30 of the Horniest Erotic Thrillers Ever Made
What happened to the erotic thriller? There’s something of a bell-shaped curve in the prevalence of sexy programmers, rising with the weakening of the production code in the late 1960s, peaking in the ’80s with prestige products like Fatal Attraction , and falling off by the mid-2000s and cultural dominance franchising. Today’s box office values big-budget, four-part blockbusters, making marketing films about adult sexuality nearly impossible.
Streaming has opened a window for films reminiscent of the erotic thrillers of yore, but the ones they used to make—with dark plots and big stars—are still decidedly absent from theaters. (Genre master Adrian Lyne even returned to the director’s chair for 2022’s Ben Affleck and Ana de Armas Hulu thriller Deep Water , which was a welcome, if largely panned, return.) Sex on the big screen is creeping up again as the superhero wave recedes, the amount of sex on the big screen has nearly halved since 2000. Many will say that this is good; these people are wrong.
Yes, there is something to criticize, even in the best examples of the form. Sex is often more exciting than realistic; The films were also almost always written and directed by men and emphasized the male point of view, and many of the women who starred in them had a rough time of it (see Sharon Stone’s oft-repeated accusation that the iconic nude scene in Basic Instinct” included some nasty trickery on the part of director Paul Verhoeven). It’s also likely that explicit imagery isn’t a requirement for erotica, as some of these films suggest, but we’re not here to be sanctimonious.
Yet it remains curious that sex seems to have virtually disappeared from mainstream films released in cinemas. So, without further ado, let’s celebrate some of the best – or at least most interesting – examples of films that aren’t being made anymore.
Dressed to Kill (1980)
Any erotic thriller worth its salt pays at least some homage to Alfred Hitchcock, film noir, or both, and director Brian De Palma set the tone with Dressed to Kill , a racy mystery involving a sex worker (Nancy Allen) who witnesses a murder. and becomes both the prime suspect and the killer’s likely next victim. This style is simply amazing and there is a reason why it started a new trend; the mixture of classic stereotypes and explicit sex is too hot to handle. However, without spoiling too much, it very much comes from an era in cinema where queer representation was limited to absolutely shitty killers, and therefore loses some points for falling back on lazy (and overused, even in 1980 ) stereotypes.
Where to stream: MGM+, Fubo
Dangerous Game (1993)
Provocative director Abel Ferrara is perhaps best known for Bad Lieutenant , and Madonna’s very brief erotic thriller phase is usually represented in Body of Evidence . However, Dangerous Game is better than both of them: brutal and immediate, with a pair of stunning lead performances from Harvey Keitel and Madonna. Keitel plays an independent director increasingly obsessed with the low-budget family drama he’s making, while Madonna plays a young actress whose confidence is gradually undermined by the role and her director’s increasingly frantic demands.
Where to watch: Roku channel, PlutoTV.
Body Double (1984)
Much less successful than his earlier film Dressed to Kill , Brian De Palma’s Body Double is in many ways a better film, featuring more sex and violence while simplifying the plot and narrowing the focus. Craig Wasson plays Scully, a failed actor living in the Hollywood Hills. Bored and looking through his home telescope, he notices a beautiful woman and then, of course, witnesses her murder. He finds himself a suspect in the case and is thrust into the world of Hollywood pornography when he enlists the help of adult film actress Holly (played in a career role by Melanie Griffith) to solve the case. There’s nothing particularly sympathetic about Scully – he’s alternately a cheater and a bad decision-maker – and that’s as it should be. As with the best classic noir, we’re not rooting for Scully; we are witnessing its long fall.
Where to watch: Netflix
Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
As an erotic thriller, Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut is a bit of a bait-and-switch, but only a little bit. The teasers promised nothing less than a glimpse into the bedroom of then-power couple Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise, with Kubrick doing for cinematic fucking what he did for space travel or creepy hotels. And he does, but not in the way we expected: Bill Harford (Cruise) goes on a long night journey involving murder and sex clubs full of R-rated perverts, discovering the dangers of raw arousal and the inhuman nature of sexual obsession. For his latest film, Kubrick created an erotic thriller that defies the expectations of the genre.
