to communicate with the afterlife. This interaction allows a spirit to possess them, but with a strict 90-second time limit; exceeding this results in the spirit becoming a more permanent presence. However, when one character, Mia, lets the possession linger for too long, their world is upended by haunting experiences.

This is an exceptional film. Although I don’t believe it’s the absolute pinnacle of A24's horror offerings, it undoubtedly stands amongst the best, from the stellar cast of Talk to Me, the expertly crafted cinematography, and the genuinely spine-chilling moments that don’t include crazy amounts of gore. The Talk to Me ending itself is one that will sit with you for hours. If you haven't had the chance, make sure to experience this cinematic gem.

3. The Witch (2015)

While Anya Taylor-Joy got famous from other big roles, many first saw her in The Witch. In this fantastic horror film, a family moves to an area that is hidden in the woods when their church banishes them. However, when an unknown evil entity begins to make their lives a living hell, they must rely on their faith to survive.

The Witch is what I’d classify as a slow-burn horror. It doesn’t hit you in the face with blood, guts or anything gruesome, and it takes its time slowly trying to break you apart as you wonder who the heck you can trust, which is why it's number three. You never quite find out until the end what is causing this whole family to suddenly be tortured, but you’re questioning everything, and you almost feel like you’re going insane by the end of it.

2. Hereditary (2018)

You knew this would be ranked high. Hereditary, directed by Ari Aster, tells the story of a family who is hit with a tragedy, but while they are grieving, a mysterious force that has a connection to their past relatives begins to haunt them and tear apart their family from the inside out.

Let me tell you - it takes a lot to scare me to the point where I can’t sleep. I thrive off of this stuff because I know it’s very hard to get me to feel genuine fear from a film. However, Hereditary did that and more, and it deserves its number two spot here. From the spectacular performance by Toni Collette that should have been nominated for an Academy Award, to the brilliant practical effects to the story to even the score, it’s phenomenal in every way. And, that Hereditary ending, gosh, it sticks with you, doesn’t it?

1. Midsommar (2019)

This film, man. This freaking film. It will be number one for a long time unless another A24 film can overtake it.

Midsommar, starring the amazingly talented Florence Pugh, tells the story of a young woman who has recently undergone a horrible personal loss and leaves with her boyfriend and his friends on a trip to Sweden to take part in a traditional festival that takes a deadly twist.

While both Hereditary and Midsommar are great films, Midsommar left me feeling some type of way. I was floored by Pugh’s performance, and truly felt uneasy in many of the scenes, from the flowers on her crown to the dancing to the usage of symbols and subtle gore.

What really makes Midsommar so fantastic is that you feel as if you are the main character. Pugh takes us on such an intense emotional journey that by the end of the film, you almost feel as exhausted as she is.

Midsommar is an experience unlike any other that will stun you from the moment you first start watching it. Truly the best A24 horror film, and one that needs to be studied over and over again.

This just makes me want to re-watch all these films again - and I think I’m gonna go and do that right now until the next A24 horror film comes out. Anyone else up for a movie marathon?

For many television lovers, William Jackson Harper is best known for his award-nominated performance as Chidi Anagonye in NBC's The Good Place. But, over the course of the last decade-plus, and especially throughout the past couple of years, the stage/screen actor has proven himself to be an expansive talent, one who balances dramatic work with comedy and only continues to develop his screen presence in a variety of projects.  

Most notably of late, Harper stars in HBO Max's Love Life Season 2, though he was also quick to impress in Amazon Prime's The Underground Railroad earlier this year. And, that's naming only a few. If you love the actor, here's what you should stream, including Midsommar! 

Love Life Season 2 (HBO Max)

Replacing Anna Kendrick as the anthology show's lead, William Jackson Harper takes the reins of HBO Max's Love Life Season 2 in the part of Marcus Watkins, a newly-single divorcee who traverses through the troubles of modern romance — with infrequent success. 

In what might very well be his most prominent lead role to date, Harper takes this opportunity to play a complicated, conflicted, and even sometimes emotionally-chaotic guy who sometimes can't get out of his own way, especially when he walks through the tricky waters of today's dating scene. The result allows the accomplished actor to showcase both his comedic and dramatic skills in equal fashion, providing us with a full-fleshed personality who can be as relatable as he is ridiculous in his clumsy attempts to return to the dating world. 

Stream Love Life Season 2 on HBO Max.

The Good Place (Netflix)

In what's quite easily his most recognizable role, William Jackson Harper came to fame through his affable performance as Chidi Anagonye, a kind-natured but often indecisive and overanxious personality, prone to bad decision-making and harboring regrets, in NBC's heaven-sent series, The Good Place. 

Though it started as an acclaimed sitcom, the series ultimately became a fertile dramatic opportunity for The Good Place cast and the up-and-coming actor, showcasing the depth of his on-screen talents and the fine complexity that the actor could bring to once-seemingly simple characters. The result is an emotional and Emmy-nominated standout performance that arguably remains his finest — though that could change, as Harper continues to impress with his work outside of NBC's beloved show. 

