15 Horror Movies That Inspired Real-Life Crimes

15. The Exorcist

William Friedkin’s tale of a young girl’s satanic possession remains today one of the most revered films to come out of the horror genre. In fact, the movie became the first ever horror to be nominated for a Best Picture Oscar alongside nine other nominations.

But its reception wasn’t entirely positive and The Exorcist stirred up its fair share of outrage after its 1973 release with religious groups claiming the movie “glorified Satan” and reports of cinema-goers so terrified they fainted after watching it.

That outrage was reignited in 1981 when Patricia Ann Frazier, a 25-year-old woman with a history of drug abuse, was on trial for the murder of her four-year-old daughter the year previously. The victim was stabbed seven times before her heart was cut out, and Frazier's defence claimed her actions were influenced by watching a television airing of The Exorcist a few days before the murder.

Frazier, who said she committed the crime as she thought her daughter was possessed by demons, was later found not guilty by reason of insanity.