Where to watch: digital rental.
Angel Heart (1987)
Mickey Rourke plays private member Harry Angel, contracted by Robert De Niro’s Louis Cypher to search for the missing iconic singer. Not only does Angel’s leads constantly end up dead, but he crosses paths with Epiphany Proudfoot (Lisa Bonet), the singer’s daughter, with whom he enjoys unforgettable rough sex. There’s a ton of style and eroticism on display here, as well as some questionable voodoo aesthetics, but the film is memorable for its combination of tones and performances, especially by Bonet and Rourke.
Where to stream: Hoopla, Kanopy.
9 1/2 weeks (1986)
The film, which helped catapult director Adrian Lyne ( Fatal Attraction , Indecent Proposal , Infidels and 2022’s Deep Water ), into stardom, was also co-written by Zalman King, of Red Shoe Diaries fame. In that sense, it’s a team-up of erotic thriller royalty that’s still mostly effective thanks to early-career performances from Mickey Rourke and Kim Basinger. Much like its era’s Fifty Shades of Gray (minus the real heat), Rourke plays a Wall Street trader who leads Basinger’s art gallery assistant down an increasingly winding road.
Rourke, who by then was at a completely different stage in his career, starred in the direct-to-video sequel in 1997, but stayed away from the equally cheap 1998 prequel . That’s all to say, you could spend quite a bit of time in the hot 9 1/2 Weeks verse if you’re so inclined.
Where to watch: digital rental.
Fatal Attraction (1987)
“The Elements of Fatal Attraction” isn’t nearly as compelling today as it was three decades ago, but it remains a tense, suspenseful thriller that carried its adult sexuality (including a memorably awkward kitchen sink sequence) all the way to the Oscars; although it didn’t win anything, the film was nominated in every top category. Glenn Close (as femme fatale Alex) is clearly having the time of her life playing a frustrated woman who goes completely nuts over married Dan (Michael Douglas). The production reeks of “women, amirite?”, but the script is smart enough to recognize that Dan isn’t a hero either, and these two bring real heat.
Where to watch: Prime Video, Paramount+, MGM+.
Troyes (2000)
What we think of as the erotic thriller genre is overwhelmingly white. The major studios, which already had little interest in making or promoting films about black people, were clearly even less interested in addressing issues of sexuality among POC characters. This restraint is largely why Troyes stands out, even if it doesn’t subvert genre stereotypes in any other way. But it’s also a juicy drama in its own right, about a man who persuades his wife to join him in a threesome, only to discover that their choice of third was unwise. As an independent film, it did respectable business and enjoyed great success among black audiences. It spawned two less successful but overall sweatier sequels.
Where to watch: Prime Video, Tubi
No Exit (1987)
There’s a lot of Hitchcock in the more overtly sexual thrillers of the ’80s and ’90s, reflecting a full expression of the master’s more subdued eroticism (Hitch himself seemed keen late in his career to explore filmmaking with greater freedom in cinema). like Frenzy ). The neo-noir No Way Out certainly doesn’t reach the heights of the films that inspired it, but it does make a lot of sense out of a twisty plot involving a love triangle between Kevin Costner, Sean Young and Gene Hackman (!) of a murder in which Costner is the chief investigator. as well as the main suspect. It’s not the most popular film of the era, but there’s real chemistry here as Costner’s all-American charm plays well against Young during the early peak of her career—and before Hollywood misogyny pushed her aside .
Where to watch: Tubi, MGM+, Pluto TV.
Bad Influence (1990)
The female characters in this Curtis Hanson film are almost entirely random, if you couldn’t tell from the poster, which features Rob Lowe, James Spader, and a plain-looking woman whose face we don’t see. Nebbishi Michael (James Spader) begins to befriend the more experienced Alex (Rob Lowe), embarking on adventures involving sex, drugs and minor crimes. And it’s all great and fun until Michael realizes that thrill-loving Alex is 100% going to kill him. The film loses points for its lack of significant female presence (and for being a terrible choice for a comeback after Lowe’s teen sex tape scandal), but stands out for centering its sexual chemistry around its two mismatched male leads.