Stream The Good Place on Netflix.
Buy/Rent The Good Place on Amazon.

Midsommar (Amazon Prime/Kanopy)

Ari Aster's Midsommar was one of the most impressive, accomplished horror movies of the last decade. A sophomore feature that builds off the filmmaker's similarly excellent Hereditary, this A24 folk horror proved that the director was no one-hit-wonder and that he was unquestionably a storyteller to watch. In addition to the movie's stunning visuals, unsettling score, and dense screenplay, Midsommar is elevated by the outstanding work of its very dedicated ensemble, including wonderful lead performances from Florence Pugh and Jack Reynor, and commendable turns from Will Poulter and William Jackson Harper. 

The latter, as Josh, is often seen as the voice of reason, producing his fair share of criticisms against the disturbing nature of this odd European getaway and the douchey behavior of his supposed friend, while also falling victim to his own ego and need for validation. It's another strong showcase for William Jackson Harper in what's easily one of his best movies to date, and it's a great demonstration of how he will continue to prove himself with other notable performances to come. 

Stream Midsommar on Amazon Prime.
Stream Midsommar on Kanopy.
Buy/Rent Midsommar on Amazon.

We Broke Up (Hulu)

There are countless movies centered around people falling in love, sometimes in spite of themselves. But, there are only a select few films about characters falling out of love, and We Broke Up — as its blunt title notes — comfortably (or, rather, pleasantly uncomfortably) fits into the latter category. Starring William Jackson Harper and Aya Cash as Doug and Lori, two longtime lovers who must keep up appearances at Lori's sister's wedding shortly after they've called it quits, writer-director Jeff Rosenberg slightly subverts expectations by making a breezy, low-stakes dramedy in spite of the inner turmoil felt by these once-smitten partners. 

Without giving anything away, though, that's about as far as We Broke Up gets to challenging genre cliches. Nevertheless, Aya Cash and William Jackson Harper are consistently appealing in the lead roles, bringing subtle charm and nuanced performances to this perhaps too casual lark, and allowing these characters to feel lived-in and emotionally conflicted. It won't be everyone's pick for date night, but if you love Harper's reflective appeal as an actor, particularly as a burgeoning film star, We Broke Up may ultimately win your favor — even if you don't love it.

Stream We Broke Up on Hulu.
Buy We Broke Up on Amazon.

Dark Waters (Showtime)

A sturdy, immensely well-crafted paranoia drama-thriller of yesteryear made for now, even if audiences sorely overlooked it upon release, Todd Haynes' Dark Waters is the type of mature and meticulously made adult legal drama that is becoming extinct in a time of superhero blockbusters and other big-budget efforts. A cruel irony in a tale like this one, that vigorously fights against Big Corps that continue to fail the common people, yet could only be made with a star like Mark Ruffalo at the forefront of it all. 

Nevertheless, as expected, Ruffalo gives a reliably good performance, and the supporting ensemble is filled with other dependable talents, including Anne Hathaway, Tim Robbins, Bill Camp, and William Jackson Harper, to name a mere few. As hand-wringing Taft lawyer James Ross, the sitcom actor is more of a suit than a character in Dark Waters, but that doesn't mean that he fails to hold his own. In the trusted hands of such an esteemed filmmaker like Todd Haynes, Jackson Harper proves himself in what remains one of his finest feature films thus far. 

Stream Dark Waters on Showtime.
Buy/Rent Dark Waters on Amazon.

They Remain (Shudder/Vudu)

In a sparse and remote environmental horror-thriller like They Remain, William Jackson Harper must really demonstrate his screen presence. With only himself and Rebecca Henderson as the movie's stars, the actor is given a great deal of screen time to work with the camera and to announce himself as an up-and-coming film star. While the movie itself wasn't exceptionally well-received, Harper did earn his fair share of praise, with critics noting that his increasingly restless character does a great deal to get us into the movie's tense, terse atmosphere. 

While it's likely to be a minor work compared to the actor's expanding resume, it was an accomplished early lead role — demonstrating how, even under narrative restraints, William Jackson Harper can comfortably announce himself in a major way and produce a movie star performance that's bellowing but also believable.

Stream They Remain on Shudder.
Stream They Remain on Vudu.
Buy/Rent They Remain on Amazon.

The Underground Railroad (Amazon Prime)

Based on Colson Whitehead's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Amazon Prime's The Underground Railroad, created and directed by Barry Jenkins, easily became one of the year's most acclaimed show's, particularly as critics were quick to hail the prestige mini-series for its humane, haunting depiction of Whitehead's widely-celebrated text. Though it often proved to be a painful premise to cover, especially over the course of 10 episodes, Jenkins found gorgeous moments of gentle humanity to play against the abject terror of this delicate subject matter. Particularly in the show's second half, that difficult balance could be achieved through William Jackson Harper's welcoming performance as Royal, a passionate activist who finds himself in a courtship with the program's lead character, Cora. 

