19 Real-Life Events So Messed Up, They Made Horror Movies About Them

    Sometimes the only thing scarier than the horror genre is the news.

    Allie Hayes
    by Allie Hayes

    BuzzFeed Staff

    We recently asked horror lovers in our BuzzFeed Community to name the scariest horror film they'd ever seen that also happened to be based on a true story. Their answers did not disappoint! Here are just a few of the creepiest responses:

    1. 10 Rillington Place (1971)

    Columbia Pictures

    "It's based on real-life murderer John Christie who killed several women, including his wife, and hid their bodies in the garden. It was even filmed just down the road from the real house."

    —allysonj419547582

    2. The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005)

    Screen Gems

    "This one is very loosely based on the true story of Anneliese Michel. My roommate owned this movie and — after we watched it — I made her throw it out."

    —shasse17

    3. Compliance (2012)

    Magnolia Pictures

    "I feel like not very many people know about this movie. It's based on true events and the reality of the story was even worse because a lot of the victims in real life were between 14 and 16 years old. It shows how much common sense people lack, but also how much people would do for authority. Overall, it's a really difficult movie to watch."

    —anabanana1234

    4. Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)

    Greycat Films

    "Okay, so this one really freaked me out. The fact that it's loosely based on Henry Lee Lucas and Otis Toole — who have been reported to have killed, like, 100 people between the two of them — seriously scares me. The scene that will always trip me out is when, after they kill a woman, they're just sitting around watching it back on a tape they recorded. It seriously made my skin crawl to know that there were real people like that out there who were capable of doing those types of horrific things."

    —allin18

    5. Hounds of Love (2016)

    Gunpowder & Sky

    "It's a 2016 Australian horror movie that follows a teen girl named Vicki as she's held captive by a couple, and must drive a wedge between the two to escape. It's based on the Moorhouse Murders committed by David and Catherine Birnie who had abducted, raped, and killed 4 women in 1986. Their last victim survived by escaping out of a window and then fighting off a dog before managing to get to the police. The absolute worst part of the story is that THE POLICE DIDN'T BELIEVE HER! The only woman on the staff — who was extremely inexperienced — finally took her statement and was able to bring the couple into custody."

    —monikap6

    6. Psycho (1960)

    Paramount Pictures

    "I watched this classic for the first time on my laptop at 1 a.m. and thought it was horrifying enough, given Alfred Hitchcock’s directing and the way he created suspense, but when I found out later that it was loosely based on a true story...that made it even more horrifying."

    —nostalgicecstasy

    7. Annabelle (2014)

    Warner Bros. Pictures

    "I'm not a huge fan of horror movies in general, but I am still into everything having to do with the paranormal. The first time I found out that Annabelle was a real doll — and was actually a Ragedy Ann doll that is now in a haunted museum locked in a glass box — I was pretty terrified. Still, it would have been pretty funny if the movies actually used a Ragedy Ann doll."

    —ropre

    8. The Haunted (1991)

    FOX/20th Television

    "It's a made for TV movie. I was a pre-teen when this movie aired and it really creeped me out. I remember my mother — who never did this before or after — asked me to come sleep in her room because she was so terrified. The movie is based on real things that happened to the Smurl family. I looked them up not too long ago and read that they even sought the help of the Warrens (the couple from The Conjuring franchise), but the duo were no help to them. I really hope this movie get remade one day. I have only seen it once and it has really stuck with me through all these years."

    —larryhegs

    9. Borderland (2007)

    After Dark Films

    "This movie (which I watched alone one night while my mom was working) is about a group of college students on Spring Break accidentally getting involved with a Mexican cult that's big on human sacrifice. The movie is based on a real guy, Adolfo Constanzo, who was a self-proclaimed 'witch doctor.' He worked with the Mexican drug cartels in the 1980's while killing American co-eds who crossed the border as a hobby. As someone who grew up on the Texas/Mexico border, it was terrifying and still freaks me out to this day."

    —abigaeljoyceanderson

    10. The Girl Next Door (2007)

    Starz Home Entertainment

    "A young woman is methodically tortured, abused, and eventually killed by the family that was supposed to be taking care of her. It’s based on the real-life experience of Sylvia Likens, who’s parents left her and her little sister to be taken care of by the woman who would eventually torture and murder her. I watched this years ago because I'm a true crime junkie, and I have not been able to watch again. It’s sickening what happened to this poor girl..."

    —abigaeljoyceanderson

    11. Backcountry (2014)

    IFC Midnight

    "It’s based on the true story of a couple who went camping in the woods and ended up getting attacked by a bear. I've seen lots of really scary supernatural films, but what made this one different is how realistic it is because it could (and literally did) happen. I’ll honestly never go camping in the woods because of this film."

    —strawberrylumps22

    12. Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019)

    Netflix

    "Not a traditional horror movie, but this film with Zac Efron portraying Ted Bundy really freaked me out. Even thinking about it gives me goosebumps. The fact that a 'seemingly normal,' good looking, polite man could be so incredibly evil inside really gets to me. It really showed that murderers aren't always sneaky people hiding behind masks. They can be our funny, kind next door neighbors."

    —pattiecolvin23

    13. Wolf Creek (2005)

    Roadshow Entertainment

    "While it was not completely based on a true story, it WAS inspired by real events (as stated at the beginning of the movie). It was just cruel. You don't want to think people can do those types of things to other people."

    —rachelsporyh

    14. The Strangers (2008)

    Rogue Pictures

    "After watching this my boyfriend and I went to Lake Tahoe and stayed in a creepy big cabin all alone close to a town where some real murders actually happened (the Keddie Cabin murders). Needless to say...I didn't sleep a lot that weekend."

    —kelliet4b70070f8

    15. The Town That Dreaded Sundown (1976)

    American International Pictures

    "More than just a cautionary tale, this chilling slasher loosely portrays the infamous 'Moonlight Murders,' which plagued the small town of Texarkana from February 22 — May 3, 1946. For months, the unidentified 'Phantom Killer' stalked the shadows of Lovers' Lane, preying on young couples in parked vehicles. Before his mysterious disappearance, he murdered five people and wounded three others."

    —frankenphantom

    16. The Amityville Horror (1979)

    American International Pictures

    "The original is one of the creepiest horror movies of all time, hands down. I couldn't be alone after seeing it for the first time, it was that scary."

    —katied4bde40774

    17. The Haunting In Connecticut (2009)

    Warning This image is graphic Tap to reveal Click to reveal
    Lionsgate

    "This one is based on true events and it's pretty freaking scary...I mean, can you imagine finding dead bodies in the walls of your house?!"

    —christinal4b5bb11f5

    18. The Mothman Prophecies (2002)

    Screen Gems

    "The movie says it's based on actual events that happen between 1966 and 1967. I literally still can't look out of windows at night because of this movie."

    —bethk19

    19. The Hills Have Eyes (1977)

    Vanguard

    "The story is based on the Sawney Bean clan who lived in a cave in 16th century Scotland. For over 25 years, they would rob and cannibalize local villagers at night, and were said to have murdered and eaten over a thousand people."

    —caitlinm18

    What's the scariest movie you've ever seen that's based on a true story? Share your favorite in the comments below, and don't forget to follow the BuzzFeed Community for a chance to be featured in an upcoming BuzzFeed post or video!

    Some entries have been edited for length and/or clarity.