10 Kid Movies That Are Actually Scary AF

Kid Movies are supposed to be silly, fun, creative, and adventurous. However, some are just so scary and disturbing that they make you go: “Wait a minute, they made these for children?” The horror factor can come from dark imagery, unsettling storylines, or inappropriate behaviors of the characters. Seriously, the fact that these movies were marketed as films for kids made them ten times scarier.
So let’s see if these movies terrified you as an adult as they had terrified a lot of children. How many of these movies have you watched?

1. Coraline

Source: Focus Features / Courtesy of Everett Collection

Coraline is spooky for many children and adults alike. No matter what age you’re, the Other Mother is creepy AF. If the idea of having buttons sewn into your eyes doesn’t send a chill down your spine, then having your soul forever trapped and eaten away day by day definitely will. Don’t let the stunning visuals and the innocent-looking characters fool you, Coraline is scary.

2. Mrs. Doubtfire

Source: 20th Century Fox / Courtesy of Everett Collection

Mrs. Doubtfire is a wholesome comedy movie that holds a special place in many people’s hearts. But once we look at it in a different light, the premise is pretty damn creepy. Daniel really goes to the extreme and puts on a full-body disguise with a fake identity, which is really creepy in real life. He does all of this to trick his ex-wife into leaving their kids with him for an extended amount of time, and that’s not how a sane person behaves.

3. Matilda

Source: Sony Pictures Releasing / Courtesy of Everett Collection

There were so many horrifying things in Matilda. Abusive parents, an abusive principal, and don’t you dare forget "The Chokey." It’s basically just a low-budget version of the torture device called The Iron Maiden!
Matilda was abused by her family and then she was shipped off to Miss Trunchbull, a ruthless, oppressive, and tyrannical principal. She then discovered her psychokinetic abilities and used them to deal with her disreputable family and Miss Trunchbull. Sounds a lot like the plot of Carrie.

4. Pinocchio

Source: Disney / Courtesy of Everett Collection

Pinocchio was one of the classic Disney animated movies. However, you should really think twice before you show your kids this animated film. The story about a puppet who goes on his quest to prove himself worthy of becoming a real boy quickly escalates to a brutal endurance test featuring kidnapping, enslavement, alcohol and tobacco abuse, and bestial transmutation. It contains a lot of inappropriate imagery for kids, especially young ones.

5. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

Source: Paramount Pictures / Courtesy of Everett Collection

The tunnel scene in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory is just pure nightmare fuel. The screen flashes with unseemly images, including those of a chicken being beheaded and close-ups of scorpions and bugs crawling over human faces. And the creepy theories surrounding the movies only make it more terrifying.

6. Crybaby Lane

Source: Nickelodeon / Courtesy of Everett Collection

Crybaby Lane is so scary that Nickelodeononly only aired it once and then permanently scrubbed it from existence. It was even considered a lost movie and there were tons of Internet lore about it. The movie was about a pair of conjoined twins, one good and one evil. They are sawed in half by their dad, and a group of teenagers accidentally resurrect the evil one.
That sounds terrifying even for adults, and they show that for kids. No wonder why many parents back then were so appalled.

7. Watership Down

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Speaking of traumatizing kid movies, Watership Down must be the most violent cartoon kid film to ever exist. It has everything you will find in a dystopian film, including blood, gore, mass murder, concentration camp symbolism, and nightmarish flashbacks. It’s an incredibly dark and twisted movie that will scare even the toughest grown-ups, let alone innocent kids.

8. Don't Look Under The Bed

Source: Disney Channel / Courtesy of Everett Collection

Don't Look Under The Bed is the Disney version of IT. The monster in this movie is basically a Pennywise-like teenager, and the bead is basically the sewer. This is the movie that makes a lot of us fear the empty space under our beds. Thanks for the nightmares, Disney.

9. Return to Oz

Source: Walt Disney Pictures / Courtesy of Everett Collection

Return to Oz should not be a kid movie. It’s about Dorothy getting put in a psych ward with electroshock therapy and a creepy nurse after she told her parents about what happened at Oz. It’s just the plot of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest but with children. At the end of the movie, we don’t even know if Oz is even real. It’s just too much for a child.

10. Monster House

Source: Sony Pictures Releasing / Courtesy of Everett Collection

Monster House isn’t a super scary movie. It has dorky protagonists, cartoonish computer animation, and a pretty tragic backstory. However, the ways the house changes to scare its victims and the human-eating scenes can be scary for young kids. Plus, the plot is basically a watered-down version of a horror movie with a haunted house.
How many of these movies have you watched? Do you feel nostalgic? If so, then check out these 10 animated Halloween movies that everybody should watch at least once. You won’t be disappointed!