About 1408
Directed by Mikael Håfström, 1408 is a psychological horror film starring John Cusack, Samuel L. Jackson, Mary McCormack, Tony Shalhoub, Len Cariou, and Jasmine Jessica Anthony. It was released in the year 1408.
1408 is based on a short story by Stephen King in which John Cusack’s character, Mike Enslin, is a paranormal investigator who is trapped in a hotel room and begins to experience extremely horrifying events.
After a recent watch I began to think of other horror movies like 1408. Specifically those of the psychological and supernaturally charged types of horror movies.
21. The Skeleton Key (2005)
Directed by Iain Softley, The Skeleton Key is a supernatural horror movie starring Kate Hudson, Gena Rowlands, Peter Sarsgaard, Joy Bryant and John Hurt. It was released in the year 2005.
The Skeleton Key follows Caroline, a hospice nurse who takes a job caring for an elderly man named Ben in a remote Louisiana plantation house. Ben is paralyzed and unable to speak after what seems like a stroke, while his wife, Violet, behaves oddly and keeps parts of the house off-limits. When Caroline finds a hidden attic filled with ritual objects linked to hoodoo – a form of Southern folk magic – she suspects Violet is using it to harm her husband. As Caroline delves deeper, she uncovers the home’s dark past: decades earlier, two servants, Mama Cecile and Papa Justify, were lynched for practicing hoodoo, leaving a sinister legacy that still lingers in the house.
Determined to save Ben, Caroline performs her own ritual, only to discover too late that she’s been deceived. The spirits of Mama Cecile and Papa Justify have been body-hopping for decades, transferring their souls into younger hosts through hoodoo magic. Violet and Ben are their current vessels, and by believing in the magic, Caroline makes herself vulnerable to the spell. In the chilling finale, Caroline’s soul is trapped inside Violet’s frail body, while Mama Cecile takes over Caroline’s young one – and a new caregiver arrives at the house, unaware that the deadly cycle is about to begin again.
20. The Innkeepers (2011)
Directed and written by Ti West, The Innkeepers is a ghost horror film starring Sara Paxton, Pat Healy, and Kelly McGillis. It was released in the year 2011.
The Innkeepers centers on two employees, Claire and Luke, who pass their time hunting for proof of the hotel’s infamous ghost, Madeline O’Malley – a bride who supposedly took her own life after being abandoned by her groom. As they explore the empty corridors and creaking rooms, their amateur investigation starts as harmless curiosity but gradually curdles into unease, fueled by strange noises, flickering lights, and an unnerving sense that they aren’t alone.
As the nights grow longer, Claire becomes fixated on uncovering the truth while Luke’s skepticism turns to fear. A visiting psychic warns her to stay out of the basement – advice Claire ignores in the final act. What she finds there is pure dread: the spectral presence of Madeline O’Malley herself. Claire collapses and dies of an apparent asthma attack, and the next morning, her death is quietly written off by those who remain. Yet in the haunting final moment, it’s revealed that Claire’s ghost still lingers in the hotel’s basement, suggesting the curse of the Yankee Pedlar lives on through those who dared to chase its secrets.
19. The Ward (2010)
Directed by John Carpenter, The Ward is a supernatural psychological horror movie starring Amber Heard, Mamie Gummer, Danielle Panabaker, Laura-Leigh, Lyndsy Fonseca, Mika Boorem and Jared Harris. It was released in the year 2010.
The Ward follows Kristen (Amber Heard), a young woman committed to a psychiatric ward after burning down a farmhouse. Inside, she’s placed with several other female patients and treated by Dr. Stringer (Jared Harris), who insists she confront her past. But as strange noises echo through the hallways and patients begin disappearing, Kristen becomes convinced that something supernatural – the ghost of a former patient named Alice – is haunting them one by one.
