Top 10 Horror Movies with DISTURBING Backstories

The creep factor runs deep with regards to both the original “Amityville Horror” from 1979, as well as this 2005 remake. The former is due to its real-life, true crime roots, and the latter thanks to stories that haunted its production. Those stories included real human remains that were uncovered on the shore of a lake that was located near some shooting locations. Moreover, actor Ryan Reynolds claimed that some cast and crew members often awakened at 3:15 in the morning. What makes this coincidence so unsettling is that Ronald DeFeo Jr. stated that it was around this time when he committed the murders at the root of the Amityville legend.

Sometimes, it isn’t so much about disturbing incidents on a movie set, but rather the inspiration behind that movie’s story. “The Exorcism of Emily Rose” was based on the real-life exorcism of young German woman Anneliese Michel. Actually, THE exorcism isn’t correct. Michel was subjected to an astonishing 67 exorcism attempts prior to her death back in 1976. Michel had been experiencing epilepsy and depression, and reported hearing voices. Her parents and the priest involved were convicted of negligent homicide in her death, after it was revealed that they contributed to Michel’s dehydration and malnourishment.

There will probably never be another film set quite like 1974’s “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre”. The film was inspired by the real-life crimes of Ed Gein, a notorious serial killer from the late 1950s. Gein was also the inspiration for Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho”. As for “TCM”’s production, Tobe Hooper’s independent spirit was put to the test with unforgiving heat, and conditions that seemed to challenge the cast and crew at every corner. Neither actors Gunnar Hansen nor Marilyn Burns would escape “TCM” unscathed. The former suffered a nasty burn during his infamous “chainsaw dance” at the film’s finale, while Burns’ hand was actually sliced by Hansen near the film’s climax.

The dark side of Hollywood is full of stories that allege a very “quid pro quo” sort of atmosphere. The “casting couch” myth is, sadly, very real, and this legacy didn’t stop at the feet of legendary directors like Alfred Hitchcock. In fact, it’s since been alleged that Hitchcock held an obsession with “The Birds” actress Tippi Hedren, and made direct sexual overtures in her direction. Hedren, for her part, claims that Hitchcock attempted to blackball her in the industry after she rebuffed these advances. The actress also said that the director utilized real birds during an attack sequence, which led to Hedren developing a real phobia of the creatures.

It’s one of the darkest and most depressing examples of an on-set accident. Director John Landis was riding high in 1983, after helming such hits as “Animal House,” “The Blues Brothers” and “An American Werewolf in London.” Landis was used to getting what he wanted as a result, such as when he was able to illegally hire child actors without the proper night work permits for 1983’s “Twilight Zone: The Movie.” This probably wouldn’t have made headlines had the unthinkable not happened. The children lost their lives in an accident involving a helicopter. Veteran actor Vic Morrow also perished in the stunt gone horribly wrong. This led to extensive legal action that resulted in an increase in on-set risk management.

The disturbing aura surrounding 1976’s “The Omen” doesn’t only have to do with the film’s satanic origins. This was an era where The Devil meant business in Hollywood, thanks to the success of films like “The Exorcist” and “Rosemary’s Baby,” leading to rumors of “The Omen” set being cursed. Some very real incidents surrounded production on "The Omen," including the tragic pre-production death of Gregory Peck's son. A small plane carrying film crew also crashed during production, while special effects crew members Liz Moore and John Richardson, who were responsible for the film's infamous beheading scene, were involved in a fatal car accident.

The Italian “jungle horror” movie possesses roots in the 1970s, but it was 1980’s “Cannibal Holocaust” that would forever reign within that genre’s hall of infamy. This is due, in part, to the film’s pioneering of the “found footage” shooting style, but also thanks to some disturbing on-set stories. “Cannibal Holocaust” became notorious for its unsimulated animal deaths, as well as a court case that saw its director, Ruggero Deodato, accused of actual human murder. This all came down to the realism of “Cannibal Holocaust,” combined with a contractual clause for the actors that required them to briefly “disappear” after production wrapped to promote the illusion of their deaths.

The disturbing backstories that took place during the filming of “The Exorcist” weren’t just limited to instances on-screen. A real-life murder charge was later slapped on Paul Bateson, a radiologist who had parlayed this experience into a brief, walk-on role. Bateson was convicted in 1979 for murdering journalist Addison Verrill, but that wasn’t the only bit of infamy behind “The Exorcist.” A fire rampaged through the set, hamstringing production. Additionally, both actresses Ellen Burstyn and Linda Blair suffered traumatic back injuries while filming sequences for the film. The latter even reported enduring lifelong scoliosis as a result of her deal with the Devil.

Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of Stephen King’s “The Shining” is infamous today not only for how much King disliked the final product, but also for how Kubrick treated actress Shelley Duvall. The director was a noted perfectionist to the point of obsession, and made Duvall shoot her confrontation with co-star Jack Nicholson a staggering 127 times. Kubrick also berated Duvall during production, in order to instill fear, anxiety and exhaustion for the actress’ character. The end results, however, were that Duvall was nearly driven to madness, to the point where she was hoarse, dehydrated and at her breaking point.

The “Poltergeist” film franchise’s reputation for being cursed will probably never go away. This is sad, given the tragic human loss associated with these productions. At only 12 years old, Heather O’Rourke passed away from congenital stenosis and septic shock, as a result of an undiagnosed bowel obstruction. Dominique Dunne was another actor who died young after appearing in the franchise, stalked and murdered by an ex-boyfriend. Julian Beck, who portrayed Reverend Kane in “Poltergeist II: The Other Side”, died from stomach cancer shortly after filming his scenes. Finally, the use of real human remains for the skeleton sequence in the original “Poltergeist” ensured this franchise would never exist far from lists such as this one.