Summary

• Some horror movies have twist endings that greatly enhance the overall story, elevating them to greater heights and leaving a strong final impression.
• Twist endings have been used in horror movies since the 1920s, with some becoming iconic and defining the genre. While this narrative trick can be overused, it has resulted in some of the best movie endings ever.
• The twist endings in horror movies like Sinister, The Wicker Man, and Saw completely change the tone and add complexity to the story, increasing the horror and leaving audiences shocked and reevaluating the entire film.

Some horror movies have featured twist endings that are so effective that they have elevated the entire movie. Horror movies often attempt to deliver a final fright right at the end to leave a strong final impression. While this does not always work, some examples of this narrative trick have been so effective that they have vastly improved the rest of the story, including in some of the best horror movies of all time.

Horror movies having twist endings is a trope that traces back to 1920's The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari. A slew of subsequent horror films have attempted to recapture the gravity of that, although not all of them achieved a similar legacy. While this trope can indeed be overused, it led to a few of the best movie endings ever.

10 Sinister

2012's supernatural horror Sinister features one of the bleakest twist endings in horror. After a true crime writer exposes his family to a malevolent force, Ellison Oswalt (Ethan Hawke) resolves to move his family back to their original home. However, upon their arrival, his young daughter, Ashley, becomes influenced by the demonic spirit and proceeds to brutally murder Ellison and his wife, Tracy. It is an incredibly surprising and stark conclusion that genuinely improves the movie. It adds another degree of peril to the somewhat tired clichés that permeate the story. Sinister's climactic ending perfectly accentuates the movie, elevating it to much greater heights.

9 The Wicker Man

One of the most infamous endings in horror movie history sees The Wicker Man's protagonist, Howie, burn to death in the titular structure. Until this point, The Wicker Man primarily features a mystery thriller narrative, albeit heavily laden with an uncanny folkloric visage. The climactic ending to The Wicker Man, however, completely alters this and the tone shifts drastically to pure horror. The whole scene is punctuated perfectly by the gleeful chorus sung by the Summer Isle residents, as they rejoice in their ability to fool Howie. Without this twist, it is unlikely The Wicker Man would have earned its iconic status, and perhaps wouldn't even be considered horror.

8 Secret Window

Secret Window delivers an astounding twist ending that greatly contributes to the overall film. Ted (Johnny Depp) discovers that the man who has accused him of plagiarism is a figment of his imagination, and he is responsible for a series of grisly crimes committed by the sinister gentleman. Secret Window received mixed reviews, with many commenting on the movie's pacing and story development. These criticisms become rather redundant with the twist ending, however, which exploits the drawn-out narrative to create a sense of interiority with Depp's protagonist, delivering a revelation that's as shocking for him as it is for the audience.

7 Whatever Happened To Baby Jane

Whatever Happened to Baby Jane is primarily premised on an automobile accident that confines Blanche Hudson (Joan Crawford) to a wheelchair, which is unofficially blamed on her sister, Blanche (Bette Davis). The final scene, however, discloses that it was actually caused by Blanche's own actions. It is a heartbreaking scene, which accentuates the sisters' tragedy further. It is succinctly surmised by Blanche, saying, "You mean all this time, we could have been friends?" The scene depicts the sisters reconciling, but it lends Whatever Happened to Baby Jane an even greater sense of despair.

6 Les Diaboliques

1955's Les Diaboliques is a revered French horror movie with a startling final sequence that also delivers a shocking twist ending. The movie's plot depicts a woman, Christina, and her husband's mistress murdering the man and subsequently being haunted by his ghost. Terrified by the sight of his ghost, Christina suffers a fatal heart attack - whereupon it is divulged to have been a set-up from the start, orchestrated by the husband and mistress. The image of the husband's ghost is startling enough, but the revelation in the final scene truly emphasizes the sadness of the plot and demonstrates to the audience that the supernatural plot has been entirely constructed.

5 Saw

Saw (2004)'s ending features one of the most iconic twist endings ever. The momentous scene reveals that the body lying prone in the dilapidated bathroom is not a recently deceased victim, but, in fact, the perpetrator himself. It's an incredibly shocking revelation that prompts viewers to reevaluate the entire film. Until this final scene, Saw feels like a sinister crime thriller with scenes of extended violence. The twist ending, however, increases the horror substantially. It reveals an impressively complicated plot and leads to an even more devastating ending. Revealing that Jigsaw was with them the whole time is even more terrifying, and portrays him as even more dastardly.

4 The Sixth Sense

The ending of The Sixth Sense has transcended horror and become a cultural touchstone. The entire movie builds to the staggering reveal that Bruce Willis's Malcolm Crowe is a ghost. One reason this reveal is so effective is that it urges audiences to revisit the movie again, in order to search for clues secreted earlier in the movie - of which there are several. The Sixth Sense is bolstered by a stunning ensemble cast, with a solid storyline that has already produced a great movie. Nevertheless, The Sixth Sense is designed entirely around this twist ending, and without it, the movie would certainly not have endured this long.

3 The Others

The ending to The Others completely changes the entire movie. It reveals that Nicole Kidman's Grace Stewart, and her two young children, are in fact the unwelcome spiritual entities haunting the gothic mansion. It is an incredibly drastic change, shifting the characters' actions, and the audience's perception of them, noticeably in the final scenes. The ending is also notable for the sense of relief it seemingly offers Grace, who has spent the rest of the film in a heightened state of anxiety, desperately hoping to protect her children. Whereas other movies hinge their horror on a final twist, instead, The Others proffers a happy ending, albeit startling and bleak.

2 You're Next

The 2011 slasher You're Next unveils the true nature of its plot in the final scenes. Erin (Sharni Vinson) has fought valiantly to protect her partner's family as they are besieged by a group of masked assailants. The final scene, however, confirms that Erin was intended to be a witness for the family's murder, with her boyfriend becoming the sole beneficiary of their vast fortune. You're Next was widely praised upon its release, particularly commended for its navigation of classic horror clichés. Most notably, You're Next repeatedly subverts the final girl trope, with these final scenes nurturing this to its full potential.

1 Don’t Look Now

The heart-wrenching ending to Don't Look Now places the audience in the same futile position as its protagonist, John Baxter (Donald Sutherland), who is murdered by a monstrous figure he hoped was his daughter. The twist highlights the pointlessness of John's plight - and the movie as a whole. Throughout Don't Look Now, the audience is encouraged to also believe John's daughter might still be alive, despite her death being depicted earlier. By the conclusion, audiences are filled with the same confusion and anticipation as John, but it is cruelly dashed. The twist dramatically alters the entire horror movie, adding several layers of depth and meaning to earlier scenes.