Movies like Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom (1964)
The best movies like Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom (1964) are Play Dead (2022), Succubus (2024) and Whisper (2007). If Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom hooked you with its horror, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom
Quick picks
- Highest ratedSuccubus (2024)8.3/10 from 279 votes
- NewestNever After Dark (2026)Released 2026
- In JapaneseNever After Dark (2026)Also in Japanese
Play Dead (2022)
Criminology student Chloe fakes her own death to break into a morgue, in order to retrieve a piece of evidence that ties her younger brother to a crime gone wrong. Once inside, she discovers that a sadistic coroner is using the corpses for his sick and twisted business, and when he realises that Chloe still has a pulse, a terrifying game of cat and mouse ensues.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSuccubus (2024)
A new father going through a marital separation joins a dating app and matches with a beautiful but mysterious young woman... whose powers of seduction and manipulation entangle him in a mystery more horrifying than he could have ever imagined.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisWhisper (2007)
Sinister things begin happening to kidnappers who are holding a young boy for ransom in a remote cabin.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Shed (2019)
The story of Stan, an orphaned teenager stuck living with his abusive grandfather and tasked with routinely protecting his best friend from high school bullies. When Stan discovers a murderous creature has taken refuge inside the tool shed in his backyard, he tries to secretly battle the demon alone until his bullied friend discovers the creature and has a far more sinister plan in mind.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShades of Desire (2023)
After her twin sister Aubrey goes missing, Jennifer uncovers the scandalous, secret double-life that Aubrey leads - and that has put both of them in danger.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Other (2025)
Unable to conceive, a couple seeks to build a family with a young orphan, survivor of tragic childhood. But their act of love turns to horror when they realize the violence in their foster's past has returned to destroy the new family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Last Breath (2024)
A group of old college friends reunite on a Caribbean scuba diving trip exploring the wreckage of a WWII battleship and find themselves trapped inside the underwater labyrinth of rusted metal surrounded by great white sharks.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEradication (2022)
When an unknown disease wipes out most of the world’s population, a man with unique blood is isolated for study. Fearing for his wife’s safety, he breaks his quarantine – into a world overrun by monstrous Infected and a shadowy agency hunting them down.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisZ (2019)
A family find themselves terrorized by their eight-year-old son's imaginary friend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Woman in Black (1989)
A lawyer travels to a small seaside town to settle the estate of a recently deceased woman, but soon becomes ensnared in something much more sinister.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDaddy's Little Girl (2014)
After the police find Derek’s daughter brutally murdered on the beach, he vows to make the culprit suffer for his actions, even if that person is ‘part of the family.’ With careful research into the history of torture, Derek prepares himself and his basement for a week of brutal tactics that will make his daughter’s killer feel the pain that he has inflicted upon so many others. In a time when stranger danger is ever present, a single father learns that it’s the ones you trust most who have to be watched the closest.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Evil (1978)
Shortly after moving into a dark, brooding mansion, a psychologist and his co-workers are terrorized by a horrible evil being.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisBloodline (2019)
Evan values family above all else, and anyone who gets between him, his wife, and newborn son learns that the hard way. But when it comes to violent tendencies, it seems the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Ghost Within (2023)
A young woman revisits her family home desperate to discover her sister Evie's murderer 20 years before. After a series of terrifying encounters with Evie's ghost at 09:09pm, Margot knows she must fight to learn the truth once and for all.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDead of Winter (1987)
A fledgling actress is lured to a remote mansion for a screen-test, soon discovering she is actually a prisoner in the middle of a blackmail plot.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBloodline Killer (2024)
Moira Cole endeavors to rebuild her shattered life after her family's murder at the hands of her deranged and obsessed cousin.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisTerrifier (2011)
After witnessing a brutal murder on Halloween night, a young woman becomes the next target of a maniacal entity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStopmotion (2024)
Ella Blake, a stop-motion animator struggling to control her demons after the loss of her overbearing mother, embarks upon the creation of a film that becomes the battleground for her sanity. As Ella’s mind starts to fracture, the characters in her project take on a life of their own.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNever After Dark (2026)
A traveling psychic who helps lost souls cross over encounters a powerful entity at a remote house. While investigating its origins, she uncovers dark secrets and faces a deadly threat from an unexpected source.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Worth the HypeMovies like thisX-Cross (2007)
Recovering from a failed love affair Shiyori heads to the country, in the company of best friend and bad girl Aiko. Having taken a long soak in the hot spring they retire to their respective cabins. They soon discover that the tranquil village is the home of a cult with a fetish for cutting off female legs. Trying to escape they are split up and keep in touch via their mobile phones. Multiple points of view and time frames keeps the viewer on their toes trying to discern the grisly fate of these "lost" girls.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Snow Woman (1968)
Two sculptors spend the night in a mountain lodge after being caught in a snowstorm. A female spirit appears and takes the life of one of the men. She spares the other man's life on the condition that he never tell anyone what happened that night.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
The Temptress and the Monk (1957)
A Buddhist monk becomes ensnared by a seductive woman who, according to legend, transforms her lovers into beasts.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
The Passion of a Woman Teacher (1926)
The curse of a jealous woman destroys lovers on the run. Considered a lost film.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
The Ghost Cat and the Mysterious Shamisen (1938)
Mitsue is a popular stage actress and the lover of a shamisen player named Seijuro. She jealously murders two other objects of his affection: Okiyo, a young woman from a samurai family, and Kuro, a cat. The spirits of Okiyo and Kuro then merge into a vengeful ghost.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Ghost Cat of Nabeshima (1949)
Tanuma Kandayuu is a high class samurai of the house of Nabeshima. He finds a lavish board of Go (a Chinese Board game) at Kinbei's store. He recommend Kinbei to offer it to his lord. Kinbei hesitates at first, since he knows the board has a mysterious legend surrounding it; it's believed that for every game played on the board, one death is required.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Ghost of Saga Mansion (1953)
A woman loses her son through an evil conspiracy and commits suicide. Shortly afterwards a ghost cat begins haunting the conspirators. This is Takako Irie's first bakeneko (ghost cat) movie; it started a Daiei cycle which was very popular at the time in Japan.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Haunted Cave (1959)
The treasures of the Aoyamas were buried at the bottom of the sea when a large earthquake occurred years before. Yumi Aoyama is the only person who knows the location, but her family dies one after another through curious incidents, as if the family were under a curse. Yumi is surprised by the ghost of a dead sister who looks the same as the grim figure who jumped into the old well alter stabbing herself with a sword. Fearful that a similar fate awaits her, Yumi seeks the help of her friend Kyoko. Later the ghost appears before Kyoko and her fiancé, Detective Nonomiya. In a haunted cave, Kyoko and Yumi are in deadly peril from those who seek treasures of the Aoyamas.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Peony Lantern Ghost Story (2007)
Version of Botan Dōrō.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
White Fan (1956)
Horror film directed by Toshikazu Kôno.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
The Living Koheiji (1957)
The actor Koheiji is terribly in love with the wife of his best friend, the playwright Takuro; to get her, he would even kill Takuro.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom?
The closest matches to Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom are Play Dead (2022), Succubus (2024) and Whisper (2007). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom?
Start with Play Dead (2022), the closest match to Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom.
What is the highest-rated movie like Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom?
Succubus (2024), rated 8.3/10 by 279 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom?
Never After Dark (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom?
Yes: Never After Dark (2026), X-Cross (2007) and The Snow Woman (1968).
How are movies similar to Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Ghost Story: Cruel Phantom, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.