Where to stream: MGM+
Basic Instinct (1992)
A true pop culture phenomenon in both its controversy and quality, Basic Instinct received a pair of Academy Award nominations and also received numerous accolades for Sharon Stone’s career. Director Paul Verhoeven ( Showgirls ) knows all about elevating dark material to the level of art, or at least the level of art, so the film works even though its central mystery doesn’t make much sense. Michael Douglas plays a police detective investigating a murder who becomes involved in a heated and sometimes strange romance with the main suspect, Catherine Tramell (Stone). By the time the film was released, the bisexual serial killer trope had already become an outdated stereotype, but there is no doubt that Catherine Trammell is a memorable (and, I suppose, sex-positive) villain. Stone starred in the big-budget and utterly unforgettable 2006 sequel.
Where to watch: Prime Video, Paramount+.
In the kingdom of feelings (1976)
Typically, the erotic thriller gravitates towards noir and neo-noir, but I included this Japanese classic about sex, obsession and severed dicks because the true crime-inspired story set in the 1930s has all the ingredients, even if the setting is a little further than usual. Nagisa Oshima’s provocative psychosexual tale combines some non-simulation sex with undertones of horror in its tale of love and murder, based on the true story of geisha, sex worker, and unlikely folk hero Sada Abe (flawlessly played by Eiko Matsuda). . It’s a beautifully hypnotic film, appropriately titled, that culminates in a truly shocking act of violence. The original X rating was updated to NC-17 in 1991.
Where to watch: Criterion Channel.
Single White Female (1992)
The elevator ad is so compelling that the term “single white female” remains in the pop culture lexicon: Ellie (Bridget Fonda), looking for a roommate, takes in Hedy (Jennifer Jason Leigh), who becomes so obsessed with her new landlord that she wants become her. In that sense, it’s effective, although it’s a little more disturbing than you remember: Hedy was the latest and perhaps greatest in a long line of crazed, murderous lesbians (the gay sex scene is filmed as if we’re suddenly in a horror movie). ). The film also suggests, like many other films, that girlfriends are always one step away from killing each other. However, it is stylishly made, surprisingly funny and features two great central performances.
Where to watch: digital rental.
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)
There’s nothing explicit here, but that’s no particular requirement: it’s all sublimated longing for the sweaty Mediterranean, this adaptation bringing the subtext of Patricia Highsmith’s novel (barely) to the fore like no adaptation before or since. Sociopathic crook Tom Ripley (Matt Damon) becomes obsessed with Jude Law’s Dickie Greenleaf, wanting to be with him as much as he wants to be him. The result was a less than healthy relationship, especially for Dickie.
Where to watch: Paramount+
Indecent Proposal (1993)
Another Adrian Lyne drama that finds a strange place in the pop culture zeitgeist of the early ’90s. She wonders what would happen if Robert Redford performed a play for your spouse, backing his offer with a cool $1 million. In the world of 2022, where relationships become more fluid, the answer will be either more or less complex; in 1993 it was scandalous.
Where to watch: Prime Video, Paramount+.
Mulholland Drive (2001)
Mulholland Drive follows “Rita” (Laura Herring), an actress who suffers amnesia after a car accident in Los Angeles and is matched with a healthy Midwestern transplant (Naomi Watts), intent on becoming a star. The two try to discover Rita’s true identity before having some undeniably hot sex. The moment of intimacy becomes the turning point in the film, after which the walls of reality crumble and we are thrown into a world that is more overtly noirish and bordering on horror.
Where to watch: Criterion Channel.
The Last Seduction (1994)
Linda Fiorentino plays one of the greatest femme fatales of all time in this film about a woman who wants to get away from her unhappy marriage. After first convincing her husband (Bill Pullman) to sell cocaine (as everyone does), she creates a sort of seduction pyramid with the goal of eventually returning to the one who kills her husband. Fiorentino’s character is so good and so well written that we find ourselves rooting for her all the time.
