Top 55: The Horrors of Addiction
by JCarama | created - 23 Mar 2022 | updated - 4 months ago | PublicFavorite horror/horror-adjacent movies that focus on themes of addiction, substance abuse, dependency and recovery.
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1. Requiem for a Dream (2000)
R | 102 min | Drama
The drug-induced utopias of four Coney Island people are shattered when their addictions run deep..
Director: Darren Aronofsky | Stars: Ellen Burstyn, Jared Leto, Jennifer Connelly, Marlon Wayans
Votes: 899,114 | Gross: $3.64M
2. Lovely Molly (2011)
R | 99 min | Drama, Horror
Newlywed Molly moves into her deceased father's house in the countryside, where painful memories soon begin to haunt her.
Director: Eduardo Sánchez | Stars: Gretchen Lodge, Johnny Lewis, Alexandra Holden, Field Blauvelt
Votes: 10,106
3. Bug (2006)
R | 102 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
An unhinged war veteran holes up with a lonely woman in a spooky Oklahoma motel room. The line between reality and delusion is blurred as they discover a bug infestation.
Director: William Friedkin | Stars: Ashley Judd, Michael Shannon, Harry Connick Jr., Lynn Collins
Votes: 37,822 | Gross: $7.01M
4. Doctor Sleep (2019)
R | 152 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
Years following the events of The Shining (1980), a now-adult Dan Torrance must protect a young girl with similar powers from a cult known as The True Knot, who prey on children with powers to remain immortal.
Director: Mike Flanagan | Stars: Ewan McGregor, Rebecca Ferguson, Kyliegh Curran, Cliff Curtis
Votes: 218,594 | Gross: $31.58M
5. Resolution (III) (2012)
Not Rated | 93 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A man imprisons his estranged junkie friend in an isolated cabin in the boonies of San Diego to force him through a week of sobriety, but the events of that week are being mysteriously manipulated.
Directors: Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead | Stars: Peter Cilella, Vinny Curran, Emily Montague, Kurt David Anderson
Votes: 19,535
6. Bliss (I) (2019)
Not Rated | 80 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A brilliant painter facing the worst creative block of her life turns to anything she can to complete her masterpiece, spiraling into a hallucinatory hellscape of drugs, sex and murder in the sleazy underbelly of Los Angeles.
Director: Joe Begos | Stars: Dora Madison, Tru Collins, Rhys Wakefield, Jeremy Gardner
Votes: 5,685
7. The Addiction (1995)
Not Rated | 82 min | Drama, Horror
A New York philosophy grad student turns into a vampire after getting bitten by one, and then tries to come to terms with her new lifestyle and frequent craving for human blood.
Director: Abel Ferrara | Stars: Lili Taylor, Christopher Walken, Annabella Sciorra, Edie Falco
Votes: 11,523 | Gross: $0.30M
8. Evil Dead (2013)
R | 91 min | Horror
Five friends head to a remote cabin, where the discovery of a Book of the Dead leads them to unwittingly summon up demons living in the nearby woods.
Director: Fede Alvarez | Stars: Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Jessica Lucas, Lou Taylor Pucci
Votes: 197,339 | Gross: $54.24M
9. Naked Lunch (1991)
R | 115 min | Drama, Mystery
After developing an addiction to the substance he uses to kill bugs, an exterminator accidentally kills his wife and becomes involved in a secret government plot being orchestrated by giant bugs in a port town in North Africa.
Director: David Cronenberg | Stars: Peter Weller, Judy Davis, Ian Holm, Julian Sands
Votes: 56,688 | Gross: $2.54M
10. A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987)
R | 96 min | Fantasy, Horror
A psychiatrist familiar with knife-wielding dream demon Freddy Krueger helps teens at a mental hospital battle the killer who is invading their dreams.
Director: Chuck Russell | Stars: Heather Langenkamp, Robert Englund, Craig Wasson, Patricia Arquette
Votes: 90,351 | Gross: $44.79M
11. Family Blood (2018)
TV-MA | 92 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
Ellie, a recovering drug addict, moves to a new city with her two teenage children. Struggling to stay sober, her life changes when she meets Christopher, who is a different kind of addict.
