The Best Scary Stuff on Streaming in Time for Halloween 2024 (original) (raw)

SAW, Cary Elwes, 2004, (c) Lions Gate/courtesy Everett Collection

©Lions Gate/Courtesy Everett Collection

It’s that special time of year again, folks. A time when pumpkins come out, ghouls are prone to haunt, and streamers of all variety load their platforms with terrifying selections aimed at attracting horror fans and casual viewers alike. This year, those selections are quite exceptional, with loads of franchises like “Saw” and “The Omen” to keep people glued to their TV all the way up to Halloween. Not interested in violence or gore? Put away your fears, as there are plenty of options for the more tame and easily frightened. From classic Stephen King adaptations like “Salem’s Lot” (1979) to recent theatrical releases that are now streaming, such as “Late Night with the Devil,” if you’re looking for a good scare, you can probably find a few one or more of the apps your subscribe to.

There are so many terrific terrors that we actually weren’t able to name them all in our curation below. Outside of this list, there’s also giallo treasures from Italian horror maestro Dario Argento on Criterion Channel, including the supernatural epic “Suspiria,” the genre-defining “Deep Red,” and the incredibly meta “Tenebrae.” Criterion also has many favorites from Canadian filmmaker David Cronenberg, such as the sci-fi cult classic “Videodrome,” his deeply unsettling adaptation of “The Fly” starring Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis, and the psychologically shocking “The Brood.” Lastly, no Halloween season is complete without a little John Carpenter and some of his best work is featured across multiple platforms, from “The Fog” and “Christine” on Criterion, to “The Thing” on Peacock.

Multiple films on our list are also celebrating anniversaries this year, including Jennifer Kent’s “The Babadook,” which recently turned 10, as well as “Shaun of the Dead,” which had a theatrical re-release last month to celebrate 20 years since it first came out. We also highlight a few options that have yet to drop, but will be coming out later this month. So whether it’s classics or fresh from theaters, IndieWire has you covered on the best stuff to watch in honor of spooky season. Keep reading below to find out our picks.

• Creepy Classics

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No better way to lean into Halloween season than by turning back the clock and we’ve got some perfect treasures of cinema that do just that. Streaming on Max, Tubi, and the Criterion Channel, the silent Swedish horror film ‘Haxän’ is sure to summon fear from any viewer. Weaving a documentary approach with dramatic, fictionalized recreations, this graphic and psychologically haunting exploration of witchcraft’s supposed history, from the Middle Ages into the 20th Century, continues to hold up. The film wasn’t shown widely upon its release, as its depictions of violence, sexuality, and satanic practices rubbed up against most cultures at the time, but it has since seen multiple restorations and universal acclaim.
Perhaps the most famous (or infamous) adaptation of H.G. Wells’ ‘The Island of Doctor Moreau’ is the 1996 version starring Val Kilmer and Marlon Brando, the production of which is categorized as one of cinema’s biggest messes, but the one actually worth watching is currently streaming on the Criterion Channel. The 1932 sci-fi horror ‘Island of Lost Souls’ stars screen legends Charles Laughton and Bela Lugosi and stretches the limits of the pre-code era in Hollywood with its ghastly depictions human/animal mutations. Like ‘Haxän,’ it was banned in many countries, but has since found a cult following.
In honor of its feature adaptation of Stephen King’s ‘Salem’s Lot’ being released on Max, the streamer has also made the original 1979 mini-series available and we couldn’t recommend it highly enough. Capitalizing on the emotional depth of King’s material while still playing up the violent terror one expects from a horror piece, ‘Salem’s Lot’ is everything one could want out of a vampiric overthrow and then some.
Other standouts include ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,’ which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year and is streaming on Peacock, Amazon Prime Video, Tubi, and Pluto TV; the 1992 original version of ‘Candyman,’ also streaming on Peacock; and lastly, Andrzej Żuławski’s 1981 cult classic, ‘Possession,’ currently available on Shudder.