For as dire and depressing as The Underground Railroad could often be, Barry Jenkins expertly incorporated elements of inspiring grace, and Jackson Harper's performance was far from an exception in that respect. It also portrays a new side to Harper's screen presence, one that continues to evolve with many of his recent and upcoming projects, which we'll look out for in the days ahead. 

Stream The Underground Railroad on Amazon Prime. 

All Good Things (Hoopla/Kanopy)

You'd be forgiven if you don't remember William Jackson Harper from 2010's mysterious crime drama, All Good Things. Credited as "Moynihan's Assistant," the newcomer made his feature film debut in Andrew Jarecki's fictionalized dramatization of the life of Robert Durst, the convicted murderer who eventually became the dark subject of Jarecki's excellent HBO documentary series, The Jinx. 

While the movie itself was ultimately a bit uneven, notably in how its storytelling shakiness came from a filmmaker who was known for his non-fiction work, the performances are all compelling, particularly from our two leads, Ryan Gosling and Kirsten Dunst. Alas, Jackson Harper's supporting turn doesn't get a whole lot of screen time, unfortunately, but everyone needs to start their movie careers somewhere. And, this movie is certainly not the worst way to be launched onto the silver screen.

Stream All Good Things on Hoopla.
Stream All Good Things on Kanopy.
Buy/Rent All Good Things on Amazon. 

Paterson (Amazon Prime)

Playing the lovelorn Everett, an eccentric, verbose personality who serves as a notable counterbalance to our exceptionally mild-mannered, quietly reflective titular character, William Jackson Harper gave one of his most notable pre-Good Place performances in Jim Jarmusch's excellent 2016 character study, Paterson. 

Playing off Adam Driver's soft, casual screen presence, Jackson Harper is given a great deal of creative freedom to adopt an anxious, emotionally-yearning character before he stole a bunch of hearts as Chidi in NBC's afterlife dramedy. While the actor is only able to play second fiddle to Driver's compellingly reserved lead performance, it's certainly a notable standout turn — one that announced that Harper would continue to excel with his future screen credits.

Stream Paterson on Amazon Prime.
Buy/Rent Paterson on Amazon.

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Horror is my all-time favorite film genre, but not necessarily for the same reasons that other moviegoers might also call it their favorite, which is part of what makes it such a wonderfully versatile style of storytelling. People can either love horror movies for having a “stab-stab, kill-kill, roll credits” structure, or rely mostly on jump scares throughout, or (my personal favorite method) developing a suspenseful story at a steady pace before curdling into a relentless nightmare by the final act, much like The Witch does. 

That is just one of many great examples of slow-burn horror movies you can find now on streaming, digital rental, or on physical media if you are into that sort of thing. If so, enter if you dare…

The Witch (2015)

A family moves to a secured area near the woods after they're banished from their church, where their faith in religion and one another are put to the test as they begin to fall prey to an elusive evil in 1630 New England. 

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: You are never quite sure who to put your own faith into or what is truly causing Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy) and her family to fall apart in The Witch - writer and director Robert Eggers’ feature-length debut - from the gruesome beginning to the shocking final reveal of the third act, in this arresting, uniquely symbolic folk tale.

Stream The Witch on Showtime.
Rent/buy The Witch digitally on Amazon.
Buy The Witch on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Lighthouse (2019)

In the 1890s, a man (Robert Pattinson) recently hired to work at a lighthouse on a remote island becomes stranded with his experienced mentor (Willem Dafoe), who suggests the younger man’s mistake could be the cause of their predicament.

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: You are never quite sure what the hell is ever really going on between Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe’s odd couple in The Lighthouse - yet another unique experiment in old school storytelling of a far more ambitious and ambiguous sort from writer and director Robert Eggers - but their impending fate is clear from the get-go, and to watch them slowly succumb to their reluctant isolation is a truly maddening experience.

Stream The Lighthouse on Amazon Prime.
Rent/buy The Lighthouse digitally on Amazon.
Buy The Lighthouse on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

Hereditary (2018)

In the wake of a loved one’s death, a miniature artist (Toni Collette) and her family begin to experience a series of increasingly tragic and bizarre occurrences that threaten to tear them apart. 

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: What seemingly begins as a melodrama of exceptional bleakness becomes an unmercifully intense mind trip of paralyzing fright in Hereditary - the striking debut from writer and director Ari Aster, which could have been marketed with the typically frivolous, William Castle-style tagline and would have been telling the truth.

Stream Hereditary on Showtime.
Rent/buy Hereditary digitally on Amazon.
Buy Hereditary on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

Midsommar (2019)

In the wake of a loved one’s death, a young woman (Florence Pugh) travels to Sweden for a seemingly idyllic cultural festival in Sweden hoping to mend the current disconnect in her relationship with her boyfriend (Jack Reynor), only for them to grow further apart amid the strange practices the event honors.