Desperate to escape, Kristen uncovers fragments of Alice’s history and the truth behind the hospital’s secrets. In the shocking twist, it’s revealed that there are no other girls – they’re all fractured personalities within Kristen’s own mind. “Alice” was her original identity, created after a childhood trauma, and the other “patients” are her suppressed personas being eliminated through therapy. When the personalities are finally integrated, Kristen wakes up in the real world, apparently cured – until the final jump scare hints that Alice’s presence still lingers.
18. Daniel Isn’t Real (2019)
Directed by Adam Egypt Mortimer, Daniel Isn’t Real is a psychological horror movie starring Miles Robbins, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Sasha Lane, Mary Stuart Masterson, Hannah Marks, Chukwudi Iwuji and Peter McRobbie. It was released in the year 2019.
Daniel Isn’t Real follows Luke, a troubled young man who, as a child, created an imaginary friend named Daniel to cope with his parents’ fights and a traumatic shooting. At first, Daniel seems like a comforting companion, but his playful side soon turns sinister, pushing Luke toward violent behavior. Terrified, Luke’s mother forces him to mentally “lock” Daniel away. Years later, as a lonely college student grappling with anxiety and his mother’s declining mental health, Luke brings Daniel back – now appearing as a confident, magnetic young man who helps Luke find purpose and social power.
But Daniel’s influence quickly becomes toxic. He starts taking over Luke’s body and mind, revealing that he’s not imaginary at all but a parasitic, demonic entity feeding on Luke’s trauma. As their identities blur, Luke realizes he can’t destroy Daniel without destroying himself. In the end, Luke sacrifices his own life to imprison Daniel forever within his dying consciousness. Daniel Isn’t Real is a haunting exploration of mental illness, grief, and the dark, seductive voice inside that promises freedom – but only ever delivers ruin.
17. Gothika (2003)
Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz, Gothika is a supernatural horror movie starring Halle Berry, Robert Downey Jr., Charles S. Dutton, John Carroll Lynch, Bernard Hill and Penélope Cruz. It was released in the year 2003.
Gothika follows Halle Berry’s character, a psychiatrist, who is thrown into a waking nightmare where she wakes up on the wrong side of a padded cell, accused of murdering her husband – but with zero memory of doing it. Haunted by a vengeful ghost and drowning in cryptic visions, she digs deep and uncovers a sinister conspiracy where she learns her husband was way more sinister than he was led to believe – and his victims are staying silent. Aided by ghosts of the dead, she fights her way to the truth. On the way, exposing a twisted web of abuse, murder, and supernatural revenge.
16. Before I Wake (2016)
Directed and co-written by Mike Flanagan, Before I Wake is a dark fantasy horror movie starring Kate Bosworth, Thomas Jane, Jacob Tremblay, Annabeth Gish, Dash Mihok and Topher Bousquet. It was released in the year 2016.
Before I Wake follows Jessie and Mark, a couple still mourning the loss of their young son, Sean. Hoping to heal, they foster an eight-year-old boy named Cody, a kind but troubled child who’s terrified of falling asleep. They soon discover why – when Cody dreams, his imagination manifests in the real world. At first, his dreams bring wonder: beautiful visions of butterflies and even brief, miraculous appearances of Sean. But when Cody’s nightmares take hold, they unleash something far darker.
The source of Cody’s fear is a shadowy creature he calls The Canker Man, a nightmarish figure that devours people when he has bad dreams. As Jessie investigates, she learns that Cody’s power stems from his trauma – The Canker Man is the embodiment of his fear and grief after watching his own mother die. Determined to help him, Jessie enters his dream world and confronts the monster, realizing it’s Cody’s distorted memory of his mother’s death. By facing the truth, she helps Cody accept his loss, and the Canker Man dissolves. In the end, Jessie tucks Cody in, comforted by the understanding that dreams – both beautiful and terrifying – are how we hold on to those we’ve lost.
