Thriller Movie Trivia Quiz: The Ultimate Challenge – Can You Score 20/20?

Answers Below – No Peeking!

Test your cinematic suspense skills with this ultimate thriller movie trivia quiz! From Hitchcock masterpieces to edge-of-your-seat modern thrillers, these 20 questions span easy warm-ups to brain-melting stumpers. Grab some paper, no cheating, and dive into the tension – how high can you score?

20 Trivia Questions on Thriller Movies

Question 1: Who directed the classic thriller Psycho (1960)?

A. Brian De Palma
B. Stanley Kubrick
C. Alfred Hitchcock
D. Roman Polanski

Question 2: Which film features the iconic shower murder scene?

A. Rear Window
B. Vertigo
C. The Birds
D. Psycho

Question 3: What is Clarice Starling’s first name in The Silence of the Lambs (1991)?

A. Clara
B. Clarice
C. Claire
D. Claudia

Question 4: What is the profession of the wheelchair-bound protagonist in Rear Window (1954)?

A. Architect
B. Photographer
C. Journalist
D. Detective

Question 5: Which Alfred Hitchcock thriller centres on a man suffering from vertigo?

A. North by Northwest
B. Dial M for Murder
C. Vertigo
D. Strangers on a Train

Question 6: Who directed the 1999 thriller The Sixth Sense?

A. James Wan
B. Ari Aster
C. Jordan Peele
D. M. Night Shyamalan

Question 7: What is the first rule of Fight Club in the 1999 film?

A. No shirts or shoes
B. You do not talk about Fight Club
C. Bare knuckles only
D. Talk about your feelings

Question 8: What is the sin represented by the final victim in Se7en (1995)?

A. Sloth
B. Envy
C. Wrath
D. Gluttony

Question 9: Who stars as U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels in Shutter Island (2010)?

A. Christian Bale
B. Ryan Gosling
C. Jake Gyllenhaal
D. Leonardo DiCaprio

Question 10: Who directed Gone Girl (2014)?

A. Denis Villeneuve
B. Christopher Nolan
C. Alejandro G. Iñárritu
D. David Fincher

Question 11: Which thriller won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1991?

A. JFK
B. Goodfellas
C. The Silence of the Lambs
D. Thelma & Louise

Question 12: Who composed the famous two-note shark theme for Jaws (1975)?

A. Bernard Herrmann
B. Jerry Goldsmith
C. John Williams
D. Ennio Morricone

Question 13: In The Usual Suspects (1995), who is revealed to be Keyser Söze?

A. Dean Keaton
B. Michael McManus
C. Verbal Kint
D. Todd Hockney

Question 14: Which actress won the Best Actress Oscar for playing Annie Wilkes in Misery (1990)?

A. Sissy Spacek
B. Glenn Close
C. Kathy Bates
D. Jessica Lange

Question 15: Who directed the 1991 remake of Cape Fear?

A. Steven Spielberg
B. Ridley Scott
C. Martin Scorsese
D. Oliver Stone

Question 16: Who plays the wrongfully accused Dr. Richard Kimble in The Fugitive (1993)?

A. Tommy Lee Jones
B. Denzel Washington
C. Wesley Snipes
D. Harrison Ford

Question 17: In Dirty Harry (1971), what does Harry Callahan famously ask: “Do you feel lucky, punk?”

A. “Do you feel lucky?”
B. “Feeling lucky?”
C. “Are you lucky?”
D. “Lucky today?”

Question 18: Who plays the chilling Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men (2007)?

A. Josh Brolin
B. Javier Bardem
C. Woody Harrelson
D. Tommy Lee Jones

Question 19: Who directed the 2007 thriller Zodiac about the Zodiac Killer?

A. David Fincher
B. Michael Mann
C. Clint Eastwood
D. Danny Boyle

Question 20: Which actor earned an Oscar nomination for his debut role as Aaron Stampler in Primal Fear (1996)?

A. Richard Gere
B. Laura Linney
C. Edward Norton
D. John Mahoney

Answers

  1. C. Alfred Hitchcock – Psycho (1960) was directed by Alfred Hitchcock, known as the Master of Suspense. De Palma directed the 1980 remake, Kubrick made horror-thrillers like The Shining, and Polanski directed Repulsion.
  2. D. Psycho – The shower scene is the infamous murder of Marion Crane in Hitchcock’s Psycho. The others are also Hitchcock films but lack this specific sequence.
  3. B. Clarice – Jodie Foster plays FBI trainee Clarice Starling in The Silence of the Lambs. The similar names are plausible distractors but incorrect.
  4. B. Photographer – James Stewart plays photojournalist L.B. Jefferies in Rear Window, spying from his apartment. He is not an architect, journalist, or detective.
  5. C. Vertigo – Vertigo (1958) stars Jimmy Stewart as Scottie Ferguson, haunted by fear of heights. The others are Hitchcock thrillers without this central phobia.
  6. D. M. Night Shyamalan – Shyamalan wrote and directed The Sixth Sense, famous for its twist ending. The others direct modern horror films.
  7. B. You do not talk about Fight Club – This is the first rule stated by Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt) in David Fincher’s Fight Club. The others are loosely related club rules or inventions.
  8. C. Wrath – Detective Mills (Brad Pitt) becomes the embodiment of wrath by killing John Doe in Se7en. Sloth, envy, and gluttony are prior victims’ sins.
  9. D. Leonardo DiCaprio – DiCaprio stars as the tormented marshal in Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island. The others lead other psychological thrillers.
  10. D. David Fincher – Fincher adapted Gillian Flynn’s novel into Gone Girl starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike. The others directed different suspense films.
  11. C. The Silence of the Lambs – It swept Oscars including Best Picture at the 1991 Academy Awards. The others were nominated that year but did not win.
  12. C. John Williams – Williams’ ominous score defined Jaws as a thriller. Herrmann scored Hitchcock films, while the others composed for later blockbusters.
  13. C. Verbal Kint – Kevin Spacey’s character Verbal Kint is unmasked as the mythical crime lord Keyser Söze in The Usual Suspects. The others are fellow criminals he fabricates.
  14. C. Kathy Bates – Bates won Best Actress for her terrifying portrayal of the obsessive fan in Misery. The others were nominated for different 1990 films.
  15. C. Martin Scorsese – Scorsese’s intense remake of Cape Fear stars Robert De Niro and Nick Nolte. The original was directed by J. Lee Thompson in 1962.
  16. D. Harrison Ford – Ford plays the on-the-run surgeon in Andrew Davis’ The Fugitive. Jones plays his pursuer; the others star in unrelated action-thrillers.
  17. A. “Do you feel lucky?” – This is the key line from Clint Eastwood’s Inspector Harry Callahan confronting the killer in Dirty Harry. Later films have his other catchphrases.
  18. B. Javier Bardem – Bardem won an Oscar for the psychopathic hitman Anton Chigurh in the Coen Brothers’ No Country for Old Men. The others play other characters in the film.
  19. A. David Fincher – Fincher’s meticulous Zodiac chronicles the real-life manhunt. The others directed crime films like Manhunter, J. Edgar, and Sully.
  20. C. Edward Norton – Norton’s chilling performance as the altar boy with a split personality earned a Best Supporting Actor nod in Primal Fear. Gere plays his lawyer.

How did you score? Drop your results in the comments and challenge friends to tackle this thriller trivia beast!