spooky horror movies 2023

23 Horror Movies Released in 2023 to Watch this Spooky Season

It's Halloween time! And it's also been another great year for horror. Here's a list of 2023 releases to watch this spooky season.

Not to sound generic, but it's been another great year for horror movies . We look back at decades of the past and pick out all the great films to come out of that era, as they are a piece of the grandiose picture that is the history of horror. It's going to be interesting to sit back and look at the overall tone and feel of the movies that came out in the genre during this time. We will know down the road at some point.

Spooky season is not fast approaching; to some, it's already here. After the Fourth of July fireworks end, there is a demographic of people who shift their attention to an abundance of horror films. Since we are all in the same boat now about our enjoyment of this time of year, let's take a look at a handful of the 2023 releases that we will all be enjoying for Halloween. Some of which are even coming out in October. Others have already had their reactions, but will warrant a rewatch.

23 The Pope's Exorcist

April's releases are hard. They don't want to go full summer blockbuster, and yet they don't want to feel contained. But for the ultimate fun ride of a horror film from this year, The Pope's Exorcist may be your bag. Starring Russell Crowe, who is at a strange time in his career. He's not going for the Oscar every year anymore, and that's okay. He's taking on fun roles that earn him a lot of fanfare. It's almost like he's following the same career trajectory as Nicolas Cage. The Pope's Exorcist is highly fictionalized in its delivery; however, it is based on the memoir of Crowe's character, Father Gabrielle Amorth. He was the chief exorcist for the Vatican and was believed to have performed over 100,000 exorcisms.

22 The Outwaters

• Fathom Film Company

A polarizing film, but worth checking out. The Outwaters had an initial release on festivals back in 2022 but gained a lot of traction from its buzz and then made its way into a limited release in early 2023. It's a new take on the found footage subgenre, about a group of campers out in the Mojave Desert whose trip goes south once they start hearing strange sounds and vibrations. For fans of The Blair Witch Project , The Outwaters feels like it's in the same vein. Some people found it terrifying; others didn't get it. Time will tell if it reaches the level of Blair Witch , but regardless, find this one on Tubi right now!

Sick was one of the first major horror films released in 2023. The Blumhouse-produced film popped up on Peacock and was an immediate hit. It's been a few years since the initial fears of COVID and quarantine life went out into the world. Sick takes place during that time of cabin fever, and it is about two best friends who both have negative COVID test results and decide to take a trek out to a cabin for the weekend. But as usual, a masked killer shows up, and yes, he is definitely masked.

What feels like a surface-level slasher makes room for a thrilling third act. The script was written by Scream mastermind Kevin Williamson (who also produced) and completely nails some of the anxieties of the pandemic that we all can kind of look back on and laugh about.

20 Skinamarink

Undoubtedly, Skinamarink has left horror fans split down the middle. A movie that some just kind of didn't get. And others completely saw it as an allegory for what everything looks and feels like when you are drifting away into your death. Skinamakrink can be found on Shudder to stream. If you happen to watch it this October, be sure to watch it alone at midnight with no lights on if you want to get the full experience, and then decide if you liked it or not. Be advised, this isn't necessarily a straight-forward movie per se. A lot of people would put this movie in the avant-garde subgenre.

Related: Why Skinamarink Is the Most Polarizing Horror Movie in Recent Memory

19 Infinity Pool

One of the first horror films to make headlines in 2023 was Infinity Pool . The Brandon Cronenberg-directed film is about a writer and his wife who are staying at a resort, but once they leave, they end up accidentally committing a crime. It is here that they learn about the punishment. They can either be executed, or if they have enough money, they can pay to watch someone who is believed to be them be executed instead.

A film that has an NC-17 rating floating around somewhere is now available to stream on Hulu. If you want to drop the spooky fall festive horror films for the night and bend your mind a little bit, then Infinity Pool is the perfect movie for that. It's also another testament to how much of a genre movie It-Girl Mia Goth is.

18 Huesera: The Bone Woman

Popping up on Shudder this year was Huesera: The Bone Woman . A mind-bending body horror film that comments on the fears and anxieties of motherhood. The Spanish-language film is about a woman who gives birth to her first child, only to become aware of a sinister force that could harm such a beautiful thing. The film creates an unsettling atmosphere from frame one and doesn't really let up in that sense. The film also has themes that some might find challenging and controversial, but isn't that what can make a memorable horror film at times?

17 Brooklyn 45

Taking place in primarily one location, Ted Geoghegan's Brooklyn 45 is a fun supernatural horror film that stars the likes of Anne Ramsay and genre legend Larry Fessenden. A film about five military veterans who gather at an old Brooklyn brownstone. A cocktail hour turns into a séance where literal ghosts of the past are conjured up for the characters to face. With the film taking place primarily in the house where this séance happens, you can tell that a lot of the budget was put into the amazing production design of it. You don't get period pieces like this on an indie level. It's a perfect October ghost story to watch on Shudder.

16 Suitable Flesh

Although not widely released yet, Suitable Flesh will be available in select theaters and VOD on October 27th. Directed by Joe Lynch, who can do no wrong in terms of genre filmmaking, and starring Heather Graham, Barbara Crampton, and Jonathon Schaech. What we know about it at the moment is based on the film's red band trailer. It is about a psychiatrist's obsession with one of her younger patients who have a multiple personality disorder. The film is Lovecraftian, which is a sub-genre of horror that many fans flock to. If Suitable Flesh is passing by a film festival near you in the next month, check it out before a wider audience sees it. It's gaining a lot of buzz.

15 Talk to Me

A24's newest horror sensation swept audiences this past summer. Talk to Me may still be in theaters, depending on where you are in the world. But just in case, be sure to track it down this Halloween season on streaming, potentially. Talk to Me takes the age-old horror trope of a group of friends trying to conjure up spirits, and they get hooked on doing it. A24 does a brilliant job at taking these horror plot points we've seen before and expanding them into their own sort of elevated horror universe. It's such a modern ghost story that ties into themes of grief and how to cope with loss.

14 The Blackening

If you kind of need a breather from the horror of it all, track down The Blackening. A movie that was released this past summer takes the stereotype of Black characters in horror and turns it on its head. Director Tim Story crafts a film about seven friends who all stay at a cabin one night and find themselves up against a killer who wants to pick them off one by one. The killer's game utilizes Black stereotypes in horror films, and it's up to his targets to utilize their knowledge of movies to outsmart him. A fun, hilarious scare fest with brilliant use of satire and social commentary.

13 Renfield

Nicolas Cage is playing Dracula; that's all that needs to be written. Okay, so there are more cool elements to Renfield we should break down as well. Released back in April, the movie is a fun new take on the legend of Dracula, but the focus is on his servant and aide, Renfield (Nicholas Hoult). He's caught in a toxic working environment with his eternal-living boss and wants to break free. And in doing so, there will be bloodshed. Renfield is another comedy for horror fans, loaded with contemporary humor and a lot of gore for a studio film.

Related: Renfield: Best Quotes, Ranked

12 The Boogeyman

It's time for your annual Stephen King adaptation to watch this fall. And if not The Boogeyman , there is still plenty to choose from with past movies in the world of King. The Boogeyman opened to mixed reviews, but there is a lot to love about it for a Halloween-season watch. It's atmospheric and dark, with genre-character actor David Dastmalchian in it. A film about the hauntings that can come from losing a loved one, it feels run-of-the-mill in comparison to other King adaptations as of late, but why wouldn't you want to watch a movie called The Boogeyman this Halloween?

11 The Nun II

Just this past month, The Nun II scared audiences. Although the original film in this Conjuring spin-off series received mixed reviews, it's clear that it was time to up the ante in terms of scares. The movie takes place in 1956 in France, where a priest is murdered, and an evil force is discovered. The trailer alone for The Nun II is enough to scare you and also make you want to buy a ticket to check it out. Most critics have said this has been the strongest addition to The Conjuring Universe, so go check it out before it leaves theaters.

If you're looking for a scary movie that captures the essence of autumn, be sure to hunt down Cobweb . A movie that got overlooked due to its release this summer on the same week as Barbie and Oppenheimer. Cobweb tells the story of a troubled little boy who begins to hear the voice of a girl in the walls of his bedroom. Soon, things begin to unravel as the boy's parents seem to be hiding a secret. Directed by Samuel Bodin and with a great cast that includes the talented Anthony Starr from Amazon's The Boys, Cobweb builds and builds to its big epic creature reveal, which keeps you glued to your screen.

9 Run Rabbit Run

Sarah Snook follows up her amazing performance on Succession with Netflix's Run Rabbit Run . A psychological thriller about a fertility doctor who notices strange behavior in her daughter. The film has deep-rooted themes of the afterlife and the estrangement of one's parents. Netflix is often criticized by horror fans in regard to the lack of genre movies on the streaming site. Run Rabbit Run was a worthy addition to a lackluster catalog that left critics slightly split on it. Still, check it out if you want to see something with a twisted ending.

8 Insidious: The Red Door

The newest installment in the beloved jump scare fest, Insidious, hit theaters this past summer. Insidious: The Red Door did incredibly at the box office. And is a must-see come October, as well as any of the other previous installments in the franchise. Directed by franchise star Patrick Wilson, The Red Door is a dark and ominous horror movie with a deep-rooted father-son story. Great horror is also great drama, and this one works well on both ends.