15. The Lodge (2019)
Directed by Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala, The Lodge is a psychological horror movie starring Riley Keough, Jaeden Martell,Lia McHugh, Alicia Silverstone and Richard Armitage. It was released in the year 2019.
The Lodge follows two grief-stricken kids, Aiden and Mia, who are stuck in a remote cabin with their soon-to-be stepmom, Grace – a survivor of a doomsday cult suicide. When their father leaves, reality starts to warp. Power cuts out, supplies vanish, and Grace spirals into a religious-fueled breakdown, convinced they’re all trapped in purgatory. But here’s the kicker – it’s all a twisted prank by the kids. Only, their mind games push Grace past the breaking point, leading to a finale so chilling it’ll stick with you long after the credits roll.
14. Vacancy (2007)
Directed by Nimród Antal and written by Mark L. Smith, Vacancy is a slasher horror movie starring Kate Beckinsale, Luke Wilson, Frank Whaley and Ethan Embry. It was released in the year 2007.
Vacancy follows David and Amy, a couple on the verge of divorce whose car breaks down on a deserted highway late at night. Stranded, they check into a remote, run-down motel managed by a strange clerk. When they settle into their room, they discover old videotapes showing brutal murders filmed in the very same room. Terrified, they realize the motel is a front for a snuff-film operation that records guests being killed for profit. Hidden cameras watch their every move, and their attempts to escape are met with traps and masked killers lurking in the dark.
As the night spirals into chaos, David and Amy fight to survive, using quick thinking and the motel’s layout to their advantage. The killers hunt them through crawlspaces, tunnels, and locked rooms, turning the entire building into a death maze. In the bloody climax, David sacrifices himself to protect Amy, who manages to kill one of the attackers and survive until dawn. When police arrive, Amy is found alive, bloodied but breathing, as the last of the cameras continues to record. Vacancy ends as a chilling reminder that true horror doesn’t need monsters – just people willing to turn murder into entertainment.
13. Lights Out (2016)
Directed by David F. Sandberg, Lights Out is a supernatural horror movie starring Teresa Palmer, Gabriel Bateman, Alexander DiPersia, Billy Burke and Maria Bello. It was released in the year 2016.
Lights Out follows Rebecca, a young woman forced to confront a childhood nightmare when her little brother, Martin, begins seeing a terrifying shadowy figure that only appears when the lights go out. Their mother, Sophie, is emotionally unstable, haunted by grief and depression after the death of her husband. As Rebecca investigates, she discovers the entity’s name – Diana – a figure from Sophie’s past who once lived in a psychiatric hospital. After a failed medical experiment killed her, Diana’s spirit latched onto Sophie, feeding on her loneliness and pain while terrorizing anyone who came close.
As the haunting intensifies, Rebecca fights to protect Martin and uncover the truth behind Diana’s connection to their mother. The family realizes that Diana’s existence depends entirely on Sophie’s mind – she is both her trauma and her tormentor. In a desperate act of love and sacrifice, Sophie takes her own life to destroy Diana once and for all. When the light returns, the shadow vanishes, leaving Rebecca and Martin safe but forever changed. Lights Out is both a supernatural horror and a chilling metaphor for mental illness – showing how darkness feeds on despair, and how love can finally switch the light back on.
12. Sinister (2012)
Directed by Scott Derrickson, Sinister is a supernatural horror movie starring Ethan Hawke, Juliet Rylance, Fred Thompson, James Ransone, Clare Foley and Michael Hall D’Addario. It was released in the year 2012.
Sinister is a nerve-shredding descent into madness that grips you and never lets go. It follows a washed-up true-crime writer, Ellison Oswalt, who’s desperate for his next big hit. Moving his unsuspecting family into a murder house, he stumbles upon creepy home movies showing previous families being slaughtered in gruesome ways. Digging deeper, he unearths the presence of Bughuul, a demonic figure, who feeds on the fear and corruption of children. The more obsessed Ellison becomes, the closer the danger creeps toward his family. To some horror fans, Sinister is pure nightmare fuel.