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: For his sophomore effort, writer and director Ari Aster takes a lighter approach to his disturbing, subversive twist on melodramatic tone with Midsommar - and by “lighter” I mean aesthetically, because there is certainly nothing light about what our main characters suffer through one-by-one in the otherwise serene, brightly colored setting.

Stream Midsommar on Amazon Prime.
Rent/buy Midsommar digitally on Amazon.
Buy Midsommar on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Wicker Man (1973)

While searching for a young girl reported missing, a devoutly Christian police sergeant (Edward Woodward) clashes with the citizens of a village on a remote Scottish island and their Pagan philosophies.

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: Ari Aster clearly took inspiration for Midsommar from director Robin Hardy’s original adaptation of David Winner’s novel, Ritual, called The Wicker Man, which starts off as a seemingly simple mystery thriller elevated by religious commentary, until it explodes into one of cinema’s most terrifying interpretations of occultism with its famous twist ending.

Stream The Wicker Man on Amazon Prime.
Rent/buy The Wicker Man digitally on Amazon.
Buy The Wicker Man on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

A woman (Mia Farrow) and her husband (John Cassavettes) move into an adorned apartment building where their hopes to have a child finally come true, only to be hindered by strange neighbors who invite themselves into their lives and become too close for comfort.

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: You could argue, however, that the all-time most iconic and horrifying depiction of occultist practices comes in the final moments of Rosemary’s Baby, which also initially acts as a more grounded meditation on commons fears first-time parents experience before that uncertainty grows into raw, indisputable terror when all is revealed.

Stream Rosemary’s Baby on Starz.
Rent/buy Rosemary’s Baby digitally on Amazon.
Buy Rosemary’s Baby on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Wailing (2016)

In the wake of several local deaths connected to a mysterious illness, a police officer’s (Kwak Do-won) investigations lead him to suspect that these tragedies could be the work of a demon.

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: Switching gears back to another horror/crime thriller hybrid, the acclaimed South Korean horror film, The Wailing, from writer and director Na Hong-jin also incorporates strong and heartbreaking themes of parenthood, as well as paranoia-fueled mob mentality, into a disturbing fable that will keep you guessing until the ending.

Stream The Wailing on Shudder.
Stream The Wailing on Amazon Prime.
Stream The Wailing on Tubi.
Stream The Wailing on Vudu.
Stream The Wailing on Crackle.

Rent/buy The Wailing digitally on Amazon.
Buy The Wailing on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

The House Of The Devil (2010)

Desperate for money, a college student (Jocelin Donahue) takes an offer to babysit for an older couple, only to question if she made the right decision when the job turns out to be a stranger task than she assumed, and signs show that she is not alone. 

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: Switching gears back to ominous cult thrillers, it is easy to see how Rosemary’s Baby likely inspired the 1980s-set The House of the Devil, which made an indie horror hero out of writer and director Ti West for keeping you in the dark about what's at stake for most of its runtime, allowing the suspense to build like a pressure cooker before serving up one thoroughly unsettling feast.

Stream The House Of The Devil on Shudder.
Stream The House Of The Devil on Tubi.
Stream The House Of The Devil on Peacock.
Stream The House Of The Devil on Vudu.

Rent/buy The House Of The Devil digitally on Amazon.
Buy The House Of The Devil on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Invitation (2016)

Already fearing the worst when he accepts an invitation to a dinner party from his ex-wife (Tammy Blanchard) and her new lover (Michel Huisman), a man (Logan Marshall-Green) causes a stir when he cannot help but suspect that there is a more sinister purpose to this gathering.

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: Director Karyn Kusama constructs a brilliant hire-wire act with The Invitation, which depicts grief in such an alarmingly real way that, while you remain empathetic toward Logan Marshall-Green’s protagonist, you cannot help but wonder if he is the one worth trusting as the suspense grows deeper. 

Stream The Invitation on Tubi.
Rent/buy The Invitation digitally on Amazon.
Buy The Invitation on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

Saint Maud (2020)

A Welsh former nurse (Morfydd Clark) becomes convinced that she must act as a spiritual savior to the terminally ill dancer she cares for (Jennifer Ehle) in order to achieve her own desperate need for redemption.

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: Speaking of not knowing who to trust, writer and director Rose Glass does a phenomenal job at playing with your expectations and never being entirely clear if our heroine is experiencing a descent into madness or an ascent into enlightenment before Saint Maud - one of the best horror movies released in 2020 - shows its hand with with startling results in literally its last few frames.

Stream Saint Maud on Hulu.
Buy Saint Maud on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Blair Witch Project (1999)

A trio of young, aspiring documentarians find themselves hopelessly lost in a wooded area outside Burkittville, Maryland, where increasingly discomforting circumstances lead them to wonder if the strange urban legend they are investigating is true.

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: Other than incorporating a documentary-style narrative structure before found footage thrillers became a trend, what made The Blair Witch Project so astonishingly unique for its time was its a remarkable achievement in keeping the audience in complete, unrelenting fear without ever showing you who (or what) is taunting our protagonists.

