3 Movies to Watch After Heretic

In Scott Beck and Bryan Woods’ Heretic, two young Mormon missionaries enter a house expecting to share their faith, only to find themselves trapped in a nightmarish battle of theological beliefs. Hugh Grant’s chilling performance as the seemingly affable but deeply disturbing Mr. Reed transforms what begins as a religious discussion into psychological warfare, forcing Sophie Thatcher’s confident Sister Barnes and Chloe East’s timid Sister Paxton to confront fundamental questions about their faith. The film’s power lies in its exploration of religious belief as both salvation and prison, examining how spiritual convictions can become weapons in the hands of those who understand their mechanics. 

For those haunted by Heretic’s psychological approach to faith-based terror, several other films explore this unsettling territory through different lenses. Each avoids cheap blasphemy or tired exorcism tropes in favor of more sophisticated examinations of how religious structures can become sources of horror rather than comfort. They each challenge viewers to consider uncomfortable questions about belief systems and how they shape identity, while delivering visceral horror experiences that linger long after the credits roll. Here are three theological horror movies to watch after Heretic.

Immaculate

In Immaculate, Sydney Sweeney’s Sister Cecilia discovers her pious dedication means nothing when men in power view her body as merely a vessel. After joining a remote Italian convent, her miraculous pregnancy initially appears as a divine blessing until she uncovers a horrifying truth about the institution’s plans for her. The film’s brilliance lies in its visual transformation of Catholic imagery throughout the runtime — crucifixes, rosaries, and religious paintings that initially suggest godly protection gradually distort into symbols of imprisonment as Cecilia’s situation grows increasingly desperate.

Where Heretic confines its horror to one man’s manipulation of faith, Immaculate expands this concept to show how entire religious systems enable abuse when unchecked power cloaks itself in sacred authority. As such, Director Michael Mohan creates genuine horror not through supernatural elements but by exposing how quickly religious devotion becomes vulnerability when those claiming to serve a divine purpose become tyrants. This makes Immaculate the perfect companion to Heretic, as both films understand that the most terrifying aspect of theological horror isn’t demons or possession but the human capacity to pervert sacred concepts for control.

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The Witch

Robert Eggers’s The Witch drops viewers into 1630s New England, where religious belief births historical Puritan terror. After being banished from their plantation, Ralph Ineson’s William establishes a farmstead at the edge of a foreboding forest where his family’s rigid faith proves insufficient against mounting horrors that blur the line between supernatural influence and psychological projection.

Unlike Heretic’s contemporary setting and rapid-fire theological debates, The Witch creates dread through meticulous historical immersion, with period-accurate dialogue, natural lighting, and authentic costumes. The film’s central tension revolves around Anya Taylor-Joy’s Thomasin, whose coming-of-age coincides with her family’s spiritual disintegration. Where Heretic explores what happens when faith is systematically dismantled, The Witch poses a more radical question: what happens when religious frameworks become prisons? Its controversial conclusion offers no easy reassurance, suggesting liberation sometimes requires embracing what your religion defines as evil — a thematic complexity that will resonate with viewers disturbed by Heretic’s exploration of faith.

The Lodge

In The Lodge, Riley Keough’s Grace discovers that childhood religious trauma creates wounds that never truly heal. After escaping a suicide cult and building a fragile new life, Grace finds her hard-won stability shattered during a winter retreat with her future stepchildren who execute a cruelly calculated scheme: convincing her they’ve all died and entered purgatory, deliberately reactivating her dormant religious programming.

Directors Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala create claustrophobic dread as the isolated cabin becomes a pressure cooker where Grace’s grasp on reality deteriorates under mounting stress and precisely targeted religious triggers. The Lodge examines how past religious conditioning creates permanent psychological vulnerabilities that can be exploited even years after leaving a belief system. The film builds to a devastating conclusion, suggesting the most dangerous aspect of extreme religious indoctrination isn’t intellectual belief but behavioral programming, an instinctive response that defies logic and can be extremely harmful to the people around you. This perspective provides a perfect counterpoint to Heretic’s exploration of faith under attack.

What are your favorite horror movies like Heretic? Let us know in the comments below!