Cursed horror films: when terror goes beyond the screen

Sometimes fiction can become reality, and the fear that we feel watching a horror movie can even go beyond the screen.

Let's have a look at some difficult-to-explain events that affected (directly or not) actors, actresses, and other crew members in horror films. Coincidence or curse? You decide!

Who doesn't know what 'The Exorcist' is about?  The sweet girl, Regan (Linda Blair), is possessed by the Devil. Her and her mother's peaceful lives drastically change when the little girl starts acting weird. That's why they decide to contact an exorcist in order to get the Devil out of the young girl's body.

It seems like, the horror lived in the movie turned into reality when, in 1972, the set where the movie was being filmed caught on fire and was completely destroyed. However, just one room stayed intact… The fire, by magic or witchcraft, avoided the room where the possessed character of Regan was sleeping.

Apart from the fire that destroyed 'The Exorcist' set, some people involved in the film passed away. There were nine people —including actors Jack MacGowran (Burke Dennings) and Vasiliki Maliaros (Mary, the mother of Father Karras) who unfortunately passed away even before the movie was released.

The famous Brandon Lee was cast in the role of Eric: a musician who comes back to life after being murdered one day before his wedding day. When he comes back to the mortal world, he becomes a goth avenger with supernatural powers who wants to take revenge against the people who killed him.

During the film, there was a fatal incident that ended the life of the protagonist of 'The Crow.' Brandon Lee was shot with defective blank ammunition due to negligence. After being shot while filming the scene, the young actor passed away.

The young actor Brandon Lee was the son of the actor Bruce Lee who, coincidentally, also passed away in mysterious circumstances in 1978 while filming 'Game of Death'.

The son of a really wealthy couple dies at birth. The father, Robert Thorn (played by Gregory Peck), decides to take another baby from a woman who has just died during childbirth. He never tells his wife Katherine (Lee Remick), but soon both of them will realize that the sweet little boy Damien is not as angelical as he appears.

The first paranormal phenomena related to the movie started even before the protagonist arrived in London. When the actor was flying to get there, the plane was struck by lightning. Luckily, the actor arrived unharmed.

The executive producer of the film, Mace Neufeld, also had some problems in his journey from L.A. to London. However, the scariest incident took place in the hotel where he and his wife were staying: the terrorist group IRA sent a bomb threat. In the end, no one got hurt.

Just a few months away from the premier, the person in charge of the movie's special effects, John Richardson, died in a terrible car accident while working on another movie. He was traveling through The Netherlands with his assistant, Liz Moore. She sadly passed away in the same way as one of the victims of the movie: beheaded.

Moreover, right before the accident, Richardson allegedly passed a road sign that read: Ommen, 66.6 km.

A young marriage gets settled in a New York apartment without knowing that their neighbors belong to a cult. Everything gets worse when Rosemary gets pregnant and, after having the baby, starts experiencing mysterious events.

People say that almost everyone who was involved in the movie — even the building the film was set in — was followed by a curse. The producer of the film, William Castle, was diagnosed with kidney stones right after they wrapped up filming. They say that when he was at the hospital, he had hallucinations in which he imagined Rosemary entering the room and stabbing him.

The composer of the soundtrack, the master Krysztof Komeda, was also hit by the curse. After falling at a party, he was admitted to the emergency room with various injuries. He fell into a coma and later passed away due to brain damage.

A year after the movie was released, in 1969, the wife of Roman Polanski, the director of the film, was brutally murdered in her Los Angeles home. The actress Sharon Tate was murdered by Charles Manson's cult while being eight months pregnant.

The United States version of the Japanese movie tells the story of a group of people who, after watching a strange video, receive a call that warns them they are going to die. Seven days after the call, the prophecy is fulfilled.

Whoever has watched 'The Ring' knows that water plays an important role in the film, so, in many scenes, this element was present. But it was right when there wasn't any water at all that the set got completely flooded.

The film tells the story of Emily Rose, a girl possessed by the Devil. The film is based on the true story of a German girl who died when she was being exorcized in 1976.

Jennifer Carpenter, who played Emily, confessed that she had experienced some paranormal activities while shooting. For example, the actress explained that every night when she was going to bed, the radio in her room always turned on by itself. This took place every night at 3 o'clock: the time called by many the 'Devil's hour'.

This is the ultimate '80s horror classic. It tells the story of a family who is in danger after a series of spirits have taken their home. These paranormal visitors just wanted one thing: the little girl of the family, poor Carol Anne.

The film seems to be marked by tragedy and a mysterious curse affected the actors and crew members. The saddest and most shocking incidents were the tragic and premature passings of the actresses who interpreted the roles of Carol Anne (Heather O'Rourke) and Dana (Dominique Dunne).

Although people blamed it on the curse, the fact is that the little Heather O'Rourke suffered a cardiac arrest and a septic shock caused by severe intestinal obstruction. The young actress was just 12 and her death was ruled congenital stenosis of the intestine.

However, the passing of the actress Dominique Dunne was violent. The actress was strangled by her ex-partner in 1982. She was just 22 years old and passed away in her hospital bed while she was in a coma.