Stephen King is an author described as the "King of Horror" for his novels in the genres of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science fiction, and fantasy. King’s works of horror have been published since 1967, when his first professional short story, called The Glass Floor, was sold to Startling Mystery Stories. He has sold 350 million copies of his books, which over the years have been adapted into films, television series, miniseries, comic books, and more.
Throughout his career spanning decades, King has published 64 novels, five non-fiction books, and approximately 200 short stories that were mostly published in book collections. King has also received accolades and awards for his contribution to literature, and is highly praised and recognized as a significant figure in pop culture.
In an interview about his work and creative process, King said, “For me, novels come in pieces. I just collect pieces in my mind, and little by little, they start to connect... I think you find out about yourself a little bit with every book you write, at least the ones that really matter to you. You discover what you believe, and those things come out in the books. But that's really for readers to decide for themselves, I think.” The film adaptations of his novels have created iconic horror moments that have scared fans for decades and continue to evoke fear in audiences today. From his early works to modern film adaptations of today, here are the scariest moments in Stephen King movies, ranked.
10 Run, Moochie, Run! - Christine (1983)
Christine is a film about the changes that occur in the lives of Arnie Cunningham, his friends, family, and enemies after he buys a classic 1958 Plymouth Fury named Christine. The car has its own mind and a jealous, possessive personality that negatively influences Arnie. The 1983 supernatural horror film was written by Bill Phillips, directed by John Carpenter, and is adapted from King's 1983 novel of the same title. The scariest moment in the movie is the scene when Christine chases Moochie into an alleyway and kills him by crushing him into a wall. The detective in the film described Moochie's grueling appearance after his horrific death as him being so "cut in half, they had to scrape his legs up with a shovel".
9 The End Scene - The Mist (2007)
The Mist is a film involving a central theme that explores what ordinary people must do when experiencing extraordinary circumstances. The 2007 science fiction horror film was written and directed by Frank Darabont, and is adapted from the 1980 novel of the same title by King. The plot revolves around members of a small town who have experienced a severe thunderstorm that caused the power to go out the night before. As they meet in a supermarket for supplies and struggle to survive, a mist surrounds the town, concealing vicious monsters and escalating tensions among survivors.
The scariest moment in the movie is when David killed his son and fellow survivors moments before the mist dissipates, revealing the U.S. Army exterminating creatures and restoring order. Realizing he only had to have waited a few more minutes to be rescued before killing everybody, he fell to his knees, screaming in despair.
8 The Hobbling Scene - Misery (1990)
Misery is a film about the relationship between the two main characters, the romance novelist Paul Sheldon and his deranged number one fan Annie Wilkes. Paul is seriously injured after a car accident, and Annie, who is a former nurse, brings him to her home, where he becomes a prisoner. The scariest moment in the movie is when Annie breaks Paul's ankles with a sledgehammer to prevent him from sneaking out of his room again. The 1990 psychological thriller film was written by William Goldman, directed by Rob Reiner, and is adapted from King's 1987 novel of the same title. The title of the novel is the name of the central heroine in Paul's book series, and also the state of emotion King described he had experienced while writing it.
7 Donna Gets Bitten - Cujo (1983)
Cujo is a film about a mother and son who are trapped inside their car, while trying to protect themselves from a rabid St. Bernard. The dog went mad after being bitten on the nose by a rabid bat, and the infection from the bite caused monstrous changes in him. The 1983 horror film was written by Don Carlos Dunaway and Barbara Turner, and directed by Lewis Teague, based on the 1981 novel of the same name by King. The scariest moment in the movie is when Donna and her son are trapped inside the Ford Pinto, with Cujo repeatedly attacking the car, breaking a window and biting Donna. Donna later gets her revenge by shooting Cujo in the kitchen at the film's ending.
6 Pig Blood! - Carrie (1976)
Carrie is a film about a shy 16-year-old, living with her religious and unstable mother, who is unpopular at school, where she is constantly mocked and bullied by her peers. The 1976 supernatural horror film was directed by Brian De Palma, written by Lawrence D. Cohen, and is adapted from the 1974 novel of the same name written by King.