Director: Sonny Mallhi | Stars: Vinessa Shaw, James Ransone, Colin Ford, Ajiona Alexus
Votes: 3,416
12. Dead Ringers (1988)
R | 116 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
Twin gynecologists take full advantage of the fact that nobody can tell them apart, until their relationship begins to deteriorate over a woman.
Director: David Cronenberg | Stars: Jeremy Irons, Geneviève Bujold, Heidi von Palleske, Barbara Gordon
Votes: 53,604 | Gross: $9.13M
13. The Lords of Salem (2012)
R | 101 min | Horror, Thriller
Radio DJ Heidi is sent a box containing a record--a "gift from the Lords". The sounds within the grooves trigger flashbacks of her town's violent past. Is Heidi going mad, or are the Lords back to take revenge on Salem, Massachusetts?
Director: Rob Zombie | Stars: Sheri Moon Zombie, Meg Foster, Bruce Davison, Jeff Daniel Phillips
Votes: 32,325 | Gross: $1.16M
14. The Hunger (1983)
R | 97 min | Drama, Horror
A love triangle develops between a beautiful yet dangerous vampire (Catherine Deneuve), her cellist companion (David Bowie), and a gerontologist (Susan Sarandon).
Director: Tony Scott | Stars: Catherine Deneuve, David Bowie, Susan Sarandon, Cliff De Young
Votes: 29,058 | Gross: $5.98M
15. Alyce Kills (2011)
Not Rated | 90 min | Horror, Thriller
After accidentally knocking her best friend off a roof, Alyce is haunted by guilt and delves into a brutal nightmare wonderland of sex, drugs and violence, her mind tearing itself apart along with anyone else who gets in her way.
Director: Jay Lee | Stars: Jade Dornfeld, Amara Zaragoza, James Duval, Eddie Rouse
Votes: 3,219
16. Habit (1995)
Unrated | 112 min | Drama, Horror, Romance
Set in a gritty, real life New York City, alcoholic Sam meets up with a modern day succubus who marks him and controls his will. As his world unravels he slowly figures out what is happening and has to figure out what to do.
Director: Larry Fessenden | Stars: Larry Fessenden, Meredith Snaider, Aaron Beall, Patricia Coleman
Votes: 2,104
17. Raw (2016)
R | 99 min | Drama, Horror
A young woman, studying to be a vet, develops a craving for human flesh.
Director: Julia Ducournau | Stars: Garance Marillier, Ella Rumpf, Rabah Nait Oufella, Laurent Lucas
Votes: 89,176 | Gross: $0.51M
18. From Hell (2001)
R | 122 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
After five ritualistic murders are committed in 1888 London, Inspector Abberline's assignment is to investigate the "Jack the Ripper" murders. Along with a string of mutilated prostitutes, he uncovers a conspiracy involving the government.
Directors: Albert Hughes, Allen Hughes | Stars: Johnny Depp, Heather Graham, Ian Holm, Robbie Coltrane
Votes: 164,249 | Gross: $31.60M
19. Inner Demons (I) (2014)
Not Rated | 85 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
A reality television crew, whose show features stories about drug addicts, finds that their 16-year-old junkie for their latest episode might actually not be fighting addiction, but a demonic force gripping her soul.
Director: Seth Grossman | Stars: Lara Vosburgh, Kevan McClellan, Kate Whitney, Brian Flaherty
Votes: 2,677
20. When I Consume You (2021)
92 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A woman and her brother seek revenge against a mysterious stalker.
Director: Perry Blackshear | Stars: Libby Ewing, Evan Dumouchel, MacLeod Andrews, Margaret Ying Drake
Votes: 438
21. Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed (2004)
R | 94 min | Horror, Thriller
Ginger's sister Brigitte, now a werewolf herself, must try to find a cure for her blood lust before the next full moon while hiding out in a rehab clinic from a relentless werewolf.