• Modern Macabre

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In anticipation of the release of ‘Terrifier 3’ next week, why not catch up on the first two bloody and ridiculous installments? Both can be found on Amazon Prime Video (the first can be found on Peacock as well) and follow the exploits of serial killer Art the Clown as he unleashes a reign of violence on Halloween night. From hacksaw mutilations to face-melting acid, Art’s varied forms of terror are sure to scare up a fun night for all. Unless you have a sensitive stomach of course.
For those seeking a less gory affair, Jordan Peele’s Oscar-winning ‘Get Out’ is streaming on Peacock and continues to hold up as one of the great — if not the greatest — horror films in recent memory. Tapping into and, one could argue, revitalizing racial discourse in America, Peele’s 2017 masterpiece starring Daniel Kaluuya is both a hilarious and stirring evocation of the tension bubbling under the surface. When a Black photographer (Kaluuya) takes a trip to the family home of his white girlfriend (Allison Williams), he soon comes to find that she and her cohort may have more sinister aims than he imagined.
If a little bloodshed is what the doctor ordered, might we suggest the 2023 entry into the ‘Evil Dead’ franchise, ‘Evil Dead Rise,’ currently streaming on Netflix and Max. Still not enough? Normally we’d recommend a therapist, but since we’re feeling the holiday spirit, why not check out a few cult favorites like ‘Jennifer’s Body’ on Hulu or ‘Ma’ on Peacock.

• Freaky Franchises

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The horror genre loves repeating itself, either cause there’s always more violence to unleash or because the box office is just too good not to roll the dice. And while plenty of sequels have failed to do better than their originals (see ‘The Exorcist’), plenty more have been able to top them or at least measure up. Though it may exist in the former category, the ‘Child’s Play’ series has managed to keep fans and newcomers alike terrified of that creepy doll Chucky, spawning an entire film franchise and a TV series. While the original ‘Child’s Play’ is only streaming on AMC+, all of its sequels, including ‘Bride of Chucky,’ are currently available on Netflix.
Celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, ‘Saw,’ as well as all of its NINE sequels are streaming on multiple platforms. The first seven can be found on Peacock, while ‘Jigsaw,’ the eighth installment, is on Netflix, ‘Spiral,’ the ninth entry and standalone sequel, is on Hulu, and the latest addition, ‘Saw X,’ is on Starz. The series follows serial killer John ‘Jigsaw’ Kramer as he kidnaps and tortures victims through a series of physical and psychological tests aimed to rehabilitate them…if they may manage to survive that is.
Other noteworthy franchise highlights include the gross-out black comedy ‘The Toxic Avenger,’ which has spawned a Marvel comic, a stage musical, a video game, an animated series, three sequels, and a reboot that still has yet to see the light of day. The original film series is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video, Peacock, Shudder, Tubi, and Pluto TV. You can also catch the ‘Friday the 13th’ series on Shudder and all of the ‘Alien’ films (excluding ‘Alien: Romulus’), as well as of the ‘Omen’ films (including ‘The First Omen’), on Hulu.

• Gore & Giggles

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Not every scary movie has to actually be that scary. In fact, some of the best may even illicit laughter. Take for instance Robert Zemeckis’ ‘Death Becomes Her,’ a macabre examination of beauty and immortality that would make an excellent double feature with the recently released ‘The Substance.’ Starring Meryl Streep, Goldie Hawn, and Bruce Willis, the film follows two women’s quest for youthful rejuvenation and the havoc they’re willing to wreak to get it. It’s campy, visually entrancing, wonderfully spooky without ever teetering towards the unseemly. It can be streamed on Peacock and Tubi.
Another favorite, Edgar Wright’s feature debut ‘Shaun of the Dead,’ can also be found on Peacock and celebrated its 20th anniversary this year. The first in the so-called ‘Three Flavours Cornetto’ trilogy, which also features ‘Hot Fuzz’ and ‘The World’s End,’ the horror spoof follows two friends (Simon Pegg and Nick Frost) as they fight to survive a zombie apocalypse in London.
For something more fanciful, try Tim Burton’s ‘Edward Scissorhands’ on Hulu. Featuring one of the final performances from horror screen icon Vincent Price, the dark fantasy is both an ode to monster movies past and a loving subversion of standard frightfests, injecting elements of romance and suburban terror to create a wholly original entity that still holds up today.

