Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Reveal Which Non-Horror Movies Absolutely Traumatized Them As A Kid

An audience watching a movie in a movie theatre
person watching movie
Photo by Krists Luhaers on Unsplash

Reddit user alina_love_ asked: 'What's a non horror movie that traumatized you as a kid?'

No matter how long ago we saw it, there are some scenes or images from movies that still send shivers down our spine or keep us awake at night to this very day.

Pennywise appearing in the sewer in It, Janet Leigh surprised in the shower in Psycho, Freddy Kreuger's tongue popping out of the telephone in A Nightmare on Elm Street.


Of course, some of the scariest, most disturbing, or most emotionally traumatizing scenes from films might have been featured in films outside of the horror genre.

Even more shockingly, some of these films were primarily marketed towards children!

Redditor alina_love was curious to hear which non-horror films the Reddit community saw as children still send shivers down their spines today, leading them to ask:

"What's a non horror movie that traumatized you as a kid?"

It Was Tim Burton, After All...

"'Pee Wee's big adventure'."

"Large Marge scared the crap out of little me."

"I was even scared of the fortune teller."- BlueStarrSilver·

With A Title Like "Temple Of Doom"...

"'Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom'."

"The scene where the guy gets his heart ripped out traumatized me for years."- Pbhf

That Funeral Scene Though...

"'My Girl'."

"Fear of death, fear of losing a friend, fear of bees, fear of puberty."- heidismiles

macaulay culkin kiss GIF Giphy

Jurassic Park's Got Nothing On This...

"'The Land Before Time'."

"Watching Little Foot’s mother die was awful."- HourglassSass

He'll Always Regret Not Bringing Her To The Museum...

"'Bridge to Terabithia'."- jumpstart-the-end

"Everything goes so well and it falls apart SO FAST and your left absolutely traumatized."- VortexDestroyer99

The Reason People Hold On To Their Appliances For As Long As They Do...

"The Brave Little Toaster'."- Catgurl

"The junkyard scene alone was responsible for so many nightmares."- ManChildMusician

brave little toaster animation GIF by Coolidge Corner Theatre Giphy

And Let's Not Forget The Coachman's Smile...

"Disney’s version of 'Pinocchio'."

"The scene where kids are turned into donkeys and kept on the island and then resold was f*cking weird."

"You felt bad for that bully kid after he looked sad and nobody understood what he said because he was a donkey."- earnestlikehemingway

Few Things More Sad And Scary Than Deforestation

"'Ferngully: The Last Rainforest'."

"That evil tree scared me so bad."- slutsdotnet

Anything But "Truly Scrumptious"...

"The 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang' Childcatcher guy!"

"I'm still scared of him!"- Jet_Maypen

child GIF Giphy

Offing Children One By One...In A Children's Movie!

"'Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory' boat scene."

"Honorable mention of claustrophobia when Augustus gets stuck in the chocolate tube."

"UGH!"- looseseal-bluth

At Least We Know He Had A "Sole"...

"Who Framed Roger Rabbit."

"That poor shoe….."- dalalice5555

At Least The Song Is Catchy...

"Neverending Story."

"Not even Artax, which was awful, but the Rockbiter and his good strong hands."- marxychick1

Neverending Story 80S GIF Giphy

Dorothy Gettying Electro Shock Therapy Says it All...

"Return to Oz."- Jeff_Steelflexx

"Horrifying! What about the animated wig heads?"- weensfordayz

The Reigning King Of Childhood Trauma

"Old Yeller."- IceTech59

"I remember watching this on TV during, I think, Wonderful World of Disney (Sunday nights were Disney night on TV)."

"Cried and cried and cried."

"I've never been able to watch it again and I've never shown it to my kids!"- crowwitch

Not All Friendships Are Tenable... A Terrifying Thought

"'The Fox and the Hound'."

"Still makes me incredibly sad, lol."- mental_reincarnation

best friends friendship GIF Giphy

Sometimes, writers and filmmakers simply overestimate what might go over a child's head.

Or, for that matter, they might underestimate their emotional capacity.

Regardless, ask any of Fairuza Balk's fans which is scarier, Return to Oz or The Craft, and their answer will be immediate...

(... and it won't be The Craft...)


More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Elizabeth Smart accepting an award
Frazer Harrison / Staff/Getty Images

Elizabeth Smart Reveals Her Pivot To Bodybuilding With Photo Of Her Ripped Body—And People Are Impressed

After enduring a truly horrific kidnapping experience that no one deserves to be put through, Elizabeth Smart has gone on to achieve several noteworthy accomplishments.

The child-safety activist has published numerous books, been honored with several awards, was the subject of an acclaimed Netflix documentary, and even competed on the short-lived Fox reality competition The Masked Dancer.

Keep Reading Show less
AI-generated MAGA influencer Emily Hart
@emily_hart.nurse/Instagram

Man In India Reveals He Conned 'Super Dumb' MAGA Fans Into Paying For His Med School With Fake AI Influencer

There's a sucker born every minute, as the saying goes, and the AI revolution seems to have increased that rate exponentially—especially where MAGA is concerned.

A man in India recently shared with Wired that he's made so much money scamming MAGA devotees using AI that he now has enough to go to medical school.

Keep Reading Show less
Donald Trump
Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

Trump's Dismissive Reaction To Concerns About Insider Trading Amid His War With Iran Speaks Infuriating Volumes

In an article for CounterPunch titled "Trump’s Casino Royale: The Iran War," Matthew Stevenson wrote:

"Given that Donald Trump conceives of the presidency as a casino—why else would he be trying to makeover the White House to look like the Bellagio?—it makes sense that his administration has turned the war with Iran into an insider-trading scheme."
"It used to be that wars were fought to make 'the world safe for democracy' or 'to end all wars' (a World War I expression), but now wars are fought so that Trump insiders can get rich quick in prediction markets or to help the president’s family (and its remittance men) corner the Persian Gulf oil market."

Pointing out who is profiting off inflating oil prices and creating false scarcity, Stevenson added:

Keep Reading Show less
screenshot of CNN on the street interview with Catholic Trump voter
CNN

Catholic MAGA Voter Unloads On Trump's 'Colossally Stupid' Feud With Pope Leo In Viral Rant

After mass on Sunday at the historic St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City, CNN correspondent Gloria Pazmino did some Catholic-on-the-street interviews to gauge reactions to MAGA Republican President Donald Trump's one-sided feud with Pope Leo XIV.

A 2025 Pew Research Center report revealed 55% of Catholics voted for Trump in 2024 and Catholics made up 22% of Trump voters overall. Losing the Catholic vote would destroy Trump's margin of victory going into the midterms.

Keep Reading Show less
​Taylor Dearden; Alanis Morissette
The Tonight Show/X; Matt Winkelmeyer/FIREAID/Getty Images

'The Pitt' Star Opens Up About Being Told She's A 'Terrible Singer'—And Alanis Morissette Weighed In With The Perfect Tweet

Already renewed for season three, The Pitt has become a popular series about the struggles faced by public healthcare workers, this crew specifically in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

In a hilarious turn of events at the end of season two, actors Taylor Dearden (Dr. Melissa 'Mel' King on the show) and Isa Briones (Dr. Santos on the show) decided to blow off some steam by performing an unhinged, "scream therapy" edition of Alanis Morissette's "You Oughta Know" while most of their coworkers watched.

Keep Reading Show less