Modern horror filmmakers have long mined maternal relationships for fear and tension, exploring how love, protection, and identity can warp into something sinister. Standouts like The Babadook (2014) plunge into grief and postpartum dread, portraying a widowed mother fighting a monster that’s both supernatural and psychological . Toni Collette’s performance in Hereditary (2018) elevates the genre, presenting a matriarch whose grief spins into generational horror - an emotionally crushing and claustrophobic descent . Roman Polanski’s classic Rosemary’s Baby (1968) remains a masterclass in paranoia and control, depicting a woman who suspects even her pregnancy is sinister.

Recent entries like Huesera: The Bone Woman (2022) rethink folklore, blending body horror with cultural commentary as a pregnant woman confronts dark fables about motherhood . And films like Mama (2013) fuse supernatural caregiving and twisted empathy, exploring what it means to protect at all costs .

Each film dives into maternal expectations - from the nurturing to the nightmarish - creating stories that are as emotionally resonant as they are terrifying.