Screenwriters and directors •
Brad Anderson – Ethan Anderton of firstshowing.net describes Anderson's psychological thrillers as "unique" and covering the theme of memory loss. •
Dario Argento – Italian director known for his
cult films in
giallo, horror, and psychological thrillers. He is often referred to as "the Italian Hitchcock". •
Darren Aronofsky – Frequently covers themes of madness, pursuit of perfection, and psychology. •
Park Chan-wook – Korean director who explored the genre in his "vengeance trilogy" (
Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance,
Oldboy, and
Lady Vengeance),
Stoker, and
The Handmaiden •
David Cronenberg –
Philip French states that Cronenberg is a "prime exponent" of a subgenre of psychological thrillers,
body horror: "stories of terror involving parasites, metamorphoses, diseases, decomposition and physical wounds". •
Brian De Palma – Called a cineaste by
Vincent Canby, de Palma is known for his psychological thrillers and horror films influenced by Alfred Hitchcock. •
Alfred Hitchcock – Hitchcock often applied
Freudian concepts to his thrillers, as in
Jamaica Inn,
Rebecca,
Spellbound,
Rear Window,
Vertigo,
Psycho and
Marnie. •
Satoshi Kon – Japanese anime director known for making psychological thrillers, such as
Perfect Blue and
Paprika. •
David Lynch – His surreal films have inspired the descriptor "Lynchian", which Jeff Jensen of
Entertainment Weekly defines as "bizarrely banal, or just plain trippy." •
Christopher Nolan – British-American director whose films deal with the mind, memory, and the line between fantasy and reality. •
Roman Polanski – Described as a "world class director" by Sheila Johnston of
The Independent, she states that his reputation was established by his "superb early psychological thrillers". •
Martin Scorsese – American director known for psychological thrillers such as
Taxi Driver,
Cape Fear and
Shutter Island. •
M. Night Shyamalan – Indian-American director known for making psychological thrillers that often have a
twist ending in them. •
Paul Verhoeven – Dutch director known for psychological thrillers that explore obsession, sexuality, and power, often blending provocation with social satire, as seen in
Basic Instinct,
The Fourth Man (1983 film) and
Elle (film).
Film Television Literature •
Humayun Ahmed – Known for a series of Bengali psychological thrillers based on a professor of psychology named
Misir Ali, which
The Daily Star called unique in Bengali literature. •
Nicci French – The
pseudonym of husband-and-wife team Nicci Gerrard and Sean French, authors of eleven best-selling psychological thrillers. •
Patricia Highsmith –
Reuters described her psychological thrillers as "intricately plotted" which existed in a "claustrophobic and irrational world". •
Henry James – Known for
The Turn of the Screw and other horror stories. •
Stephen King – John Levesque of the
Seattle Post-Intelligencer called Stephen King a "master of the psychological thriller". •
Minette Walters – The
Sun-Sentinel stated that Walters has gained a
cult following for her "dark, well-constructed psychological thrillers." •
Freida McFadden – The
New York Times published an article on "how Freida McFadden Conquered the Thriller Genre." She is one of the most popular and bestselling authors of psychological thrillers with more than 7 million copies sold across ebook, paperback and audio.
Animated series •
12 oz. Mouse •
Arcane •
The Boys Presents: Diabolical •
Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix •
Creature Commandos •
Hazbin Hotel •
Helluva Boss •
Invincible •
Knights of Guinevere •
Primal •
Rick and Morty •
Samurai Jack •
South Park Anime and manga Video games •
Alan Wake – Combines psychological thriller with
shooter gameplay. •
Heavy Rain –
Time called
Heavy Rain a combination of
Choose Your Own Adventure and psychological thriller in which players hunt down a serial killer. •
Hotline Miami – An independent top-down game with psychological aspects of crime-thriller genre influenced by several films. •
Silent Hill series as a whole. == References ==