Director: Brett Sullivan | Stars: Emily Perkins, Brendan Fletcher, Katharine Isabelle, Tatiana Maslany
Votes: 15,222
22. The Monster (2016)
R | 91 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
A mother and daughter must confront a terrifying monster when they break down on a deserted road.
Director: Bryan Bertino | Stars: Zoe Kazan, Ella Ballentine, Aaron Douglas, Christine Ebadi
Votes: 19,360
23. Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical (2005 TV Movie)
R | 109 min | Comedy, Drama, Horror
An outrageous tongue-in-cheek musical comedy adaptation of the classic anti-marijuana propaganda film Reefer Madness (1936).
Director: Andy Fickman | Stars: Kristen Bell, Christian Campbell, Neve Campbell, Alan Cumming
Votes: 6,824
24. VFW (2019)
Not Rated | 92 min | Action, Crime, Horror
A group of old war veterans put their lives on the line to defend a young woman taking shelter in their local VFW post, who's running from a deranged drug dealer and his relentless army of drug-addled punks.
Director: Joe Begos | Stars: Stephen Lang, William Sadler, Fred Williamson, Martin Kove
Votes: 9,597
25. Bijitâ Q (2001)
R | 84 min | Comedy, Drama, Horror
A troubled and perverted family find their lives intruded by a mysterious stranger who seems to help find a balance in their disturbing natures.
Director: Takashi Miike | Stars: Ken'ichi Endô, Shungiku Uchida, Kazushi Watanabe, Jun Mutô
Votes: 17,058
26. Midnight Son (2011)
Not Rated | 88 min | Horror
Forced by a disease to drink human blood, Jacob must control his violent tendencies as local law enforcement narrow their focus on him as a suspect in a series of grisly murders.
Director: Scott Leberecht | Stars: Zak Kilberg, Maya Parish, Jo D. Jonz, Larry Cedar
Votes: 1,913
27. Fried Barry (2020)
99 min | Comedy, Horror, Sci-Fi
Barry is a drug-addled, abusive bastard who - after yet another bender - is abducted by aliens. Barry takes a backseat as an alien visitor assumes control of his body and takes it for a ... See full summary »
Director: Ryan Kruger | Stars: Gary Green, Chanelle de Jager, Brett Williams, Joey Cramer
Votes: 3,046
28. Antlers (2021)
R | 99 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
In an isolated Oregon town, a middle-school teacher and her sheriff brother become embroiled with her enigmatic student, whose dark secrets lead to terrifying encounters with an ancestral creature.
Director: Scott Cooper | Stars: Keri Russell, Jesse Plemons, Jeremy T. Thomas, Graham Greene
Votes: 44,547
29. The Old Ways (II) (2020)
R | 90 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
Cristina, a journalist of Mexican origin, travels to her ancestral home in Veracruz to investigate a story of sorcery and healing. There, she is kidnapped by a group of locals who claim she's the devil incarnated.
Director: Christopher Alender | Stars: Brigitte Kali Canales, Andrea Cortés, Julia Vera, Sal Lopez
Votes: 7,837
30. The Stranger (XII) (2014)
Not Rated | 93 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A mysterious man arrives in a small American town seeking his wife, though his presence plunges the community into a bloodbath.
Director: Guillermo Amoedo | Stars: Cristo Montt, Lorenza Izzo, Luis Gnecco, Ariel Levy
Votes: 3,106
31.
Masters of Horror (2005–2007)
Episode:
The Black Cat
(2007)
TV-MA | 58 min | Horror
The Black Cat, set in 1840 Philadelphia, has the great writer Edgar Allan Poe, struggling with alcoholism, writers block, as well as being out of ideas, short on cash, and tormented by his ... See full summary »
Director: Stuart Gordon | Stars: Elyse Levesque, Jeffrey Combs, Aron Tager, Patrick Gallagher
Votes: 2,532
32. No Exit (I) (2022)
R | 95 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
During a blizzard and stranded at an isolated highway rest stop in the mountains, a college student discovers a kidnapped child hidden in a car belonging to one of the people inside.
