If you loved the suspenseful, apocalyptic vibes of the 2023 Netflix hit Leave the World Behind, you’re probably craving more movies that will leave you on the edge of your seat. This psychological thriller follows two families whose idyllic vacation is disrupted by strange events that may signal the end of the world as they know it.
While we wait for more details on the Leave the World Behind sequel that’s reportedly in the works, check out these 18 movies that deliver similar thrills, chills, and what-if scenarios about how quickly the world can change.
1. Us (2019)
Jordan Peele’s sophomore film Us follows the Wilson family on a beach vacation that turns into a nightmare when they are attacked by mysterious doppelgängers. Like Leave the World Behind, Us starts with an unassuming family trip that becomes increasingly unsettling as the characters realize the events unfolding may be part of a larger, more sinister phenomenon.
Both movies use the juxtaposition of an idyllic vacation setting with looming apocalyptic doom to great effect. And both leave you with lingering questions about human nature and our connections to each other when society breaks down. If you enjoyed the creeping dread and social commentary of Leave the World Behind, Us is a must-watch.
2. Bird Box (2018)
Based on the novel by Josh Malerman, Bird Box is set in a world where an unseen entity causes people to violently take their own lives if they lay eyes on it. A mother (Sandra Bullock) must navigate the dangerous new world and protect her two children, all while blindfolded.
Like Leave the World Behind, much of the horror in Bird Box comes from what is unseen and unknown. The characters are isolated and cut off from information, amplifying the tension and paranoia. Both movies center on parents desperately trying to keep their families safe as the world unravels in terrifying and inexplicable ways.
3. A Quiet Place (2018)
In A Quiet Place, a family must live in complete silence to avoid being hunted by extraterrestrial creatures with hypersensitive hearing. It’s a unique twist on the post-apocalyptic genre that makes everyday noises into a matter of life and death.
While the threat in A Quiet Place is more clearly defined than the ambiguous doom in Leave the World Behind, both movies wring incredible suspense out of the fear of the unknown. The focus on family, and parents’ primal drive to protect their children, is another common theme that hits hard emotionally in both films.
4. Take Shelter (2011)
Take Shelter stars Michael Shannon as a husband and father plagued by apocalyptic visions of a coming storm. Unsure if what he sees is prophetic or a sign of mental illness, he nevertheless takes extreme measures to protect his family, like building a storm shelter in their backyard.
The movie is a slow burn that builds an almost unbearable sense of dread and paranoia, much like Leave the World Behind. Is the threat real or imagined? Both movies center on a family man consumed by the need to keep his loved ones safe from impending doom, even as it strains his relationships and possibly his sanity.
5. It Comes At Night (2017)
In It Comes At Night, a family hides out in a remote cabin as a mysterious plague ravages the outside world. When they take in another family seeking shelter, fear and paranoia creep in, blurring the lines between the two clans.
The movie shares Leave the World Behind‘s claustrophobic, pressure-cooker environment, as the characters navigate their new reality and shifting allegiances while trapped together. Both films keep the true nature of the apocalyptic threat vague, letting the characters’ imaginations (and the viewers’) run wild. Ultimately, the tension between the characters becomes as riveting as the unseen horrors outside.
6. The Road (2009)
Based on Cormac McCarthy’s bleak novel, The Road follows a father (Viggo Mortensen) and son as they journey across a post-apocalyptic wasteland where starvation, sickness, and roving gangs threaten their survival.
While The Road reveals more about its apocalyptic scenario than Leave the World Behind, the two movies share a sense of desolation and characters grasping for hope and human connection amid the ruins. The central father-son relationship gives The Road its emotional weight, much like the family dynamics in Leave the World Behind make the apocalyptic stakes feel deeply personal.
7. 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)
10 Cloverfield Lane opens with a woman (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) waking up in an underground bunker after a car accident. Her captor/savior (John Goodman) claims the outside world has been attacked and it’s no longer safe to leave.
The movie milks incredible tension from its claustrophobic setting and the question of what really awaits outside the bunker. Like Leave the World Behind, information is doled out in tantalizing bits as the characters try to suss out the truth. Both movies will have you constantly guessing and re-evaluating who to trust.
8. The Mist (2007)
Based on a Stephen King novella, The Mist traps a group of people in a supermarket after a strange fog rolls into town, bringing with it a host of deadly creatures. As the situation outside grows dire, tensions inside reach a boiling point.
The Mist shares Leave the World Behind‘s sense of escalating dread as the characters realize the world is changing in horrifying ways just beyond their doors. Both movies are as much about how people react in a crisis as the crisis itself. While The Mist embraces more overt horror, the human drama and “what would you do” factor are just as gripping.
9. The Invitation (2015)
In The Invitation, a man attends a dinner party hosted by his ex-wife and her new husband, only to become convinced that they have sinister ulterior motives for the gathering. The movie expertly builds a sense of unease and dread, keeping you guessing about the hosts’ true intentions.
