The Horror At 37000 Feet is a 1973 Made-for-TV Movie directed by David Lowell Rich and written by Ronald Austin and James Buchanan.
The film follows an architect (Roy Thinnes) and his wife who are flying from London to Los Angeles with an altar from an ancient abbey secured in the plane's cargo hold. Also aboard the flight are Buddy Ebsen, a pushy millionaire, a drunken, cynical ex-priest played by William Shatner, a nutcase, and a the lantern-jawed pilot (Chuck Connors). Crew and passengers come into jeopardy when an invisible demon escapes from the altar, and threatens the plane in an effort to destroy the architect's wife.
Not to be confused with "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet", an episode of The Twilight Zone (1959) with a similar title. And William Shatner. And a monster on an airplane. Hmmmm... Coincidentally both were in-house CBS productions...
Tropes associated with this work:
- Celestial Deadline: The dawning sun will break the curse.
- Chewing the Scenery: Everyone.
- Crisis of Faith: Shatner's character is an ex-priest.
- Eldritch Abomination: The thing in the hold.
- Evil-Detecting Dog
- Human Sacrifice
- '70s Hair: Everywhere, naturally.
