The weather is sweltering, and school is out for the summer. It’s our favorite time of year to binge-watch horror films about summer camp slashers, haunted theme parks, and a deadly hit-and-run that happened last summer.
As the season begins to settle into fall and the back-to-school season approaches, there is a sense of dread and gut-churning nerves about heading into a new school year. Sometimes, the most excruciating horror happens inside a school—teen angst, cold classrooms, and old rumors simmer hotter than a popsicle on asphalt.
For your viewing pleasure, The Lineup presents a list of horror movies and shows set in terrifying schools.
A bonus scare: some of these films are inspired by true events.
The Woods (2006)
A troubled teenager is sent to Falburn Academy, an all-girls private school located in the woods. Heather is played by Agnes Bruckner, who suspects the school’s staff work for headmistress Ms. Traverse due to their strange behavior.
It is rumored that three former students were redheaded sisters, were witches who killed the headmistress and disappeared into the woods. Suspicion arises when some of the current students are found dead, and the headmistress lies by saying the girls ran away to cover up their deaths.
Heather’s nights at Falburn are traumatized by nightmares, evil woods, and witchcraft. She thinks she will be next.
Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998)
There are sagas that continue the story and keep growing with new generations of fans. One of the slasher franchises that keeps on giving blood and new chapters is Halloween.
It follows Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis), who is living under a different name and works as the headmistress at a California boarding school.
In the 1998 installment, Halloween H20: 20 Years Later, faculty and staff are preparing to go on a fall trip to Yosemite.
Laurie forbids her son John (Josh Hartnett) from going to avoid being tracked down by Michael Myers. He and other students who were convinced not to go on the trip decided to have a Halloween party on the closed campus.
Having John in town for Halloween near his mother, Laurie, turns out to be a bad idea. She regrets letting him attend the school’s field trip, because Michael will be able to sense him like a shark smells blood.
Slashing and suspense ensue in this film, proving that Michael Myers and Halloween would be a long-awaited continuation of the cinema, even 30 years after its 1998 release.
It stars actors Michelle Williams and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and it was LL Cool J’s film debut.
Suspiria (2018)
Classic horror enthusiasts might be familiar with this Italian film of the same name—the original that came out in the 1970s. The 2018 remake is a creepy and suspenseful rendition to add to your watch list.
An American dancer auditions at a prestigious dance school in Berlin and eventually takes the title of the head dancer.
The previous title holder has a psychotic meltdown and accuses the school’s director of witchcraft. She mysteriously disappears, bolstering the speculation that she could be right.
The students discover catacombs beneath the property, and some lose control of their own bodies through trance, self-inflicting wounds, and even death.
It stars Tilda Swinton, Dakota Johnson, and horror queen Mia Goth.
Jennifer’s Body (2009)
A list about horror movies set in schools would not be complete without this horror comedy that has become a cult classic: Jennifer's Body.
Megan Fox stars as the titular character who becomes possessed by a demon after a sacrifice gone wrong. She uses her looks to her advantage and lures the school’s male population, including the nerds and goths, by feasting on them to survive.
Carrie (1976)
There were two films in the 1970s that our parents raved about, Grease and Carrie.
Both films magnified high school life: one was cheery and upbeat with pastel colors, romance, and songs, while the other was about bullying and a strict mother, telekinetic powers, and revenge.
The Stephen King adaptation of Carrie submerges viewers into the life of the lonely titular character played by Sissy Spacek.
She lacks love and care from her mother, does not fit in with her classmates, and her mental powers only add to her troubles. At least until she uses them against those who have mistreated her, ignored her, or simply rejected her.
Sometimes rejection from your classmates and unsupportive parental figures are the worst horrors of all for teenagers. These can drive them to insanity, low self-esteem, or in Carrie’s world, give her a reason to use her telekinetic powers.
Cry Wolf (2005)
There’s nothing more fun than making up stories to taunt or scare your friends. There’s nothing worse than those ideas sprouting into reality.
That’s what happens to a group of high school students at a remote boarding school. The idea of the game Cry Wolf is to spread rumors about a serial killer named “the Wolf.”
Think of it as a version of “Kiss, Marry, Kill”—but deadly. Literally.
Some students turn up dead, and emails sent by the Wolf connect them all—and nothing but a bloody trail.
When the group of friends tells the truth to save themselves from police tracking and murder accusations, no one listens to them.
The movie received negative reviews during its release, but it has solidified as a cult classic decades later.
Nonetheless, it’s worth a watch if you want to reminisce about the creepy stories and rumors you created in school. What if some of them became true?
NOTE: All films mentioned are available to stream on Amazon Prime Video, and are available to rent on Apple TV and YouTube.
Featured still from “Jennifer's Body” via 20th Century Fox