7 Totally Killer

Prepare for Blumhouse to own the month of October in theaters and streaming. Dropping on Amazon Prime on October 6th is the horror comedy Totally Killer. The concept feels like any fun slasher film you've ever seen mixed in with Back to the Future . When a teenage girl comes face-to-face with a masked killer who has returned to kill on Halloween night, she accidentally time-travels back to 1987 to team up with her teenage mother to stop the killer when he goes out on his initial killing spree. The movie has a very vibrant 1980s aesthetic, fused with a fun, elaborate storyline that only Blumhouse can pull off.

6 Pet Sematary: Bloodlines

Streaming on Paramount+ on October 6th is Pet Semetary: Bloodlines . What we do know about the movie as of right now is that it serves as a prequel to the original movie. Taking place in the 1960s in a town in Maine. The lead character, Jud Crandall, plans to leave his hometown one day but must confront a dark family secret that forever ties him to the town. Fans of most of the previous two original movies and the remake in 2019 will most likely flock to this come October 6th. It's a lucrative piece of IP to draw in the horror crowd to Paramount + for at the very least a free trial of the service.

It's been another big year for Blumhouse. They kicked 2023 off with their killer doll movie, M3GAN . A fun thrill ride about a woman named Gemma who takes on custody of her eight-year-old niece. With Gemma working in the tech world, she gives a sympathy gift to her niece: a prototype of a doll that moves and looks like a real person. The results of this gesture turn sinister. M3GAN received a PG-13 rating with its release , which led to a market surge of teenage girls going to see the movie during its theatrical run, thus pushing it to the forefront of one of the biggest releases of the month of January ever.

4 Five Night at Freddy's

On October 27th, Five Nights at Freddy's will hit the big screen and be available to stream on Peacock. The film is based on a cult classic video game that is very worthy of an adaptation. Starring Josh Hutcherson as a security guard who works the night shift at a Freddy Fazbear Pizzeria. On the first night of his job, he learns something unsettling about what happens there at night with the animatronic puppets of the restaurant. The film has been teased on Twitter for months by Jason Blum. And fans rejoiced when the trailer dropped. This one is sure going to be a real treat.

40 of the Best New Horror Movies to Watch in 2023

2022's horror films walked so 2023's movies could run.

For die-hard horror fanatics, scary movies aren't just for October, which is why we compiled a list of highly anticipated scary movies premiering all year long. Keep checking back here regularly, as we'll be updating it in real-time when new movies are announced and trailers drop on YouTube.

When it premieres: January 6, 2023 in theaters

What it's about: If you're a fan of the Child's Play movies or that creepy Black Mirror episode with Miley Cyrus and the doll, then this is the movie for you. What happens when a robotic, anthropomorphic doll becomes a little girl's new best friend? Nothing good.

MORE: 10 M3GAN Costume Ideas to Slay (and Serve Dance Moves) In This Halloween

Stream it now on Prime Video

The Pale Blue Eye

When it premieres: January 6, 2023 on Netflix

What it's about: This ominous movie follows a detective named Augustus Landor (Christian Bale) who is investigating the homicide of a West Point cadet. When he realizes the victim's fellow cadets won't help him solve the case, Augustus enlists the help of one cadet, a young man known as Edgar Allan Poe (Harry Melling) — yes, that Edgar Allan Poe.

FYI, Harry Melling is best-known for playing the vile Dudley Dursley in the Harry Potter movies , so getting to see him in a totally different type of role sounds like a real treat.

Watch the trailer here

Stream it now on Netflix

When it premieres: January 13, 2023 on Peacock

What it's about: Two friends decide to quarantine at a secluded lake house during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Unfortunately, they're not alone and soon find themselves being stalked by a sinister person.

Kevin Williamson, aka the writer of Scream , co-wrote this movie with Katelyn Crabb. The film stars Gideon Adlon, who played Becca on Netflix's canceled-too-soon series, The Society .

Stream it now on Peacock

When it premieres: January 17, 2023 On Demand

What it's about: Featuring Aaron Samuels from Mean Girls , aka actor Jonathan Bennett, this Colton Tran-directed horror film follows five friends who get snowed in at an isolated cabin over New Year's Eve and slowly start to go mad.

There's Something Wrong With the Children

When it premieres: January 17, 2023 on MGM+

What it's about: Two sets of couples go on a weekend trip with their kids, but the fun times don't last after the children disappear into the woods. When the kids are found, one of the adults believes something sinister and supernatural is going on with them.

Stream it now on MGM+

Teen Wolf: The Movie

When it premieres: January 26, 2023 on Paramount+

What it's about: This movie revival of the hit MTV series that ended in 2017 reunites most of Teen Wolf 's original cast.

A new evil emerging in Beacon Hills brings old friends and allies back together to fight a deadly enemy.

MORE: Everything We Know About Teen Wolf: The Movie

Stream it now on Paramount+

Infinity Pool

When it premieres: January 27, 2023 in theaters

What it's about: If you missed seeing Mia Goth play super creepy in films like X and its prequel, Pearl , then this sci-fi thriller is for you.

Featuring Mia and Big Little Lies star Alexander Skarsgård, this film follows a wealthy couple enjoying a vacation on an island resort. However, after an accident happens outside the resort grounds that turns their happy world upside, they must fight for survival.

The society's zero-tolerance policy for crime leaves them two options: be executed or pay an ungodly amount of money to watch yourself die.

Stream it now on Hulu

Skinamarink

When it premieres: Streaming exclusively on Shudder February 2, 2023 (Release in theaters began January 13, 2023)

What it's about: In the middle of the night, two siblings awake and learn their father is missing and their house's doors and windows are gone. As the night progresses, the kids notice that more objects in their home begin vanishing, too.

If you think this is going to be like other horror movies you've seen, guess again .

Stream it now on Shudder

Knock at the Cabin

When it premieres: February 3, 2023 in theaters

What it's about: A vacationing family of three minding their own business are soon taken hostage by a gang of four mysterious strangers. According to them, the family must make a choice to stop the apocalypse from happening.

This M. Night Shyamalan-directed movie that stars Harry Potter 's Rupert Grint is based on Paul Tremblay's 2018 novel, The Cabin at the End of the World .

Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey

When it premieres: February 15, 2023 in theaters

What it's about: Winnie-the-Pooh and Piglet are NOT your friends in this slasher movie about the Hundred Acre Wood characters.

After Christopher Robin (Nikolai Leon) leaves his childhood friends to go to college, they feel abandoned and quickly turn murderous. Their rampage hits a new high, though, when Christopher eventually returns to the forest to introduce his old friends to his new wife.

Cocaine Bear

When it premieres: February 24, 2023 in theaters

What it's about: What's more terrifying than coming face-to-face with a bear? Coming face-to-face with a bear that's high on cocaine and "out of its mind."

Based on a true story ( yes, really! ), this horror-comedy follows a bear who consumed a bunch of coke and goes on a drug-fueled killing spree.

Children of the Corn

When it premieres: March 3 (in theaters), March 21 (On Demand and digital)

What it's about: Creepy kids go on a killing spree in a small Nebraska town after the adults ruin the community's crops. However, one teen refuses to join the gang of killer kids, which quickly creates tension in the town.

Watch the NSFW trailer here

When it premieres: March 10, 2023 in theaters

What it's about: A follow-up to the 2022 smash hit Scream , this sixth installment follows the four survivors who ditch the fictional town of Woodsboro to start a new life in New York City. Naturally, though, they can't escape Ghostface's clutches.

Wednesday star Jenna Ortega reprises her role as Tara, and Scream 4 's Hayden Panettiere returns to the franchise as Kirby. Unfortunately, the saga's beloved " final girl ," Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), will not return due to disagreements over salary .

The new teaser reveals that Ghostface has followed the survivors to Manhattan, as they ride a crowded subway car on Halloween night. With most everyone dressed in costume, it's almost easy to miss the masked villain — but then they strike.

The Pope's Exorcist

When it premieres: April 14, 2023 in theaters

What it's about: Russell Crowe stars as real-life figure Father Gabriele Amorth, a priest who performed more than 100,000 exorcisms before he passed away in 2016.

This film is inspired by his one of his cases about a possessed boy and the centuries-old conspiracy the Vatican has tried to keep secret.

When it premieres: April 14, 2023 in theaters What it's about: Remember when the entire internet freaked out over those pics of Nicolas Cage walking around New Orleans dressed as Dracula? Well, it was for this movie. For those who don't know the original Dracula story by Bram Stoker (or haven't seen the 1931 Universal classic ), Renfield is Dracula's henchman.

Renfield is a horror-comedy that follows the exploits of Renfield (Nicholas Hoult), who ditches his job working for Dracula (Nicolas Cage) after he falls in love with a traffic cop named Rebecca Quincy ( Awkwafina ).

Beau Is Afraid

When it premieres: April 21, 2023 in theaters What it's about: If you prefer "elevated horror," aka "scary but with complex emotional and thematic underpinnings" like Jenna Ortega's character describes in the opening of Scream , then this is the movie for you.

Written and directed by Ari Aster, the same person who gave us Hereditary and Midsommar , his new film follows the life of a successful entrepreneur who has some serious mommy issues. How does that plot make for a scary movie? Check out the bonkers trailer below and see for yourself.

Buy it now on Prime Video

Evil Dead Rise

When it premieres: April 21, 2023 in theaters

What it's about: The fifth installment in the Evil Dead franchise, this movie is about two estranged sisters whose reunion is cut short when they're forced to battle sinister creatures known as Deadites.

