Even if you don’t have arachnophobia, it’s not too difficult to empathize with people who do.Spiders have eight legs, look rather alien, cangrow to some surprising sizes, and have beenknown to occasionally kill humansthrough venomous bites (depending on the species of spider). Anintense fear of such a type of animalsurely doesn’t sound too outrageous.
Thankfully, or regrettably, depending on your outlook, countless filmmakers have tapped into this relatively common fear when making movies that either concern – or briefly depict – spiders. Some of these are horror movies, and some exist within other genres that might briefly cross over into horror territory once the spiders make an entrance. The one thing that ties every film below together, in the end, is that they’re all potentially best avoided by arachnophobes.
10’The Fly' (1958)
Directed by Kurt Neumann
The Flyis a movie that, despite its title, finds time to make spiders particularly scary, at least by the standards of 1950s horror. Sure, overall,this version ofThe Flymight not be as terrifying or grisly as the acclaimed 1986 version, but it was fair for its day, and does end on a note that happens to be equal parts unsettling and kind of ridiculous.
The main character finds himself somewhere between a human and a fly near the film’s conclusion, albeit the size of the latter. He’s stuck on a spider’s web and is nearly devoured by an ordinary spider that, to him, appears massive. By the standards of 1958, this climactic scene ofThe Flywas probably pretty intense, andeven today, it does a good job of recontextualizing something mildly scary into something suddenly life-threatening.
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9’Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets' (2002)
Directed by Chris Columbus
Thoughgenerally approachable and not too out-there content-wise, theHarry Potterfilms can still get more than a little frightening every now and then, especially if you’re a younger viewer. Or, if you have a fear of spiders, then the second movie in the series,Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, might also represent an increase in intensity overall, owing to it being pretty spider-heavy.
Aragog is the name of the leader of these spiders, and is the largest of the bunch, not to mention one that can actually communicate with humans.The scenes featuring Aragog and his giant, intelligent spiders are successfully unsettling, with the horror they pose played up because Ron Weasley’s also established as having a fear of spiders, sharing in the trauma that some viewers might also feel.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
8’Raiders of the Lost Ark' (1981)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
IfSteven Spielbergwants you to feel a certain way while watching one of his movies, he’ll probably succeed. There are Spielberg films that are tense, exciting, fun, sad, and even scary, with the director able to tackle just about any genre and elicit any kind of emotional response, which is especially apparent when watchingthe films he’s best remembered for.
One of those numerous classics isRaiders of the Lost Ark, which is largely a fun and action-packed movie that nevertheless has a few mortifying moments sprinkled throughout for good measure (not as many as its especially dark follow-up,The Temple of Doom, though). Spiders only play a brief role inRaiders of the Lost Ark, but their inclusion in the opening scene is still worth mentioning… though, in the end, when it comes toIndiana Jones, snakes tend to be the animal most worth fearing.
Raiders of the Lost Ark
7’Eight Legged Freaks' (2002)
Directed by Ellory Elkayem
Unsurprisingly, a movie called Eight Legged Freaks has spiders in it; who would’ve known? It’s perhaps one of the better giant monster movies out there without the usual suspects.There are no big-name monsters appearing, and instead, it’s all about countless spiders that have been mutated to freakishly large sizes, and, in turn, all pose threats to various people living in a small town.
That small town becomes something of a warzone, withEight Legged Freakskeeping things action-heavy and fairly comedic throughout.Those with a fear of spiders still might find it inevitably unsettling to watch, though, given just how many spiders are seen throughoutEight Legged Freaks. Others will probably have more fun with it, considering that the tone is relatively light-hearted for something that’s (sort of) definable as a piece of horror.
Eight Legged Freaks
6’Kong: Skull Island' (2017)
Directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts
Make no mistake: even thoughKong: Skull Islandisrated PG-13, it’s still pretty full-onas far as violence and creature-related terror are concerned. The titular Skull Island is shown to be an absolute nightmare to try and survive, with Kong being one of the least hair-raising monsters to call said island home. After all, a large ape arguably has nothing on a giant spider multiple stories high.
