5 Body Horrors to Watch Ahead of Together's UK Release

Neon's widely anticipated Together will be releasing later this week in the UK, providing us with another addition to the ever popular body horror subgenre. Michael Shanks' film follows Tim and Millie (played by real-life couple Dave Franco and Allison Brie) as they move to the countryside in an attempt to salvage their relationship. However, a mysterious force threatens to overturn their life, relationship and flesh forever. Together promises body horror galore, and as excitement builds for the newest Hollywood exploration into the subgenre, here are five of the finest body-horror films to get you in the mood for some fresh pulsating horror.

Society (1989)

Brian Yuzna's Society is arguably one of the most bizarre, gross-out movies to grace the silver screen. Bill, an upper-class Californian teenager, comes home to find his family engaging in a grotesque orgy orchestrated by a cult for the social elite. The film is renowned for its practical effects and malleable approach to human anatomy. Fans of Society will spot the similarities between the body unification shown in Together' s trailer and the claustrophobic body merging in Society, making them the perfect pairing for a body horror double bill.

The Blob (1988)

Chuck Russell's 1988 take on The Blob has become a staple in the body horror subgenre. The sleepy town of Arborville is terrorised by the gelatinous creature from outer-space, and what ensues is an impressive display of slimy practical effects. The Blob doesn't follow the typical transformative body horror of an individual, but utilises its body horror as an attack used by its titular hot-pink antagonist. The Blob brutally absorbs its victims in terrifying and squelchy sequences, until there's nothing left. Any newcomers to body horror would be amiss to skip the gummy spectacle of The Blob when delving into the subgenre.

Suitable Flesh (2023)

The often overlooked Suitable Flesh provides a Lovecraftian take on the subgenre from director Joe Lynch. The film follows a psychiatrist who becomes obsessed with helping her troubled young patient, only to discover he's entangled in an ancient body-swapping curse. Although Suitable Flesh may lack in the over-the-top gore cinema goers have come to expect from the genre (excluding the now iconic dashcam kill) it still impressively encapsulates the terror of loosing control of your own body. Lynch dials up the campiness and eroticism that the subgenre revels in, all while creating a fresh approach to Lovecraftian body horror.

The Fly (1986)

It wouldn't be presumptuous to say that to most fans of the subgenre, David Cronenberg is deemed the king of body horror. From Videodrome to The Brood, Cronenberg has contributed his fair share to the subgenre. However, nothing shows his powerful ability to make his audiences skin crawl quite like his adaptation of The Fly. Jeff Goldblum plays a scientist who has invented a ground-breaking teleportation device and following a mix-up with a fly entering the machine, a horrifying transformation begins to take place. Brundlefly, as he has been affectionately been named by fans, has become an iconic symbol in cinema with his flakey skin and yellowy bile. The impressive practical effects and helplessness of the lead character burrows under the audiences skin and stays there for the duration of the film. If the body horror subgenre thrives off of its audience's discomfort, then The Fly feeds off of it.

The Substance (2025)

Talking about body horror in 2025? You knew from the minute you read the title that The Substance would be on this list. Coralie Fargeat's neon-soaked film took the world by storm in 2024, with its five Academy Award nominations and roaring support from cinema goers. The film follows fading actress Elisabeth Sparkle as she tries an experimental new drug that creates a newer and 'better' version of herself. The Substance's sleek style and explosive final act injects a vibrancy into the subgenre that will no doubt be reflected in the future films of the subgenre.

With body horror being more popular than ever, Together is sure to receive the same fate as the film's that came before it: many will love it and many will hate it. Support some new body horror and find out which camp you'll be in when Together releases in UK cinemas on the 15th August.