Stream it now on Max

When it premieres: April 28, 2023 on Hulu

What it's about: Glee 's Dianna Agron stars in this movie about a woman who, pressured to have children, agrees to participate in a clinical trial to fix her seemingly broken biological clock.

The Boogeyman

When it premieres: June 2, 2023 in theaters

What it's about: Based on the short story of the same name by Stephen King , The Boogeyman is about two siblings who are reeling from the death of the mother. But when an ominous presence enters their lives, they beg their grieving father to take heed before something terrible happens.

When it premieres: June 2, 2023 in theaters and On Demand

What it's about: This indie thriller shows the true horrors of social media. Jess, a successful streamer who secretly films people and posts those clips online, is hired by Tom to finish a screenplay. The first red flag? They do so in a secluded cabin. The second red flag? Tom is definitely not what he seems. How far would you go for fame?

Stacey Grant is a senior editor at Seventeen who runs the brand's Snapchat Discover channel. She also covers entertainment topics specializing in nostalgia, such as classic '90s and '00s Disney Channel and Nickelodeon content.

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The Halloween Countdown: 31 days of horror to watch

A full month of spooktacular recommendations to stream, from cult horror classics to Halloween specials and everything in between

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If there’s one thing we love here at Polygon, it’s the Halloween season.

We cover horror year-round , whether it’s the best horror movies you can stream at home or the best horror movies on Netflix , and generally, we have our finger on the undead pulse of the newest and ghastliest releases in horror. We even have a list of the best horror movies of the year ( ranked by scariness, of course ).

Even still, Halloween is an especially spooky time of year, and it warrants special attention and celebration.

For the past three years , Polygon has put together a Halloween countdown calendar, selecting 31 of our staff’s top horror-themed or Halloween-adjacent picks across movies and TV throughout the month of October, all available to watch at home. We’ve loved doing it, so much so that we’re bringing it back again — this time with a whole new batch of films and shows to choose from.

Every day for the month of October, we’ll add a new recommendation to this countdown and tell you where you can watch it. So curl up on the couch, dim the lights, and grab some popcorn for a terrifying and entertaining marathon of horrific delights.

Oct. 1: Messiah of Evil

Where to watch: Prime Video, Shudder, Pluto TV, Plex

A undersung classic of ’70s cosmic horror, Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz’s Messiah of Evil is a surreal and nightmarish experience that more than deserves its status as a cult horror classic.

The film centers on Arletty, a young woman who journeys to the remote coastal town of Point Dume, California, to track down her missing father, a reclusive painter who is plagued by disturbing visions of an impending apocalypse. After crossing paths with an eccentric aristocrat and his groupie companions, the group bears witness to the realization of the painter’s prophecy, as the townspeople are transformed into flesh-eating ghouls and the messiah of evil makes his return to the mortal realm.

At times convoluted and bizarre, Messiah of Evil is a genuinely entertaining horror thriller filled with memorable scares and chilling set-pieces. From a cross-eyed albino man gleefully devouring a field mouse whole to a unsuspecting woman watching a Western as the theater around her slowly fills with ravenous undead zombies, it’s a dreamy and frightening experience that lands somewhere between the ineffable gothic horror of H.P. Lovecraft and the anti-consumerist allegories of George A. Romero. The horrors hold up over 50 years after it was first released, and with just the right combination of inadvertent silliness and legitimate terror, Messiah of Evil is a satisfying watch and an excellent start to a month of horrors. —Toussaint Egan

Oct. 2: Ginger Snaps

Where to watch: Criterion Channel, Shudder, Peacock, Vudu, Tubi, Freevee, Plex

There’s a sizable hole in the monster movie canon: There just aren’t enough good werewolf movies! Ginger Snaps is here to fix that. And if you love Jennifer’s Body , you’re in for a bloody treat.

Directed by future Orphan Black co-creator John Fawcett, Ginger Snaps is a delightfully gruesome story about two sisters. One of them has gotten her period for the first time, and is turned into a werewolf shortly after. Things get messy, fast.

Ginger Snaps doesn’t just do a great job filling in the werewolf canon. It’s a grisly body horror story placed onto an effective puberty allegory, with a compelling central sister relationship. If you’ve ever watched something like Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man and thought, This is great and surprisingly gooey, but give me stories like this about teen girls , then Ginger Snaps is for you.

The movie has amassed a dedicated cult following in the years since its release. You’re next up to join the ranks — see you at the next full moon! —Pete Volk

Oct. 3: Creepshow

Where to watch: Kanopy

The new Creepshow home video release — presented in vibrant 4K UHD Blu-ray — is the best way to revisit this horror anthology classic. You can see individual bubbles in the foam of the ocean as it slowly drowns Ted Danson. This is why it made our list of the best Blu-rays of 2023 .

But reader, while I’m one of those sickos who obsesses over video resolution and bitrate, I’ll be honest: You don’t need the fanciest version of Creepshow to enjoy its comedic chills. In fact, the most aesthetically harmonious format might be a poorly treated VHS tape that recorded the film off TBS in the mid-1990s.

Horror anthologies have most recently been used to condense as much terror into a tiny package, like chugging a shot glass of hot sauce. Creepshow is a throwback to a softer, more leisurely style of horror — a middle ground between the plodding tinglers of Poe and contemporary slashers.

Plus, Stephen King performs a one-person show as a hillbilly. So like, that should be enough. —Chris Plante

Oct. 4: Pulse

Where to watch: Prime Video

What if technology could be used to communicate with the dead? It’s an idea that dates as far back as the spiritualism movement of the late 19th century, and one that takes on a frightening and fascinating dimension in Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s post-Y2K horror-thriller Pulse .

Alternating between two storylines, Kurosawa’s film follows a group of young adults and university students as a rash of inexplicable disappearances and suicides occurs around Tokyo. As the protagonists investigate further, they slowly uncover a shocking revelation: The souls of the dead are spilling over into the mortal world and ensnaring their unsuspecting prey through the very infrastructure of the internet. By the time they realize this, however, it’s too late; the unearthly contagion has taken on a life of its own, and the only way to survive is cling to what few connections they have left.

Produced after Kurosawa’s Cure (which we featured on last year’s Halloween calendar), Pulse is widely celebrated as one of the foundational texts in the canon of J-horror cinema, alongside Hideo Nakata’s Ring and Takashi Shimizu’s Ju-on: The Curse . Eerie and methodical, Kurosawa’s film is a nihilistic meditation on technology and human relationships that presages an advent of loneliness in a world growing more and more “connected” with each passing day. Rife with imagery that will stay with you long after it’s over, Pulse is a tremendous and terrifying movie worth experiencing. —TE

Oct. 5: Apostle

Where to watch: Netflix

Don’t confuse Gareth Edwards (director of The Creator and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story ) with Gareth Evans, director of the Raid movies. If you do, you may sit down to the Netflix-exclusive Apostle expecting expansive, detail-driven science fiction, and be unpleasantly surprised when you get a grimy, extremely gory period piece that goes to startling extremes.

Evans’ mesmerizing Apostle deliberately starts in roughly the same place as the classic 1973 suspense thriller The Wicker Man , with a lone man heading to a remote Welsh island after getting a letter suggesting his sister is being held against her will there by a dangerous cult. Worming his way into the community by pretending to be a convert, Thomas (Dan Stevens, even more feral and intense than he is in The Guest or Beauty and the Beast ) inevitably discovers a lot of nasty work going on on the island.

Evans charts his own course with Apostle , veering far from the Wicker Man mold and into much bloodier territory. But he takes advantage of some of the same ideas: the ominous isolation of the island, the close-knit secrecy of its community, the predatory ideas that have flourished there under charismatic leadership. Stevens is particularly terrific in this movie, lunging from one scene to the next like a humanoid wolf who can barely contain his bloodlust. (Thomas has plenty of closely held secrets of his own.) And Evans’ commitment to violent mayhem gives this one some memorable moments that are likely to haunt you later, in the dark. —Tasha Robinson

Oct. 6: Dracula 2000

Where to watch: Max

With the scars of nu-metal having healed and Olivia Rodrigo’s Paramore-infused pop tracks having gone full “vampire,” now is the time to give Gerard Butler’s half-bare-chest take on Dracula the respect it’s due.

Maybe the most Dimension Films movie to ever bear the Dimension Films studio logo (close second: The Faculty ), Dracula 2000 finds a group of thieves — including of-the-moment faces like Omar Epps, Jennifer Esposito, and Shane West! — transporting a stolen silver coffin from London to New Orleans. They think there’s treasure inside. Are they idiots? Absolutely. And when they find Dracula instead of gold doubloons or whatever, they unleash hell. Overacted, canted-angled, seven-string-guitar-plucking HELL. Luckily, as Dracula hunts down local college student Mary Van Helsing (Justine Waddell), with whom he already shares a psychic connection, Mary’s dad’s new vampire-hunter assistant Simon (young Jonny Lee Miller!) is on his tail.