Where to watch: Peacock, Tubi, Freevee, The Roku Channel, Shout Factory TV.
Bound (1996)
The film that introduced the world to the Wachowski family came at just the right time: independent films were beginning to make an impact on mainstream audiences, and queer content was beginning to make its way into films intended for wide release. It doesn’t hurt that Bound is incredibly sexy and a smart neo-noir inspired by Billy Wilder. Gina Gershon and Jennifer Tilly are one of the most powerful cinema couples of all time; while the erotic thriller genre tends to lean toward lesbian exploitation, the presence of feminist sex educator Susie Bright and two yet-to-be-coming trans women behind the camera almost entirely avoids these stereotypes.
Where to watch: Pluto TV.
Body Warmth (1981)
Kathleen Turner stars in Lawrence Kasdan’s neo-noir as a top-tier femme fatale, matching the energy of Barbara Stanwyck in Double Indemnity , on whom it is loosely based, but wears far less clothing. She plays the wife of a wealthy businessman who drags William Hurt into a plot (involving Mickey Rourke) to kill her husband and run away together (he thinks). Sex here is part of the game she plays with William Hurt, even though he thinks he is playing with her.
Where to watch: digital rental.
Color of Night (1994)
I’m not here to argue that The Color of Night is a brilliant piece of filmmaking. Honestly, it’s pretty silly, but it’s no less than entertaining, a burlesque take on the erotic thriller genre (unintentionally, I think?), including some memorable, risqué sex scenes. Bruce Willis plays Dr. Bill Capa, who witnesses a bloody tragedy that leaves him no longer able to see the color red. A trip to Los Angeles to get away from it all turns out to be a bad idea after he becomes embroiled in his friend’s murder mystery and begins an affair with the enigmatic Rose (Jane March). The impressive supporting cast includes Reuben Blades, Lesley Ann Warren and Scott Bakula.
Where to watch: digital rental.
Obsessed (2009)
As I think we’ve established by now, there are erotic thrillers that function as legitimate cinema, and others that function quite successfully as guilty pleasures. While the best can do both, there’s something to be said for a film that’s both exhilarating and a little silly. This is Taken , in which a successful black couple is completely terrorized by a crazed and desperately horny white woman (Ali Larter) from work. One of the reasons it works, maybe the only reason, is that they cast Beyoncé and Idris Elba in the lead roles. Without spoiling too much, the climactic fight between Beyoncé and Larter’s character won the MTV Award for Best Fight.
Where to watch: digital rental.
Vertigo (1958)
Alfred Hitchcock inspired much of the erotic thriller genre, even if he mostly worked in an era that required a little more sophistication, which he wasn’t a huge fan of, and pushed those boundaries as much as possible at every opportunity. Vertigo , while not explicit, is one of his most erotic films—and his most disturbing. James Stewart plays Scotty Ferguson, a retired cop hired to keep an eye on an old friend’s wife, fearing for her mental state. Scotty falls in love with Madeline (Kim Novak) before she falls to her death. When the clinically depressed Scottie meets her doppelgänger, his obsession drives her to transform the woman into the perfect image of Madeleine.
Where to watch: Prime Video
Death Rings (1988)
David Cronenberg followed up The Fly with similarly disturbing psychological nonsense. Jeremy Irons plays both gynecologist twins Beverly and Elliot Mantle, with the more outgoing Elliot seducing women and passing them off to the shy Beverly. Everything goes well (for the creepy brothers) until Beverly develops feelings for Claire (Genevieve Bujold), which puts a strain on the brothers’ relationship. Other films of the era might have played this out for titillation, but David Cronenberg is fully aware of how unnerving it all is, allowing the film to descend into something very close to horror before the final act.
Where to watch: Peacock, Tubi, Freevee, Shout Factory TV.
