7 Creepy Movies Like ‘Longlegs’ to Watch After

“Longlegs” is currently cementing itself as the horror movie to beat this summer, with an impressive opening weekend and so much word-of-mouth discussion trailing its release (just go on Twitter or Letterboxd).

The film, written and directed by Osgood Perkins, follows a young FBI agent (Maika Monroe) who is hunting a serial killer known only as Longlegs (Nicolas Cage), who responsible for several crimes in which entire families kill each other. If you’ve seen Perkins’ earlier work, there’s that same kind of witchy obfuscation to go along with the more nuts-and-bolts procedural stuff. It’s got a vibe to it, one that is utterly enchanting and horrifying in equal measure. And if you want to continue that vibe after you leave “Longlegs,” we’ve got some suggestions for you.

These seven movies like “Longlegs” will keep you in that same space for a little while longer. Mild spoilers follow.

“The Omen” (1971)

20th Century

Perkins recently cited Richard Donner’s horror classic “The Omen” as a direct influence on “Longlegs,” both for its examination of, as Perkins said, “the dark pockets of human desperation” and its use of “religion, but not seriously.” You can obviously see both of these elements in “Longlegs,” with its serious investigation of the human condition next to some really outré horror stuff, with Satanic flourishes. Consider this a good excuse to just rewatch “The Omen,” one of the greatest horror movies of all time and one of the most entertaining movies of the 1970s. (If you want a bonus recommendation, check out “The First Omen” from earlier this year. It’s streaming now on Hulu.)

“Phantasm” (1979)

AVCO Embassy

We are including “Phantasm” on the list because, like “Longlegs,” it features a malevolent silver ball, probably the most famous malevolent silver ball until “Longlegs” rolled around. (Get it? Rolled around?) Beyond that, the two films do share a dreamlike atmosphere and an anything goes approach to the basic narrative. And if you love “Phantasm,” we heartily recommend its sequel, released almost a decade after the independently produced original, this time by Universal. One of the great horror sequels ever. And the silver ball is joined by a golden ball that can break through doors. So good.

“The Silence of the Lambs” (1991)

Orion Pictures

“The Silence of the Lambs,” Jonathan Demme’s Oscar-sweeping masterpiece, is clearly the urtext for “Longlegs.” “Every once in a while, there’s a perfect movie. And here’s two of them and they happen to be in the serial killer genre,” Perkins told TheWrap about the influence of “The Silence of the Lambs” and “Seven” (see below). Both movies share a similar structure, as they watch a talented young female FBI agent (in Demme’s film it’s Jodie Foster) go up against a fearsome serial killer with a cool nickname (Ted Levine’s Buffalo Bill). It also informed the whole 1990s-era aesthetic of “Longlegs.”

“Copycat” (1995)

Warner Bros.

We’re throwing this one in here because it opened in between “The Silence of the Lambs” and “Seven” and because it’s something of an unsung gem. Directed by Jon Amiel, “Copycat” follows a cop (Holly Hunter), who is forced to work with an agoraphobic psychologist (Sigourney Weaver), in order to stop a serial killer who is modeling his crimes on other, more famous killers. It’s got the playfulness of “Longlegs,” along with a shared commitment to scaring the hell out of its viewers. If you’ve never seen “Copycat,” it’s a doozy.

“Seven” (1997)

New Line Cinema

“Seven” is another one of the key touchstones for “Longlegs” – chiefly in that the two movies share a 1990s setting and an interest in biblical iconography. (In “Seven,” a serial killer models his crimes after the seven deadly sins.) Perkins also shared with TheWrap that he was inspired by the handling of the movie’s villain and the way that “Seven” reveals Kevin Spacey as the murderer late in the game and matter-of-factly, something that he carried forward with Cage in “Longlegs.” Cage’s big reveal feels both titanic and pedestrian in a way that really catches you off guard, just like “Seven.”

“Suspect Zero” (2004)

Paramount

Another underrated sleeper, “Suspect Zero,” which, like “Longlegs,” was the work of an indie filmmaker (in this case “Shadow of the Vampire” director E. Elias Merhige) going more mainstream. But the real reason we are sharing it as a post-“Longlegs” watch is because “Suspect Zero” shares an interest in psychic phenomena (more specifically remote viewing) and share a similarly ethereal atmosphere. Both “Longlegs” and “Suspect Zero” know the tug-of-war between investigation and flights of fancy and they both manage those elements well. They are also both a ton of occasionally outrageous fun.

“Zodiac” (2007)

Paramount

It doesn’t take a cryptographer to crack the code on why we’re putting “Zodiac” on this list. Not only is it about a famously elusive serial killer, in this case the real-life Zodiac killer who menaced the bay area for decades, but because both movies feature a nearly impossible-to-decipher puzzle used by the killer. (The “Longlegs” code has been an integral part of the marketing of the movie; chances are you’ve probably seen it without even knowing it.) The two movies share an overwhelming, intangible sense of dread. They’re both movies you can’t shake.