Butler, never more a heartthrob, plays Dracula in a mesmerizing, baroque manner; think Nicolas Cage doing Dracula if this year’s Renfield was emo turn-of-the-millennium trash. And he’s constantly biting unsuspecting B-list actors to add to his army of hot people, who fight the heroes in multiple obligatory scenes of wire-fu. Writer-director Patrick Lussier cuts it all up like it’s the video for “Freak on a Leash,” and, well, objectively, it’s quite unlike most horror movies you can watch today! Enjoyment of Dracula 2000 may vary depending on a tolerance for Hot Topic goofs, but if you don’t catch up with it, you can’t enjoy Lussier’s sequel, Dracula II: Ascension , starring Jason Scott Lee as a martial-arts-fighting priest who kicks Dracula’s ass! —Matt Patches

Oct. 7: Prince of Darkness

Where to watch: Peacock

There aren’t enough movies about the end of the world. Sure, there are plenty of movies about preventing catastrophe at that scale, but rarely do they have the follow-through to truly get existentially terrifying. Thankfully, John Carpenter is no coward, and he made three movies about different kinds of apocalypses. But while The Thing is the best known, and In the Mouth of Madness is the zaniest, Prince of Darkness might be the scariest of the trilogy.

Prince of Darkness follows a group of college researchers who are sent to study a strange canister found in the basement of a church. The canister is filled with some kind of liquid that defies science, and when it starts to get released, a strange evil seems to come into the world with it.

This is Carpenter at his most ambitious. While most of this movie is set in just one building, all manner of horror makes its way inside. There are people made of bugs, horrific zombies, an extradimensional Satan, and things even worse to behold. The entire movie is an onslaught of creepy, skin-crawling images, all built out of a unique mythology about the relationship between good and evil that underpins the world. And, most importantly, after this parade of horrors seems to come to an end, Carpenter saves Prince of Darkness ’ biggest, weirdest, most dreadful scare for last. —Austen Goslin

Oct. 8: Gravity Falls - Northwest Mansion Mystery

Where to watch: Hulu, Disney Plus — Season 2, Episode 10

The more time that has passed since Gravity Falls concluded, the more miraculous it feels in hindsight. Alex Hirsch’s paranormal comedy show about 12-year-old twins Dipper and Mabel, who solve supernatural mysteries in their great-uncle’s home in rural Oregon, is the perfect entry point for young horror-loving audiences. It’s a pastiche of The X-Files , Twin Peaks , and Adventure Time all rolled into one, with the freewheeling, funloving spirit of a summer vacation. There’s tons of fantastic episodes to choose from, but if you’re looking for an especially spooky one to get in the Halloween spirit, you can’t go wrong with “Northwest Mansion Mystery.”

A ghost has taken up residence in the mansion estate of the wealthiest family in Gravity Falls on the eve of their annual party, and Dipper has been enlisted to exorcize it. Upon arriving at the mansion, Dipper and popular girl Pacifica Northwest uncover a dark family secret that’s been buried for generations, one that threatens to not only tarnish the family’s reputation, but engulf the entire town. For a series ostensibly aimed at young children, it’s kind of wild just how scary “Northwest Mansion Mystery” gets, with taxidermy animals bleeding from their mouths, flaming skeletal lumberjacks, and hapless partygoers being petrified into screaming wooden statues. It’s a blast, and a solid stand-alone episode to introduce new audiences to the all the spooky (and “spoopy”) delights Gravity Falls has to offer. —TE

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Den of Geek

Best Family-Friendly Spooky Movies to Stream for Halloween 2023

Time to curl up with these fright-light family films for Hallo-weans to Hallotweens! 

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Halloween is spine-chilling in general, but especially so if you’re a parent. 

The amount of calories you consume while stealing your children’s hard-won candy? Gasp. Running out of sweets when there’s a minibus worth of spooky kids at your front door (and panic-shoving whatever you find in the cupboards their way, from loose handfuls of cereal to Oxo cubes)? Whimper. The price of Halloween costumes they’ll grow out of by Christmas? SCREAM.

You’d be better off extinguishing the pumpkin, barricading the door and curling up with one of these family-friendly Halloween movies instead – from animated delights to cult classics – which all fall under the ooky-spooky rather than blood-and-guts end of the scale. 

(All streaming info correct as of September 2023)

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FOR PRE-SCHOOL KIDS

Wallace & gromit: the curse of the were-rabbit (2005).

This Oscar-winning stop-motion classic was the fourth film for classic British double-act Wallace and Gromit , a cheese-loving inventor and his silent anthropomorphic dog, and like their previous short films (such as The Wrong Trousers ) it’s full of uniquely British, silly humour. This time the pair have set up a humane pest control business (called Anti-Pesto, because of course it is) to protect the gardens of the village from rabbits in the lead-up to the annual vegetable competition. But things get spooky when a giant were-rabbit starts terrorising the village at night, and only these unlikely Yorkshire heroes can save the day. Alongside Peter Sallis as Wallace, the voice cast is packed full of British treats, from comedian Peter Kay ( Car Share ) to Helena Bonham Carter ( Sweeney Todd ) and Ralph Fiennes ( The Grand Budapest Hotel ).

Where to stream : BBC iPlayer (UK), Netflix (US)

Room on the Broom (2012)

Two magic words bring instant joy to any parents of pre-schoolers: JULIA DONALDSON. The children’s author has had one hit after another since creating The Gruffalo , from Superworm to Zog to The Smeds and the Smoos , so it’s no surprise she’s created an adorable Halloween tale too. Room on the Broom is about a kind witch and her cat – voiced by Gillian Anderson ( Sex Education ) and Rob Brydon ( Gavin & Stacey ) respectively – who invite other animals to join them for flying adventures on their broomstick. The cast includes other big names like Timothy Spall ( The Sixth Commandment ), Sally Hawkins ( Paddington ) and Martin Clunes ( Doc Martin ) so even the grownups will enjoy this, but its 55-minute running time should keep even the shortest attention spans entertained.

Where to stream: Prime Video, BBC iPlayer (UK only)

Mickey’s Tale of Two Witches

You can’t go wrong with Mickey Mouse, and this 45-minute movie is a spooky treat that even scaredy-cats will enjoy, as we follow witches-in-training Minnie the Wonderful and Daisy Doozy as they try to pass their witch exams. There’s cute songs, whizzy magic spells and an amusing mischievous ghost – the kind of harmless Halloween fun that’s aimed at the youngest members of the family, but will keep the grown-ups entertained too. 

A less overtly Halloween-y but still spooky Mickey Mouse option is Disney’s 1940 classic Fantasia , (also on Disney+) but that might be more suited to slightly older children.

Where to stream: Disney+ (UK and US), Fubo (US only)

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LEGO Star Wars Terrifying Tales (2021)

The perfect way to introduce the littlest family members to the Star Wars universe, this 45-minute mini TV movie has much of the irresistibly silly humour of the proper LEGO movies, so it’s perfect all-family viewing. It takes place after the events of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker , with Poe and BB8 forced to make an emergency landing on the planet Mustafar, where they encounter the villainous Graballa The Hut, who is renovating Darth Vader’s castle into a luxury Sith-inspired hotel. While at the castle, they hear three creepy stories linked to ancient artefacts and iconic villains from across all eras of Star Wars . While these references will no doubt entertain Star Wars -loving parents, they’ll probably wash over the kids watching, but they’ll be kept amused by the film’s frequent kid-friendly jokes.

Where to stream: Disney+ (US and UK)

FOR OLDER KIDS (5+)

Hotel transylvania (2012).

This animated comedy makes great use of its talented cast. Adam Sandler ( You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah ) voices Dracula, who runs a remote hotel resort for all the spooky non-human types and is a typical overprotective father to Mavis (Selena Gomez, Only Murders In The Building ), his 118-year old vampire daughter. While she tries to convince him to let her see the world, a human backpacker called Jonathan (Andy Samberg, Brooklyn Nine-Nine ) miraculously stumbles upon the hotel and causes havoc when he checks in as a guest, and he and Mavis fall in love. Some of the humour is surprisingly grown-up (a sentient suit of armour gets kicked in the privates and doubles over before asking “Wait, why did that hurt me?”) so it really will entertain the whole family, and it’s got enough spooky vibes for the season while still retaining plenty of heart.

Where to stream: Netflix / NOW (UK), Hulu (US)

Labyrinth (1986)

When The Muppets ’ Jim Henson, Monty Python ‘s Terry Jones, and Star Wars ’ George Lucas collided, we were blessed with Labyrinth , and the good news is you get to be the ones to introduce this magnificent movie to your kids. A young Jennifer Connelly ( Top Gun: Maverick) plays Sarah, who wishes away her little brother Toby to the Goblin King (the inimitable David Bowie), but when she changes her mind she discovers the only way to get Toby back is to defeat a tricksy, otherworldly maze full of riddles and challenges. The puppet characters she meets are just the right side of freaky without being scary, David Bowie is just as amazing as you’d expect, and almost four decades later Labyrinth still more than deserves its cult film status.

Where to stream: Netflix (UK), Hulu and Pluto (US)

Scooby Doo (2002)

Is this a good movie? No. Should you still watch it? Absolutely, preferably every Halloween without fail. Since it launched in the sixties, Scooby Doo has always been the epitome of kid-friendly spooky, with comedic “monsters” which usually have the comforting element of being unmasked as just bad guys in disguise, and any peril interspersed with plenty of giant sandwiches. This live-action remake falls roughly along these lines, and the gang (with the cast including Buffy ’s Sarah Michelle Gellar as Daphne, and She’s All That star Freddie Prinze Jr as Fred) visiting the unimaginatively named “Spooky Island” to investigate why tourists seem to be falling under a demonic curse. But the plot isn’t really important – all that matters is Matthew Lillard embodies Shaggy so accurately that it defies the laws of science. And it won the Kids’ Choice award for Best Fart in a Movie. So there’s that.

