10 More Disturbing Things Found In The Background Of Horror Movies
Sometimes the scariest thing is hidden in plain sight.
Though most horror movies tend to be totally upfront about their biggest and most outlandish scares, it's not uncommon for filmmakers to secretly hide more unnerving details in plain sight for eagle-eyed fans to catch, typically on repeat viewings.
After all, there's nothing quite like revisiting a movie and noticing something concealed in the background or in the frame's negative space, as can be so easily missed by the vast majority of viewers.
These sneaky gags can lend even greater atmosphere to a horror movie, making viewers feel like they've seen behind the curtain and discovered something they weren't really "supposed" to.
And so, following up our recent article on the subject, here are another 10 disturbing things you can find skulking around in the background of some of your favourite horror movies.
From actors secretly hanging out in the periphery to deeply unsettling foreshadowing, brilliant blink-and-you'll-miss-it visual gags and everything in-between, these ingenious yet largely invisible details may have easily passed you by. And you shouldn't feel even remotely bad about that.
But if you did manage to catch any of them yourself, then bloody well done...
10. Cyrus In The Shadows - Thirteen Ghosts
Thirteen Ghosts begins with ghost hunter Cyrus Kriticos (F. Murray Abraham) apparently being killed while attempting to catch a ghost.
However, deep into the third act, it's revealed that Cyrus actually faked his death in order to lure his nephew Arthur (Tony Shalhoub) to the haunted house.
Yet about 10 minutes before Cyrus emerges from the shadows, you can briefly see him loitering around in the shadows.
When Arthur learns that the spirit of his dead wife is sealed within the house, he punches the man responsible, Dennis Rafkin (Matthew Lillard), square in the face.
As Arthur falls to the floor post-punch, keep an eye on the black void between the wall and the shelf behind him, as Cyrus is just barely visible watching the scene unfold from the dark.
It's much easier to spot if you boost the brightness on your display, but even then, you might need to squint to notice that it's F. Murray Abraham peeking in on the action. That's... creepy as hell.