11. The Uninvited (2009)
Directed by the Guard Brothers, The Uninvited is a psychological horror movie starring Elizabeth Banks, Emily Browning, Arielle Kebbel, and David Strathairn. It’s a remake of the Korean horror film, A Tale of Two Sisters, which was released in 2003. The Uninvited, however, was released six years later in the year 2009.
The Uninvited follows Anna, a teenage girl returning home from a mental institution after a tragic fire that killed her sick mother. Her father has since started dating Rachel, a nurse who cared for her mother before her death – and Anna immediately senses something sinister about her. With the help of her sister Alex, Anna begins to piece together clues suggesting that Rachel is actually a murderer named Mildred Kemp, a nurse who once killed an entire family. Ghostly visions and haunting warnings seem to confirm their suspicions, pushing the sisters to confront Rachel in a deadly struggle.
But as the chaos unfolds, a devastating truth surfaces: Alex has been dead all along, killed in the same fire as their mother. Anna’s mind fractured from guilt, creating Alex as a coping mechanism while projecting her blame onto Rachel. In reality, Anna caused the fire herself, and Rachel was innocent all along. The film ends with Anna back in the psychiatric hospital, lost in her delusion, believing she and her sister are still together – her broken mind the real source of the horror.
10. Apartment 1303 (2007)
Directed by Ataru Oikawa, Apartment 1303 is a Japanese horror movie starring Noriko Nakagoshi, Yuka Itaya and Arata Furuta. It was released in the year 2007.
Apartment 1303 follows Janet Slate, a young woman eager to escape her toxic, alcoholic mother, Maddie, and start a new life on her own. She moves into a seemingly affordable apartment – unit 1303 – in a downtown high-rise, but soon after settling in, she begins to experience strange occurrences: objects moving on their own, eerie sounds, and fleeting visions of a woman who shouldn’t be there. The building’s dark history soon surfaces — a string of women who lived in the same unit all died by jumping from the balcony under mysterious circumstances.
As Janet’s behavior becomes increasingly erratic, she falls victim to the same sinister fate, leaving her sister Lara desperate to uncover what really happened. Lara discovers the apartment is haunted by the ghost of Jennifer, a young woman who was abused and driven to suicide by her mother. Jennifer’s vengeful spirit now traps every woman who dares move in, forcing them to relive her torment. In the end, Lara becomes the next target, unable to break the curse as the apartment claims another soul – leaving unit 1303 forever cursed, a modern tomb of generational rage and grief
9. What Lies Beneath (2000)
Directed by Robert Zemeckis, What Lies Beneath is a supernatural thriller movie starring Harrison Ford, Michelle Pfeiffer, Diana Scarwid, Joe Morton, James Remar and Miranda Otto. It was released in the year 2000.
What Lies Beneath follows Michelle Pfeiffer’s character Clare and her husband Norman where ghosts are haunting them. Which leads Clare to dig into the past to unearth a secret – her husband is a murderer. And the ghost? His dead mistress, Madison, who he silenced by killing her. As Clare unearths this deadly secret, Norman plans to make her his next victim – but Madison has other plans for him.
8. Mirrors (2008)
Directed by Alexandre Aja, Mirrors is a supernatural horror movie starring Kiefer Sutherland, Paula Patton, Amy Smart. It was released in the year 2008.
Mirrors follows a security guard at an American department store, who discovers the mirrors inside aren’t just creepy but also evil. Nightmarish visions begin to bleed into reality, and the security guard’s family gets caught in the middle of a supernatural force looking to complete some unfinished business. The story eventually links back to a girl who was once possessed and dealt with her demons by trapping them inside mirrors – which leads to a haunting ending.
7. Stir of Echoes (1999)
Directed and written by David Koepp, Stir of Echoes is a supernatural horror movie starring Kevin Bacon, Kathryn Erbe, Illeana Douglas and Kevin Dunn. It was released in the year 1999.
