The goal of any movie franchise is to take audiences and fans out of their own reality and into a new one. Creating a world where characters and storylines come to life in ways that we only see in our dreams is the pinnacle of movie-making. In terms of the film franchises that have amassed an insane amount of support through world-building, plot, and unique characters, there is something truly magical about The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
We all know Harry Potter as the story of Harry, the Chosen One who finds out he is a wizard and spends the next eight movies battling his nemesis Voldemort. Well, this franchise spanned 10 years when fans of the books and the films got to see these characters at their highs and at their lows. As much as these movies bring about feelings of comfort and nostalgia, there is a certain darkness throughout these films that make for some truly horrifying scenes. Here are 12 moments in the Harry Potter movies that remind us of actual horror movies.
12 Voldemort Unicorn Feeding — The Sorcerer's Stone
During the first few movies in the Harry Potter franchise, most of the scenes remained lighthearted and fun. Harry is just becoming a wizard, and things are playful while the threat of Voldemort remained kind of contained. Well, the franchise never shied away from a good scare. In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Harry comes across a hooded figure feeding on the blood of a unicorn in the Forbidden Forrest. This scene is ominous, dark, and gory. Unicorns in this world are seen as the purest of animals and the ability to kill one of them makes this scene terrifying.
11 Moaning Myrtle — The Chamber of Secrets
What is horror without a few ghosts? The ghost known as Moaning Myrtle makes her grand debut in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, the second film in the series. When Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint), and Hermione (Emma Watson) sneak into the first-floor girls' bathroom, they run into Moaning Myrtle. Apparitions are a classic horror element and even though Myrtle has a kind of eerie comedic relief vibe to her presence, the visual of her in that bathroom is still creepy.
10 Blood on the Walls — The Chamber of Secrets
Also in Chamber of Secrets, the fear of the unknown might be scarier than facing an enemy head on. When the unstoppable trio comes across some bloody writing on the wall, they are introduced to an invisible threat. "The chamber of secrets has been opened. Enemies of the heir...beware," had chills running down our spines and as the reality of the threat settles in, the characters and the audience dread what is to come.
9 Sirius' Reveal — The Prisoner of Azkaban
Harry Potter managed to cover many subgenres of horror. From ghosts and creatures to even serial killers, the franchise knows how to incorporate elements of horror. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is the third movie. In this film, Harry is told by everyone that Sirius Black, the first escapee of Azkaban, is out to kill him. Even though we know that Sirius is no threat to them, when he is revealed to Harry, Ron, and Hermione, it feels like the climax of a horror movie where you are finally face-to-face with the film's main villain, even though he is beloved in the franchise as a whole.
8 Harry and Dudley vs Dementors — The Order of the Phoenix
Any scene that features the Dementors can be on this list. However, the isolated and remote feel of the opening scene of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is going to have to take the cake for us. Harry and Dudley run into some Dementors in their hometown, and in the gruesome attack, Harry is forced to conjure his Patronus in an old tunnel to save his life and Dudley's. At this point in the film series, Harry Potter is fully embracing its dark side in this incredible tonal shift. If you want some true horror elements, this scene does not disappoint.
7 Forbidden Forrest Spiders — The Chamber of Secrets
If you have arachnophobia, beware. Chamber of Secrets has many horror elements tied into it as crucial plot devices. When Hermione gets petrified, Ron and Harry are forced to solve the mystery of The Chamber of Secrets on their own. Hagrid leads them to his old "friend" Aragog. However, upon entering the Aragog's home in the Forbidden Forrest, they come face to face with a gigantic spider and its hungry children.
6 Harry vs Basilisk — The Chamber of Secrets
Big spiders and now big snakes? The Chamber of Secrets was a mystery to Harry, and what creature lived inside of it was an even bigger one. However, in order to save Ginny from meeting an untimely end, Ron and Harry enter the chamber. Harry has to slay the basilisk controlled by the memory of Tom Riddle, AKA Lord Voldemort. Whether it was Harry running from the snake through the tunnels of the chamber or the final blow with the Sword of Gryffindor, the entire sequence at the end of the film is horror movie-coded.
5 Bellatrix Tortures Hermione — The Deathly Hallows Part 1
Bellatrix might be one of the most horrific villains in the Harry Potter franchise. Bellatrix is the personification of evil, and unlike some of Voldemort's supporters, she never fails to be ruthless, cunning, mischievous, and heartless. Bellatrix will kill, torture, and destroy just about anything. In The Deathly Hallows Part 1, she gets her hands on Hermione. She tortures her in order to get information, and the scene of Hermione on the floor screaming in pain is haunting.
4 Harry Possessed — The Order of the Phoenix
The scenes where Harry faces Voldemort are some of the most anticipated in the whole series. In The Order of the Phoenix, Harry sees Voldemort in the flesh once again, and after he had just seen Sirius get murdered, emotions were running high. Professor Dumbledore comes in to save Harry and proceeds to battle Voldemort one-on-one in one of the most badass and iconic scenes in the entire franchise. However, it's what comes after that gives us goosebumps. Voldemort kind of possesses Harry to exaggerate and relive his most traumatic experiences in order to break him down. Seeing Harry so helpless and under Voldemort's control is what makes this scene so memorable.
3 Katie Bell's Possession — The Half-Blood Prince
Speaking of possession, let's talk about Katie Bell. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is the most obvious display that Harry Potter is getting darker. The themes are more serious; there are fewer light-hearted/funny moments at this point in the series. Katie Bell is a student who gets her hands on a dangerous necklace that, when she touches, she is seemingly possessed. Her body, which is completely out of her control, is lifted high into the air as she is frozen in a silent scream.
2 The Inferi — The Half-Blood Prince
Also in The Half-Blood Prince, Dumbledore takes Harry to a cave that holds one of Voldemort's Horcruxes. Harry is ready to leave, successful in obtaining the Horcrux, when an army of Inferi (reanimated dead bodies) begin to climb out of the dark depths. Harry tries hard to fight them off, but easily gets overpowered. However, when Harry seems ready to give up, Dumbledore sets off this magnificent and grandiose firestorm that eliminated the Inferi. This scene looks like the fiery depth of hell opened and definitely reminds us of a horror film.
1 Voldemort Reborn — The Goblet of Fire
Voldemort is a terrifying-looking guy, if we do so say ourselves. Up until this point, Voldemort has needed the vessel of someone or something else to help him attack Harry. However, in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Voldemort gets reborn into his own body. This entire sequence in the graveyard is nightmare fuel. It's dark, foggy, gruesome, and dreadful. Do you want a cover-your-eyes, palm-sweat-inducing scene in this franchise? This is it. Harry is surrounded by his enemies with no out in sight, and audiences get to feast their eyes on Voldemort for the first time.