10 Most Terrifying Horror Movie Swimming Pool Scenes

9. Burnt Offerings

The Faculty
United Artists

Even by 1970s standards, being offered the chance to rent a 19th century mansion for the entire summer at the cost of just $900 sounds far too good to be true. And for the Rolf family, it was indeed a case of 'too good to be true' in 1976's Burnt Offerings.

The one caveat to this residency, is that the Rolfs must provide meals for the 85-year-old mother of the sibling owners of this vast locale. But it's not just the old woman they have to keep an eye on, for the Rolf clan themselves soon start to fall apart as the supernatural forces of the house start to take hold.

As Burnt Offerings starts to head towards the finish line, there's a moment that is the worst nightmare of any parent.

With his wife Marian (the brilliant Karen Black) under the influence of the house, Oliver Reed's Ben is placed in a catatonic state and placed poolside while the pair's son takes a swim. As the water turns into powerful waves, young Davey states to drown - all while the helpless Ben is unable to do anything but watch on.

Marian snaps out of her funk and eventually saves her son... for now - as the grim end of the movie sees both Ben and Davey dead, and Marian now a permanent residence of the house.

In case the timestamp doesn't work on the below video, it's the 1 hour 38 mins mark you need here.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.