Although knowing that the horror film we are watching is based on real-life events does give us a special sense of excitement, it goes without saying that a lot of dramatization and fiction are added to make it visually exciting. These two thrills are completely distinct from one another. And the way the filmmakers successfully combine these two thrills without making it seem unreal is what distinguishes a true story-inspired horror movie. We’ve compiled a list of these horror films from Netflix that are based on actual events.

1. The Ritual (2017)

This British horror film, which was directed by David Bruckner, centers on four college friends who go hiking in a Swedish forest in remembrance of a friend who was murdered in a robbery. In the process, they encounter a malevolent tribe that wants to offer them as sacrifices to Moder, a jötunn—a bad supernatural being in German mythology—in exchange for immortality. Sam Troughton, Robert James-Collier, Arsher Ali, and Rafe Spall are among the cast members. Adam Nevill’s 2011 book of the same name served as the inspiration for the movie.

This spooky movie is based on a real story from 1978 that is even more terrifying and unsettling. The story, known as the Yuba County Five case, centers on five men from Yuba County, California, four of whom had intellectual disabilities and the fifth, who had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia following his army service. On the evening of February 24, 1978, all of them, who were between the ages of 24 and 32, attended a college basketball tournament at California State University, Chico.The following day, they participated in their own Paralympic basketball qualifier as members of the Gateway Gators, a community-supported disabled basketball team. Sadly, none of the five men ever came back from Chico. Search and rescue operations turned up four of their bodies that had turned to bones a few months after their abandoned but fully functional car was discovered in California’s Plumas National Forest.

About 20 miles from their vehicle, they were discovered close to a trailer camp. Unless someone or something killed them, it appeared as though the guys purposefully starved to death because all of the food and heating supplies in the trailer had been left undisturbed. The man with the paranoid schizophrenia was never found. On the night of February 24, a witness even claimed to have seen the abandoned car, the people inside, and a woman carrying a baby. The reason the five men went into the woods and how they perished remain unanswered to this day. “The Ritual” is available for viewing.

2. The Good Nurse (2022)

Charles Graeber’s 2013 true-crime novel of the same name served as the inspiration for the movie. Charles Cullen and Amy Loughren actually shared an intensive care unit at Somerset Medical Center in Somerville, New Jersey. Cullen murdered many patients at various New Jersey medical facilities between 1988 and 2003. The New Jersey State Police were only notified after it became apparent that something was amiss, as patients continued to pass away from unlikely causes.

Already suspicious of Cullen, the police placed a wire on Loughren and asked her to speak with him to find out what he knew. Cullen eventually told Loughren about his actions. When he was taken into custody on December 12, 2003, he admitted to killing 40 people, though some experts believe that number may have reached 400. Cullen received eighteen life sentences. “The Good Nurse” is available to watch here.

3. Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019)

‘Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile,’ directed by Joe Berlinger, tells the story of Ted Bundy (Zac Efron), one of the most dangerous serial killers in the world, from the perspective of his ex-girlfriend Elizabeth Kendall (Lily Collins). In 1969, she began seeing Bundy, and in 1974, news of her kidnapping and murders started to circulate. Ted denied his role in the crimes to Elizabeth until she showed him a picture of one of his victims, whom he had decapitated, despite numerous convictions, escapes, murders, and arrests.

The movie is based on Elizabeth’s autobiography, “The Phantom Prince: My Life with Ted Bundy.” It depicts Elizabeth’s struggle to deal with the reality that the man assisting her in raising her daughter had been abducting, torturing, and killing numerous people who were similar to her. Watch “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile” if you’d like to learn more about Ted Bundy from a different perspective.

4. Things Heard & Seen (2021)

“Things Heard & Seen,” which stars Amanda Seyfried and James Norton, is based on Elizabeth Brundage’s novel “All Things Cease to Appear.” It was directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini. It centers on Catherine (Seyfried), her husband George (Norton), and their daughter Franny as they settle into their new farmhouse in upstate New York. She finds a Bible with the names of the house’s previous owners, some of whom have had their names scratched out and marked as “damned,” but the house seems to be hiding a sinister secret that unnerves her. As the sense of a bad presence intensifies, her marriage also gradually starts to fail. Though not, Catherine dies. Confused?

Brundage drew inspiration for her book from her personal experiences living in an old house in upstate New York. She received stories from her two daughters, ages three and six, about ghosts in their home, including the ghosts of three girls who perished in a fire. They were too young to make up stories and had no way of knowing. She once witnessed her youngest daughter laughing at something that was bouncing around the room one evening.

The 1982 murder of Cathleen Krauseneck, a 29-year-old mother whose lifeless body was discovered on February 19 in her Brighton, Rochester, New York, home with her 3-year-old daughter Sara left alone in a separate room, served as her inspiration. An axe was stuck in Cathleen’s head. On November 1, 2019, more than 37 years after killing his wife, Jim Krauseneck, her husband, was charged with her murder.

5. Veronica (2017)

This Spanish horror film, which was directed by Paco Plaza, centers on 15-year-old Veronica (Sandra Escacena), whose desire to conduct a séance with a Ouija board in order to communicate with the spirit of her deceased father takes a dark turn. She ultimately calls forth a demonic force that takes possession of her, endangering the lives of her three very young siblings. A police officer saw her in a supernatural state and wrote about it in a police report from 1996.