Stir of Echoes follows Tom Witzky, a blue-collar family man whose life unravels after being hypnotized at a party. What begins as a harmless experiment unlocks a psychic doorway in his mind, allowing him to see disturbing visions of a young girl’s ghost. Haunted day and night, Tom becomes obsessed with uncovering what his subconscious is trying to tell him. Meanwhile, his young son Jake also displays an eerie connection to the spirit world, confirming that something supernatural – and very real – is happening.
As Tom digs deeper, his visions lead him to the horrifying truth: the ghost is Samantha, a local girl who was murdered and hidden beneath his own home. The revelation exposes a dark secret buried within their seemingly ordinary neighborhood – one that implicates people he knows. By bringing Samantha’s body to light, Tom gives her the peace she sought, but the experience leaves him changed forever. In the haunting final moments, Tom realizes he can now hear other restless spirits, suggesting that once the veil between worlds has been lifted, it can never truly be closed.
6. The Dark and the Wicked (2020)
Written and directed by Bryan Bertino, The Dark and the Wicked is a horror movie starring Marin Ireland, Michael Abbott Jr., and Xander Berkeley. It was released in the year 2020.
The Dark and the Wicked follows siblings Louise and Michael, who return to their remote Texas family farm to help their dying father. Their mother, brittle and withdrawn, warns them to stay away – that something evil has taken root in their home. When she suddenly takes her own life in a horrifying act of despair, Louise and Michael realize she wasn’t delusional. Something unseen and malevolent is stalking them, feeding on their fear and sorrow.
As the days unravel, the atmosphere thickens with hopelessness. They experience vivid hallucinations – whispers, visions of their mother, and their father’s body twisting in unnatural ways – all orchestrated by a demonic presence determined to claim their souls. A visiting priest offers no comfort; even he is revealed to be an illusion. Isolated and terrified, the siblings succumb one by one: Michael flees but is driven to kill himself after the entity manipulates his mind, while Louise stays behind, paralyzed by guilt and disbelief. In the final moments, as their father dies, the demon closes in – and Louise’s silent scream marks the victory of pure evil.
5. The Others (2001)
Written, directed, and scored by Alejandro Amenábar, The Others is a supernatural psychological horror movie starring Nicole Kidman, Fionnula Flanagan, Christopher Eccleston, Elaine Cassidy, Eric Sykes, Alakina Mann and James Bentley. It was released in the year 2001.
The Others follows Grace Stewart, a strict, deeply religious mother raising her two children in a secluded mansion on the island of Jersey shortly after World War II. Because her children suffer from a rare allergy to sunlight, the house must remain in perpetual darkness. When three new servants arrive, eerie occurrences begin – doors open on their own, whispers echo through empty halls, and Grace’s daughter, Anne, insists she’s seen “others” living in the house. Grace initially blames intruders or the servants, but the disturbances grow increasingly sinister, shaking her rigid sense of control and faith.
In the film’s haunting twist, Grace discovers the truth: she and her children are the ghosts haunting the house. Overcome by grief and madness, Grace had smothered her children and then taken her own life, erasing the memory of her actions. The “others” are actually a living family trying to communicate with them. Horrified but resigned, Grace accepts her fate, vowing to stay with her children in the only home they’ve ever known.
4. No One Gets Out Alive (2021)
Directed by Santiago Menghini, No One Gets Out Alive is a British horror film set in America starring Cristina Rodlo and Marc Menchaca. It was released on the year 2021.
No One Gets Out Alive follows Ambar, an undocumented Mexican woman who moves to Cleveland after her mother’s death, hoping for a better life. Desperate and isolated, she rents a cheap room in a decaying boarding house run by two strange brothers. As she struggles with loneliness and exploitation, she begins to hear voices and see ghostly figures of other women within the house – hints that something far more sinister lurks behind its walls.