The movie’s sequel and a series of animated Scooby Doo movies (also featuring Lillard’s voice as Shaggy) are also available.

Where to stream: NOW (UK), Max (US)

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

One of Henry Selick’s greatest creations, Tim Burton-produced The Nightmare Before Christmas is often the subject of ‘Halloween or Christmas’ movie debate, but why not watch it on both occasions? All that really matters is that it’s a modern classic: surreal, freaky, dark, and an explosive visual and musical feast. The stop motion film follows leggy Jack Skellington (Chris Sarandon, Fright Night ), the pumpkin king of Halloween Town, who discovers Christmas Town and tries to take over. There’s a host of recognisable voices – Catherine O’Hara ( Schitt’s Creek ) as Jack’s love interest and poison enthusiast Sally, Glenn Shaddix ( Beetlejuice ) as Halloween Town’s mayor, and Patrick Stewart ( Star Trek: Picard ) as the narrator. It might be too weird for some younger kids to enjoy, but is definitely something you can watch with more robust tweens and teens.

Coraline (2009)

Similarly dark, weird and visually stunning is Coraline , a stop motion film based on Neil Gaiman’s novel, and – like The Nightmare Before Christmas – directed by Henry Selick. The titular character Coraline (voiced by Dakota Fanning ) is a young girl who hates her new home and feels ignored by her parents, but then she discovers a magical alternate universe behind a secret door in the house. At first it seems idyllic, with much more adoring versions of her parents lavishing her with attention – it’s just they have buttons sewn where their eyes should be… and Coraline gradually realises that the alternate world is much more sinister than she thought. The impressive female-led cast includes Terri Hatcher ( Desperate Housewives ) as Coraline’s mother, and comedy duo Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders as their eccentric neighbours. Definitely one for the older, less sensitive children, but a Halloween family staple nonetheless.

Where to stream: ITVX (UK), Max (US)

Frankenweenie (2012)

Once you’ve done the important job of introducing your kids to The Nightmare Before Christmas , you can show them Tim Burton’s animated Halloween creation, Frankenweenie , based on his 1984 short film of the same name. It’s about a young boy who revives his beloved dead dog in a child-friendly twist on the classic Frankenstein format. The cast is superb: Ozark ’s Charlie Tahan is convincingly lovable as the young Frankenstein, Catherine O’Hara and Martin Short ( Only Murders in the Building ) are his parents, and Winona Ryder ( Stranger Things ) plays his school friend Elsa. Expect the textbook twistedness of Burton, including lots of dead animals coming back to life, so it’s another one for the less squeamish kids.

Where to stream: Disney+ (UK and US)

Hocus Pocus (1993)

If a family viewing of Hocus Pocus isn’t in your Halloween plans, you’re simply doing it wrong. It’s the ultimate in silly spooky, with Bette Midler ( The First Wives Club ), Sarah Jessica Parker ( Sex and the City ) and Kathy Najimy ( Sister Act ) as the addictively entertaining trio of Salem witches who are accidentally brought back to life by teenagers Max and Allison and Max’s little sister Dani while out trick-or-treating at Halloween. The witches are out for blood – or, more accurately, the souls of children – and it’s up to the kids to save the town from their deadly appetite. Hocus Pocus is the ultimate camp Halloween romp, with the emphasis heavily on comedy over horror, and Midler’s performance of her version of I Put a Spell on You remains a certified banger.

Parker, Midler and Najimy all reunited for Hocus Pocus 2 , released in 2022, which is a not-quite-as-good but still hugely fun and nostalgic sequel, also available on Disney+.

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Where to stream: Disney+ (UK and US), Hulu (US only)

The Haunted Mansion (2003)

Even ghosts can’t be properly scary when they’re haunting Eddie Murphy ( The Nutty Professor ), who stars in this classic and silly film based on Disney’s Haunted Mansion theme park attraction. Murphy plays a workaholic estate agent Jim who visits the mansion with his family, hoping he can sell it, but they soon find themselves trapped there, accosted by spirits, and embroiled in solving a century-old mystery about the death of the mansion’s former owner. Other cast members include Marsha Thomason ( Lost ) as Jim’s wife Sara and Wallace Shawn ( The Good Wife ) and Jennifer Tilly ( Family Guy ) as two of the mansion’s ghostly inhabitants, but it’s Murphy who really shines. 

The Addams Family (1991) 

There have been so many iterations of this famous spooky family over the past century – including the recent Netflix series Wednesday – that it’s hard to know where to start, but you can’t go wrong with the original 1991 feature film. Anjelica Huston ( The Witches ) and Raoul Julia give us one of the best ever on-screen partnerships in Morticia and Gomez Addams, Christina Ricci is divine as their morbid, no-nonsense daughter Wednesday, and Back To The Future star Christopher Lloyd’s delightful gurning is unforgettable as the imposter Uncle Fester. It’s a strange film, but the ensemble cast’s performance makes it a must-see.

The sequel, The Addams Family Values , (sadly one of the last acting appearances for Raoul Julia before his death) is also on Paramount+.

Where to stream: Paramount+ (US and UK) 

Ghostbusters (1984)

Hollywood royalty like Bill Murray and Sigourney Weaver? Check. Mild comedic peril involving three enthusiastic but inept supernatural specialists setting up their own ghost removal service in New York City? Check. The catchiest theme song of all time (probably)? Double check. There’s a lot of good reasons why this eighties blockbuster has stood the test of time and it remains an absolute belter of a family film, especially during spooky season.

If you’re after a more modern version, the 2016 Ghostbusters reboot (starring the likes of Melissa McCarthy, Leslie Jones and Chris Hemsworth) is also on Netflix.

Where to stream : NOW (UK), Peacock Premium and Fubo (US) 

Muppets Haunted Mansion (2021)

Yes, we’ve been blessed with a Muppets Halloween special , and it’s every bit as good as you might expect. Gonzo and Pepe the King Prawn attend a fright challenge at the local haunted mansion, where they meet the Ghost Host (Will Arnett, Arrested Development ), who tells them they must face their biggest fears and survive one night at the mansion or else be stuck there forever. All kinds of spooky shenanigans ensue, with just about every familiar Muppet face turning up (Miss Piggy is Madame Pigota, Rowlf is the organist, Kermit is the Mansion Show Host… the list goes on) with other human stars including Glee ’s Darren Criss as the caretaker and Alfonso Ribeira ( The Fresh Prince ) as one of the mansion’s resident ghouls. Packed with excellent jokes, it’s a textbook Muppets delight.

Gnome Alone (2017)

An animated Netflix original, this fun family-friendly fantasy centres on Chloe, a girl whose mother moves them to a creepy new home that she discovers is overrun with sentient garden gnomes, who are battling an evil other-wordly race called the Troggs. It’s an action-packed, if unserious, treat, which the kids might well enjoy more than the grownups, but it’s entertaining enough to keep the attention of all ages. 

Where to stream : Netflix (US and UK)

Spirited Away (2001)

Admittedly not all (or even… any) of the other films on this list are particularly highbrow, but if you’re after a truly beautiful movie for your family’s Halloween watchlist, choose Spirited Away . Produced by Japan’s prestigious Studio Ghibli, it tells the story of a young girl called Chihiro who is moving house, when her family stumbles into an abandoned theme park which turns out to be a magical world ruled by spirits, gods and witches. It’s up to Chihiro to work out a way to save her family and return to the human world. This stunning, enchanting family film rightly won dozens of awards, including an Oscar for Best Animated Feature.

Where to stream: Netflix (UK), Max (US)

Goosebumps (2015)

Many millennial parents spent their childhood thoroughly enjoying being scared daft by R L Stine’s Goosebumps novels, so expect a big dose of nostalgia when watching this comedy horror film adaptation . It stars Dylan Minnette ( 13 Reasons Why ) as Zach, a teenager who befriends his new neighbour Hannah (Odeya Rush, Dumplin’ ), before discovering her father is secretly R L Stine himself, played superbly by Jack Black. When the kids accidentally open some of the books he keeps locked away, they unleash a range of his fictional monsters which magically come to life, sending them on a rescue mission to save the town from a whole host of terrors. Unlike the nineties TV series, there’s plenty of jokes in the Goosebumps film to keep things light, so expect harmless pseudo-horror fun.

Where to watch: Netflix (UK and US)

King Kong (1933)

It’s a rite of passage to watch this legendary 1933 picture, arguably one of the greatest films of all time, and there’s no better time than Halloween to introduce the next generation to the piece of movie history. The image of the giant ape Kong scooping a terrified Ann (Fay Wray) from her bed through a skyscraper window, and climbing the Empire State Building with her screaming in his grasp, has to be one of the most enduring in all cinema. While Kong is certainly a menacing monster, the film’s age means there’s no particularly alarming gore, so it’s easily suitable for older children to enjoy.

Where to stream: BBC iPlayer (UK only)

Monster Family (2017)

Yes, Monster Family was a box office flop, but this animated adventure has enough familiar voices to make it worth your time. Emily Watson ( Chernobyl ) and Nick Frost ( Hot Fuzz ) star as parents Emma and Frank who, along with their two children, attend a Halloween costume party before a witch (voiced by Doctor Who’ s Catherine Tate ) transforms them into real monsters. Other voice cast include solid names like Jason Isaacs ( Harry Potter ) and Celia Imrie ( Calendar Girls ), and while it might not be a masterpiece, it’s certainly fun, and about as Halloweeny as it gets.