Rent/buy The Blair Witch Project digitally on Amazon.
Buy The Blair Witch Project on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

It Comes At Night (2017)

A family of three (Joel Edgerton, Carmen Ejogo, and Kelvin Harrison Jr.) rigidly follow their own set of rules in order to keep themselves safe and stable in the midst of a deadly pandemic, until they decide to make an exception that seems to work out in their favor… at first.

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: Writer and director Trey Edward Shults also proved that he was master of minimalist mayhem with his sophomore feature, It Comes at Night, by making the psychological and behavioral results of tragedy more important that the tangible threat that led to the post-apocalyptic setting in this devastating tale.

Stream It Comes At Night on Netflix.
Rent/buy It Comes At Night digitally on Amazon.
Buy It Comes At Night on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Haunting (1963)

An insecure loner (Julie Harris), a provocative clairvoyant (Claire Bloom), and a young skeptic (Russ Tamblyn) accept a therapist’s (Richard Johnson) invitation to stay inside a luxurious New England mansion to see if they can prove whether or not it does have spirits.

Why it’s a great slow-burn horror movie: To adapt Shirley Jackson’s iconic novel (which would later inspire Mike Flanagan’s acclaimed Netflix miniseries The Haunting of Hill House), writer Nelson Gidding and director Robert Wise took a more psychological approach to the horror of The Haunting, telling the story in a way that suggests the spirits could be in the characters’ heads all along.

Rent/buy The Haunting digitally on Amazon. 
Buy The Haunting on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

I hope you were satisfied by our choices in this list of slow-burn horror and, if so, that getting through the list wasn't too much of a slow-burn for you.

Years after his long-awaited introduction was teased in one of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’s post-credits scenes, we finally know who is playing Adam Warlock in the Marvel movies: Will Poulter. The talented, 28-year-old British actor has an eclectic filmography that includes intense dramas like The Revenant, goofy comedies like We’re the Millers, and, more recently, fact-based limited series like Dopesick on Hulu, but he will be making his superhero movies debut in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 as one of the most powerful cosmic beings in Marvel Comics history. In the meantime, let’s revisit the highlights of his career thus far with some of the best Will Poulter movies available on streaming, for digital rental, or on physical media, starting with his very first credit.

Son Of Rambow (2007)

A young boy (Bill Milner) and a notorious school bully (Will Poulter) form an unlikely friendship while shooting their own movie inspired by First Blood  - the first of the Rambo movies - in 1980s England. 

Why it is a good Will Poulter movie: Will Poulter was 14 when he made his screen acting debut in Son of Rambow, an inventive and charming coming-of-age story that brilliantly sheds light on all the highs of lows of friendship during childhood.

Stream Son Of Rambow on Paramount+. 
Rent/buy Son Of Rambow digitally on Amazon. 
Buy Son Of Rambow on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader (2010)

Lucy (Georgie Henley) and Edmund Pevensie (Skandar Keynes) bring their cousin, Eustace Scrubb (Will Poulter), to the wondrous world they once discovered years earlier for a trip to the edge of the world aboard a royal ship that brings them face-to-face with dragons, long-lost warriors, and more.

Why it is a good Will Poulter movie: Will Poulter got to experience a sudden uptick in scale and budget with his second movie, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader - the third (and, unfortunately, last) installment of the fantasy/adventure franchise inspired by C.S. Lewis’ beloved book series.

Stream The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader on Disney+. 
Rent/buy The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader digitally on Amazon. 
Buy The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Maze Runner Movies (2014, 2018)

A group of young amnesiacs manage to escape a labyrinth crawling with deadly machines, only to discover even more horrifying circumstances and dark secrets in the outside world that inspire them to lead a rebellion against their former captors.

Why they are good Will Poulter movies: In his next experience acting in a big budget franchise based on a book series, Will Poulter played Gally, who evolves from a ruthless rival to a redemptive ally of central hero Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) in the first and third Maze Runner movies, which are based on James Dashhner’s hit YA dystopian novels.

Rent/buy The Maze Runner digitally on Amazon. 
Buy The Maze Runner on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.
Rent/buy Maze Runner: The Death Cure digitally on Amazon. 
Buy Maze Runner: The Death Cure on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

We’re The Millers (2013)

A middle-aged pot dealer (Jason Sudeikis) enlists his broke stripper neighbor (former Friends cast member Jennifer Aniston), a hapless young introvert (Will Poulter), and an edgy teen runaway (Emma Roberts) to pose as his wife and kids on a trip to Mexico for a huge drug pickup.

Why it is a good Will Poulter movie: Before returning to big budget spectacle, Will Poulter would branch out into funnier and raunchier territory with We’re the Millers - director Rawson Marshall Thurber’s fun twist on the family road trip comedy in which the then 20-year-old actor’s character suffers a tarantula bite in a very awkward place.

