We usuallygo to the moviesto escape reality. Why think about our dead-end jobs, relationship woes, and global pandemics when we can wander into fantastic medieval lands or travel across galaxies? Sometimes, though, we like to watch movies that remind us of our (occasionally miserable) reality. As society continues to deal with COVID-19, it might seem bizarre to want to spend more time watching stories about pandemics and diseases, but sometimes, it can be entertaining or comforting to watch Hollywood’s depictions of actual life.
Update July 20, 2025: This article has been updated with even more films about pandemics and viruses.
TheCOVID-19 pandemic changed the worldforever, giving audiences a new appreciation for films focused on global pandemics. What seemed like science fiction has now become an everyday reality. It can be comforting to watch a more extreme version of a pandemic to feel better about not having to run away from zombies; pandemic films can also offer great suspense and thrills. Here are some of the best movies about viruses and pandemics ranked.
22Viral (2016)
Viralis a sci-fi horror drama written by Christopher Landon and Barbara Marshall and co-directed by Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman. The story is set in suburban California as a middle-class family moves in. A couple with two kids begins life anew when suddenly a student falls ill, showing symptoms such as endless hunger and coughing blood. Two sisters are forced to survive on their own after their parents get stranded at an airport when their town is quarantined.
What Makes It Great
Audiences are used to gettinghits from Blumhouse Productions, as the studio has an ongoing offering of great horror stories. Viral features the acting talents of Michael Kelly, Sofia Black-D’Elia, and Lio Tipton. The cast delivers an excellent performance as a family facing several unsolved issues straining their relationships. The story focuses on them trying to make peace while facing the adversity of the virus overtaking their new home.
Stream on Tubi
21#Alive (2020)
It’s challenging to state if the release of#Alivewas well-timed or not. This movie, written and directed by Cho Il-hyung, was released in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic as the world was facing lockdowns everywhere. Starring Yoo Ah-in and Park Shin-hye, the story is focused on a young man named Joon-woo who suddenly finds himself locked up in his home after zombies overrun his neighborhood.
Despitebeing a zombie film,#Alivefeels all too familiar, as the movie explores themes of isolation, survival, and anguish. Joon-woo has barely any supplies to survive, and going outside means risking his life. His luck changes when he meets Kim Yoo-bin, a neighbor in another building better equipped to survive.#Aliveis a powerful story exploring the resilience of the human spirit and how people deceive themselves for the sake of hope.
Stream on Netflix
20Containment (2015)
Containmentis a thriller written by David Lemon and directed by Neil Mcenery-West, starring Lee Ross, Sheila Reid, and Louise Brealey. The story is set in a council block in Weston, Southampton, in the United Kingdom. It all begins with Mark suddenly waking up in his apartment only to realize all exits have been blocked by men in Hazmat suits. With no explanation other than an intercom voice telling him over and over to remain calm, Mark must figure out what exactly is happening outside.
Containmentis a claustrophobic film by nature. The storylures you into a mysterious situationsimultaneously as Mark, with no knowledge about what’s going on or why this is happening. The presence of soldiers and doctors in Hazmat suits tells us that some form of outbreak must be affecting the general public, but we don’t get much else. Mark begins breaking the walls of his flat to get in contact with his neighbors, who are as clueless as he is in a harrowing, desperate experience.
19World War Z (2013)
World War Z
You better learn how to run quickly if you want to survive this fast-paced horror film. Featuring one of the scariest and speediest zombies in movie history,World War Zfollows a UN worker, played by Brad Pitt, who is racing to find the origins and cure of a global zombie pandemic. The film was based on the 2006 Max Brooks novel of the same name and received positive reviews for Brad Pitt’s performance and for its thrilling portrayal of zombies, which kept viewers on the edge of their seats. The epic CGI sequences of zombie swarms have become iconic images in the genre.
The originalWorld War Znovel is often cited as a work to criticize government ineptitude, corporate corruption, and human short-sightedness. The film does away with those perceptions by making most governing bodies somewhat competent and able to collaborate to avert a more significant disaster. The film could be a great example of real-life collaboration between dividing factions who look forward to their similarities instead of their differences to overcome a crisis.
Stream on Paramount+
18REC (2007)
Some of the best atmospheric horror is created overseas.RECis ahorror movie filmed in Spainand was later remade for the American market as Quarantine, which is not bad but lacks all the nuance that makes the original such a great story. The found-footage horror movie is directed by Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza, with a script by Jaume Balagueró and Luiso Berdejo. The film follows a TV reporter and her cameraman documenting the night shift at a fire station. The competent cast features Manuela Velasco, Ferran Terraza, and Jorge-Yamam Serrano.