Where to stream: NOW (UK), Hulu, Peacock and Pluto (US)

Laura Vickers-Green

Laura is a freelance writer and social media pro specialising in entertainment, food and drink and charities. She also writes novels, sometimes badly. She's a huge…

All the Horror You Need to Stream in October 2023

Welcome to Horrorscope , a monthly column keeping horror nerds and initiates up to date on all the horror content coming to and leaving your favorite streaming services. Here’s what to watch in October 2023:

After a brief break in September (blame festival season) the lights are back on here at Horroscope LLC. Personally, I think that the cobwebs add character to the place. The rats I could do without.

October is here! And in this hemisphere at least, the air is crisp and full of the unmistakable scent of rotting leaves. The pumpkins in my compost are finally ready to harvest. And coming across animal bones on my daily walks is more on-theme than ever. This is my Christmas.

It’s also the  busiest  time of the year as far as horror streaming is concerned. So without further ado, let’s cut to the chase and have a look at the state of things this month. Be sure to peruse the complete list below, calendar in hand, for a full picture of what horror movies are coming and going from your favorite streaming services in October 2023.

Please keep in mind that all dates listed below may not apply to viewers outside the US.

October 2023 Horror Streaming Cheat Sheet

• Shout! TV’s 5th Annual 31 Nights of Horror   is back. Every night in October at 8pm ET/ 5pm PT you can catch a specially-curated double bill. I am personally looking forward to the Willard/Ben pairing on the 14th. You can peep the whole line up here .
• Max has created a “House of Halloween” spotlight page this year which will organize the service’s freaky offerings by topic and scare level (while promising some “in-app surprises”).
• The fourth season of Shudder’s popular horror anthology series Creepshow   returns on Friday October 13th.
• With their annual FearFest , AMC Networks is boasting over 700 hours of horror flicks across its platforms. You can check out the press release here .
• Peacock is sneakily premiering a horror anthology series overseen by John Carpenter . Suburban Screams   premieres on the 13th of the month.
• The fifth season of the bloody good horror drag competition show The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula   returns to Shudder on October 31st.
• Horror host Joe Bob Briggs has two specials of note this month: a 45th Anniversary celebration of John Carpenter’s  Halloween  on October 10th and a Halloween Special on October 20th.
• If we have any Crunchyroll appreciators in the audience, you’ll be happy to know that the anime purveyor is streaming a handful of horror content this month, including  Hellsing ,  Hell’s Paradise , and  Tokyo Ghoul .

Collection Corner: October 2023 Horror Streaming

• Titles include Ringu , Children of the Corn, Death Screams
• Titles include Dementer , Two Witches , and Edge of the Axe .
• Titles Include The El Duce Tapes , Tetsuo: The Iron Man , The Witch Who Came from the Sea .
• Titles include Elvira Mistress of the Dark , Hotel Poseidon , Crow Hand .
• Titles include Hellraiser , Hellbound: Hellraiser II , Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth , Hellraiser: Bloodline .
• Titles include She-Devils on Wheels , Hitchhike to Hell , Go to Hell Bastards!
• Titles include Dust Devil , When a Stranger Calls Back , and In the Mouth of Madness .
• Titles include Videodrome , eXistenZ , and Dark City .
• Titles include Häxan , Vampyr , and Jigoku .
• Titles include Svengali , Doctor X , and Freaks .
• Titles include The Conjuring , The Descent , and The Fly .
• Titles include Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed  and Scooby-Doo! and Kiss: Rock and Roll Mystery .
• Titles include Beetlejuice  and Peter and the Wolf (as of 10/19).
• Titles include all eight Leprechaun films. That’s right. All eight.

New(ish) Releases

• Studio 666 on Prime Video;
• HeBGB TV,   Shaky Shivers , and 10/31 Part 3 on Screambox.
• Spirit Halloween and Lockdown Tower on Shudder.
• Mickey & Friends Trick or Treats , Haunted Mansion , and Werewolf By Night In Color on Disney+;
• Oracle on MAX;
• Appendage ; The Boogeyman ; Zombie Town ; Cobweb on Hulu;
• The Conference ; Disco Inferno ; Flashback ; Sister Death on Netflix;
• Pet Sematary: Bloodlines and Vindicta on Paramount+;
• Winnie the Pooh: Blood & Honey and Five Nights at Freddy’s on Peacock;
• Totally Killer and Renfield on Prime Video;
• Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls on Screambox;
• V/H/S/85 , The Puppetman , Night of the Hunted , When Evil Lurks , Hell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor on Shudder ;
• Sorry, Charlie, Dante’s Hotel , The Devil Comes to Kansas City on Tubi.

The streaming service  champion of the month is The Criterion Channel, who always do incredible work this time of year with their curated collections. We’re truly spoiled for choice this year.

The streaming service  dunce of the month is Disney+. While dunking on the House of Mouse usually brings me joy, this go round, my heart is  somewhat  heavy. Disney+ is bringing more horror content to their service this month than they usually do. And while I want to congratulate them for doing the bare minimum, look at what the others are slinging. Rise to the occasion Disney, ’tis the season.

Horror Streaming Highlights for October 2023

Pick of the month — when evil lurks.

Synopsis :  Two brothers, Pedro (Ezequiel Rodríguez) and Jimmy (Demián Salomón), make a horrifying discovery in a nearby farmhouse. Something — formerly someone — is rotting; a demonic presence that threatens to infect the surrounding area. Attempting to game the strict rules around the supernatural plague, the brothers relocate the possessed ticking time bomb. Sure enough, their attempts to make the problem go away make things much, much worse.

I’ll be vulnerable, for your benefit: I am not the biggest fan of  Terrified , the haunting possession flick that introduced international audiences to Demián Rugna . But the tables have turned with  When Evil Lurks , which handily knocked me on my butt and stole my wallet. This is easily the most accomplished resurrection of Euro-splatter films I’ve ever seen. It’s as bleakly apocalyptic as any Fulci film; dropping you into a nightmare and hitting the ground running with no regard for anything so insulting as “an explanation.” It rules, and I’ve already said too much. No child, dog, pregnant woman, or hero is safe.

Available to stream on Shudder on October 27th.

A totally tubular drive-by through ’90s horror courtesy of Criterion

Synopsis :  Everyone’s favorite prestige streaming service is griming things up with this collection of must-see horror gems from the 1990s.

After previous collections highlighting the 1970s and the 1980s, The Criterion Channel commits to the bit with this ode to the genre output of the 1990s. The selected films run an impressive gamut from horror comedies ( Frankenhooker , Ravenous ) to reclaimed masterpieces ( The Exorcist III, Demon Knight ), to curios that deserve more eyes on them ( Dust Devil , Def by Temptation ).

The collection includes: Def by Temptation (1990), The Exorcist III (1990), Frankenhooker (1990), Body Parts (1991)*, The Rapture (1991), Dust Devil (1992)*, When a Stranger Calls Back (1993)*, In the Mouth of Madness (1994), The Addiction (1995), Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight (1995)*, and Ravenous (1999). Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) and Body Snatchers (1993) arrive on the first of November and Event Horizon (1997) hits the service on the first of December.

Available to stream on The Criterion Channel on October 1st.

One of the best Halloween-set horror anthologies of the 21st Century

Synopsis :  Not to be confused with the 1986 Satanic Panic rock’n roll horror flick of the same name, this horror omnibus sees a series of connected spooky stories unfold on Halloween night in an unassuming small town.

Michael Dougherty ‘s 2007 horror flick is an anomaly in that it is one of the few genre anthologies with a perfect batting average. There are no weak links in this chain link fence. Though, as ever, one segment (which sees Dylan Baker as a creepy child-killing principal who meets a sticky end) is especially  crunchy. Full of the gleeful comeuppance that defines the pulpy sub-genre,  Trick ‘r Treat  is the cinematic equivalent of a fistful of your favorite candy. And it goes down especially easy around All Hallows’ Eve.

Available to stream on MAX on October 1st.

An ultra-gory forgotten Japanese home invasion masterpiece

Synopsis :  A housewife (Keiko Takahashi) in a high-rise apartment finds herself a victim of an especially persistent door-to-door salesman, who doesn’t take kindly to having a door slammed in his face.

Newly remastered (and hot off a stint at Fantastic Fest), 1988’s Door has never been screened outside of Japan. Which is a damn shame because it’s one of the most shocking home invasions you’re liable to find. And, thanks to Screambox, “finding” it is going to be a hell of a lot easier.

Directed by Banmei Takahashi under the umbrella of the infamous and short-lived production house Director’s Company,  Door  features one of the most batshit final twenty minutes of its sub-genre, which careens into Evil Dead  territory without a backward glance. If the phrase “slow-burning J-Horror giallo” makes your heart flutter, make sure to check out this incredibly weird, and criminally under-seen genre gem.

Available on Screambox on October 24th.

Streamable Horror Incoming This Month

Horror streaming titles expiring soon.

Related Topics: Horror , Horrorscope

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All the horror you need to stream in august 2023, all the horror you need to stream in july 2023, all the horror you need to stream in june 2023, all the horror you need to stream in may 2023.

13 great horror movies new on Netflix, Hulu and more to stream in October 2023

While there's no official start to the spooky season, once October rolls around, all of the tell-tale signs appear. Pumpkin spice is suddenly everywhere and social media is flooded with horror-themed watchlists. Yes, it's every horror fan's favorite time of year. 

