The Black Phone has just been released in cinemas and is the latest in a line of horror movies to feature a terrifying phone call. Some of these creepy horror movie phone calls are supernatural in nature, either acting as a warning like in The Black Phone or threatening the person on the other end like in Black Christmas.
Sometimes killers use phone calls to terrorize their victims such as in Scream but sometimes potential victims also use them to call for help such as in When a Stranger Calls. Phone calls are an effective dramatic tool used in horror movies in order to terrify the audience.
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The Black Phone (2022)
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The Black Phone features several chilling phone calls between Finney and The Grabber’s previous victims. When he is captured, Finney is told that the old phone on the wall doesn’t work and it looks as if it’s not even connected. However, it’s not long before the phone begins to ring and the movie takes a more supernatural turn.
Finney is given advice from the previous victims on how to escape and there are several points when their ghosts appear alongside him in the dank basement. While the kids are trying to help Finney, the phone calls are eerie and chilling as most of them have forgotten who they once were but still warn him about The Grabber’s twisted games.
Scream (1996)
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Scream has become famous for its opening scene in which Casey Becker receives a chilling phone call while home alone. The creepy voice over the phone demands Casey answer questions about horror movies in order to save her boyfriend’s life. After she answers a question incorrectly, her boyfriend is murdered in front of her and she is chased by the infamous Ghostface.
Casey is brutally killed by Ghostface and when her parents return they find her body hanging from a tree, causing her mother to let out one of the best ever horror movie screams. While her murder is bloody and vicious, it is the creepy phone call that sets the tone for the scene and has gone on to be a key story element in the rest of the Scream series.
A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984)
Stream On Netflix & HBO Max
The original A Nightmare On Elm Street sees the teenage residents of Elm Street targeted in their dreams by razor-fingered Freddy Krueger. The movie’s protagonist, Nancy discovers she can bring Freddy out of the dream world in order to defeat him and eventually realizes it is his victims’ fear that gives him power.
While the movie is famous for its gruesome deaths and bizarre dream sequences, it does also feature a horrifying phone call. Despite having disconnected the phone, Nancy receives a call from Freddy, with the killer telling her, ‘I’m your boyfriend now.’ A grotesque tongue then appears out of the end of the phone and tries to lick Nancy; it’s a small moment but memorable nonetheless for how disgusting it is.
The Ring (2002)
Stream On Netflix & Paramount+
The Ring centers around a cursed videotape that kills people seven days after watching it. The visuals on the videotape are unsettling and stick with the viewer long after watching the movie. After watching the tape, Rachel receives a phone call where an unknown voice whispers ‘seven days.’
Samara is one of the greatest horror movie villains with almost no screentime and her disembodied voice over the phone is enough to give anyone nightmares. Although Samara climbing out of the television is perhaps the most iconic moment of the movie, the simplicity of the phone call confirming the curse is terrifying.
Scream (2022)
Stream On Paramount+
Being the fifth movie in the franchise, it’s important that Scream 2022 stood out but it still opens with a horrifyingly familiar call from Ghostface. High school student Tara is home alone when she receives a phone call from an unknown person who demands she answers questions on the Stab franchise (based on the events of the previous Scream movies).
RELATED: 8 Ways Scream 2022 Perfected Modern Slasher Films
During the call, Tara begs Ghostface to ask her questions about elevated horror movies such as Hereditary and The Witch. After she gets the final question on Stab incorrect, she is attacked in her home. However, in an interesting twist on the original, Tara actually survives past this phone call confrontation and goes on to be a lead character in the movie.
Orphan (2009)
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Orphan may not be the first to spring to mind when it comes to terrifying phone calls but this is actually key to the horror movie’s surprising villain reveal. Throughout the movie, Esther terrorizes her new adoptive family and tries her best to isolate her mother, Kate.
After she grows suspicious of Esther, Kate begins to research her past. While she is staying in the hospital, Kate receives a phone call that leaves her reeling; she is informed that Esther is actually a fully grown woman with a rare condition. Esther often attempts to seduce the men of the families she finds herself in and it is this phone call that delivers the shocking twist to the audience.
When A Stranger Calls (2006)
Stream On Hulu
When A Stranger Calls focuses on a young woman named Jill who is targeted by a man over the phone while babysitting. At first, Jill believes she is being pranked but after the stranger suggests he can see her, she calls the police who then try to trace the calls.
With each passing call, the tension grows and grows. The caller asking ‘have you checked the children?’ followed later by Jill being told the calls are coming from inside the house is spine-tingling. Phone calls are key within this movie and most of the horror comes from Jill being terrorized by someone she can’t see.
The Silence Of The Lambs (1991)
Stream On AMC+
The iconic The Silence of the Lambs sees FBI trainee, Clarice conversing with an imprisoned cannibal and serial killer, Hannibal in order to gain insight on an active serial killer, Buffalo Bill. As their meetings continue, Clarice is able to profile Buffalo Bill and track him down.
Although the main plot of the movie is centered on the pursuit of Buffalo Bill, it is the scenes between Clarice and Hannibal that have become iconic. Having escaped earlier in the movie, Hannibal calls Clarice in the final scene. She is startled to hear his voice on the other end of the phone and is left reeling when he tells her he’s ‘having an old friend for dinner’ before hanging up.
One Missed Call (2003)
Stream On Shudder, AMC+, & Tubi
One Missed Call is a Japanese horror movie in which people receive a voicemail where they can hear themselves apparently being killed. Days after receiving these voicemails, the recipients turn up dead. After her friend is killed by the ‘curse’, Yuki begins looking into the strange phenomenon but gets more than she bargains for.
As the movie progresses, it becomes clear that the voicemails are detailing how the recipient will actually die. Due to the premise and the supernatural element, One Last Call puts an interesting twist on the usual horror movie phone call.
Black Christmas (1974)
Stream On Peacock, AMC+, The Roku Channel, Kanopy, Crackly, & Tubi
The ’70s horror Black Christmas is a true cult classic and focuses on a group of sorority sisters who begin to receive threatening phone calls over the Christmas period. The phone calls quickly progress as a killer begins to target the sorority girls and pick them off.
Similar to When a Stranger Calls, towards the end of the movie Jess calls the police for help and is told to flee as the calls are coming from inside the house. The progression of the chilling phone calls to death and violence helps to truly build the tension. While this is one of the earliest slashers movies, it is still one of the most effective.