The 1991 Vallecas case, which is regarded as one of Spain’s most notorious cases of paranormal activity, served as a loose basis for the movie. According to the story, Estefania Gutierrez Lazaro (1973–1991), a resident of Vallecas, Madrid, engaged in a Ouija board ritual while attending school. Those in attendance saw smoke entering Estefania through her nose after a teacher broke the board. After six months of hallucinations, seizures, visions, and other paranormal experiences, she was discovered dead in her bedroom on July 14, 1991.It is also said that Estefania was possessed by the evil spirit of her grandfather, who vowed to make life impossible for the whole family, even from his grave. In addition to all of this, three police officers’ reports clearly state that they experienced paranormal activity while conducting their investigation, including strange noises, doors that swung open, and stains that appeared in various locations throughout the house. Even after Estefania passed away, her family continued to see paranormal activity, but it stopped when they relocated.

6. Incantation (2022)

This Taiwanese supernatural folk horror film, which was directed by Kevin Ko, centers on Li Ronan, a cursed woman who discovers that her six-year-old daughter Dodo has also been affected by the curse. Six years prior, Ronan had violated a religious taboo in a Yunnan village that worshipped Mother Buddha. Ronan asks the audience to recite an incantation after realizing that she must lift the curse due to Dodo’s deteriorating health. Will it suffice?

“Incantation” is based on a true story that happened in 2005 in Kaohsiung, Taiwan (Republic of China). In it, six Wu family members—the “Third Prince,” “Jade Emperor,” “Queen Mother,” and “Seven Fairies”—were thought to have been possessed by evil forces. To get rid of the evil spirits, they forced each other to eat their urine and feces while refusing to eat for days. They drank talisman water as well. The oldest daughter starved to death for a month as a result of this. Their neighbors and relatives downstairs were too afraid to assist them.

7. Run Rabbit Run (2023)

This Australian movie, which was directed by Daina Reid, centers on Sarah (Sarah Snook) and her seven-year-old daughter Mia (Lily LaTorre), who says she is her mother’s sister Alice, who vanished when she was seven years old. As Sarah starts to experience hallucinations and nightmares, she even adopts Alice’s behavioral patterns, nearly confusing her with Mia for Alice. Though the audience is left wondering what the truth is, the film ends on a painful note. Has someone possessed Mia? Or is Sarah? Or can Mia communicate with the dead? Or is it a case of misidentification? We have to think about it.

The screenplay was based on stories of children discussing items that could be interpreted as evidence of possession or reincarnation, according to author Hannah Kent. She spoke to Australia’s In Review about a documentary in which a young child gave a detailed account of his previous life, including his home. Everything he said turned out to be accurate. Using this, Kent created a story from the perspective of a parent coping with a child who misses someone else rather than her, to gain a better understanding.

8. American Murder: The Family Next Door (2020)

The documentary “American Murder: The Family Next Door,” which was directed by Jenny Popplewell, sheds light on the Watts family murders that took place in Frederick, Colorado, on August 13, 2018. For those who don’t know, Christopher Lee Watts killed his pregnant wife Shannan and their young children Celeste and Bella, before disposing of their bodies. The movie gives the audience the truth about how things were in the family and what might have caused Christopher to commit the horrifying crime by using a variety of techniques, including call recordings, archival photos and video, and the found-footage technique.

9. Sumala (2024)

“Sumala,” an Indonesian drama directed by Rizal Mantovani, is based on actual events that discuss the legend/folklore of the titular entity/girl. The movie, which is set in Semarang in the 1940s, centers on a wealthy married couple named Sulastri (Luna Maya) and Soedjiman (Darius Sinathrya), whose need for an heir ultimately prompts Sulastri to consult a shaman. In addition to the woman’s promise of two daughters, there is a contract with the Devil that, if broken, will cause anarchy. As anticipated, Sulastri breaks her promise, which results in the appearance of a force that begins wreaking bloody mayhem throughout the neighborhood. “Sumala,” a graphic, gory, and undoubtedly unsettling film, is based on an urban legend that is still prevalent in Indonesia’s Semarang Regency.

10. The Deliverance (2024)

After the family moves into their new Pittsburgh home, Ebony (Andra Day) and her three children are the targets of a malevolent force in Lee Daniels’ “The Deliverance.” The children are exposed to the demon’s antics because of her emotional distance from them, which is a result of her abuse and alcoholism. The only way she can save her children is to confront her own sins and demons. Will it be sufficient? Or is it too late?

The movie is based on the real story of Latoya Ammons, who moved into a home in Gary, Indiana, in 2011 with her mother and kids. Following experiences with the paranormal that bordered on harm, the police, child services, and Catholic Church began an investigation.

11. Unspeakable Acts (1990)

Linda Otto is the director of this biographical drama. It is based on Jan Hollingsworth’s 1986 book of the same name, in which she describes the horrific actual case of child abuse that occurred at a Miami daycare in 1984. Following child psychologists Laurie (Jill Clayburgh) and Joseph Braga (Brad Davis) [real names have been used], the movie tries to understand what the victims, who are too young to speak much, are saying about being abused by Frank (Gregory Sierra) and Ileana Fuster (Bess Meyer) [real names] at the couple’s Country Walk daycare in Miami, Florida. Yes, sexual abuse is included. To see if the criminals were prosecuted, you can view the movie here.