Horror In Utero: 9 Films Pregnant with Terror!

'Rosemary's Baby' (1968) / Paramount Pictures
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I found out I was pregnant in early June 2020. You could say it was the worst possible time in the world to get this news, especially for a “first-timer.” Pandemic, riots, cultural division, death, and, worst of all, an election year. I dealt with it the best way I knew how – running – and started wracking up the miles. There’s a great amount of catharsis and endorphins that come from putting your body through some planned stress, but I can’t run all the time. So, when I’m sitting on the couch winding down from the day, I put myself through that other time-honored traditional catharsis: The Horror Flick. And, in my new state of being (host for an amorphous parasite that’s stealing all my energy, calcium, and ability to eat properly), it was time to watch some petrifying pregnancy films! 

I can’t imagine all pregnant women find this as unabashedly entertaining as I do, but if you are looking for some In Utero Horror, check out these 9 gestational genre flicks in honor of the 9 months of it takes to bake a baby! 

1The Unborn (1991) 

Within the first 5 minutes of Rodman Flender’s The Unborn, you get raw meat eating, exploding baby bumps, dark-haired Lisa Kudrow, and a calmly holistic Kathy Griffith cemented in absurdity by a synth-pop score by Gary Numan of ‘80s anthem “Cars” fame. The story follows Virginia Marshall (Brooke Adams), a children’s book author and mother to only a darling cat, who has suffered two miscarriages. Told she cannot get pregnant, she goes to wunder-doc Richard Meyerling (genre-great James Karen) who can supposedly impregnate even the most hopeless cases, and is miraculously fertilized on her first go. But something is wrong with the children, and Virginia slowly unravels the mystery of Meyerling’s success and unravels in her own mind.

It’s as taught as it is ridiculous, with gratuitous rocking chair sex, horrific child murder, self-inflicted belly stabbing, subliminal tape messages, aborted fetus sewing-needle stabbing, human genome projects, and artificial womb explosions. Throughout the chaos, it also has a very real depiction of a newly pregnant woman, trying to take this miracle of life seriously in the face of overly-coddled, fuzzy platitudes and over-zealous advice givers. What I thought would be a somewhat silly ‘90s jaunt is actually an incredibly enjoyable, ludicrous, but thoughtful addition to the pregnancy horror subgenre. 

2Inside (2007) 

Churned out by the French Extremism movement, Alexandre Bustillo’s Inside definitely lives up to its “extreme” potential, but also offers a much more subtle horror that scarred me long before I found myself in a family way. Four months after losing her husband on Christmas Eve, very pregnant Sarah (Alysson Paradis) is alone, depressed, moody, and withdrawn. When a mysterious woman (Beatrice Dalle) comes to her home asking to use her phone, Sarah lies about her husband sleeping upstairs, and the stranger admits to knowing that he’s dead. What unravels is a truly chilling cat-and-mouse home invasion horror with the ultimate bounty being the child still residing in Sarah’ womb. And, I’ll say this, if Us (2019) was your first encounter with scary scissors, you must have missed this one.

The film is elevated by Bustillo’s build of satisfying tension before the bloodshed, making each act of violence stab deeper into each characters’ arc. For holding its weight in the “extremism” movement, it has nothing that could be construed as unnecessary or excessive. French extremism is also known for its immaculate “twist” endings, and Inside boasts a thrilling turnabout that left my uterus twisted for days after my first viewing. 

3Prevenge (2016)

Alice Lowe wrote, directed, and starred in this Shudder Exclusive about Ruth, a pregnant woman on a killing spree whose unborn child is seemingly calling the shots. As the narrative plays out, we find out her baby daddy was sacrificed in a hazardous climbing accident – for the good of the group, his “cord was cut” in dark pregnancy pun fashion – and the little fetus is set on avenging her papa’s murder. Or is she?

As a horror comedy, Prevenge is pitch black with acerbic moments that don’t break the muted style Lowe administers. In the shallow depth-of-field, we’re constantly ballooned in Ruth’s actions, often leaving her victims out of focus and doubling brilliantly as her psyche. And the gore, despite being bold and bloody, is handled with great subtly. It reminded me quite a bit of the 2012 remake of Maniac, where tension grows to a breaking point between hysteria and horror until the vicious reality comes crashing down on the victim. Perhaps the best example comes from when Ruth confronts the female climber, a clearly active, strong individual who, in her attempt to escape Ruth’s madness, throws on a pair of boxing gloves and throws punches at a pregnant woman. It’s handled with zero irony, which really makes the overarching story of grief and personal responsibility poignant at its most darkly comic and most butcheringly brutal. 