Maid (2016)
Director Park Chan-wook, best known for his stylish, over-the-top violent thrillers like Oldboy and Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance , has channeled his talent for wonderful excess into the genre in question, creating one of the best and most twisted examples of the form. The film is set in Korea under Japanese occupation in the 1930s. The film follows thief Suki (Kim Tae Ri) who plots to deceive a wealthy heiress (Kim Min Hee) by becoming her maid, but complications arise when she develops feelings for her target. . Twist follows twist as sex and romance lead to violence and betrayal – and that’s exactly what we sat down for.
Where to watch: Prime Video
Wild Things (1998)
Depending on the viewer, Wild Things is either complete trash or a brilliant ode to trash (obviously not the only film on this list that blurs that line). The plot begins with an unpleasant episode about a false rape accusation, but continues with a seemingly endless series of twists and red herrings involving the trio of Matt Dillon, Neve Campbell and Denise Richards. Hardly a scene goes by that doesn’t involve some new revelation, building a love triangle that becomes a love quadrangle (at least) with the addition of Kevin Bacon, who offers some memorable, and rare-for-the-genre, male nudity.
Where to watch: Netflix
Cruel Intentions (1999)
“Coming of age” is almost the defining quality of erotic films, so Cruel Intentions is almost as much a parody of the genre as it is a stand-alone thriller. It’s also a teen take on the French novel Les Liaisons Dangerous , already adapted as Liaisons Dangereuses and Valmont , which means there’s a lot to unpack here. Or perhaps you’re better off just enjoying this cult classic for the sappy, intentionally cheesy entertainment that it is. Reese Witherspoon plays Annette, who is determined to stay “pure” until marriage, which is a stroke of luck in the face of the horny and conniving couple played by Sarah Michelle Gellar and Ryan Phillippe.
Where to watch: Freevee
Unfaithful (2002)
Just as director Adrian Lyne was ushering in the genre’s golden age, he dropped in to spend it with Unfaithful , a thriller with a setup that’s clear from the title: Diane Lane plays Richard Gere’s bored wife when she accidentally meets the man with whom she begins an affair. Annnnnddd hints at an imminent murder. Overall it’s average, but Lane’s Academy Award-nominated performance is worth it.
Where to watch: Hulu
Stranger by the Lake (2013)
Erotic thrillers peaked in the ’90s and largely died out (except in the direct-to-video market) by the turn of the century, so much so that this 2013 French film feels like an homage to an older form, much in the same way as some of the best thrillers of the 80s paid homage to film noir. Here Pierre Deladonchamps plays Franck, a regular visitor to the nudist beach and surrounding forests – popular destinations for cruises. Frank begins a passionate relationship (meaning: lots of sex in the woods) with Michel (Christophe Pauw), who Frank later spots drowning someone in a lake. The investigation into this event heats up, and Frank is forced to give up a good cause, even in the face of murder. Like any good erotic thriller, the better the sex, the more risks Frank will take.
Where to watch: Kanopy
Deep Water (2022)
Adrian Lyne ( 9.5 Weeks , Fatal Attraction and Indecent Proposal) returned to the director’s chair after a two-decade absence from this Hulu original. Ben Affleck is probably the rough equivalent of past leading men in star power and sex appeal, and Ana de Armas is a good choice as the second lead, even if the casting reminds us that the age gap in these films will always favor the idea of an older man with a much younger woman. Here, Affleck’s Vic agrees to ignore his wife’s string of affairs to save his marriage, but then becomes the prime suspect when her lovers start turning up dead. It’s a solid setup (taken from Patricia Highsmith’s novel) that isn’t entirely coherent, but still serves as a reminder that there’s a bit of life in the time-tested genre.
Where to watch: Hulu
Saltburn (2023)
Yes, it’s a bit like The Talented Mr. Ripley without the subtext, but maybe we’re past the subtext at this point. Scholarship student Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan) makes his way into the life of the popular, handsome and impressively wealthy Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi). Oliver is willing to take whatever he can get, but he’s also genuinely obsessed with Felix, creating romantic moments in the bathtub and over an open grave. If Oliver can’t have Felix AND his lavish life and lavish estate, he’ll take the other one, thank you.
Where to watch: Prime Video