Scariest Exorcism Movies

Key Takeaways

• Exorcism movies still evoke terror despite changing trends in horror.
• Unique twists on exorcism tales, like “The Rite,” provide refreshing scares.
• Films like “The Conjuring” masterfully blend scares with compelling storytelling.

Although it isn’t perhaps quite as popular within the horror genre as it once was, and though it may have changed a great deal over the years, the idea of an exorcism is still as terrifying as ever. The sub-genre of demonic horror continues to bring great frights and thrills as movie makers continue to find ways to craft unique versions of possession stories.

Although some of the earliest exorcism-related movies aren’t as scary as they used to be, there are still plenty of great and terrifying films from decades past and from more recent years. While exorcisms aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, they can be a great storytelling device and have made for some of the most fear-inducing scenes and moments in movie history.

8 The Rite

When Someone Actually Looks For Exorcisms

• Released: 28th January, 2011
• Starring: Colin O’Donoghue, Anthony Hopkins & Ciaran Hinds
• Directed By: Ole Bornedal
• Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 22%
• Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 40%

Although it isn’t well-regarded by critics, The Rite was a terrifying film which took a different spin at the exorcism genre. Instead of featuring somebody being haunted and later possessed by a demonic entity, The Rite focused on an American travelling to Italy to learn more about exorcisms, while believing them to be fake.

What he finds, and what the audience sees, is absolutely petrifying. The Rite was a great example of a twist on the traditional exorcist movie formula, and with Anthony Hopkins playing a veteran exorcist in another great horror film performance by him, there is a great rewatchable quality to The Rite that has kept it relevant in the genre years later.

7 The Possession

A Box Of Terrors Unleashed Leaving You Gripping Your Seat

• Released: 30th August, 2012
• Starring: Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Kyra Sedgwick & Madison Davenport
• Directed By: Ole Bornedal
• Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 39%
• Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 48%

It isn’t often that a horror film is based on a news article, but an infamous post in the LA Times in 2004 about a Dybbuk was the inspiration for The Possession. When a young girl finds and purchases a mysterious box from a garage sale, it begins to have odd effects and her father realizes that something terrifying has been unleashed from within.

While the exorcising of a Dybbuk back into its box isn’t considered the same as an exorcism, the similarities are such, as well as the hallmarks of the possession itself, that The Possession can be considered an exorcism film. Not only that, scenes like the opening of the box remain so terrifying that The Possession can’t be forgotten as a truly petrifying demonic feature that feels at times like a demonic horror game.

6 Deliver Us From Evil

New York Cops Facing Off Against Demonic Mysteries

• Released: July 2nd, 2014
• Starring: Eric Bana, Edgar Ramirez & Olivia Munn
• Directed By: Scott Derrickson
• Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 30%
• Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 42%

Although it wasn’t well reviewed, Deliver Us From Evil remains one of the more terrifying exorcism and demon horror movies released in the last decade. Eric Bana is a police officer investigating a spat of strange occurrences around New York which all appear linked to demonic occurrences.

Instead of children or a family moving into a new home, Deliver Us From Evil has demons take aim at the entire world and cops finding themselves just as terrified as anyone would be in the face of such things. With constant jump scares and real threats, Deliver Us From Evil has a tense atmosphere and all the other hallmarks of a truly terrifying experience. The thrilling final exorcism sequence put the cap on a film that spanned the length and breadth of a city and a mystery well worth unraveling for viewers.

5 The Exorcism Of Emily Rose

Exorcisms Brought To Court Are Still Filled With Fear

• Released: September 9th, 2005
• Starring: Laura Linney, Tom Wilkinson & Campbell Scott
• Directed By: Scott Derrickson
• Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 45%
• Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 60%

Trying to put exorcisms and demonic attacks in a full world can be a challenge because it makes them feel less realistic, which is one of the reasons these events in films are often confined to a single building. However, The Exorcism Of Emily Rose boldly manages to terrify audiences while challenging everything about these frightful events in a court battle.

