Every good horror movie needs an enemy of some kind. Whether that's a terrifying monster that has set its target on the town the movie is set in, a killer on the loose, or some kind of malicious spirit that has chosen to attack the main characters, there needs to be something to scare the viewers. For some movies, the scary setup is the outbreak of a deadly virus that is making its way through society.
Virus-related movies are pretty terrifying because of the fact that they could really happen. While ghosts and monsters are things that not everyone believes in, it's hard to deny that a deadly disease could strike and have an unimaginable impact on the people of Earth.
Updated on October 9th by Matthew Wilkinson: Horror movie monsters are scary, sure, but movies utilizing vital outbreaks as a plot device often prove that the scariest monsters are those that remain entirely unseen — until it's too late, that is. If that's your idea of a spooky thrill, we've added a few more films that use viral outbreaks as a premise.
The Crazies (2010)
The Crazies was released in 2010 and is a remake of the 1973 film by the same name. This movie is set in a fictional town in Iowa in which the residents start to behave bizarrely and violently after a mysterious virus begins to infect them. Soon after residents start to exhibit symptoms of this scary virus, the military descends on this small town and cuts off communication to the outside world.
The movie follows four residents of this Iowa town as they try to get out without the military catching them and without contracting the virus or falling victim to one of their neighbors that already has.
Carriers (2009)
Carriers is a great film that showcases the devastation a pandemic can have, all while proving that even in that plight, humans can still be the scariest part. This is set in a world that has seen a virus take out most of the population. However, there is believed to be a safe zone where people can quarantine until the pandemic is over.
The film follows a group of people trying to get to that area, but along the way they meet other survivors all with their own desperate bids to try to survive. While the virus takes its toll, it is actually the humans who turn on each other that make this movie even more terrifying.
Cabin Fever (2002)
This movie follows a group of friends who have traveled to a cabin in the woods to have a weekend getaway and have a good time. Unfortunately, a contaminated water source leading to their cabin makes their trip anything but fun and relaxing. The water source's contamination leaves them with a flesh-eating virus.
Blindness (2009)
Blindness is a particularly terrifying movie because the pandemic that takes place here actually makes everyone lose the ability to see. Of course, that's a very scary prospect — especially when it turns the whole world blind, and seeing how people react to that is incredibly intriguing.
The cast is jam-packed with amazing talent, with the likes of Julianne Moore and Mark Ruffalo helping to bring this story to life in the most realistic manner possible. It shows the sheer panic that people go through and trying to put yourself into their shoes does evoke quite the scare.
Pontypool (2008)
Pontypool was released in 2008 and the virus in this movie is super unique and interesting. The movie is set entirely within a radio station and follows a radio DJ, his assistants, and guests. When a woman attacks the station and is repeating the same word over and over, they start to become suspicious about what's happening in the outside world.
As the DJ learns, certain words in the English language are spreading a mysterious virus that turns people into mindless zombies until they infect someone else and then take their own life. The DJ has to figure out what words are infected, avoid them, and make it out alive.
Children Of Men (2006)
As far as scary pandemic movies go, Children Of Men is one of the more uplifting, which could be perfect depending on your mindset. While it is still scary, as the film is set 18 years after a flu pandemic causes the world huge problems, there are elements of hope sprinkled in.
Following the pandemic, the birth of new children hasn't happened for 18 years. Because of that, the world is staring down the barrel of a collapse until one woman ends up pregnant, which is where the glimmer of happiness can be found.
It Comes At Night (2017)
It Comes at Night was released in 2017 and is set after the outbreak of a deadly virus. Instead of featuring the outbreak and the immediate aftermath of the virus, this movie is set after the virus has claimed most of society and focuses on two families that are among the only remaining survivors.
In this dangerous world, these families have to be careful about who they trust and let into their home. This movie shows how important it is to stay safe and vigilant after a deadly virus makes its way through society, but it also shows that the most dangerous threats can come from within.
Contagion (2011)
The movie follows a woman named Beth who recently returned home from a business trip and isn't feeling good. She assumes that it's just jet lag and she should sleep it off, but when she mysteriously dies a few days later, her husband is left looking for answers. When other people start exhibiting the same symptoms, it becomes obvious that something is going on.
Flu (2013)
This movie focuses on a virus in Bundang that forces the entire city to go into quarantine. Those who catch it suffer very horrific deaths, having less than two days to live as they vomit black blood and struggle to breathe, which provides some horrifying imagery.
Nobody is allowed to leave the city as the problems continue to rise and it causes riots to break out. The film certainly has a political edge to it, and mixed in with the sheer panic of potential death, this is certainly one scary movie.
28 Days Later (2002)
28 Days Later was released in 2002 and is set a month after animal rights activists release a chimp from a testing facility and unknowingly release a deadly virus on the world. The movie begins just about a month after the outbreak after a man wakes up from a coma and finds the city he once called home completely deserted - except for people that had been infected by the virus and are now terrifying monsters.
While trying to escape the infected people that he meets, he finds a group of his fellow survivors. Together, these survivors head out to try to find safety.