These monsters are known as Mother Longlegs, and though one of them is featured only briefly inKong: Skull Island, its inclusion in the movie doesmake for one of the more intense scenes. Size aside, it feels like a nightmarishly believable monster, andwill probably get most arachnophobes watching feeling, at the very least, a bit uncomfortablein their seats.
Kong: Skull Island
5’The Mist' (2007)
Directed by Frank Darabont
The Mist, for all its creepy creatures, isbest remembered for how it ends. That might be the most horrific it gets, despite the tragedy of its ending being a different kind of horror, so to speak… but before then, there are all sorts of more conventional terrors depicted. It’s pretty much to be expected when aStephen Kingstory is being adapted, with this particular one focused on people trapped in a supermarket and forced to contend with deadly creatures emerging from the titular mist.
Some of those monsters have the appearance of spiders, and use webs to restrict human prey. Most horrific of all, a corpse is actually used to house various baby spider-like creatures, which is revealed in one particularly gruesome scene.So, sure,The Mist’s spiders aren’t the most realistic, but they’re frightening and icky nonetheless, and that’s the main thing.
4’Enemy' (2013)
Directed by Denis Villeneuve
Shortly before he took a stroll intothe sci-fi genre as a director,Denis Villeneuvemade movies that tended to be a little more grounded and psychological,Enemyincluded. This is a thriller that memorably features some spidery imagery, but isn’t a horror movie featuring spiders; they don’t really act like creatures that need defeating, and only play a small – yet important – role inEnemyoverall.
Much of the film revolves around one man discovering he has a look-alike, withEnemymost concerned with exploring the idea of doubles and the potential madness such a discovery could lead to.The baffling ending of the filmis the most memorable instance ofEnemycontaining spider imagery, and it’s got some troubling indications for the film as a whole… or it just works in a bold, WTF-kind of way.
3’Arachnophobia' (1990)
Directed by Frank Marshall
As was the case withEight Legged Freaks, there’s no surprise that a film calledArachnophobiais all about spiders, and probably a difficult watch for anyone with the condition in question. The premise is simple, following the catastrophic events that occur when a strange spider from the South American jungle breaks loose while being transported, shortly thereafter mating with a more regular spider which then kicks off an outbreak inside a Californian town.
WhileArachnophobiais a horror movie,it is quite tongue-in-cheek at times, and balances those scarier moments with comedy throughout. It’s got a unique tone overall and generally works pretty well as a horror-comedy, though scores points as far as movies bad for arachnophobes go thanks to the fact that much of the spider-related horror is relatively grounded and close to “realistic,” at least compared to some of the other previously mentioned films.
Arachnophobia
2’Infested' (2023)
Directed by Sébastien Vaniček
Amore recent horror moviethat shows there’s still plenty of territory for spider-heavy horror to go on,Infestedkeeps things simple, tense, and effectively frightening throughout. Essentially, it’s a horror movie about survival, with the main characters here all confined to an apartment building and forced to battle against huge swarms of deadly spiders.
What would ordinarily be scary is made all the more terrifying thanks to the claustrophobia present throughoutInfested, with characters often backed into corners or forced to travel through confined spaces during their mortifying battles against spiders of varying sizes. For beinga work of horror solely about spiders, all the while tapping into what makes them uniquely scary as animals,Infestedisworth shouting out here… or avoiding entirely, if you feel you’re arachnophobic.
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1’The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King' (2003)
Directed by Peter Jackson
There aresome amazingly cool (and huge) creaturesto be found withinThe Lord of the Rings, and the biggest of the three movies –The Return of the King– arguably features the best of these. Onthe way to a well-earned happy ending, Frodo and Sam have to get past a giant spider named Shelob, with the creature coming close to killing Frodo (though Shelob was featured inThe Two Towers, as far as the books go).
Shelob’s one part ofan overall excellent movie, butstands out for being about as frightening as giant spiders on-screen can possibly get. There might be some distance offered by the fact that Shelob is far bigger than any spider in real life, which could mitigate the scariness to some extent… but she’s also unsettlingly lifelike.Peter Jacksonis said to havetapped into his actual fear of spiderswhen planning Shelob’s scenes in the film, and that genuine fear shines through in the finished movie.
