Movies Like Roots of Evil

If you liked Roots of Evil (1962), a horror movie directed by Wai Gwong Cheung, here are 20 movies with a similar feel, based on TMDB's recommendations. Each one links to its cast, trailer and where it's streaming.

1
The Boogeyman (2023)
★ 6.4/10Also horror
Still reeling from the tragic death of their mother, a teenage girl and her younger sister find themselves plagued by a sadistic presence in their house and struggle to get their grieving father to pay attention before…
2
Play Dead (2025)
★ 6.3/10Also horror
A woman wakes up injured in a basement surrounded by corpses. To survive, she pretends to be dead while a grotesque ritual unfolds in the house above.
3
Dust Bunny (2025)
★ 6.7/10Also horror
Ten-year-old Aurora asks her hitman neighbor to kill the monster under her bed that she claims ate her family. To protect her, he must battle an onslaught of assassins while accepting that some monsters are real.
4
They Reach (2020)
★ 6.8/10Also horror
In 1979, a young girl stumbles upon a possessed tape player. She unknowingly unleashes a demonic entity that haunts her family while slowly dragging the small town of Clarkston to Hell.
5
Silver Bullet (1985)
★ 6.7/10Also horror
The small city of Tarker's Mills is startled by a series of sadistic murders. The population fears the work of a maniac, but sightings of a mysterious, hairy creature soon spread. People lock themselves up at night…
6
Nightbreed (1990)
★ 6.4/10Also horror
A troubled young man is drawn to a mythical place called Midian where a variety of friendly monsters are hiding from humanity. Meanwhile, a sadistic serial killer is looking for a patsy.
7
Ghostland (2018)
★ 7.4/10Also horror
A mother of two inherits a home from her aunt. On the first night in the new home she is confronted with murderous intruders and fights for her daughters’ lives. Sixteen years later the daughters reunite at the house…
8
The Last Breath (2024)
★ 6/10Also horror
A group of old college friends reunite on a Caribbean scuba diving trip exploring the wreckage of a WWII battleship and find themselves trapped inside the underwater labyrinth of rusted metal surrounded by great white…
9
Play Dead (2022)
★ 6.1/10Also horror
Criminology student Chloe fakes her own death to break into a morgue, in order to retrieve a piece of evidence that ties her younger brother to a crime gone wrong. Once inside, she discovers that a sadistic coroner is…
10
Strange Darling (2024)
★ 6.9/10Also horror
Nothing is what it seems when a twisted one-night stand spirals into a serial killer’s vicious murder spree.
11
Whisper (2007)
★ 6.3/10Also horror
Sinister things begin happening to kidnappers who are holding a young boy for ransom in a remote cabin.
12
Lady in White (1988)
★ 6.1/10Also horror
Locked in a school closet during Halloween 1962, young Frank witnesses the ghost of a young girl and the man who murdered her years ago.
13
Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016)
★ 6.2/10Also horror
In 1967 Los Angeles, a widowed mother and her two daughters add a new stunt to bolster their séance scam business and unwittingly invite authentic evil into their home. When the youngest daughter is overtaken by the…
14
Never Let Go (2024)
★ 6.1/10Also horror
As an evil takes over the world beyond their front doorstep, the only protection for a mother and her twin sons is their house and their family’s protective bond.
15
Saint Catherine (2024)
★ 6.2/10Also horror
An orphaned girl is rescued from a satanic ritual and taken to Saint Catherine Institute for homeless youth. There she will learn new skills while facing demons that stalk her.
16
Books of Blood (2020)
★ 6.2/10Also horror
A journey into uncharted and forbidden territory through three tales tangled in space and time.
17
The Entity (1982)
★ 6.8/10Also horror
A single mom is raped by an invisible force. Her psychiatrist believes the experience stems from childhood trauma, while she knows something supernatural is at play.
18
Mikey (1992)
★ 5.9/10Also horror
Mikey just needs a good stable home. He's bounced from foster home to foster home his whole life. He finally lands himself with a new loving family, but their perfect little child is not what he appears to be. His…
19
Home Sweet Home: Rebirth (2025)
★ 5.9/10Also horror
When a city is overrun with a demonically-possessed crowd, a cop must find the source of evil to save his family.
20
Clown in a Cornfield (2025)
★ 6.1/10Also horror
Quinn and her father have just moved to the quiet town of Kettle Springs hoping for a fresh start. Instead, she discovers a fractured community that has fallen on hard times after the treasured Baypen Corn Syrup…