Stream We’re The Millers on HBO Max. 
Rent/buy We’re The Millers digitally on Amazon. 
Buy We’re The Millers on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

Black Mirror: Bandersnatch (2018)

A young, aspiring designer (Fionn Whitehead) attempts to adapt a choose-your-own-adventure novel into a video game, only to find that his own life seems to be its own choose-your-own-adventure story that he is slowly loosing control over, in 1980s England.

Why it is a good Will Poulter movie: You will never know what to expect from how you choose the story to continue in the Emmy-winning interactive movie Black Mirror: Bandersnatch - one of the best Netflix movies also spun-off from on the best Netflix TV shows - but can count on Will Poulter to give a stellar performance as a famed video game programmer whose eccentricities are fueled by dark secrets. 

Stream Black Mirror: Bandersnatch on Netflix. 

Midsommar (2019)

Hoping to find solace from a devastating tragedy, a young woman (Academy Award nominee Florence Pugh) joins her emotionally distant boyfriend (Jack Reynor) and his classmates at a traditional Swedish festival that proves to be a more bizarre and ominous experience than they were prepared for. 

Why it is a good Will Poulter movie: While Black Mirror: Bandersnatch could be considered Will Poulter’s first foray into horror movies, his most definitive performance as a “Scream King” is in writer and director Ari Aster’s masterfully unnerving sophomore effort Midsommar - one of the best movies on Amazon Prime and one in which he, once again, does a fantastic job playing an insufferably bullish character.

Stream Midsommar on Amazon Prime. 
Rent/buy Midsommar digitally on Amazon. 
Buy Midsommar on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

Detroit (2017)

The story of the deadly police raid that led to one of the most infamous race riots in American history in 1967.

Why it is a good Will Poulter movie: Two years before co-starring in Midsommar, Will Poulter and Jack Reynor played two police officers who participated in the horrifying true events depicted in Detroit - another stunningly intense drama from writer Mark Boal and director Kathryn Bigelow, in which Poulter gives another sinister performance.

Stream Detroit on Starz.
Stream Detroit on IMDb TV. 
Rent/buy Detroit digitally on Amazon. 
Buy Detroit on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Revenant (2015)

A frontiersman (Leonardo DiCaprio) defies death in order to exact revenge on a member of his hunting crew (Tom Hardy) who killed his son and left him for dead after suffering a horrifying bear attack.

Why it is a good Will Poulter movie: Will Poulter was thankfully given a chance to be a more sympathetic character in The Revenant - another intense, yet visually engrossing, retelling of an (allegedly) true story that earned director Alejandro González Iñarritu his fourth Oscar and star Leonardo DiCaprio his first.

Rent/buy The Revenant digitally on Amazon. 
Buy The Revenant on DVD/Blu-ray on Amazon.

War Machine (2017)

A seasoned U.S. military general (Brad Pitt) assigned to “clean” things up and exit Afghanistan after eight years of war is instead more interested in winning the fight.

Why it is a good Will Poulter movie: Will Poulter appears as an ambitious American soldier in some of the more memorably intense moments from the Netflix original film War Machine, which is an otherwise absurdist satire that explores when enough really is enough when it comes to war.

Stream War Machine on Netflix.

While there are no 2021 movies starring Will Poulter to look forward to once you have finished this binge, the actor has completed filming a musical heist movie called The Score, is currently filming a limited series based on Agatha Christie’s novel Why Didn’t They Ask Evans? premiering in 2022, and, of course, his debut as Adam Warlock in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is expected for May 2023.

Sometimes, all we want is to be scared. And that is exactly what the Fear Street movies on Netflix have been doing for us since they dropped. Fear Street Part One: 1994, Fear Street Part Two: 1978, and Fear Street Part Three: 1666 have created a great horror trilogy that has captured the minds of viewers, and given us heart attacks at the same time.

However, there are plenty of other films out there to watch if you’re going through withdrawal after watching the last installment of the horror trilogy. From classics like The Nightmare on Elm Street to newer successes like Goosebumps, these are some of the best movies out there for you to watch if you like the Fear Street movies.

Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark (2019) (Showtime)

As a 90s/00’s kid, I grew up reading this book, and the movie did not disappoint. In Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, a group of teenagers discovers a haunted book in an abandoned mansion, and after they decide to take it, it creates a world of horrible horror stories, sucking them in, with every story becoming all too real.

As someone who was terrified of this novel as a child, they really do a fantastic job bringing it to the big screen. The classic stories are told wonderfully, with the costuming on point, and I feel that it’s the perfect way to bring one of our most beloved childhood novels (as twisted as it is) to the big screen. For fans of Fear Street, this is definitely a pick for you with the story of teens surviving some scary situations.

Stream Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark on Showtime.

IT (2017) (HBO Max)

How can you not love It? In this 2017 adaptation of the classic Stephen King novel, we follow a group of young teenage misfits who band together when mysterious disappearances of children start to happen around their town, leading them to face off against a monster that has them on its dinner menu.