Like Leave the World Behind, The Invitation mines incredible tension from its limited setting and the polite facades that slowly crack as the night wears on. Both movies will have you eyeing the characters (and maybe even your own dinner party guests) with mounting suspicion.
10. Coherence (2013)
Coherence begins at a dinner party on the night a comet is passing overhead. Strange events soon unfold, leading the guests to realize the comet may have created alternate realities that are bleeding into each other.
The movie shares Leave the World Behind‘s sense of an intimate gathering thrown into chaos by a larger cosmic event. As the characters grapple with mind-bending concepts and question their own identities, the tension ratchets higher and higher. Both movies prove you don’t need a big budget to create a thought-provoking, deeply unsettling viewing experience.
11. The Survivalist (2015)
Set in a future where society has collapsed, The Survivalist follows a man living alone in the woods, his existence threatened when two women seeking food and shelter enter his life.
The movie is a masterclass in slow-burn tension, as the shifting power dynamics between the three characters keep you on edge. Like Leave the World Behind, it explores questions of trust, paranoia, and what people will do to survive in a world turned upside down. While the settings are very different, both movies create a palpable sense of isolation and looming danger.
12. Right At Your Door (2006)
Right At Your Door takes place after dirty bombs unleash toxic ash across Los Angeles. A man seals himself inside his house for protection, but faces an impossible choice when his wife arrives home after being exposed.
The movie wrings stomach-churning tension out of its claustrophobic setting and the life-or-death decisions the characters face. Like Leave the World Behind, it taps into very real fears about disaster scenarios and how far we would go for our loved ones. Both movies will leave you pondering what you would do in the characters’ impossible situations.
13. The Silence (2019)
Based on the novel by Tim Lebbon, The Silence follows a family struggling to survive in a world under attack by terrifying creatures that hunt by sound. When a cult seeks to exploit their deaf daughter’s ability to communicate without making noise, the family must fight to stay together.
Like Leave the World Behind, The Silence starts with a family in an idyllic setting, only to have their world shattered by an apocalyptic event. Both movies center on parents trying to hold their families together as society rapidly crumbles and formerly safe spaces become dangerous. And both tap into the visceral dread of being hunted by an unstoppable threat.
14. The Night Eats the World (2018)
The Night Eats the World follows a man who wakes up after a party to find Paris overrun by zombies. Barricaded alone in an apartment building, he must find a way to survive not only the undead outside, but the crushing isolation and despair.
The movie puts an intimate, character-driven spin on the zombie apocalypse genre, much like how Leave the World Behind offers a close-up portrait of two families facing the end of the world. Both movies wring as much tension and emotion out of their characters’ internal struggles as they do from the external threats.
15. The Divide (2011)
The Divide traps a group of survivors inside their apartment building after a nuclear attack on New York City. As supplies dwindle and cabin fever sets in, the group descends into paranoia and violence.
Like Leave the World Behind, The Divide creates a pressure-cooker environment where the interpersonal conflicts become as threatening as the post-apocalyptic world outside. Both movies offer a grim view of human nature stripped down to its basest impulses, and how quickly social order can break down. They’ll leave you pondering how you might fare in a similar situation.
16. The Endless (2017)
The Endless follows two brothers who escaped a UFO death cult as children. When they receive a mysterious videotape from the group, they return to seek closure, only to find themselves drawn into the cult’s bizarre, reality-bending belief system.
The movie shares Leave the World Behind‘s sense of creeping unease as the characters slowly realize the world is not what it seems. Both movies blur the lines between the real and the unreal, leaving the characters (and the viewers) questioning everything. And both tap into existential dread about our place in the universe and whether we can ever truly know what’s out there.
17. The Vanishing (Spoorloos) (1988)
The Vanishing follows a man’s obsessive search for his girlfriend who disappeared without a trace during their holiday. As his quest leads him closer to the truth, the movie becomes a chilling meditation on the depths of human evil and the cost of seeking answers.
Like Leave the World Behind, The Vanishing starts with an ordinary couple whose lives are upended by a sudden, inexplicable event. Both movies derive incredible tension from the not knowing, as the protagonists grasp for answers in a world that no longer makes sense. And both will leave you deeply unsettled long after the credits roll.
18. Time of the Wolf (2003)
Time of the Wolf takes place in the aftermath of an unexplained apocalyptic event. It follows a mother trying to keep her two children alive as they navigate a lawless, kill-or-be-killed landscape in search of food, shelter, and other survivors.
The movie shares Leave the World Behind‘s unsparing view of society’s swift collapse, as formerly middle-class characters struggle to adapt to a brutal new reality. Both movies are as much about the family dynamics and how far parents will go to protect their children as they are about the apocalyptic scenario. And both serve as grim reminders of how fragile our way of life really is.
So there you have it – 18 movies to watch if you loved the dread-soaked, apocalyptic vibes of Leave the World Behind. From home invasion thrillers to post-apocalyptic road movies, these films will keep you pondering life’s big questions (and sleeping with the lights on) long after the credits roll. Happy viewing… if you dare!
