Excited for Backrooms? Check out these other Creepypasta-like horror movies
- Brian Fanelli
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
A24's Backrooms is one of the buzziest horror movies releasing this year, and its creeps into theaters this Friday. Directed by Kane Parsons and written by Will Soodik, the movie is based on Parsons' web series and inspired by the Backrooms Creepypasta. The film stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, Mark Duplass, Finn Bennett, and Lukita Maxwell. The movie focuses on Dr. Mary Kline (Reinsve), who enters another dimension in search of her missing client Clark (Ejiofor), a furniture store owner and failed architect.
Prior to Backrooms theatrical release this weekend, there are a few other Creepypasta-like horror movies and TV shows to check out that aren't the 2018 Slender Man movie that was largely panned by Creepypasta fans and movie critics alike.
Here's our list.
We're All Going to the World's Fair (2021)
Writer/director Jane Schoenbrun's feature debut is a psychological coming-of-age horror movie that follows a lonely young woman named Casey (Anna Cobb). She takes the "World's Fair Challenge," and then documents the negative and physical effects that it has upon her. As part of the challenge, Casey states, "I want to go to the "World's Fair" three times, pricks her finger, smears her blood on her laptop screen, and then watches a strobe light video. Schoenbrun has said she was inspired to make the film based upon her experiences on internet forums in the early 2000s. The movie does a great job depicting the isolation that living life constantly behind a screen can cause.
We're All Going to the World's Fair is available to rent on most major streaming platforms.
The Empty Man (2020)
Written, directed, and co-edited by David Prior, in his feature debut, and based on Cullen Bunn and Vanesa R. Del Rey's graphic novel, The Empty Man released during the height of COVID, and unfortunately, never had the proper theatrical release it deserved. However, it did find an audience once it arrived on streaming. The movie stars James Badge Dale as James Lasombra and Marin Ireland as Nora Quail. Dale's character is a former detective who grieves the deaths of his wife and son, who died in a car crash a year prior. He's friends with his neighbor, Nora, a widowed single mom whose daughter runs away and leaves a message in a bathroom stall that reads, "The Empty Man made me do it." James involves himself in the investigation and is haunted by the urban legend of the Empty Man. This is a movie that easily could have been a Creepypasta story, and it has some truly arresting and haunting visuals.
The Empty Man is available on Hulu and Disney+, or it can be rented on major digital platforms.
Channel Zero (2016-2018)
Channel Zero is an anthology series that deserved more seasons than it had. It's a great binge watch, and several episodes were based on Creepypastas. Some of the highlights include Season 1's "Candle Cove," based on the story by Kris Straub, which follows a child psychologist who returns to his hometown to investigate the resurgence of a sinister 80s puppet show. Season 2's "No End House" is another great Creepypasta adaptation. Based on the story by Brian Russell, it follows four friends who visit a shifting haunted house attraction and then realize the horrors follow them home. If you haven't watched this series yet, add it to your summer must-see list.
Channel Zero is streaming on Shudder and AMC+.
Candyman (1992)
Written and directed by Bernard Rose and based on a Clive Barker short story, Candyman is a classic that predates Creepypasta's popularity within the horror genre. However, the movie takes a spot on this list because it deals with an academic named Helen (Virgina Madsen) who investigates the Candyman urban legend in Chicago's urban Cabrini-Green neighborhood. It also has an iconic performance by the late, great Tony Todd as the villain who has quite the romantic streak and wants to claim Helen as his own for all eternity. The movie also has a lot to say about gentrification and the very nature of urban legends.
Candyman is available to rent on major digital platforms.
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