When I watch Fear Street, I get heavy influences from It. A part of me just loves seeing teenagers band together to take down evil things. It’s like the perfect horror movie in my eyes. It itself is such a great story too, and with two parts, one of when they were younger and when the group of older and adults, there’s so much to enjoy. It’s a classic for a reason. Ah, killer clowns. Gotta love them.

Stream IT on HBO Max.

Rent IT on Amazon.

Friday The 13th (1980) (Starz)

Part two of Fear Street is reminiscent of this film, taking place at a sketchy camp. Friday the 13th is the origin story of the classic horror icon, Jason. In this film, a killer is stalking and murdering teenagers preparing to reopen Camp Crystal Lake, creating a dangerous mystery that could get anyone killed.

This is one of the greats of the horror movie golden age back in the 70s and 80s. The music is amazing, the story intense and fun, and the reveal at the end is worth the wait. Fear Street Part Two: 1978 in my opinion was clearly heavily influenced by films like this, so if you enjoyed the second part, this is definitely up your alley.

Stream Friday the 13th on Starz.

Rent Friday the 13th on Amazon.

Midsommar (2019) (Amazon Prime)

After watching the Fear Street saga, something that stood out to me was how well it really fit into many modern horror films, with several moments that were just disturbing and others that were plain scary. That’s what I think of when I look at Midsommar, one of Ari Aster’s horror films. In Midsommar, we follow a girl who has just recently gone through a horrible tragedy, who travels to Sweden for a cultural festival there, but it takes a dark turn.

Let me just say, you need to go into this film completely blind. That’s what I did and it remains as one of my favorite horror films, maybe even one of the best horror movies ever. Florence Pugh is absolutely amazing in her role alongside her castmates, and the story is just bizarre. I love Ari Aster’s other horror film, Hereditary, as well, but Midsommar has a special place in my heart for just how twisted it is. Watch it. You won’t regret it.

Stream Or Rent Midsommar on Amazon Prime.

The Witch (2015) (Showtime)

For fans of the third part, Fear Street: 1666, this is the one for you. In The Witch, a family back in the 1930s is torn apart by the evils of witchcraft, black magic, and possession, creating a horrible circumstance for them and bringing out the dark sides of each other.

This sounds quite familiar, doesn’t it? It’s not a surprise that both of these films are set back in the 1600s, considering many people were persecuted for supposedly practicing witchcraft. But if the third part of Fear Street was your favorite, The Witch is one to remember. Anya Taylor-Joy gives a fantastic performance, and the story is eerie and unsettling – the perfect mood for some black magic sorcery.

Stream The Witch on Showtime.

Rent The Witch on Amazon.

Scream (1996) (HBO Max)

Honestly, a lot of Fear Street Part One: 1994 could be considered a homage to this horror film by Wes Craven in my opinion. In Scream, Sidney Prescott is terrorized by a new killer a year after her mother died, when she and her friends begin to experience some strange phone calls.

In Fear Street, there are so many easter eggs that are related to this classic slasher film. Scream was an iconic horror movie for a reason – even the opening scene of Fear Street Part One: 1994 is pretty similar to the opening scene of Scream with that first phone call. I mean, how can you like horror and never have seen the origin story of Ghostface? If you haven’t watched Scream yet for some reason, do yourself a favor and head on over to HBO Max.

Stream Scream on HBO Max.

Rent Scream on Amazon.

The Craft (1996) (HBO Max)

Another amazing witch film, The Craft is the perfect combination of Fear Street Part One: 1994 and Fear Street Part Three: 1666. In The Craft, we follow four teenage girls, outcasts at high school in Los Angeles who decide to pursue the art of witchcraft for their own gain – and of course, experience some bad repercussions.

For those who like the setting of Fear Street: 1994 but enjoy the sorcery aspect of Fear Street: 1666, this is your film. It has all of the '90s culture that you can expect, with teenagers taking over the school, but with the influence of magical powers. There's even going to be a remake soon. As someone who loves witch movies, this is definitely one of my favorites and will be for you too if you decide to watch it.

Stream The Craft on HBO Max.

Rent The Craft on Amazon.

Jennifer's Body (2009) (Hulu)

Oh, Jennifer’s Body. Now, this is a great example of a modern horror film that shook boundaries up. In Jennifer’s Body, we follow the titular character, Jennifer, and her best friend Needy, after Jennifer is possessed by a demon after she and her friend attend a concert at a bar that goes up in flames.

There’s so much to this film that makes it a cult classic. The chemistry between Megan Fox and Amanda Seyfried is great, and the story itself is a ton of fun. For fans of the Fear Street series, this is a perfect fit for you because not only does it keep the story in high school – as all the great horror films do – it uses the paranormal aspect as well that is often used in Fear Street. Plus, the dark comedy in this is top tier. You’ll be jumping in your seat one second and then rolling on the floor laughing the next.