Director: Damien Power | Stars: Havana Rose Liu, Danny Ramirez, David Rysdahl, Mila Harris
Votes: 32,684
33. Antibirth (2016)
Not Rated | 94 min | Comedy, Horror, Mystery
In a desolate community full of drug-addled Marines and rumors of kidnapping, a wild-eyed stoner named Lou wakes up after a wild night of partying with symptoms of a strange illness and ... See full summary »
Director: Danny Perez | Stars: Natasha Lyonne, Chloë Sevigny, Meg Tilly, Mark Webber
Votes: 3,612
34. Ava's Possessions (2015)
R | 89 min | Comedy, Horror, Mystery
A young woman recovers from a demonic possession.
Director: Jordan Galland | Stars: Louisa Krause, Whitney Able, Deborah Rush, William Sadler
Votes: 3,348
35. Synchronic (2019)
R | 102 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
Two New Orleans paramedics' lives are ripped apart after they encounter a series of horrific deaths linked to a designer drug with bizarre, otherworldly effects.
Directors: Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead | Stars: Anthony Mackie, Jamie Dornan, Katie Aselton, Ally Ioannides
Votes: 40,229
36. Bitten (2008 Video)
R | 89 min | Comedy, Horror
A lovelorn paramedic rescues a woman left for dead after a deadly assault. When she refuses to go to the hospital, he takes her in, nurses her back to health and soon falls in love with her... See full summary »
Director: Harvey Glazer | Stars: Jason Mewes, Erica Cox, Richard Fitzpatrick, Jordan Madley
Votes: 2,450
37. Blood Punch (2014)
Not Rated | 104 min | Horror, Thriller
A young man is lured into a dangerous love triangle that begins to take a series of shocking and grisly supernatural turns.
Director: Madellaine Paxson | Stars: Milo Cawthorne, Olivia Tennet, David Whaley, Bloss Flores
Votes: 3,443
38. Ganja & Hess (1973)
R | 112 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
After being stabbed with an ancient, germ-infested knife, a doctor's assistant finds himself with an insatiable desire for blood.
Director: Bill Gunn | Stars: Duane Jones, Marlene Clark, Bill Gunn, Sam L. Waymon
Votes: 2,600 | Gross: $0.02M
39. Shut In (I) (2022)
TV-MA | 89 min | Thriller
When a young mother is barricaded inside a pantry by her violent ex-boyfriend, she must use ingenuity to protect her two small children from escalating danger while finding an escape.
Director: D.J. Caruso | Stars: Rainey Qualley, Jake Horowitz, Vincent Gallo, Luciana VanDette
Votes: 10,926
40. A Horrible Way to Die (2010)
R | 87 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
An escaped murderer is in pursuit of his ex-girlfriend, who has fled to start a new life in a small town.
Director: Adam Wingard | Stars: AJ Bowen, Amy Seimetz, Joe Swanberg, Brandon Carroll
Votes: 3,894
41. Brain Damage (1988)
R | 84 min | Comedy, Horror
One morning, a young man wakes to find that a small, disgusting creature has attached itself to the base of his brain stem. The creature gives him a euphoric state of happiness but demands human victims in return.
Director: Frank Henenlotter | Stars: Rick Hearst, Gordon MacDonald, Jennifer Lowry, Theo Barnes
Votes: 13,175
42. Toad Road (2012)
Unrated | 76 min | Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi
A portrait of contemporary youth culture, where the lines between reality and fiction are blurred with often frightening results.
Director: Jason Banker | Stars: James Davidson, Sara Anne Jones, Whitleigh Higuera, Jamie Siebold
Votes: 1,442
43. The Education of Fredrick Fitzell (2020)
R | 97 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
After a chance encounter with a man forgotten from his youth, Fred literally and metaphorically journeys into his past.
