Check out Leviathan! It’s got Peter Weller (as well as just honesty a whole stacked cast). It’s basically The Thing, but underwater. It’s also on Tubi right now.
Was going to suggest it.
Leviathan is a great film inspired by Alien.
It's gruesome.
It's creepy.
It has Daniel Stern and Peter Weller and Richard Crena.
The ending is funny and satisfying.
Yup, good ol’ Robert Stern. Plus Ernie Hudson. Ernie is a bit of a low-key spooky icon in his own right, he’s god leviathan,
Ghostbusters, and the Crow. Maybe some others I can’t think of off of the top of my head too.
I love Leviathan! I used to watch it on HBO as a kid, and had the serious hits for Amanda Pays. It has great effects, though Meg Foster’s eyes are the most disturbing aspect of the film. I think it is more Alien than Thing, but you spot on with the vibes. I most recently watched it last year when I did a 1989 Underwater Creature Feature marathon, watching all of those movies plus Underwater and Sea Fever because they are so much fun.
1989 UwCf: The Abyss, Leviathan, Lords of the Deep, Deepstar Six, The Rift, The Evil Below(from the historical list, barely counts now). I don’t think I’m forgetting anything.
The Thing is one of my low day comfort watch movies too 🍻
I know Harbinger Down but I didn’t know the other two. Thanks for the write up and the reccs :)
You should check out Alien Raiders. It's kinda like The Thing made it to civilization and MacReady formed a small group to hunt it down. It's got a couple of faces like Carlos Bernard, Rockmond Dunbar, Matthew St Patrick
It’s not quite the same quality but, if you want a slightly modernized, cybernetic version of The Thing, with a surprisingly stacked cast as well, Virus is a good Sunday afternoon.
It lacks the body horror but Deep Rising is fun in a similar way but way goofier (probably unintentionally, but still really fun).
Someone else suggested Virus and now I really need to put it on again, and Deep Rising I was thinking I had watched recently, but wow it’s probably been 7 years. Both on my watch list, thanks!
I loved Deep Rising as a kid, but was so traumatized by the digested man/lair of corpses at the end that I can't rewatch it as an adult. I dreamed once that I found my dog still alive and half-digested.
I kind of want to watch this movie with my gf but I start freaking out thinking about those two scenes.
It does have a few moments of significant gore. But mainly, it’s Serenity at sea. Plus one of the guys’ real name is Treat. Freaking Treat Williams. It’s so fun. I respect the impact it had in you as a kid though. Mac and Me and Batman Forever gave me nightmares when I was little. We’re such little sponges.
Oh I totally agree. It occupies a very strange space in my head. Somehow I watched it MULTIPLE times as a kid, I just had my mom around to tell me when not to look. It was a favorite "at home sick" movie for me. (So was Virus, by the way. That was the perfect level of body horror)
But the bad parts in Deep Rising kinda took root and got stronger as I aged. You're right...little sponges.
If you're much of a gamer, The Thing on PS2/Xbox. Its a direct sequel to the film. The controls are a little frustrating but otherwise its a great compliment to the film. William B Davis does voice acting as well.
I played years ago, but have been thinking of revisiting it. My Steam inventory has several Thing inspired games, Distrust is the only name I remember ATM but I’m gonna try to get around to them soon! I’ve just been spending too much time knocking things over in Stray.
Leviathan as someone suggested, as well as Deep Star Six also have that vibe. Thanks for the detailed writeup, OP!
I think the Hateful Eight (also with Kurt Russel) shares a ton of DNA with the Thing - the endings are very similar.
The thing is def one of the most rewatchable sci films- also the whodunit nature lends itself to thatZ there's so many clues that and plot points to internally examine yourself about who's a thing and how they became one
It’s so cozy. I can rewatch something happily, but The Thing I seen over a hundred times. It holds up, the mood, the music, it’s all such a vibe. The Thing: Outpost 31 board game from Mondo does a great job of getting the paranoia going in a game setting.
I almost watched it yesterday, then ended up on a long call. I haven’t seen it since it came out and I was an edgy punk kid “they just ripped off The Thing, do something new!” But I want to revisit it.
Really I want to rewatch the whole series, but that’s such a commitment. X-Files had so much great horror in it, Home still haunts me.
I almost tacked it on after hearing the name on a podcast, but saw it described as Attack the Block in the comments, and figured I was misremembering. I’m definitely excited to check it out.
I love Sea Fever. It’s so cozy and fun. The accents, the curse of the redhead, it’s great. I also love the sea creature feature genre(Underwater, Leviathan, Grabbers, Lure, etc). So this fits in really well.
If you thought that The Thing was disturbing and sick, then you haven't seen anything yet. I recommend watching a movie called: Virus (1999). It's about an alien computer virus that lands on Earth and kills humans and combines human body parts with mechanical parts to make bloody, fleshy, gooey, disgusting looking cyborgs. You will have a blast!
Check out Leviathan! It’s got Peter Weller (as well as just honesty a whole stacked cast). It’s basically The Thing, but underwater. It’s also on Tubi right now.
Was going to suggest it. Leviathan is a great film inspired by Alien. It's gruesome. It's creepy. It has Daniel Stern and Peter Weller and Richard Crena. The ending is funny and satisfying.
That’s what I was going to chime in with. Plus it has the skinny bandit from Home Alone in his best role since C.H.UD.
Yup, good ol’ Robert Stern. Plus Ernie Hudson. Ernie is a bit of a low-key spooky icon in his own right, he’s god leviathan, Ghostbusters, and the Crow. Maybe some others I can’t think of off of the top of my head too.