Stream Jennifer’s Body on Hulu.

Rent Jennifer’s Body on Amazon.

A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984) (HBO Max)

I mean, come on, it’s almost the same title.

Jokes aside, A Nightmare on Elm Street gave birth to one of the most classic movie icons of all time – Freddy Krueger. This 1980s film tells the story of four teenagers who live on one street, Elm Street, whose dreams are invaded by an evil murderer, and they are killed within them – therefore, killing them in real life.

Just the premise sounds terrifying. Everyone needs to sleep, so there’s no way around this villain unless you find a way to outsmart him. It’s a brilliant masterclass film in horror, about how suspense should be done, gore should be handled, and how scary a true villain can be. To me, Freddy Krueger will remain as one of the scariest horror movie villains of all time. For fans of Fear Street, this film is perfect for you, with plenty of scares that will remind you of the Netflix trilogy.

Stream A Nightmare on Elm Street on HBO Max.

Rent A Nightmare on Elm Street on Amazon.

Goosebumps (2015) (Amazon Rental)

While not as scary as the Fear Street trilogy, Goosebumps is written by the same man that wrote the Fear Street series, R.L. Stine. In Goosebumps, a teenager teams up with the daughter of a famous author – R.L. Stine in the film – once the writer’s imaginary demons are released upon their town, creating chaos.

Goosebumps itself is a classic horror franchise for kids who grew up in the '90s and '00s. I can’t even recall how many of those books I read. But the film does the series justice and pays homage to some of the classic monsters from the series, like Slappy the Dummy and or the Werewolf of Fever Swamp. Plus, Jack Black is amazing as R.L. Stine. He really brings a surprising amount of comedy to the young adult horror writer. Considering it’s by the same author of Fear Street, you’re going to like this movie, even if it’s not as terrifying as its counterpart.

Rent Goosebumps on Amazon.

To me, these are some of the best movies on Amazon Prime or the best movies on Netflix. There are so many amazing options – it gets me excited for any upcoming horror movies that are releasing soon. Halloween Kills, anyone? Regardless, the Fear Street trilogy was a great addition to the horror movie world, and I can only wonder what the next great horror film will be. In the meantime, check out some of these – they’ll be worth your time.

Florence Pugh is a rising star that has already built an impressive resume of movies and television projects. In July 2021, Pugh stepped into the world of Marvel in one of her biggest roles yet: Yelena Belova in Black Widow. This movie will make Pugh an even bigger star, however, long before Black Widow, Florence Pugh movies and TV shows have captivated viewers and made them rethink those trips with Swedish cults.

Florence Pugh made her screen debut in 2014, so she’s been acting for less than ten years but already has plenty of exciting movies and TV shows available to stream or rent. Here are some of the best Florence Pugh movies and TV shows available to watch.

Midsommar (Amazon Prime)

Ari Aster wrote and directed Midsommar, a horror film that follows a group of college students who travel to Sweden to observe a festival that a friend invited them to attend. Florence Pugh plays Dani, a woman who just experienced a tragedy and -- sort of -- goes to take her mind off of it and be with her boyfriend. Midsommar’s cast also includes Jack Reynor, William Jackson Harper, Will Poulter, and Vilhelm Blomgren.

Midsommar is one of the best horror movies made in the last ten years. It’s memorable, scary in multiple ways, has a great cast, and the Midsommar twist ending will have you talking for years to come. Florence Pugh carries the movie as the lead. You’re invested because of Aster’s great storytelling abilities and because of Dani as a character. Midsommar is one of the best movies on Amazon Prime.

Stream Midsommar on Amazon Prime.

Rent Midsommar on Amazon.

Fighting With My Family (Paramount+)

Stephen Merchant directed Fighting with My Family, the comedy biopic about professional wrestler Paige. The film follows Paige (played by Florence Pugh) as she auditions to be in the WWE and then makes it. Paige and her family are huge fans of wrestling and her brother and she have always dreamed of making it into the WWE.

Paige’s dreams aren’t all she hoped for because she faces jealousy from her brother, and the WWE world isn’t as easy and accepting as she hoped. Fighting with My Family also stars Lena Headey, Nick Frost, Jack Lowden, and Vince Vaughn. Fighting with My Family is a movie that charms even those with no interest in wrestling, because at the heart of the film is family and going after your dreams.

Stream Fighting with My Family on Paramount+.

Rent Fighting with My Family on Amazon.

Little Women (Starz)

Little Women is Greta Gerwig’s 2019 adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s beloved classic. It follows the four March sisters as they grow up during the post-Civil War era. Little Women’s cast includes Emma Watson, Saorise Ronan, Meryl Streep, Laura Dern, Eliza Scanlen, and Timothee Chalamet.

Florence Pugh earned her first Academy Award nomination for Little Women. She achieved an even greater accomplishment by changing Little Women’s fans’ minds about Amy March.

Stream Little Women on Starz.

Rent Little Women on Amazon.