6 scary movies and shows to watch instead of panicking over the election

It's Election Day and regardless of how you feel about the United States and the primary candidates in the running, today is often one of anxiety and stress for many. Instead of spending hours doom-scrolling through various social media apps, why not take a break and zone out with a few scary movies or settle in to binge-watch episodes of a thematically similar television show?

From The Purge: Election Year to television shows like American Horror Story, here are a few options to keep your mind occupied this Election Day.

The Purge: Election Year (2017)

The third entry into The Purge franchise is easily the most on-the-nose election movie you could watch this week. Released in 2017, there are many references to our real political and social climate at the time baked into this film. Elizabeth Mitchell stars as female senator Charlie Roan, who intends to run for President and end Purge nights for good.

Frank Grillo reprises his role as Leo Barnes from The Purge: Anarchy, with Leo now serving as Roan's chief of security. Together, they must do whatever it takes to survive the latest Purge and protect themselves from the people who would prefer Charlie dead and the Purge nights to continue.

American Horror Story: Cult

A polarizing season amid a show full of them, American Horror Story: Cult has almost as much relevance today as it did when it premiered in 2017.

Many fans of the long-running horror anthology series feel that Cult is one of the worst of the seasons, but there are some who appreciate just how over-the-top it is and the fact it is the only season not to feature the supernatural. Evan Peters again received significant praise for his unhinged performance as cult leader Kai Anderson, who leads his followers on a rampage of terror after Donald Trump wins the election.

Mars Attacks! (1996)

One of Tim Burton's best films, Mars Attacks! is a hilarious sci-fi film about aliens from Mars invading Earth while the sitting president must decide whether they are actually here to open peaceful negotiations or if they have something more sinister in mind. Jack Nicholson, Pierce Brosnan, Glenn Close, Annette Bening, Danny DeVito, Martin Short, and more star in this cult classic.

The Boys

While it's not specifically a horror show, there's no denying that Amazon's darkly satirical superhero series can be incredibly bold and gory. It has plenty of terrifying elements and it's very topical and relevant.

Executive produced by Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen, The Boys is set in a world where the superheroes, or "Supes," as they're known, are selfish individuals who frequently abuse their powers, leaving a team of vigilantes to try and keep them in line. The Boys has been renewed for a fifth and final season.

Cloverfield (2008)

There's nothing overtly political about Cloverfield, but maybe that's a good thing. Here is a found-footage monster movie that will completely take your mind off of everything going on in the real world.

What would happen if humans were forced to work together to combat an existential alien threat? Like Mars Attacks! but with a more straightforward horror approach, Cloverfield kicked off a new sci-fi franchise with multiple spinoff movies. But none of them top the original yet. It really helped to revitalize the found-footage genre and monster movies, too.

Civil War (2024)

Alex Garland's dystopian thriller was released earlier this year and remains as relevant as ever. Set in a near future that is almost too terrifyingly realistic, Civil War focuses on the United States in the midst of another civil war, one that broke out amid an authoritarian government coming into power.

The film centers on a group of war journalists traveling to Washington, D.C., where the rebels are set to overtake the capital city. The film stars Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura, and Cailee Spaeny