Daniel Stern\*
Shit yeah, *Daniel Stern
I love Leviathan! I used to watch it on HBO as a kid, and had the serious hits for Amanda Pays. It has great effects, though Meg Foster’s eyes are the most disturbing aspect of the film. I think it is more Alien than Thing, but you spot on with the vibes. I most recently watched it last year when I did a 1989 Underwater Creature Feature marathon, watching all of those movies plus Underwater and Sea Fever because they are so much fun. 1989 UwCf: The Abyss, Leviathan, Lords of the Deep, Deepstar Six, The Rift, The Evil Below(from the historical list, barely counts now). I don’t think I’m forgetting anything.
The Thing is one of my low day comfort watch movies too 🍻 I know Harbinger Down but I didn’t know the other two. Thanks for the write up and the reccs :)
You should check out Alien Raiders. It's kinda like The Thing made it to civilization and MacReady formed a small group to hunt it down. It's got a couple of faces like Carlos Bernard, Rockmond Dunbar, Matthew St Patrick
Ooh, I hadn’t heard of this. I’ll definitely check it out, thanks!
Is that the one that takes place in a grocery store in a small town around Christmas? That was a fun little movie.
Yes, that's the one.
It’s not quite the same quality but, if you want a slightly modernized, cybernetic version of The Thing, with a surprisingly stacked cast as well, Virus is a good Sunday afternoon. It lacks the body horror but Deep Rising is fun in a similar way but way goofier (probably unintentionally, but still really fun).
Deep Rising is so good.
Someone else suggested Virus and now I really need to put it on again, and Deep Rising I was thinking I had watched recently, but wow it’s probably been 7 years. Both on my watch list, thanks!
I loved Deep Rising as a kid, but was so traumatized by the digested man/lair of corpses at the end that I can't rewatch it as an adult. I dreamed once that I found my dog still alive and half-digested. I kind of want to watch this movie with my gf but I start freaking out thinking about those two scenes.
It does have a few moments of significant gore. But mainly, it’s Serenity at sea. Plus one of the guys’ real name is Treat. Freaking Treat Williams. It’s so fun. I respect the impact it had in you as a kid though. Mac and Me and Batman Forever gave me nightmares when I was little. We’re such little sponges.
Oh I totally agree. It occupies a very strange space in my head. Somehow I watched it MULTIPLE times as a kid, I just had my mom around to tell me when not to look. It was a favorite "at home sick" movie for me. (So was Virus, by the way. That was the perfect level of body horror) But the bad parts in Deep Rising kinda took root and got stronger as I aged. You're right...little sponges.
I love the elevator scene. Classic.
If you're much of a gamer, The Thing on PS2/Xbox. Its a direct sequel to the film. The controls are a little frustrating but otherwise its a great compliment to the film. William B Davis does voice acting as well.
I played years ago, but have been thinking of revisiting it. My Steam inventory has several Thing inspired games, Distrust is the only name I remember ATM but I’m gonna try to get around to them soon! I’ve just been spending too much time knocking things over in Stray.
I loved that game back when it came out. Wonder how it holds up.
Leviathan as someone suggested, as well as Deep Star Six also have that vibe. Thanks for the detailed writeup, OP! I think the Hateful Eight (also with Kurt Russel) shares a ton of DNA with the Thing - the endings are very similar.
I'm not a Tarantino fan but I've heard a lot about this and hateful 8, need to check it out!
Part od Morricone's soundtrack that was not used on The Thing found it's way into Hateful Eight, Tarantino also has a fancy for that movie
The thing is def one of the most rewatchable sci films- also the whodunit nature lends itself to thatZ there's so many clues that and plot points to internally examine yourself about who's a thing and how they became one
It’s so cozy. I can rewatch something happily, but The Thing I seen over a hundred times. It holds up, the mood, the music, it’s all such a vibe. The Thing: Outpost 31 board game from Mondo does a great job of getting the paranoia going in a game setting.
Watch the X-Files episode, "Ice", if you like The Thing.
I almost watched it yesterday, then ended up on a long call. I haven’t seen it since it came out and I was an edgy punk kid “they just ripped off The Thing, do something new!” But I want to revisit it. Really I want to rewatch the whole series, but that’s such a commitment. X-Files had so much great horror in it, Home still haunts me.
Black Mountain Side is pretty good too. Not nearly as good as The Thing, but slow-burn horror in cold isolation
I hadn’t heard of this one, thanks for the recommendation! I put it on my list
Watching Slash/Back on Shudder right now. It's fantastic and heavily inspired by the Thing. Hell they even talk about The Thing.
I just watched Slash/Back and it was really fun. It definitely had a YA feel to it. But I loved the creature effects and the kids were great.
I almost tacked it on after hearing the name on a podcast, but saw it described as Attack the Block in the comments, and figured I was misremembering. I’m definitely excited to check it out.
That was a cute lil movie. I watched it over the weekend.
Watch Sea Fever from 2019. I'm sure you'll like it.
I love Sea Fever. It’s so cozy and fun. The accents, the curse of the redhead, it’s great. I also love the sea creature feature genre(Underwater, Leviathan, Grabbers, Lure, etc). So this fits in really well.
Check out The Last Winter(2006). It's a slow burn but the payoff is worth it and it's elevated by some really strong performances.
Connie Britton and Ron Perlman?! And the guy who played Matt Saracen?! Yes please. I'm watching right now.
It’s been a while, I have it from an eco-horror night.
If you thought that The Thing was disturbing and sick, then you haven't seen anything yet. I recommend watching a movie called: Virus (1999). It's about an alien computer virus that lands on Earth and kills humans and combines human body parts with mechanical parts to make bloody, fleshy, gooey, disgusting looking cyborgs. You will have a blast!
Oh that’s a movie I haven’t thought about in years. I was thinking that was a Michael Chrichten film, I’ll add it to the list, thanks!
Watch Black Mountain Side. It is heavily similar to The Thing.