The movie begins by showcasing a casual endeavor. When a group of firemen responds to a distress call from an apartment building, a filming crew and the first responders find themselves trapped with the rest of the residents, who are infected by a mysterious virus that turns them into bloodthirsty zombies. It’s a tense and impactful film, with many twists and turns, especially the shocking ending.
Stream on Prime Video
Pontypool: How the Horror Movie Depicts Language as a Virus
Here’s how the indie horror film Pontypool utilizes words as the catalyst for a zombie outbreak the likes of which we have never seen before.
17Death in Venice (1971)
Some films tell a unique story while using a desperate scenario as background.Death in Veniceis an extremely creepy film about a man falling in love with a boy whose feminine traits are inexplicably enticing. The story takes place in Venice during a Cholera outbreak. The movie is written and directed by Luchino Visconti, with the assistance of Nicola Badalucco, and based on a novel of the same name by Thomas Mann. The cast includes solid acting from Dirk Bogarde, Romolo Valli, and Mark Burns, who all help sell the story.
The movie tells the story of Gustav von Aschenbach, a famous composer who travels to Venice for a holiday. With the city struck by a cholera outburst epidemic, Gustav struggles with the feelings of obsession he’s developing for the young boy. Unwilling to admit his feelings, the man struggles with memories of artistic integrity and a gradual physical and mental decline. The creepiness steadily ramps up as time goes on, resulting in a movie that willkeep you up for days.
Buy on PVOD
16Black Death (2010)
Black Death
Not many films touch upon theBlack Death, but this film tells the tragic story of the Bubonic plague, a disease that ravaged Europe, killing nearly 25 million people in five years. This period piece is a fantasy drama directed by Christopher Smith and written by Dario Poloni. The solid cast is full of beloved actors, such as Sean Bean, Eddie Redmayne, and Carice van Houten.
The story is set at the height of the 14th century, as a young monk is forced to join a group of knights on a mission to investigate the rumors about a remote village that seems unaffected by the plague. During their travels, the posse must face the horrors of the epidemic while a mysterious necromancer is out to make their lives a living hell. Being a period piece, the film is set apart from many others listed here in the way it disregards science for the exploration of faith and the moral complexities regarding the survival of the cast.
15Flu (2013)
Before COVID caused worldwide fear, we faced a similar pandemic before. The avian influenza outbreak started in 1997 in Hong Kong and peaked for most of the early 2000s.Flurecreates a fictional scenario where the disease is much worse than it actually was. The movie is written and directed by Kim Sung-su with the assistance of Lee Young-jong and features the talents of Jang Hyuk, Soo Ae, and Ma Dong-Seok.
The movie depicts an outbreak of a lethal strain of H5N1 in the city of Bundang. With the virus spreading like wildfire, one doctor and one epidemic specialist must race against time to find a cure and prevent a bigger catastrophe. The film’s excellent script, mixed with a great editing job, gives the movie perfect pacing while showcasing the devastating consequences of the highly contagious virus and the efforts to contain it.
14Blindness (2008)
InBlindness, we find the cast trapped in an unnamed city when sudden-onset blindness sweeps through the place. The central storyline takes place in a hospital, as more patients gather in the location, turning it into a concentration camp. A blind man with a gun forces everyone to do his bidding while the unaffected try their best to survive. The movie, directed by Fernando Meirelles and based on the novel by José Saramago, features a script by Don McKellar and the acting talents of Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, and Danny Glover.
Very few pandemic movies explore outbreaks from a single point of view. Most of the films in the list have a general outlook on the disease affecting the population; even if there’s a designated surrogate with a central POV, we get to see the struggles of the general populace. Blindness is notable for not giving any of the characters in the story a name. The central conflict aimsto show that society has fallen, and only the blind men with the larger stick can call themselves king now.
Stream on Pluto TV
13Bird Box (2018)
Bird Boxis a 2018 post-apocalyptic thriller film by director Susanne Bier, based on the 2014 Josh Malerman movie of the same name. The film stars Sandra Bullock in the lead role and follows her as she and her two young children as they embark on a dangerous journey to find refuge after an unknown phenomenon destroys society by influencing nearly everyone to commit suicide. The catch? They must remain blindfolded or risk contracting the mysterious illness. The film includes flashbacks to when the “entity” appeared five years earlier and shows the catastrophic effects and how Bullock’s character managed to survive.
With enough gore to be included in the horror genre, the film details a horrific supernatural pandemic, and the fear of getting “caught” is palpable. ThoughBird Boxreceived mixed reviews from critics who believed the film didn’t quite live up to its narrative potential, it soon became the most-viewed film on Netflix in the 28 days following its release on the platform. In 2020, author Josh Malerman penned a novel sequel toBird BoxcalledMalorie,and the film adaptation is reportedly in development with Netflix.
