8 Chilling Movies Based on Ed Gein, the Killer Who Inspired a Horror Empire

Netflix’s Monster: The Ed Gein Story dropped on Oct. 3, 2025, and it is already reigniting America’s obsession with one of the most unsettling killers in true crime history. If you’re watching it on Netflix and thinking: Why does this all feel weirdly familiar? You’re not alone.

According to Vanity Fair, that’s because movies based on Ed Gein have been quietly haunting pop culture for decades, shaping some of the most iconic (and grotesque) horror stories of all time.

Ed was not the most prolific killer — not by a long shot. But the sheer weirdness of his story? The grave robbing, the skin masks, the mommy issues? That became the blueprint for a brand-new kind of villain: the quiet loner hiding horrifying secrets in plain sight. From psychological thrillers to grindhouse slashers, here are eight unforgettable films inspired by his truly bizarre legacy.

Let’s start at the source. Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho was based on a novel by Robert Bloch, who lived just miles from Ed’s now-infamous Plainfield farm.

The story of Norman Bates — a socially awkward motel manager with a terrifying relationship to his dead mother — mirrors Ed’s own life in some unsettling ways. From the preserved bedrooms to the deep emotional dependency, the DNA of Psycho is unmistakably Ed’s.

Leatherface may swing a chainsaw, but his real weapon of choice? Skin. Director Tobe Hooper was inspired by stories of Ed he heard as a child and turned those disturbing details into one of horror’s most enduring icons. The flesh masks, bone furniture, and rural isolation were all borrowed straight from the real-life nightmare.

Sure, Hannibal Lecter is the face of this one, but it’s Buffalo Bill who owes the most to Ed. The whole “woman suit” concept? That’s not fiction — it’s history. Ed reportedly crafted a skin vest and other pieces from the bodies he exhumed or killed. It wasn’t about identity or power — it was about transformation, in the most literal, skin-crawling way possible.

If you’re after a more direct portrayal, Deranged is it. The character Ezra Cobb is a thinly veiled stand-in for Ed, right down to the taxidermy, grave robbing, and dinner conversations with his dead mother. It’s shot like a faux-documentary, which only makes it feel more disturbing — and more real.

This low-budget biopic doesn’t pull many punches. Steve Railsback plays Ed as the soft-spoken oddball locals always said he was, while quietly spiraling into madness behind closed doors. It doesn’t sensationalize much, but it does capture the creepiness of that lonely farmhouse where so many dark secrets were kept.

Now we’re in grindhouse territory. Kane Hodder (yep, Friday the 13th’s Jason Voorhees) plays Ed as more of a slasher-style villain in this gore-heavy reimagining. It’s definitely not aiming for historical accuracy — but if you want guts, chains, and unhinged mayhem, it delivers.

Leave it to Steve Buscemi to bring a little humor into the mix. This weird little horror-comedy follows a lonely man who brings his mother back to life ... only to find out she’s got a hunger for human flesh. While it’s a much sillier spin, the inspiration is clear: grief, obsession, and one very clingy mom.

Inspired more by Psycho than Ed directly, this backwoods slasher still echoes his story. Billy, a seemingly sweet farm boy, brings women home, where things go very wrong under the influence of his religious fanatic father. The twisty logic of “protecting mother” at all costs? Pure Ed energy.

Even outside of movies, Ed’s legacy lives on. Bates Motel, the Psycho prequel series, gives us a deep dive into the fractured relationship between Norman and his mother — one that feels chillingly familiar. Across decades of storytelling, Ed’s real-life horrors have been reimagined, repackaged, and reintroduced to audiences again and again.

So if you’re watching Monster and feel like you've seen it all before … you kind of have. That, however, is what makes Ed such a lasting figure in pop culture: even when you know the story, it still gets under your skin.