7 Great Horror Movies With Incredibly Bleak Endings

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Some horror movies really stumble when it comes to their endings. We’ve seen some truly bad ones, like the bizarre reveal that everything was a video game in Serenity, or the shocking final moment in Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes. Horror films often feel pressured to include a twist ending, but sometimes the third act just falls flat. For example, The Happening’s explanation involving evil plants doesn’t quite land, and both endings of Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers are disappointing – one is predictable and dull, while the other, meant to be shocking (Doctor Loomis’ fate in the Producer’s Cut), just feels underwhelming.

I’ve always been fascinated by horror movies that don’t offer a happy ending. Some really lean into making you feel awful – hopeless, even – and they do it brilliantly. I’ve been thinking about the very best of these films, the ones that intentionally set out to leave you with a truly downbeat and memorable conclusion, and actually achieved it.

7) The Mist

Often considered the best science fiction film adapted from a Stephen King story, The Mist is a gripping alien invasion movie largely contained to one location. However, it’s the film’s ending that truly elevates it above the original story.

The movie shows David Drayton, played by Thomas Jane, rescuing his son and a few others – Amanda, Dan, and Irene – from a grocery store that’s fallen into complete disarray. Trapped by enormous alien creatures, and believing they’re all doomed, David makes the heartbreaking decision to shoot everyone in the car to end their suffering. Just then, the strange mist clears, and the military arrives.

Stream The Mist for free with ads on The Roku Channel.

6) The Vanishing

Skip the 1993 Hollywood remake with its happier ending – the original The Vanishing is the real gem. Be warned, though: it’s a disturbing film that won’t leave you feeling optimistic.

The movie centers on Rex, whose girlfriend, Saskia, was abducted years ago. When the kidnapper reappears, he offers Rex information about Saskia, but the catch is Rex will suffer the same fate – being buried alive. After this terrifying revelation, the kidnapper, Raymond, returns to his normal life with his family.

Stream The Vanishing on The Criterion Channel.

5) Invasion of the Body Snatchers

The 1978 remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers is widely considered the best of the four adaptations of Jack Finney’s novel. It improved upon both the book and the 1950s film, notably by adding the now-iconic moment of characters pointing and screaming upon realizing the horror unfolding around them.

The film follows the unfolding invasion primarily through the perspective of Donald Sutherland’s character, Matthew. We also see what’s happening with his friend Elizabeth (Brooke Adams) and the couple, Jack and Nancy Bellicec (Jeff Goldblum and Veronica Cartwright). In the final act, Jack is taken over by the invaders, and then Matthew discovers Elizabeth has suffered the same fate. At this point, the film seems to pause. The scene shifts from night to day, and a worried Nancy finds Matthew walking in a park. Her relief at seeing him is short-lived, as Matthew suddenly points at her and screams, revealing to the other pod people that she’s still human. It’s then revealed that Matthew has also been taken over, bringing the film to a definitive end.

Stream Invasion of the Body Snatchers on Prime Video.

4) The Blair Witch Project

While The Blair Witch Project was a huge cultural moment in the late 1990s, it doesn’t feel quite as groundbreaking today, especially with movies like Paranormal Activity now well-known. However, the film’s ending remains surprisingly powerful.

The movie is relentlessly bleak, and the ending is particularly devastating. After one of the filmmakers disappears – presumably dies – only Heather and Mike remain. They stumble upon an empty house, and Heather loses sight of Mike. When she finds him, he’s just standing in the basement, staring blankly at a corner. She screams, falls, and the camera drops. What happened to them remains a mystery, but it’s clear things have gone terribly wrong.

Stream The Blair Witch Project on Kanopy.

3) The Return of the Living Dead

While heavily inspired by George Romero’s Dead films, The Return of the Living Dead is a significant zombie movie in its own right. It also features a surprisingly shocking ending, comparable to the one in Night of the Living Dead.

The military tries to stop the dead from rising by dropping a nuclear bomb on the cemetery where a dangerous gas called Trioxin is bringing them back to life. However, the explosion actually makes the problem much worse, causing the resurrection to spread even further.

Stream The Return of the Living Dead for free with ads on The Roku Channel.

2) The Thing

John Carpenter’s The Thing is a sci-fi masterpiece and a key example of the great science fiction films of the 1980s. It’s also notable for its ambiguous, open-ended ending.

Only two people are left: MacReady, played by Kurt Russell, and Childs, played by Keith David. MacReady destroyed the creature that was imitating people, and Childs briefly went missing, making us just as wary of him. As MacReady points out, even if either of them has a hidden agenda, they’re in no condition to act on it. They’re almost certainly going to freeze to death. But it’s unsettling to consider what might happen if one of them is actually infected and later revived.

1) Night of the Living Dead

Night of the Living Dead is a classic horror film from the 1960s that continues to be influential, largely due to its shockingly bleak ending.

The movie focuses on just a few characters, and by the end, only Ben survives. He’s tragically shot as dawn breaks, not by zombies, but by a group of people. Given the film was made in the 1960s, when Black actors rarely led movies, it makes you question whether the group mistook Ben for a zombie, or if they intentionally killed him because he was different.

Stream Night of the Living Dead on HBO Max.

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2026-01-05 02:11