The experimental nature of A Quiet Place [1] sets it apart from most horror movies, but the film's use of silence to set the audience's nerves on edge is only part of what makes it special. At its heart, A Quiet Place and its sequel, A Quiet Place II [2], are stories about parental love and family. Yes, there are aliens lurking on the periphery and all sorts of apocalyptic drama to navigate, but nothing is more important to parents Evelyn (Emily Blunt [3]) and Lee (John Krasinski [4]) than providing stability for their children. And they're not alone. The horror genre is full of moms and dads who would do anything to keep their kids safe, as these 14 movies like A Quiet Place [5] illustrate.
Awake
Noise is the enemy in A Quiet Place, but in Awake, poor Gina Rodriguez has to battle something even scarier: permanent insomnia. The movie is set after a strange catastrophe robs humans of their ability to fall asleep, and Jill's (Rodriguez) daughter may hold the key to saving humanity. However, Jill is far too fierce of a mama bear to simply hand her little girl over to science for the sake of the world.
Watch Awake on Netflix. [6]
Bird Box
In Bird Box [7], Sandra Bullock [8]'s Malorie has no choice but to navigate the world with a blindfold on if she wants to find a safe haven for her children (otherwise monsters that show people their worst fears will doom them all). Like Krasinski's Lee in A Quiet Place, Malorie can sometimes be a little harsh when it comes to emphasising how important it is for her kids to follow the rules of the apocalypse, but her sternness comes from a place of love.
Watch Bird Box on Netflix. [9]
Cargo
Did A Quiet Place leave you sobbing? Then just wait until you see Cargo. This heartbreaking film follows Andy (Martin Freeman), who is left infected during a pandemic and racing against time to find a safe home for his baby daughter.
Watch Cargo on Netflix. [10]
Extinction
The family in A Quiet Place are relatable because they're so normal, and the same can be said for the family at the heart of Extinction. Peter (Michael Peña) and Alice (Lizzy Caplan) are living a mundane life until an alien invasion forces them to step up and face the apocalypse in order to protect their kids. But with their children's futures on the line, these two suburban parents quickly get in touch with their inner badasses.
Watch Extinction on Netflix. [11]
In the Tall Grass
The siblings in A Quiet Place have a beautiful bond that helps them when they're faced with the harsh realities of the world they live in. However, In the Tall Grass features a pair of siblings who aren't at all prepared for the horrors that await them when they enter a grassy field to help a little boy in this film based on a novella by Stephen King and Joe Hill.
Watch In the Tall Grass on Netflix. [12]
It Comes at Night
Two families form an uneasy alliance in It Comes at Night, a movie set in the aftermath of a mysterious apocalypse. Thanks to its focus on the importance of forming a community (and the dangers that come along with having to put your trust in strangers), this creepy film is the perfect movie to watch before you see A Quiet Place II.
Watch It Comes at Night on Netflix. [13]
Kindred
Remember how incredibly traumatic, but also empowering, Evelyn's (Blunt) silent birthing scene is in A Quiet Place? Well, Kindred features an equally fierce mom in a terrifying situation. In this film, an expectant mother (Tamara Lawrance) is trapped by her dead husband's family in their remote, crumbling estate in the English countryside, and must fight her way to freedom before they can take her baby from her.
Watch Kindred on Hulu. [14]
The Midnight Sky
The Midnight Sky is another gut punch of an apocalypse movie highlighting the bonds between fathers and daughters. It also happens to star a rugged George Clooney [15] as a scientist living alone in the Arctic who is desperately trying to warn a group of astronauts not to return to Earth.
Watch The Midnight Sky on Netflix. [16]
Monsters
Both A Quiet Place and Monsters are proof that low-budget horror movies can offer up every bit as many scares as their big-budget counterparts. Set after a NASA space probe leads to enormous extraterrestrial lifeforms taking over most of Mexico, a photojournalist is contracted to locate and safely bring his employer's daughter home in this quiet but daring sci-fi story with stunning visuals.
Watch Monsters on Amazon Video. [17]
The Road
Based on Cormac McCarthy's bestselling novel, The Road follows a father and son as they cross what's left of the country in hopes of finding a safe place to live after an apocalypse has turned the world into a wasteland. Trust us, if you fell hard for Krasinski's Lee, then Viggo Mortensen [18]'s nameless super-dad character will touch your heart, too.
Watch The Road on Amazon Video. [19]
Signs
The Sixth Sense gets all of the attention, but Signs is easily one of director M. Night Shyamalan's best films. While the plot revolves around how one family deals with the news of a sudden alien invasion, this movie is secretly about grief, moving forward after the loss of a loved one, and a father stepping up for his family even though he's never felt more adrift.
Watch Signs on Amazon Video. [20]
The Silence
Released around the same time as A Quiet Place, The Silence has an incredibly similar plot. When creatures who hunt by sound descend on the Earth, a teen who lost her hearing (Kiernan Shipka) and her family must silently make their way to a refuge beyond the monsters' reach.
Watch The Silence on Netflix. [21]
They Come Knocking
They Come Knocking is part of Hulu's holiday horror-movie series Into the Dark [22], and it's by far one of the best instalments. Shortly after the death of his wife, a man takes his daughters on a road trip to spread her ashes. Unfortunately for the family, there are supernatural dangers lurking on the road ahead in this film that's as much about grief as it is about horror (which makes it a perfect companion to A Quiet Place).
Watch They Come Knocking on Hulu. [23]
Train to Busan
Train to Busan has none of A Quiet Place's deliberate pacing, but this action-packed film about zombies on a train is yet another scary movie about the lengths a dad will go in order to protect his child. This time around, the focus is on a father (Gong Yoo) who is trying to build a relationship with his estranged daughter while also fighting off a horde of the undead.
Watch Train to Busan on Hulu. [24]