The film stars Sissy Spacek as Carrie, who explained the scariest scene by saying, “It was terrifying… I went to Brian De Palma and said, ‘Tell me about this scene, what is it like?’ … and he says, ‘It’s like getting hit by a Mack truck.’... So in that scene, what’s going on in my head is [Fisk] walking along the side of the road when he was about 11 or 12. It’s snowing, and he’s looking at Christmas lights. And then he saw car lights. There was a car coming down the road right at him, and it ran him over. So, when Carrie’s in the shower, I’m seeing those Christmas lights, and then the horror of the blood.”
5 Gage's Return - Pet Semetary (1989)
Pet Sematary is a film about the Creed family, who move to Maine, after the father of the family accepts a position as a physician with the University of Maine. They become friends with their neighbor, who shows them an isolated pet cemetery in the forest behind their new home, and strange events start happening. The 1989 supernatural horror film was directed by Mary Lambert and is the first adaptation of the 1983 novel of the same name by King.
King said, “I just had the greatest time writing the book until I was done with it. And I read it over, and I said to myself, "This is awful. This is really f—ing terrible." Not that it was badly written, necessarily. But all that stuff about the death of kids. It was close to me, because my kids lived on that road.” The film’s scariest part is when Gage returns from the dead and attacks their neighbor by slicing his Achilles tendon with a scalpel, then biting his throat.
4 Georgie's Arm - It (2017)
It is a film about a group of kids who are terrorized by an evil entity that hunts its prey by disguising itself and exploiting the fears of its victims. Georgie was one of his victims and the little brother of the group of kids being harassed, whose arm is ripped off by Pennywise when luring him into the sewer. Georgie’s arm scene is the scariest moment in the movie for its horrific and gruesome depiction of an evil act committed towards an innocent child.
The 2017 American supernatural horror film was directed by Andy Muschietti, and written by Chase Palmer, Cary Fukunaga, Gary Dauberman, and adapted from Stephen King’s 1986 novel of the same name. It has received widespread acclaim, several awards and nominations, and will return in a prequel to the film adaptations in the series Welcome to Derry.
3 The Twins - The Shining (1980)
The Shining is a film about an aspiring writer named Jack, who works at a hotel in the Colorado Rockies as a caretaker during the off-season. Jack had accepted the position after losing his previous job as a teacher at a prestigious prep school because of his alcoholism and violent temper. As Jack resides in the hotel with his wife Wendy and son Danny, who has psychic abilities called "shining", he loses his mind to the supernatural forces inhabiting the hotel. The 1980 psychological horror film was produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick, and co-written with novelist Diane Johnson, adapted from the 1977 novel of the same name by Stephen King. One of the scariest moments in the movie is when Danny sees twins holding hands and inviting him to play with them forever and ever.
2 The Boy In The Window - Salem's Lot (1979)
Salem's Lot is a film about a novelist and horror fan who returns to his hometown and discovers it has been invaded by vampires and citizens are turning into vampires. The 1979 horror film was directed by Tobe Hooper and written by Paul Monash, adapted from the 1975 horror novel 'Salem's Lot by Stephen King. Salem's Lot combines the elements of horror subgenres involving films about vampires and haunted houses. The scene featuring the boy in the window is regarded as one of the scariest moments in TV history by various media outlets including Vanity Fair, critics, and fans worldwide. Another terrifying moment in the film is at the sight of Barlow during the end, resembling Nosferatu from the 1922 movie of the same title.
1 "Here's, Johnny!" - The Shining (1980)
The Shining involves Jack being manipulative by using people as pawns to obtain what he wants. He succumbs to his instincts, allowing them to control him rather than taking control of them, and uses manipulative tactics to commit horrendous acts. According to a study found in the Guardian, “The most frightening scenes were calculated by identifying the percentage increases in film-goers' heart rates from spikes occurring at the same moments. The "Here's Johnny" scene, in which Jack Nicholson's deranged writer peers through a hole in a door he has just created with an ax, made pulses jump by 28.2%.” The chilling scene is the scariest moment in Stephen King’s movies as ranked by researchers, accolades, awards, nominations, and more.