If you're a fan of psychological horror and unsettling family dramas like 'The Brood' (1979), you'll love this list of 10 similar movies and shows. From eerie atmospheres to disturbing themes, these picks will keep you on the edge of your seat. Whether you're revisiting Cronenberg's classic or exploring new horrors, this guide has something for every dark cinema enthusiast.

Rosemary's Baby (1968)
Description: A psychological horror masterpiece about pregnancy and paranoia, featuring subtle but terrifying transformations and a pervasive sense of dread.
Fact: The film's iconic apartment building is a real location in New York City, and fans still visit it today to see where the story took place.


Shivers (1975)
Description: A disturbing exploration of parasitic infection that transforms human behavior, creating a claustrophobic atmosphere of sexual horror and societal breakdown.
Fact: This was the first feature film from a then-unknown director, made on an extremely low budget with many first-time actors.


The Tenant (1976)
Description: A psychological horror about identity dissolution and paranoia, featuring disturbing transformations and a descent into madness within confined spaces.
Fact: The director himself plays the lead role, adding an extra layer of personal intensity to the film's themes of identity crisis.


Rabid (1977)
Description: A gruesome tale of medical experimentation gone wrong, featuring grotesque bodily transformations and a plague-like spread of violence.
Fact: The lead actress underwent extensive makeup applications to create her character's monstrous phallic stinger, which became one of the film's most memorable images.


Altered States (1980)
Description: A hallucinatory journey into the depths of human consciousness, featuring terrifying physical transformations and a blurring of reality and nightmare.
Fact: The film's psychedelic sequences were created using a combination of practical effects and early CGI techniques, some of the first of their kind in cinema.


Scanners (1981)
Description: A visceral portrayal of psychic powers gone awry, featuring shocking body horror and a focus on the grotesque consequences of unchecked mental abilities.
Fact: The infamous head explosion scene was created using a plaster head filled with dog food and fake blood, detonated with a shotgun blast.


Possession (1981)
Description: A harrowing psychological horror that blends domestic drama with grotesque body horror, featuring intense performances and disturbing imagery.
Fact: The film was banned in several countries upon release due to its extreme content and was heavily cut for its initial US release under the title 'The Night the Screaming Stopped'.


The Thing (1982)
Description: A chilling exploration of paranoia and body horror, where an alien entity assimilates and imitates its victims, creating an atmosphere of distrust and visceral terror.
Fact: The film's groundbreaking practical effects were created by Rob Bottin, who was only 22 years old at the time. It was initially a box office failure but later gained a cult following.


Videodrome (1983)
Description: A surreal and disturbing dive into the merging of technology and human flesh, exploring themes of psychological manipulation and grotesque transformation.
Fact: The film's iconic 'new flesh' effects were achieved using practical techniques, including inflatable body suits and stop-motion animation.


The Fly (1986)
Description: A tragic and grotesque tale of bodily transformation, where scientific experimentation leads to a horrifying and emotional disintegration of humanity.
Fact: The film's makeup effects took up to five hours to apply each day, and actor Jeff Goldblum had to wear contact lenses that made him nearly blind on set.