Director: Christopher MacBride | Stars: Dylan O'Brien, Liisa Repo-Martell, Maika Monroe, Hannah Gross
Votes: 7,122
44. Cookers (2001)
R | 96 min | Drama, Horror
After stealing a huge stash of drugs, speed freaks Hector, Dorena and Merle plan to cook up a large batch of crystal meth and get rich quick in an old abandoned farmhouse in the woods. ... See full summary »
Director: Dan Mintz | Stars: Brad Hunt, Cyia Batten, Patrick McGaw, Paul Banashek
Votes: 870
45. Night Junkies (2007)
R | 90 min | Horror, Romance, Thriller
In London, Vincent Monroe is a young man addicted in blood that wanders through the red light district looking for lonely people to satisfy his addiction, dropping their bodies in the ... See full summary »
Director: Lawrence Pearce | Stars: Giles Alderson, Lucy Bowen, Beverley Eve, Matt Tully
Votes: 682
46. Blood from Stone (2020)
116 min | Romance, Thriller
The old era of vampires has been forced into darkness, yet they are drawn to the dawning of a new era for themselves with a longing to be free of their savage curse.
Director: Geoff Ryan | Stars: Vanja Kapetanovic, Gabriella Toth, Nika Khitrova, Eric Cotti
Votes: 198
47. The Possession of Hannah Grace (2018)
R | 86 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
When a cop who is just out of rehab takes the graveyard shift in a city hospital morgue, she faces a series of bizarre, violent events caused by an evil entity in one of the corpses.
Director: Diederik Van Rooijen | Stars: Shay Mitchell, Grey Damon, Kirby Johnson, Nick Thune
Votes: 25,954 | Gross: $14.84M
48. Threshold (II) (2020)
78 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
THRESHOLD follows a sister, claiming to be cursed, as she persuades her brother to embark on a cross country road trip to break her spell.
Directors: Powell Robinson, Patrick Robert Young | Stars: Joey Millin, Madison West, Daniel Abraham Stevens, John Terrell
Votes: 315
49. Kicking Blood (2021)
80 min | Fantasy
When Anna, a centuries old vampire, watches Robbie, a charming but reckless young man, recover from his alcoholism, she decides to quit blood and restore her humanity.
Director: Blaine Thurier | Stars: Alanna Bale, Luke Bilyk, Benjamin Sutherland, Ella Jonas Farlinger
Votes: 247
50. Capsules (2022)
70 min | Horror, Sci-Fi
After experimenting with mysterious substances, four chem students find themselves addicted in the worst way possible: they'll die unless they take more.
Director: Luke Momo | Stars: Caroline Potter Shriver, Marcus Fahey, Kate Pittard, Davis Browne
Votes: 120
51. Accidental Exorcist (2016)
TV-MA | 105 min | Horror
Fate has dealt Richard Vanuck a very strange hand; he's a natural born exorcist. In fact, he's the best there's ever been, and with possessions on the rise across the city he's booked solid... See full summary »
Director: Daniel Falicki | Stars: Daniel Falicki, Faye Sills, Sherryl Despres, David Higbee
Votes: 311
52. Pop Skull (2007)
Not Rated | 86 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
Pop Skull depicts the lonely and disjointed life of Daniel, a young Alabama pill addict, as his efforts to cope with the trials of his day-to-day life collide with the increasing influence ... See full summary »
Director: Adam Wingard | Stars: Lane Hughes, Brandon Carroll, Maggie Gwin, Hannah Hughes
Votes: 467
53. Arrebato (1979)
Unrated | 115 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
A low budget horror filmmaker gets in touch with an eccentric who is trying to film his consciousness during drug abuse.
Director: Iván Zulueta | Stars: Eusebio Poncela, Cecilia Roth, Will More, Marta Fernández Muro
Votes: 3,391
54. The Unraveling (I) (2015)
TV-MA | 85 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
Michael's heroin addiction is beginning to test his limits, but when he is kidnapped and taken into the woods, he soon discovers just how far those limits will go.
Director: Thomas Jakobsen | Stars: Zack Gold, Jason Tobias, Bennett Viso, Bob Turton
Votes: 385
55. Recovery (II) (2019)
82 min | Horror, Thriller
The patients and staff of a secluded heroin treatment center must do battle with more than their own demons as a mysterious killer begins picking them off one-by-one.
Director: John Liang | Stars: Stephanie Pearson, Hope Quattrocki, Liz Fenning, Ari Hader
Votes: 924
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