We look at 7 Satanic horror movies that have sort of fallen through the pop culture cracks

Satan is everywhere! Since the dawn of cinema, Satan has been a presence, a point of fascination, especially in horror pictures which were — and remain — in essence, simple morality tales of good against evil; God against the Devil. In fact, the first recognized horror film ever made had a dash of Old Scratch in it, Georges Méliès‘ 1896 The Manor of the Devil and since then, Lucifer has been standing around, waiting for his turn to penetrate pop culture via the movies.

Of course, the spike in more serious-minded Satanic horror came in the late 1960s, specifically with the international attention given to Roman Polanski’s 1968 masterpiece Rosemary’s Baby, with the Devil infiltrating the life of an average woman who simply wants to have a child and a happy life. The domesticity of the Devil continued with landmark movies like 1973’s The Exorcist, 1976’s The Omen and even Michael Winner’s 1977 chiller The Sentinel, not to mention the glut of fantastic revisionist Satanic thrillers like 1975’s Race with the Devil and the endless spate of European knock-offs like Beyond the Door, Holocaust 2000 and more. And with The Exorcist and The Omen being turned into TV shows with varying results (and DC’s Lucifer coming back for a third season this fall), the Devil is, er, hotter than ever.

But for every household name Satanic horror film, there are dozens of magnificent Mephisto-centric shockers that fall through the cracks. Today, we pick seven of our favorite underrated Devil-soaked flicks that need top be held in higher regard. Have a look and share your own favorite Satanic horror movies in the comments section below!