10 Children's Films That Are Extremely Scary

 Kids' movies are meant to be humorous, enjoyable, imaginative, and daring. Some, though, are simply so unsettling and frightful that you wonder, "Wait a minute, they made these for children?" Dark imagery, unsettling plotlines, or inappropriate character behaviour can all contribute to the horror factor. Seriously, the fact that these movies were marketed as family entertainment increased their scariness ten-fold.

So let's find out if these films frightened you as an adult the way they frightened many children. Have you seen any of these films before?

1. Coraline

Source: Focus Features / Courtesy of Everett Collection

Many kids and adults find Coraline to be disturbing. The Other Mother is disturbing as hell, no matter your age. If the thought of having buttons sewn into your eyes doesn't give you the chills, the thought of having your soul trapped and slowly being eaten away by the days will. Coraline is a frightening movie, despite its gorgeous visuals and seemingly wholesome cast of characters.

2. Mrs. Doubtfire

Source: 20th Century Fox / Courtesy of Everett Collection

A movie with wholesome humour like Mrs. Doubtfire has a particular place in many people's hearts. But when we consider it from a different angle, the basic idea is rather horrifying. Daniel truly goes to the limit and adopts a false identity while donning a full-body disguise, which is quite creepy in real life. He does all of this to coerce his ex-wife into giving him custody of their children for a longer period of time, which is not how a rational person would act.

3. Matilda

Source: Sony Pictures Releasing / Courtesy of Everett Collection

In Matilda, there were a lot of scary things. Don't forget "The Chokey," terrible parents, and an abusive principal. It's really simply a low-cost variation of the Iron Maiden torture machine!

Matilda suffered abuse from her family before being sent to Miss Trunchbull, a cruel, repressive, and authoritarian principal. She later learned how to use her psychokinetic powers to deal with Miss Trunchbull and her disreputable family. It resembles the plot of Carrie quite a bit.

4. Pinocchio

Source: Disney / Courtesy of Everett Collection

One of the earliest Disney animated classics was Pinocchio. However, you want to think twice before showing this cartoon movie to your children. The tale of a puppet who sets out on a mission to earn the right to transform into a real boy swiftly turns into a terrible endurance test that involves slavery, bestial transformation, and kidnapping. There is a lot of offensive imagery in it, especially for young children.

5. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

Source: Paramount Pictures / Courtesy of Everett Collection

In Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, the tunnel sequence is genuine nightmare material. Visuals of a chicken being beheaded and close-ups of scorpions and other insects crawling over people's faces are among the unsightly images that flash across the screen. It is made even more scary by the eerie theories that surround the films.

6. Crybaby Lane

Source: Nickelodeon / Courtesy of Everett Collection

Because Crybaby Lane is so terrifying, Nickelodeon only allowed it to show once before erasing it from existence. There was a tonne of Internet lore surrounding it, and it was even regarded as a lost film. A set of conjoined twins, one nice and one wicked, were the subject of the film. Their father saws them in half, and some teens unintentionally bring the evil one back to life.

Even adults find that unsettling, and they exhibit that for children. It is understandable why many parents were horrified at the time.

7. Watership Down

Source: Cinema International Corporation / Courtesy of Everett Collection

Speaking of traumatic children's movies, Watership Down is undoubtedly the most bloody animated children's movie ever made. It includes blood, gore, mass murder, concentration camp symbolism, and nightmare flashbacks—everything you would expect from a dystopian movie. Even the toughest adults will be scared by this incredibly dark and twisted film, let alone young children.

8. Don’t Look Under The Bed

Source: Disney Channel / Courtesy of Everett Collection

9. Return to Oz

Source: Walt Disney Pictures / Courtesy of Everett Collection

Children should not watch Return to Oz. After telling her parents about what happened in Oz, Dorothy was admitted to a mental hospital where she underwent electroshock therapy and worked with a spooky nurse. Just One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest's plot, but with kids. Even if Oz is real, we don't know for sure by the film's conclusion. Simply said, it's too much for a kid.

10. Monster House

Source: Sony Pictures Releasing / Courtesy of Everett Collection

The film Monster House isn't that spooky. It has a pretty tragic backstory, goofy protagonists, and cartoonish computer animation. For young children, the human-eating scenes and the ways the house alters to terrify its victims can be frightening. Additionally, the story is essentially a toned-down adaptation of a horror film with a haunted house.