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4Masters of Horror: Pro-Life (2006) 

John Carpenter had two entries in the Masters of Horror series, which ran from 2005 to 2007, releasing mini-horror movies by acclaimed horror directors on Showtime. What seems to be his most enduring contribution is Cigarette Burns, which aired in season one, starring Norman Reedus and Udo Kier, but in season two, Carpenter tackled the very Bush-era commentary Pro-Life. It’s the story of Angelique (Caitlin Wachs) seeking an abortion, at God’s bequest, as she believes her baby was conceived by a demon. On the other side of the barbed wire fence is Dwayne (Ron Perlman), whose zealotry as a gun-toting, redneck, God-fearing pro-lifer leads to an all-out war for the life of the child. In the middle are Kim and Alex, just trying to protect Angelique’s safety as they realize there’s something clearly wrong with the baby.

Body-horror undulations break an ultrasound machine, her belly grows at a rapid rate, and she ultimately gives birth in a matter of hours to a Thing-like spider creature. The whole situation is complicated by the appearance of the boy’s demon daddy (Derek Mears in full practical body suit) straight from Hell. It’s as ridiculously over-the-top as it is poignant to the themes of trauma, zealotry, family, and what “God’s will” truly means. Carpenter balances the human and inhuman horrors, ultimately commenting that in the end, it all comes down to the mother’s choice. Quite literally. 

5Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

You knew it was going to be on here – in the greatest portrayal of paranoid terror a pregnant woman could possibly face, Rosemary’s Baby encapsulates the preternatural dread that all preggo ladies fear…”what if something is wrong with my baby?” And the psychological and emotional weight of being told what you need by people you don’t necessarily trust. I’ll keep the summary short: Rosemary and her husband move into a new, upscale apartment complex and she is soon impregnated by the devil as the coven of old witches who live there plot of bring up the Antichrist – all without Rosemary’s direct knowledge.

Being newly pregnant, I have already dealt with being told I have “pregnancy brain” when trying to rationalize a thought, discounting my ability to reason thoughtfully because I’m actively performing a miracle of growing a human being inside me (ironic, right?). This is the constant, terrifying struggle Rosemary faces as she’s told to not think for herself or read books, wear smelly amulets with devil weed in them, eat chalky mousse, ignore the suicide of her new friend, drink herbal cocktails that I imagine taste like wheatgrass and mothballs, and socialize with intrusive neighbors. And as cheesy at that sounds, it’s presented with eerie, unnerving precision by director Roman Polanski, released just over a year from the fateful night his own pregnant wife was murdered by the Manson family. Now that’s the real horror story.

6Lyle (2014)

Lyle is the story of what happens when a pregnant woman watches Rosemary’s Baby for the first time while pregnant and thinks it’s really happening to her. Well, actually no, it’s not that at all, but the clearly “inspired by” work by Stewart Thorndike does play heavy into the themes and often set pieces presented from Ira Levin’s literary tome.

Seven months after the death of her toddler, pregnant Leah begins experiencing strange occurrences in her new apartment that lead her to believe her neighbors and her partner, June, have made a satanic pact. After the titular Lyle’s accident, June signs a big music deal, much in the same way Rosemary’s husband’s career skyrockets after Rosemary’s insemination. Leah discovers the deadly secrets of her new home with a very similar history to that of Rosemary’s flat, and her mind slowly unravels as her due date gets closer and closer. Now, perhaps I had already watched too many of these type of flicks, but I found Lyle getting to me on an infuriating level. The sheer number of pregnancy horrors that cast women as irrational and paranoid seems to be standard operating procedure, but most land with the payoff that her paranoia was entirely justified, giving way to a cathartic release that, at least for myself, helps me listen to my body a little better and trust my crazier thoughts when I have them. I, of course, then recognized that the reason it got me so annoyed was that it was so effective in creating that grief and dread, the mistrust of self, and the ultimate question of, “would you rather be believed in insanity or questioned while sane?” 

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7Baby Blood (1990) 

You might be keen to know that Inside is actually not the goriest film to come out of France about a pregnant woman. That honor goes to the completely bonkers 1990 Baby Blood, directed by Alain Robak. With a Fulci-esque style that boasts deadpan acting, incredibly gruesome, uncensored gore, and a myriad of female nudity, the film is a psychotic gem that only recently became available on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber. Previously, you’d be hard pressed to find a copy of the spectacle, and it’s still not available anywhere to stream.

