What to read, watch, and listen to if you lovedThe Innocents
Jack Clayton · Film · 1961
If you loved The Innocents, start with The Innocents (Francesca Segal, 2012) — a book from the same story. Below: 3 books, 4 series and 2 podcasts, each matched to The Innocents across media.
You were drawn to The Innocents by the suffocating ambiguity that blurs the line between supernatural dread and fractured sanity.
Start with the source
Books on the same thread
The Haunting of Hill House
Shirley Jackson · Book · 1987
Shares 3 threads with The Innocents: gaslighting, Gothic Horror, Psychological Horror.
Like the governess in The Innocents, the characters here grapple with the uncanny, forcing you to question whether the terror is external or rooted in their own fraying minds.
The Exorcist
William Peter Blatty · Book · 1971
Shares a thread with The Innocents: Psychological Horror.
The Innocents masterfully explores the corruption of children, and this narrative pushes that theme to its extreme, examining the terrifying intersection of innocence, faith, and inexplicable demonic possession.
The Girl on the Train
Paula Hawkins · Book · 2015
Shares 2 threads with The Innocents: Unreliable Narrator, Gaslighting.
If the unreliable narrator in The Innocents kept you guessing, this domestic thriller mirrors that experience by trapping you within the distorted perception of a deeply compromised protagonist.
Series on the same thread
The Haunting of Hill House
Mike Flanagan · Series · 2018
Shares 2 threads with The Innocents: Psychological Horror, Gothic Horror.
This series expands on the gothic atmosphere of The Innocents, using a haunted home as a vessel for the traumatic secrets that poison a family from within.
The Haunting of Bly Manor
Mike Flanagan · Series · 2020
Shares 2 threads with The Innocents: Gothic Horror, Psychological Horror.
This modern reimagining captures the same haunting essence found in The Innocents, centering on a vulnerable caregiver trapped in a manor where the past refuses to stay buried.
The Exorcist
Jeremy Slater · Series · 2016
Shares 2 threads with The Innocents: Supernatural Horror, Psychological Horror.
Much like the spiritual and psychological conflict in The Innocents, this show pits faith against doubt while investigating the dark, corrupting forces that target vulnerable family members.
Servant
Tony Basgallop · Series · 2019
Shares 2 threads with The Innocents: Gaslighting, Supernatural Horror.
Echoing the domestic unrest of The Innocents, this series uses the guise of a household mystery to explore how profound grief can invite truly inexplicable and unsettling phenomena.
Podcasts on the same thread
The Minds of Madness - True Crime Stories
Podcast
Explores: violent crime, impact on survivors, criminal minds.
The Innocents thrives on psychological instability, and this podcast offers a real-world look at the fractured human psyche, mirroring the unsettling focus on disturbed and dangerous behavior.
Monsters Among Us
Derek Hayes | Audioboom Studios · Podcast · 2026
Explores: Unexplained Phenomena, First-hand Testimony, Atmospheric Horror.
If the atmospheric tension of The Innocents held your attention, these first-hand accounts provide a similar sense of dread by grounding supernatural mystery in intimate, unsettling human experience.
Keep exploring
Common questions
Is The Innocents based on a book?
The 1961 film The Innocents is a cinematic adaptation. While there is a 2012 book titled The Innocents, the film was originally based on the novella The Turn of the Screw by Henry James, rather than the 2012 publication.
What is the plot of The Innocents?
The Innocents follows a young governess tasked with caring for two children at a remote estate. She becomes convinced that the house and grounds are haunted by ghosts and that the children are being possessed by these spirits during her time at the property.
Should I watch The Innocents before reading the 2012 book titled The Innocents?
You can consume these works in any order. The 1961 movie The Innocents and the 2012 book titled The Innocents are distinct projects. The film is a classic adaptation of Henry James's work, whereas the 2012 book is a separate title that shares the same name.
Is The Innocents a ghost story?
Yes, The Innocents centers on a governess who believes the estate she inhabits is haunted. The narrative focuses on her growing conviction that ghosts are present on the grounds and that the two children in her care are suffering from supernatural possession.