After a reverend performs a church-sanctioned exorcism on a woman, but she still dies, he is brought to court for negligent homicide. The court case is a framing story, while much of the runtime is the story of the exorcism being told through flashbacks which are petrifying and made all the scarier by the flashes of a much calmer story being told throughout the case. The Exorcism Of Emily Rose is an original concept and a terrifying film worth exploring.

4 The Wailing

A Remote Korean Village And Utter Terror

• Released: May 12th, 2016
• Starring: Kwak Do-Won, Hwang Jun-Min & Chun Woo-Hee
• Directed By: Na Hong-Jin
• Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 99%
• Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 81%

Although there are many different great foreign films about exorcisms and demons, The Wailing may be the very best of them all. A police officer arrives in a remote village in South Korea where an outbreak has taken hold of the villagers, leaving them all possessed. Not only is this a far cry from the most common exorcism movie plots, but it might be a completely unique idea, bringing plot ideas from vampire or zombie films into a demonic realm.

A mystery involving the man, or entity, which began the plague and a race against time as the policeman’s own daughter begins to succumb to the possession makes The Wailing an absolute masterpiece of the exorcism genre, and a terrifying, oppressive sort of feel permeates the entire runtime as many jumpy moments are backed up by an impending sense of doom for the entire village.

3 The Exorcist

The Original Masterpiece Is Still A Worthy Scarer Today

• Released: December 26th, 1973
• Starring: Ellen Burstyn, Max Von Sydow & Linda Blair
• Directed By: William Friedkin
• Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 78%
• Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 87%

It might not have been the first demonic horror movie, but it is often credited as the first film to feature an exorcism of a demon. The Exorcist has been recreated by many, given several sequels, but never matched the terror it inspired in audiences at the time, watching a young girl slowly being overtaken by a demonic entity.

Regan, a young girl, exhibits increasingly worrying behavior to the dismay of her actress mother, while a priest having a crisis of faith begins to realize he may need to step in and help alongside a professional exorcist. The Exorcist doesn’t retain every scary quality it had when it was released over fifty years ago, but it is still filled with fright, and an unnerving soundtrack, and it remains one of the best horror films of all time.

2 The Last Exorcism

• Released: August 27th, 2010
• Starring: Patrick Fabian, Ashley Bell & Iris Bahr
• Directed By: Daniel Stamm
• Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 71%
• Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 35%

A reverend who has been conducting exorcisms for years attempts to prove that these operations are actually fake by having a documentary crew film him while he conducts what he has dubbed his last-ever exorcism. Found-footage horror has come and gone as a fad a few times over the years, but rarely does it deal with something such as an exorcism.

The Last Exorcism is a terrifying depiction of possession that features many spine-tingling jump scares and leaves viewers clenching their chairs by the final act. Unexpected at every turn and filled with all sorts of horrors, The Last Exorcism is an especially frightening ride that audiences will find themselves wanting to revisit, but uncertain if they can handle it all over again.

1 The Conjuring

The Ultimate Story Of Demonic Terror

• Released: July 19th, 2013
• Starring: Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga & Lili Taylor
• Directed By: James Wan
• Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score: 86%
• Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score: 83%

The story of the Warrens, real-life demonic investigators who worked for decades around the world, is a compelling one. The genius of having calmer moments, moments of charm, and normal family life which made fans feel connected both to the Warrens and the large Perron family, helped make The Conjuring arguably one of the best horror movies of all time.

Not only is the story incredible and the case compelling, but the cast across the board was genius, and mentions of other Warren cases, like the Annabelle doll, led immediately to a huge franchise of films from this one. The Conjuring sets rules for demons and sticks to them, it comes up with petrifying scenes like the clapping game and various nighttime jump scares, and it leaves a mark on viewers which helps it retain the sort of rewatchability most horror films can’t quite manage. The Conjuring’s exorcism scenes make a grand finale which leaves it atop the list of scariest, and maybe even the best, exorcism films ever.