It’s the tale of circus performer Yanka (Emmanuelle Escourrou), assistant to the lion tamer and frequent, unwilling conquest of the circus’s owner. Upon the arrival of a leopard from Morocco, the other animals in the circus begin acting strange, and soon after, the leopard explodes in a mess of blood and sinew. Something has burst out of the leopard – and it needs a new, human host. Finding Yanka asleep, it enters her through the most convenient hole (yep, it’s exactly what you think it is) and blam-o, Yanka is pregnant with the parasite. She runs away from the circus followed by the circus owner, and when he catches up to her, Yanka’s new belly companion convinces her to kill him. The parasite needs the blood to evolve, and continues to convince Yanka to do his bidding. It’s kill-run-kill-run for Yanka and her baby as she grows more attached to the beast inside her.

It’s over-the-top,  eccentric cheese, yet doesn’t skimp on the classic horror pregnancy tropes of painful cramping, nose-bleeds, undulating skin, and a dream sequence not soon to be forgotten. Less psychological than the others on the list, this one is pure grisly carnage and all the more fun for it. 

8Shelley (2016) 

In a direct departure from more extreme fair, Shelley is a dark, looming tale that gives off low waves of nervous, unrelenting energy as its story plays out. Elena (Cosmina Stratan) is brought on as a house hand for a couple who live off the grid – no electricity, no internet. It’s not something Elena is used to, but she is endeared by Louise (Ellen Dorrit Petersen) and moved by her inability to have children – so she agrees to carry Louise’s child in exchange for an apartment in the city for herself and her son.

Soon after her successful implantation, Elena experiences headaches and vivid dreams, painful skin irritation, rashes, and dizziness. She scratches herself, leaving heavy red patches on her skin. She only eats sugar and white bread. But, in case you didn’t know, all these things can actually happen to expectant mothers. As much as she appears pained, it’s actually nothing unusual…which can be terrifying in and of itself. But things do grow more severe: water burns Elena’s skin, she starts sleepwalking, she has outbursts, her hair is falling out, and she looks more tired every day. And, the vegetarian Louise and Kasper find themselves soon out of chickens as Elena has unconsciously feasted on their flock (it’s a running theme in horror that pregnancies demand raw meat). Elena just wants to go home, but Louise believes she will take the baby with her and never return. Then, in a sudden jarring turn, Elena attempts to abort the child to devastating results. And that’s with over twenty minutes of runtime still to go. The question remains, with all the eerie visions, self-harm and unnerving tension, is Elena or the baby to blame? Not going to spoil anything on this one…

9Grace (2009)

In my pregnant horror dive, I came across an article that boldly stated, “no pregnant woman should watch Grace.” Looks like I broke the rules! Then again, I’m also acutely aware that I’m not, what you might call, “normal” in terms of pregnant women. That being said, in the opening sequences of Grace, the movie delivers an uncomfortable and horrifyingly relatable setup in which Jordan Ladd’s Madeline contents with monster-in-law Vivian, played with creepy authority by Gabrielle Rose. As any pregnant woman knows, at least one person in her life “knows better” and feels the need to deliver frustratingly constant, unsolicited advice (In this case, mother-to-be Madeline actually does know better, and proves it, having studied birth psychology).

This theme continues throughout the film, and I often found myself more terrified of Vivian than of the horrors presented when baby Grace starts demonstrating her more…cannibalistic tendencies. A car accident leaves Madeline widowed and still pregnant with a dead fetus, and Patricia agrees to allow Madeline to carry the dead baby to term. The intense delivery is truly shock worthy (and also made me research the benefits of water birth…) as still-born baby Grace is somehow willed back to life by Madeline. But Grace is not exactly normal and demands a very special diet. At its center, it’s the story of what a mother is willing to do for her child, as both Madeline and Vivian take extreme measures to ensure the care of the only child, or grandchild, they have left. 

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Some Honorable Mentions (and a few to just plain skip):

I decided to keep this list focused on films in which the majority of runtime, our protagonist is pregnant or caring for a newborn. Because of this, I skipped two exceptional entries of motherly horror: David Cronenberg‘s The Brood (1979) and Donald Cammell’s Demon Seed (1977). Both have incredible abnormal gestative climaxes, one horrifically organic and the other cemented firmly in science fiction.

And in the fun franchise category, I’d be remiss if I didn’t just mention A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child (1989), in which Freddy’s power is bolstered by the sleeping fetus inside dream master, Alice. It’s not the best entry in the Kruegerverse, but it has memorable kills (especially if you have the uncut version which boasts some impressive body horror FX) and Freddy at some of his most camp.

And lastly, on the skip ’em side, I learned this: Pregnancy Horror films do not do well in the found footage format. Delivery: The Beast Within(2013) and Devil’s Due (2014) are both disappointing takes on a genre already bled dry. It’s somewhat disappointing, considering you would think the “documentarian” format would do really well considering how many women are actively documenting their baby’s growth on social media every day.

Pregnancy can be a horror show in and of itself, and these films serve as a solid reminder that however bad you think your pregnancy is…these are probably worse.


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