• Foreign Frights

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There’s nothing like a little language or cultural barrier to intensify your sense of dread and no better example than Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s 1997 psychological thriller ‘Cure.’ Before he warmed hearts in Wim Wenders’ meditative drama ‘Perfect Days,’ Japanese actor Koji Yakushio brought deep unease to global audiences with his turn as a Tokyo detective following a string of murders he comes to find may involve hypnosis or other supernatural abilities. Credited with igniting the popularity of Japanese horror during the late ’90s and early 2000s, ‘Cure’ is currently available to stream on the Criterion Channel, along with another favorite of the era, ‘Ring’ from Hideo Nakata. This was later remade in America as the highly popular Naomi Watts vehicle, ‘The Ring,’ directed by Gore Verbinski.
On Shudder, you can find the original 2022 Danish version of ‘Speak No Evil,’ recently remade in English with James McAvoy to tepid response, as well as the Australian monster hit ‘The Babadook,’ this year celebrating its 10th anniversary. ‘Speak No Evil’ was written and directed by Christian Tafdrup and tracks a family’s descent into violence as they’re made to face the toxic tension put upon them by another family. ‘The Babadook’ deals in more dour themes, exploring parenting, grief, and generational trauma by way of a terrifying, black-hatted monster lurking in the basement.
If this isn’t enough to satiate your evil desires, give the Italian exploitation horror ‘Cannibal Holocaust’ or Swedish vampire period piece ‘Let the Right One in’ a try on Peacock.

• Recent Repulsions

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Not able to catch all of this year’s scary releases in theaters? Not a problem, as most of them have found their way to streaming. We recommend starting on ‘Late Night with the Devil’ starring Christopher Nolan and Denis Villeneuve favorite David Dastmalchian. Utilizing found footage and documentary style filmmaking, ‘Late Night’ takes a look back at the fictional Halloween broadcast of a 1977 talk show, in which the host brings on a seemingly possessed girl, unleashing hell on his studio audience. It has been widely praised by horror aficionados like Stephen King and can currently be streamed on Shudder.
Jane Schoenbrun’s breakout Sundance hit ‘I Saw the TV Glow’ is also now officially streaming on Max after having a decent limited theatrical run at the start of Summer. It stars Justice Smith, Brigette Lundy-Paine, Fred Durst, and Danielle Deadwyler and calls on influences ranging from David Cronenberg to the kid’s show ‘The Adventures of Pete & Pete’ to craft a tale of two young outcasts whose obsession with their favorite TV show calls into question their realities and identities.
Releasing later this month on Max, M. Night Shyamalan’s concert thriller ‘Trap’ starring Josh Hartnett will stream October 25, while the conclusion to Ti West’s ‘X’ film series, ‘MaXXXine,’ drops on Friday, October 18.

• New Nightmares

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The truly unexpected is at the heart of what can make a scary film so terrifying, so we feel it’s also important to shout out a few entries debuting this month, starting with the Sarah Paulson-starring period horror, ‘Hold Your Breath,’ which recently premiered at TIFF. Co-starring ‘The Bear’ favorite Ebon Moss-Bachrach and set in 1930s Oklahoma, the film uses the events of the Dust Bowl to craft the tale of a haunting on the plains. It was released as a Hulu original film through Searchlight Pictures and is now currently available on the platform as of October 3.
If you’re looking for something more long-form, the new TV series ‘Teacup’ starts streaming on Peacock October 10 with two new episodes released each subsequent week, the final two premiering on Halloween. Based on Robert R. McCammon’s 1988 horror novel ‘Stinger,’ this adaptation from producer James Wan moves the original setting of Texas to rural Georgia and follows a disparate community as they come together to face an evil threat. The series stars Yvonne Strahovski, Scott Speedman, and Rob Morgan and the first two episodes recently premiered at Fantastic Fest to high praise.
Also worth acknowledgement, two Netflix films that are sure to frighten up some views. The first is Sundane breakout ‘It’s What’s Inside,’ produced by actor Colman Domingo and starring Brittany O’Grady (“The White Lotus”), James Morosini (“I Love My Dad”), Gavin Leatherwood (“Chilling Adventures of Sabrina”), Nina Bloomgarden (“The Resort”), Alycia Debnam-Carey (“Fear the Walking Dead”), Reina Hardesty (“The Flash”), Devon Terrell (“Rap Sh!t”), and David Thompson (“The Boys”). Taking place over the course of one night, a group of friends gather to celebrate one of their weddings and engage in a game that allows participants to swap bodies with one another. In the process, these friends learn more about each other and themselves than they bargained for. The film is now available to stream on Netflix as of October 4.
The next big release for the streamer is Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut, ‘Woman of the Hour,’ a period thriller set in 1978 that tells the story of a serial killer who managed to appear on the popular game show, ‘The Dating Game.’ The film premiered at TIFF in 2023 where IndieWire called it a ‘mainstream study of the tension between heterosexual desire and implied violence.’ It streams on Netflix Friday, October 18.

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