Film

Severance

Name: Severance
Genre: Horror, Comedy, Thriller
Released: 2006
Cast: Danny Dyer, Laura Harris, Tim McInnerny, Toby Stephens, Claudie Blakley

Other titles called Severance: the 2022 series (Apple TV).

Horror comedy

A darkly comic siege film where corporate ladder-climbers trapped in a luxury spa resort discover that team-building exercises are the least of their problems. It's a British horror-thriller that trades jump scares for squirm-inducing tension, mixing workplace satire with genuine nastiness. For anyone who's ever fantasized about their coworkers being in actual peril.

TMDb rating

3.2

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy horror that cheerfully skewers office politics, with a mean streak of satire and a cast that clearly relishes being unpleasant to one another.

Skip it if you want restrained, slow-building dread; this is a 96-minute romp with broad performances and gory set pieces that tip into loud, cartoonish excess.

What it asks of you: It runs a brisk hour and a half and keeps switching between gallows humour and bloodshed, so you need to be willing to laugh and wince in the same scene.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

The Belko Experiment2017

Office workers locked in their building forced to kill each other for mysterious reasons. Same sadistic premise—colleagues as reluctant co-conspirators—but turns the screw tighter and faster, with genuine body horror that earns its R-rating.

But More relentlessly bleak than funny; if you want comedy mixed in, this swings harder toward pure dread and mutilation.

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil2010

Subverts every horror trope about backwoods killers by making them sympathetic and funny. Same gallows humour and willingness to mess with genre expectations, but warmer-hearted and easier to watch without flinching.

But Lighter tone overall—loses some of the edges and institutional darkness that makes Severance nasty.

Hostel2006

Young tourists abroad discovering their holiday is a hunting ground. Same 'pleasure destination becomes nightmare' structure and willingness to hurt characters you've grown to like in unexpected ways.

But Lean hard into torture and suffering; the comedy is minimal and the cruelty is the point, which some find repellent rather than thrilling.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Severance

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Battle Royale2000

Both are workplace/group satires that weaponize enforced proximity; both find black comedy in forced cooperation and betrayal, and both suggest the real enemy is the system that put everyone there.

Japanese high schoolers forced to kill each other on an island by their government. The template for all 'trapped people killing each other' stories since—dark, satirical, visceral, and genuinely shocking in ways the premise doesn't warn you for.

But Subtitled, violent against teenagers, and deeply cynical; if you're squeamish about children in peril, this will genuinely upset you rather than thrill you.

The Cabin in the Woods2012

A genre film that deconstructs horror itself while still being a genuinely entertaining siege movie. Clever, meta, funny and visceral—understands that satire works best when the scares are real.

But Wildly over-explained in its third act; stops trusting the audience to get the joke and spells everything out.

You're Next2013

Home-invasion thriller with a final girl who fights back hard. Finds humour in the grotesque, never loses momentum, and gives you a protagonist who actually thinks rather than just panics.

But Tonal whiplash between comedy and genuine threat; some people find the shifts jarring rather than exciting.

A Perfect Getaway2009

Honeymooners on a hiking trail in Hawaii get caught in a slasher with a premise twist that actually lands. Well-constructed, fun cast, and genuinely surprising without feeling cheap.

But The twist can feel gimmicky on reflection; it's a clever puzzle box rather than a story with much emotional weight.

Evil Dead II1987

Sam Raimi's masterclass in finding terror and comedy in the same moment. One man versus supernatural forces in an isolated cabin, played with physical humour that never undercuts the horror.

But Wildly stylized in a way that feels dated now; the tone won't click if you prefer straight horror without the wink.

Deep Blue Sea1999

Genetically enhanced sharks versus military and scientists in an underwater facility. Doesn't take itself seriously, has genuine thrills, kills off people you expect to survive, and owns its B-movie energy.

But The CGI is noticeably aged and the logic often collapses; you have to meet it halfway and just enjoy the chaos.

Ghostwatch1992

Both are British productions that treat horror as a serious genre exercise while working in dark satire; both trust atmosphere over spectacle and subvert the viewer's expectations of safety.

A BBC mockumentary presented as live Halloween broadcast investigating a haunting in a family home. Found-footage horror made decades before found footage was a genre—hypnotic, deeply unsettling, and ends in ways you won't see coming.

But Slow-burn pacing and BBC presenters talking for a long time before anything happens; handheld cameras and faux-documentary format will bore anyone wanting quick scares.

Eating Raoul1982

Both use enforced situations (spa weekend vs. life circumstances) as premises for dark satire; both find comedy in people doing things they never imagined they would, and both are willing to be genuinely nasty rather than safe.

A bored married couple in Los Angeles discover they can fund their dream house by murdering swingers. Transgressive comedy-horror with real nastiness underneath—gleeful, deranged, and committed to its premise in ways few films are.

But Aggressively weird and dated; what reads as fearless satire now reads as deeply strange to most modern viewers, and the low-budget execution won't appeal to everyone.