Top 10 Most Disturbing TV Episodes (Because of What We Know Now)

Top 10 Most Disturbing TV Episodes Because of What We Know Now

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at TV episodes that play differently since they first aired because of what we know now.

#10: “No Good Deed”

“Person of Interest” (2011-16)

This sci-fi drama revolved around a government computer called “the Machine,” which can access information beyond your imagination. In Season One’s penultimate episode, an NSA security analyst named Henry Peck learns about the Machine and plans to inform the press. Almost a year after this episode debuted and sixteen months after it was written, NSA intelligence contractor Edward Snowden leaked classified documents, revealing surveillance programs many deemed unethical. The Machine doesn’t exist in real life, but Snowden’s actions confirmed that the government is keeping a closer eye on citizens than we realized. Reflecting on the episode, actor Michael Emerson said, “I don’t have to be in charge of selling this concept—this ‘fictional’ concept—to anyone anymore… It ain’t fiction, never was, and everyone knows it now.”

#9: “The Midnight Sun”

“The Twilight Zone” (1959-64)

“The Twilight Zone” often mirrored real-world issues that remain prevalent. Season 3’s “The Midnight Sun” was ahead of its time, however. The episode sees the Earth slowly but surely heading toward the Sun with temperatures skyrocketing. This turns out to be a dream, although Earth is actually moving away from the Sun, making temperatures drop. When this episode premiered in 1961, climate change wasn’t unheard of, but it was hardly top of mind. The term global warming wouldn’t even be coined until 1975. While the Earth isn’t inching toward the Sun, it’s difficult to watch this episode now without thinking about the record-high temperatures that could mark civilization’s downfall. Some write it off as science fiction, but climate change isn’t restricted… to the Twilight Zone!

#8: “Assignment: Earth”

“Star Trek” (1966-69)

In the Season 2 finale of “Star Trek,” the USS Enterprise travels back to 1968, the same year this episode aired. Spock mentions there’s going to be an important assassination on this day. The line doesn’t impact the episode, which was originally conceived as a backdoor pilot that never went anywhere. Less than a week later, though, Martin Luther King Jr. - himself a “Star Trek” fan - was assassinated. Revisiting the episode today, this throwaway line now feels like a haunting omen. It wouldn’t be the last time “Star Trek” proved eerily prognostic. In Season 3 of “Deep Space Nine,” the crew visits San Francisco during the 2020s where homelessness and social unrest are more relevant than ever. Today is where the future and past intertwine.

#7: “Series 22, Episode 3”

“Grange Hill” (1978-2008)

Consisting of more than 600 episodes across 31 seasons, this British teen drama had a revolving door of young talent. Actress Laura Sadler joined the cast in 1997 as Judi Jeffreys, appearing in 30 episodes. Sadler’s time on the show came to an end in 1999 when Judi, attempting to get out of a burning storeroom, fell out a window to her death. Four years later, Sadler fell off the balcony of her boyfriend’s flat. Sadler didn’t survive the accident with experts finding alcohol and drugs in her system. There might be a few differences, but many noticed that Sadler’s death was grimly similar to her character’s. Knowing how Sadler died, Judi’s fate carries an even more tragic sentiment.

#6: “Eat, Drink, Dick, Mary”

“3rd Rock from the Sun” (1996-2001)

This sitcom’s third season ends on a cliffhanger with Phil Hartman’s character kidnapping Harry, believing he can profit off him. The episode leaves the door open for Hartman’s character to return. Eight days after the episode aired, though, Hartman was murdered by his wife Brynn before taking her own life. Although Hartman worked on a few other projects that had yet to come out, his “Third Rock” guest spot was the last performance the world would get to see during his lifetime. While the showrunners had plans for Hartman’s character, his absence would be explained in the Season 4 premiere where Harry is sold to a circus run by Larry Miller. Watching these two episodes, we’re reminded that Hartman was taken far too soon.

#5: “The One with Rachel’s Other Sister”

“Friends” (1994-2004)

Rewatching any “Friends” episode is bittersweet, knowing that Matthew Perry is no longer with us. This Season 9 Thanksgiving episode is especially rough, however. The storyline revolves around who will get custody of Emma if Ross and Rachel unexpectedly die. They choose Monica as a guardian, but if anything happens to her, Ross and Rachel aren’t convinced that Chandler can handle the responsibility. Chandler proves that he’s up to the task, but after accidentally breaking Monica’s fine china, he isn’t sure if he’ll live much longer. At the time, nobody could’ve imagined that Perry would be the first Friend to leave us. In retrospect, what was once a funny zinger may be the most heartbreaking line in the series.

#4: “Walkout”

“In the Heat of the Night” (1988-95)

O. J. Simpson was acquitted of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman’s murders. Even after his passing, though, Simpson remains an infamous figure in the court of public opinion. It’s easy to forget that Simpson was once a beloved figure, showing promise as an actor following his NFL tenure. In this TV adaptation of the Oscar-winning film, Simpson was considered for the role of Virgil Tibbs. The part ultimately went to Howard Rollins, but Simpson did make a Season 2 guest appearance as Councilman Lawson Stiles. Caught in the middle of a tense union strike, the councilman is murdered in his home one night. Wherever you stand on the O.J. debate, there’s no denying that this episode took an ironic turn six years later.

#3: “Chris Farley”

“Saturday Night Live” (1975-)

In Season 23, Chris Farley returned to “SNL” as host. It was Farley’s last trip to his old stomping ground and one of the last times we’d see the comedian alive. Barely two months after its airing, Farley tragically died of an overdose. Farley’s behind-the-scenes struggles were evident in this episode as many cast members noticed that he wasn’t in the best health. Producer Marci Klein even worried he might have a heart attack. The opening sketch, in particular, hits too close to home as Tim Meadows and Chevy Chase try to convince Lorne Michaels that Farley is well enough to host following his last trip to a “spa.” For a period following Farley’s death, this sketch and his monologue were cut from syndication.

#2: “Plague”

“The Dead Zone” (2002-07)

COVID-19 has changed the way we look back on numerous TV episodes, including one of “Supernatural” that totally called the whole toilet paper thing. The TV adaptation of “The Dead Zone” arguably came the closest to foreshadowing the pandemic, however. In Season 2, Johnny Smith has a vision of a deadly virus that originated from China and involved an animal. The characters discuss whether masks are necessary, look to chloroquine as a possible cure, and the coronavirus is even directly mentioned. While COVID-19 hadn’t been discovered yet, SARS-CoV-1 (a coronavirus strain) had recently led to a serious outbreak. This episode was largely inspired by the 2002–2004 SARS outbreak, although in 20/20 hindsight, it may feel like the writers had prognostic powers like Johnny.

#1: “Pilot”

“The Lone Gunmen” (2001)

“The Lone Gunmen” only lasted one season, but it’s remembered for two things: being an “X-Files” spinoff and inadvertently predicting the September 11 attacks. The pilot episode, which debuted on March 4, 2001, sees the Lone Gunmen uncover a plot to hijack a commercial plane and crash it into the World Trade Center. Something like this wasn’t entirely unprecedented, as the World Trade Center bombing had taken place several years earlier. Even so, it’s unnerving just how close this episode came to depicting the reality we would face six months later. Not everything coincides with real life, as the episode exposes government workers as the villains. Of course, even that unintentionally foreshadowed some of the 9/11 conspiracy theories we’ve seen since.

Which TV episodes do you find the most disturbing in retrospect? Let us know in the comments.