This is when the best streaming services ramp up their genre output by offering a roster of classic library titles along with a raft of brand new movies to keep sleep at bay. This year is no different; we're spoiled for choice when it comes to what to watch. 

Netflix has an international slasher, Hulu and Disney Plus are killing it with a few recent cinema releases now hitting their home platform, Prime Video 's got a throwback slasher, and Shudder? Well, it's the horror fan's streamer, after all. Prepare for some straight-to-streaming flicks that have scooped up plenty of festival acclaim. Whatever you're in the mood for this Halloween season, there's plenty here to claw your way through…

The Empty Man

When: October 1 (US)

Where to stream it: Hulu (US), Disney Plus (AUS, UK)

The Empty Man dropped in 2020 as a delightful surprise. A big-budget studio horror this weird? Everything surrounding David Prior's directorial debut feels out of the ordinary. In spite of low scores from test audiences, when it finally reached genre fans, they lapped up its strangeness. What appears on the surface to be a simple urban legend yarn turns into something much more extravagant. James Badge Dale leads the flick as a cop investigating a missing girl but eventually discovers, well, you'll have to find out for yourself.  Luxuriating in its 137-minute runtime, The Empty Man is a beautiful oddity that warrants repeat viewings.

Doctor Sleep

Where to stream it: Hulu (US), Binge (AUS), Disney Plus (UK)

Mike Flanagan's Doctor Sleep from 2019 does triple duty as a sequel to both Stanley Kubrick's The Shining , and to Stephen King's original tome, and an adaptation of the author's  follow-up novel. Carrying the weight of so many existing, beloved works might hamper a less experienced filmmaker, but Flanagan's love of the story and handle on craft beautifully melds these somewhat disparate tales. The film follows Danny Torrance, all grown up and looking like Ewan McGregor, as he and a young girl named Abra fend off a traveling troupe of energy vampires called the True Knot. Led by Rebecca Ferguson's sumptuous villain Rose the Hat, their brand of terror is truly one of King's most devious inventions. Flanagan never shies away from the brutality of their evil.

When: October 2 (US), October 18 (AUS, UK)

One of Hulu's original films under its seasonal "Huluween" banner looks poised to be a fun, Friday night watch. Directed by Anna Zlokovic, who adapts her own six-minute short, this 2023 horror comedy stars Little Women 's Hadley Robinson as Hannah, a young fashion designer who presents as calm and collected but whose inner anxieties begin to manifest in physical form. While she grapples with sickness she has to contend with a sentient growth on her body – the titular appendage – that seems content to fuel her anxieties. Also starring Schitt's Creek star Emily Hampshire, Appendage is one worth adding to your spooky watchlist.

The Boogeyman

When: October 5 (AUS, US), October 11 (UK)

Following in the wake of their success with A Quiet Place (and the lesser-seen but highly recommended Haunt ), writers Scott Beck and Bryan Woods grapple with the master of horror for this adaptation. The duo reworked a short story from Stephen King's Night Shift collection, and transformed it into a full-length feature for Host director Rob Savage to bring to life. The story follows sisters Sadie (Sophie Thatcher) and Sawyer (Vivien Lyra Blair) who are reeling over the loss of their mother while trying to connect with their therapist father, Will (Chris Messina). Yellowjackets fans will recognise Thatcher and her performance and Blair's carry the movie, as the pair become stalked by an otherworldly being. While it varies drastically from the original tale, this 2023 movie has plenty to say about trauma without feeling tired.

Pet Sematary Bloodlines

When: October 6

Where to stream it: Paramount Plus (AUS, UK, US)

Speaking of King, this month also heralds a return to another of his worlds. Bloodlines takes place decades before the events of Pet Sematary and revolves around a younger version of Jud Crandall – the gruff old man who dispenses advice in the first film. Kicking off in the summer of 1969, the movie follows Jud (Jackson White) as he tries to leave Ludlow, Maine, but struggles when he uncovers the truth about the burial ground. David Duchovny and Pam Grier lend this 2023 straight-to-video tale some heft, which also marks the directorial debut of screenwriter Lindsay Beer. Expect some ghastly zombies in both animal and human form!

Totally Killer

Where to stream it: Amazon Prime (AUS, UK, US)

Back to the Future gets name-dropped early on in this trailer, hinting at the level of self-awareness we should all prepare ourselves for. Based on everything in the trailer for this Amazon Prime Original, Totally Killer looks to be a nostalgic slasher in the vein of The Final Girls . Sabrina 's Kiernan Shipka leads the 2023 movie as a high schooler who travels back in time and teams up with her teenage mom in order to stop a serial killer. If you dig the likes of Happy Death Day and Freaky , both of which also hail from Blumhouse, add this to your watchlist.

Where to stream it: Shudder (AUS, UK, US)

The V/H/S franchise continues on from last year's V/H/S/99 with this new mash of found-footage vignettes each helmed by a different filmmaker. This anthology series remains a must-see horror event and 2023's V/H/S/85 has already garnered a slew of positive early word. Its roster of directors includes Scott Derrickson ( The Black Phone ), David Bruckner ( The Night House ), Gigi Saul Guerrero ( Bingo Hell ). This instalment explores the seedy side of the 1980s, with burgeoning tech acting as the vessel for most of the tales. Expect a high level of grot and grue along with some genuinely frightening moments. 

The Conference

When: October 13th

Where to stream it: Netflix (UK, US, AUS)

Anyone for some brutal office politics? This 2023 Swedish slasher comedy follows in the footsteps of 2006's Severance – a team-building exercise goes horribly wrong when a group of workers find themselves targeted by a masked killer. Not only that, the inner dynamics of the work team fall under scrutiny as accusations are tossed around, revealing layers of corruption. The flick hails from director Patrick Eklund who adapts the 2021 book by prolific Swedish horror novelist Mats Strandberg. Judging by the mood of the trailer , scored by jaunty, playful strings as each worker confronts the killer, The Conference looks to be a delightful Halloween surprise.

When: October 20th

Where to stream it: Hulu (US) UK (Amazon Video) AU (Stan)

A young child hears a tapping in his bedroom walls. His parents insist it's his overactive imagination. Ah, that old chestnut. Except, not quite. 2023's Cobweb might appear to be another run-of-the-mill spooky-kid horror flick, but it carries a few more creepy cards up its sleeve. Lizzy Caplan and Anthony Starr headline as the parents of young Peter, who it turns out is on the cusp of discovering something far more sinister. The directorial debut of Samuel Bodin suffered a little at time of release – it hit theaters on Barbenheimer weekend – but it's got potential to find its audience on streaming.

Five Nights at Freddy’s

When: October 27th (US)

Where to stream it: Peacock (UK, US)

A long time coming. Five Nights at Freddy's began life as a video game franchise before making the leap to the big screen. In the time it's taken to work through its various development woes we've seen the likes of director Chris Columbus come and go along with a quasi-imitator in the form of Willy's Wonderland . But it's this 2023 adaptation that's got fans excited. And quite rightly so. Josh Hutcherson of The Hunger Games fame snags the juicy lead as a security guard at a once-popular family hangout who soon discovers the animatronic mascots come alive at night. It's a killer premise that promises scares galore. The supporting cast also boasts Scream and Scooby Doo alum Matthew Lillard.

When Evil Lurks

When: October 27th

Where to stream it: Shudder 

If director Demián Rugna's Terrified is any indication, his newest outing will be one of the most talked-about horror movies of 2023. Where his previous film explored a neighborhood's collective paranormal experiences, When Evil Lurks broadens the scope to a whole village that comes under the threat. The logline describes the film as following two brothers who discover a possessed man who they decide to murder to stave off the evil inside of him, but actually have the opposite effect. Following its worldwide debut at Fantastic Fest, reviews suggest this is hard-hitting, traumatic, brutal and an absolute must-see.

Hell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor

When: October 30th

Where to stream it: Shudder

Hell House LLC popped up out of nowhere and terrified the, ahem, hell out of audiences. Its simple premise tells of a group of friends who purchase an abandoned hotel and turn it into a Halloween haunted house. Everything of course goes wrong as it is revealed the abode is genuinely haunted. It's a truly hair-raising found footage flick that prompted several sequels, and now we have a fresh tale in the universe. According to creator Stephen Cognetti this origin story takes place in the present day and revolves around a group of internet sleuths who journey to the titular manor to investigate a series of unsolved murders. Who reckons the Carmichael homestead is haunted? Find out when Hell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor drops later this month.

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A Spooky Guide to the Best New Horror Streaming in October

Who doesn’t love spooky season? The leaves are falling, the air is cooling, pumpkin spice is literally everywhere, and the streamers are bringing out new goodies to give all the loyal horror trick-or-treaters who subscribe. This year sees new movies and TV shows across all the streamers, including things people have never seen before from legends like John Carpenter and Mike Flanagan, along with a blend of familiar titles and brand-new scares. We’ve assembled ten you definitely want to put on your calendar, plus another ten for those who really want to dig into the best month of the year for genre fans.

Pet Sematary: Bloodlines

October 6, Paramount+

This franchise just won’t die. (Sorry.) The 2019 reboot of Pet Sematary might have been generally loathed, but it did well enough that the producers green-lit a prequel to dig into the mythology of the land on which Jud Crandall learns that sometimes staying dead is better. The result is this flick that once looked destined for a theatrical release but will now get a relatively quiet streaming one after its Fantastic Fest premiere in September where, well, the reviews weren’t pretty . But who cares, right? We need a launch to spooky season, and why shouldn’t it star the unexpected pairing of David Duchovny and Pam Grier?! The film takes place in 1969 and unpacks the secrets of the cemetery that somehow brings loved things back to life. Sorta.

