10 Weirdest Endings In Horror Movies

When it comes to closing a horror movie, there's no one right way for directors to go. Some films finish on a happy note where the protagonist gets out alive, some strip their hope away at the last possible second, and some end on a final scare to catch audiences off guard one last time. Whichever way a filmmaker may choose to end their film, though, the goal is usually to leave a lasting impact on viewers to ensure they won't forget their experience any time soon.

However, there are some horror flicks out there where the endings are so bizarre that they deserve an entire category of their own. From brain-bending surrealism to all-out strangeness that defies explanation, the endings of these horror films will leave audiences scratching their heads as they puzzle over the meanings of what they just watched (if there was any meaning behind the madness at all!)

If there was ever one way to guarantee the ending of a horror film will be talked about, it would be to end it on the weirdest conceivable way possible.

Beware of major spoilers ahead.

When unassuming sound engineer Gilderoy (Toby Jones) is hired by an Italian production company to create the soundtrack for a film he assumes to be about horses, he’s shocked to discover the project is a graphic splatter flick.

Throughout the gruelling and strange process that’s chronicled in underappreciated horror gem Beberian Sound Studio, viewers watch as Gilderoy gradually loses his grip on reality. While audiences never see any footage of the fictional horror flick, they do witness the sounds being created. Whether he’s hacking vegetables to create the sound of a body being stabbed or pouring water into a pan to simulate someone being scalded, it’s the sound which brings the violence to life – and it's too much for the engineer to handle.

Gilderoy's grip on reality dissolves as the production takes its toll on his mental health. He starts to hallucinate to the point where his sanity disintegrates like old celluloid. And when tensions in the studio come to a head, resulting in him hurting an actor to induce an authentic scream, the engineer becomes entirely enveloped in the light of the projector as he watches the screen.

It's an appropriately offbeat ending that encapsulates the hypnotic power of cinema.