As the haunting intensifies, Ambar discovers that the house’s previous tenants were sacrificed to an ancient stone box hidden in the basement – an artifact that demands blood offerings in exchange for power and immortality. The brothers lure victims to feed the entity inside it, but when Ambar becomes the next intended sacrifice, she fights back. In the film’s brutal climax, she kills the brothers and faces the monstrous god herself – a skeletal, moth-like being that devours the living and spits out their husks. When the dust settles, Ambar survives – but she’s changed. The creature grants her its power, leaving her standing over her abusers’ corpses, finally free… yet visibly cursed by what she’s become.
3. 1922 (2017)
Written and directed by Zak Hilditch, 1922 is a horror movie based on a Stephen King story. It stars Thomas Jane, Neal McDonough and Molly Parker. It was released in the year 2017.
1922 follows Wilf James, a stubborn Nebraska farmer who refuses to sell his land when his wife, Arlette, inherits a nearby property and dreams of city life. Desperate to maintain control of his farm and legacy, Wilf manipulates his teenage son, Henry, into helping him murder her. They kill Arlette and dump her body into a well, believing they’ve secured their future – but the act poisons everything around them. The farm begins to decay, Henry flees in guilt, and Wilf becomes consumed by regret and paranoia.
As the years drag on, Wilf’s isolation deepens and the ghosts of his sins start to manifest – quite literally. He sees visions of Arlette’s corpse, crawling with rats that invade his home and his mind. His son’s tragic death only deepens the torment, leaving Wilf alone to rot in both spirit and flesh. By the film’s end, he confesses everything in a letter, his sanity gone and his body devoured by the same rats that haunted him since his crime.
2. The Empty Man (2020)
Directed and written by David Prior, The Empty Man is a supernatural horror movie based on the Cullen Bunn and Vanesa R. Del Rey graphic novel of the same name. It stars James Badge Dale and Marin Ireland and was released in the year 2020.
The Empty Man follows James Lasombra, a grieving ex-detective, as he investigates the disappearance of his neighbour’s daughter, Amanda. His search plunges him into the terrifying lore of “The Empty Man”, a supernatural entity summoned through an eerie ritual involving an empty bottle and a bridge.
The deeper James digs, the darker it gets, as he uncovers a sinister cult, the Pontifex Institute, dedicated to manifesting entities through collective thought. With reality unraveling around him, James faces shocking revelations that twist his very understanding of existence, leaving audiences questioning everything by the film’s haunting finale.
1. The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)
Directed by André Øvredal, The Autopsy of Jane Doe is a supernatural horror movie starring Emile Hirsch, Brian Cox and Olwen Catherine Kelly. It was released in the year 2016.
The Autopsy of Jane Doe follows father-and-son coroners Tommy and Austin Tilden, who are asked to perform a late-night autopsy on a mysterious young woman found at a brutal crime scene. Though her body shows no external injuries, the autopsy reveals deeply disturbing internal damage – shattered bones, burned lungs, missing tongue, and strange symbols carved into her organs. Inside her stomach, they discover a piece of cloth covered in occult markings linked to the Salem witch trials. The deeper they dig, the more they realize that Jane Doe isn’t an ordinary corpse – she’s a centuries-old victim of witchcraft, trapped in a state between life and death.
As they continue the autopsy, supernatural phenomena erupt throughout the morgue – doors slam, corpses move, and the lights flicker as Jane’s curse awakens. Realizing they’ve disturbed something that should’ve remained buried, Tommy sacrifices himself to appease her, hoping to end the nightmare. But by dawn, both men are dead, and Jane’s body looks untouched – flawless, serene, and ready to begin again. The film ends as she’s sent to another town for examination, her toe twitching ever so slightly – a chilling sign that the curse will continue wherever she goes.
What did you think of this list of movies like 1408?
Did you enjoy these horror movies? Did any of them remind you of the creepiness in 1408? Let us know in the comments.
