The leaves have begun to turn colors, the weather has begun to cool, pumpkin spice everything is back, and Spirit Halloween is bustling with shoppers looking for spooky decor or putting together their Halloween costumes. These signs of the season mean only one thing: it’s fall. The return of the autumn season makes for a cozy time of year not just for the seasonal activities and events — pumpkin patches and Halloween are staples — but for setting in and watching movies as well. That’s right, fall is the perfect time of year to have yourself a little movie marathon, especially if you’re looking for something creepy. And believe it or not, there are plenty of creepy thrills and chills to be found with Disney. While the House of Mouse is known for family entertainment, don’t count them out when it comes to things that are creepy, scary, and even a little chilling. From animated to live action, there are quite a few Disney movies that make for spooky watches this time of year — and luckily for you, we’ve come up with a list that you can check out if you’re wanting to get a little scary on this fall.
7. Dragonslayer
Dragonslayer, Paramount Pictures
Technically, 1981’s Dragonslayer is a co-production between Walt Disney Productions and Paramount Pictures — and if you want to watch it, you’ll need Paramount+ — but the dark fantasy is definitely a good choice for your fall spooky movie binge. The film was inspired by the “Sorcerer’s Apprentice” sequence from Fantasia and follows a young, in-training sorcerer who attempts to save the medieval land of. Urland from a deadly fire-breathing dragon. The movie is surprisingly violent, has partial nudity, and has some decidedly disturbing moments — including young dragons eating someone. Outside of the scares, however, Dragonslayer is notable for something else: the film’s special effects were created by Industrial Light and Magic, marking the first use of ILM outside of a Lucasfilm production.
6. The Dark Crystal
The Dark Crystal, Universal Pictures
Is The Dark Crystal technically a Disney film? No. It was distributed by Universal Pictures when it was released in 1982, but it’s available to stream on Disney+ so we’re going with it. There are also those who might argue that The Dark Crystal also isn’t scary, but those people probably didn’t watch the movie as a small child and weren’t traumatized by the Skeksis. Anyway. Directed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz, The Dark Crystal is a dark fantasy film that, despite being marketed as a family film is definitely much darker. The film follows two Gelflings, Jen and Kira, who are on a quest to balance the world of Thra and overthrow the Skeksis, the evil rulers, by restoring the powerful Crystal which is broken. I
5. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Snow White and the seven dwarfs, Disney
Yes, the absolute Disney Classic is making this list. Disney’s first animated feature-length film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is an adaptation of the German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm and while it’s not scary in the traditional sense, there are definitely some chilling moments — thanks largely in part to the film’s villain, the Queen, Snow White’s wicked stepmother obsessed with being “the fairest one of all”. The movie is iconic and while it’s not likely to give you nightmares, it is one that you simply need to have on your list.
4. The Black Hole
The black hole, disney
Released n 1979, The Black Hole is a science fiction film that sees a research spaceship, the USS Palomino, making its way back to Earth when it finds another ship that had been believed missing, the USS Cygnus, perched precariously at the edge of a black hole. When the crew of the Palomino board the Cygnus, they find a mad scientist who has turned his crew into androids and plans to fly the Cygnus into the black hole. The movie is weird and trippy, but also chilling — particularly when the crew of the Palomino discover what the androids really are. The movie is available to stream on Disney+.
3. The Black Cauldron
The black cauldron, Disney
1985’s The Black Cauldron is without a doubt one of the creepiest things that Disney has ever made — seriously. Disney’s first PG-rated animated film, The Black Cauldron is loosely based on the first two books of Lloyd Alexander’s The Chronicles of Prydain series and follows lowly pig herder Taran who dreams of becoming a knight. When the evil Horned King kidnaps the prophesying pig Hen-Wren, Taran finds his heroic calling and sets off to find the titular magical black cauldron before the Horned King can use it to summon an army of deathless warrior. The Horned King along is nightmare fuel, but the movie is full of sequences that are definitely not your usual Disney fare. It’s a movie that traumatized plenty of 80s kids, thus cementing itself on our list.
2. Escape to Witch Mountain
escape to witch mountain, disney
In Escape to Witch Mountain, a pair of orphaned siblings with extraordinary psychic powers, Tony and Tia, are kidnapped by a cruel millionaire who wants to exploit them for financial again. The pair escape and attempt to elude the millionaire and, in the process, discover their true origin. The movie isn’t necessarily scary, but it definitely has some unsettling and downright weird sequences — which is to be expected considering that we find out that siblings are actually aliens. It’s definitely a good one to check out on Disney+ — and it has a sequel as well, Return from Witch Mountain.
1. Return to Oz
Return to oz, disney
Just in case you didn’t already realize this, there are more Oz stories than The Wizard of Oz. L. Frank Baum actually wrote a series of books and while MGM adapted The Wonderful Wizard of Oz for their iconic 1939 film, Disney had the rights to the other books and so, in 1985 we got Return to Oz, a dark fantasy film based mainly on the book Ozma of Oz. The movie sees Dorothy, still obsessed with the Land of Oz even after her return taken to a sanatorium for treatment for delusion. But before that can happen, there’s a power failure and Dorothy is rescued by a mysterious girl, with Dorothy ending up floating away on a chicken coop in the river only to awaken in Oz. However, the Oz she’s returned to isn’t the Oz she left, having been conquered by the evil Nome King and the Princess Mombi.
Return to Oz is something of an unofficial Wizard of Oz sequel, but it’s also pretty much nonstop nightmare fuel. You have the terrifying Wheelers — people who literally have wheels instead of hands and feet — the horrifying Princess Mombi who takes people’s heads and keeps them in jars in her closet and swaps them out like their wigs and plans to take Dorothy’s to add to her head wardrobe no less, and even a talking chicken which sounds like it should be cool but no, nothing is cool in this Oz. It’s all just nonstop weird and disturbing but it is also a gorgeous film that is truly inventive and has to be seen to be believed. Bonus points? It’s Fairuza Balk’s first screen role — she plays Dorothy. Check this one out on Disney+. Trust me.
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