Totally Killer

October 6, Prime

If it’s October, there’s gotta be a Blumhouse TV production, and the big one this year is from sitcom creator Nahnatchka Khan, the writer behind Fresh Off the Boat , Young Rock , and Netflix’s hit comedy Always Be My Maybe . This Blumhouse joint looks as if it has the horror-comedy vibe of films like Happy Death Day and Freaky as it tells the tale of a teenager named Jamie (Kiernan Shipka) whose parents are murdered by the “Sweet Sixteen Killer” on Halloween. She somehow travels back in time to 1987, where she’s given a chance to team up with the teen version of her mom (Olivia Holt) to stop the killer long before they can ruin Jamie’s life. This one also dropped at Fantastic Fest in late September, showing that Prime and Blumhouse think they have a genre hit on their hands.

October 9, Hulu

This one sounds fascinatingly twisted: The multitalented Lil Rel Howery ( Get Out , Free Guy, and dozens of other things, dude does like six movies a year) stars as a guy who just wakes up one day to find himself alone in an open-air prison cell. All that’s with him is an old gristmill. He has to work the mill to stay alive and escape to see the birth of his child. Is it an allegory for the drudgery and repetition of classism? Will there be commentary on racial exploitation? Who knows where this story goes, but it does contain one of those setups that seem too enticing to miss. Bonus point: It’s directed by Sean King O’Grady, who already made a killer single-setting thriller in We Need to Do Something , also on Hulu.

The Fall of the House of Usher

October 12, Netflix

Mike Flanagan, the mastermind behind The Haunting of Hill House and Midnight Mass , turns his gaze to the work of the king of the short story, Edgar Allan Poe. Flanagan’s latest Netflix series (perhaps the last, with his new Prime deal) is named for one of Poe’s best short stories, the saga of the decline of a wealthy family. But the season promises to use that as a launchpad for other Poe classics like “The Pit and the Pendulum,” “The Raven,” and “The Cask of Amontillado.” Once again, Flanagan has assembled some of his most reliable collaborators, including Bruce Greenwood, Kate Siegel, Rahul Kohli, and Henry Thomas. Joining the troupe this time are Mary McDonnell and the legendary Mark Hamill as Arthur Pym, a name familiar to the diehard Poe Heads out there. Even if it turns out to be the rare Flanagan misfire, this high-budget show should bring more eyes to the work of one of the best writers of all time.

October 13, Disney+/Hulu

Children of the ’90s will remember being lovingly scarred by the Goosebumps books by R.L. Stine and the Fox Kids TV series of the same name. The books were resurrected for a halfway decent 2015 movie (and a less decent 2018 sequel), but they have returned in the form everyone loves for them with a new series launching simultaneously on Hulu and Disney+. Rob Letterman, who helmed the first film, directs the premiere episode, which drops on October 13 along with four more episodes (the season’s final five launch weekly thereafter). It’s mostly a cast of newcomers in this tale of five teenagers attempting to keep supernatural forces at bay, but familiar faces include Justin Long and the infamous Slappy the Dummy, arguably the most popular villain from Stine’s universe.

John Carpenter’s Suburban Screams

October 13, Peacock

Big news, horror fans: In mid-October, John Carpenter, arguably the best horror director of all time, is presenting viewers with his first directing effort since 2010’s The Ward . The man behind Halloween and The Thing brings his perverse vision to an odd Peacock project, a series that’s half reality and half horror. The pitch is that each episode presents true tales of horror, told by the people who lived them; these are then re-created by filmmakers, including Carpenter himself. Another cool thing? Carpenter is composing the score for the series. Let’s hope it reignites his passion for filmmaking and we get another feature soon. It’s long overdue.

Living for the Dead

October 18, Hulu

What the hell is this? One of the oddest new series in a long time feels like a Queer Eye for the Straight Guy riff on the ghost-hunting show — a pitch that gets even nuttier when you learn that Kristen Stewart is narrating! Huh? Stick with us: Executive-produced by the great actress and produced by the team behind Queer Eye , Living for the Dead features five queer ghost hunters traveling to some of the most haunted places in the U.S. and, well, doing stuff there. The idea is that Stewart herself wants to see these haunted locales but she’s too scared to do it alone, so she brings a quintet of oversize personalities to help.

The Enfield Poltergeist

October 27, Apple TV+

If you’re reading a Halloween horror guide, you’ve probably seen The Conjuring 2 . Well, this four-part docuseries recounts the events that terrorized a London family in the 1970s in the haunting that inspired that film. Reportedly using over 250 hours of audio, the show unpacks what happened at Enfield to Janet and Margaret Hodgson, with most of the recordings captured by paranormal investigator Maurice Grosse. A fun trick might be to watch this docuseries and then transition to the Conjuring version of the same spooky story — then try to get some sleep that night.

Five Nights at Freddy’s

October 27, Peacock

If you don’t know the story of Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, ask your kids. Starting life as a PC game in 2014, this franchise has already produced nine video games mostly about a lonely nighttime security guard who discovers that the Chuck E. Cheese–like facility where he works is deadly dangerous. A movie was inevitable, and this one by Emma Tammi will launch in theaters and on Peacock at the same time. Starring Josh Hutcherson and Matthew Lillard, the film sees the employee learn that four animatronic mascots at Freddy’s will kill anyone who’s there after midnight. Playing to the TikTok generation that loves these games, this could be a sizable hit for the streaming service. At least until the next Freddy’s game comes along.

When Evil Lurks

October 27, Shudder

Argentine filmmaker Demián Rugna has directed one of the creepiest flicks of 2023, and it lands on the best streaming service for horror fans just before their favorite holiday. It’s gonna mess you up. Inspired by the work of Lucio Fulci, this is the story of brothers who discover a demonic presence in a farmhouse near their village, and, well, the “rotten” gets loose. A brutal gorefest that doesn’t care how you feel about typically safe things like dogs and children, When Evil Lurks is vicious in ways modern horror movies are rarely allowed to be. It already has a growing fan base from screenings at TIFF and Fantastic Fest, and it hits theaters on October 6. It’s really gonna blow up when it lands on Shudder and scares people into staying indoors on Halloween.

More Horror!

Appendage (Hulu, October 2) — Hadley Robinson plays a young designer who discovers a growth on her body that may be a twin she never fully absorbed in the womb. Nasty.

Chucky (Syfy/Peacock, October 4) — The third season of the acclaimed Syfy show about the killer doll has been chopped into two parts. The second will drop in 2024.

V/H/S/85 (Shudder, October 6) — The fan-favorite anthology series includes segments directed by David Bruckner, Gigi Saul Guerrero, Natasha Kermani, Mike P. Nelson, and Scott Derrickson ( The Black Phone ).

The Conference (Netflix, October 13) — “Swedish Slasher Comedy” isn’t a genre you see every day, and this foreign oddity could be a breakout smash for a streaming service that has a habit of turning international productions into hits.

Creepshow (Shudder, October 13) — It’s hard to believe this anthology series is already in its fourth season, one that promises more anthology gems.

The Puppetman (Shudder, October 13) — A convicted killer on death row claims something was controlling him when he committed his murders. His daughter starts to think he may be right.

Wolf Like Me (Peacock, October 19) — The second season of the show in which Isla Fisher plays a werewolf and Josh Gad plays her startled boyfriend.

American Horror Stories (Hulu, October 26) — The third season of this spin-off of American Horror Story includes four more stand-alone episodes. At least one will probably be good.

Sister Death (Netflix, October 27) — Nun horror! If you haven’t seen 2017’s Veronica , you should correct that oversight and then check out this prequel from the same director.

Hell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor (Shudder, October 30) — A fourth film in the franchise of found-footage films about a haunted house that goes very wrong.

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Peep these 20 new scary movies for Halloween, from 'Saw X' to 'The Exorcist: Believer'

What scares you the most? Demon children? Serial killers? Aliens invading your home? Murderous animatronic animals come to life while you chow down on substandard pizza?

Well, this spooky season at the movies has got it all. Halloween's the time when folks start figuring out their costume situation, bundling up for the incoming chill (and chillers) and getting into the spirit by watching a whole bunch of horror films . There are many options for all manner of fear factor, including high-profile new chapters from "The Conjuring," "Saw" and "The Exorcist" franchises.

So while you weigh going full- or fun-size with your candy bars, here are 20 new movies to prepare for Halloween:

'Blood Flower' (out now)

The Malaysian horror film centers on a teenage faith healer and exorcist who's haunted by vision of ghosts and spirits from other dimensions. One of them gets too close and begins to make his life hell, and the kid has to utilize all his supernatural mojo to save his loved ones.

Where to watch: Shudder .

'El Conde' (out now)

Director Pablo Larraín follows "Jackie" and "Spencer" with ... a horror comedy. The satire reimagines Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet as a 250-year-old vampire (Jaime Vadell) who's tired of the bloodsucking and wants to end it all, though the people around him aren't ready to let go quite yet.

Where to watch: Netflix .

'El Conde': How director Pablo Larraín uses horror to add thought-provoking bite to history

'My Animal' (out now)

Here's a different sort of beauty and the beast situation: The horror romance stars Amandla Stenberg as an outcast teenage goalie who falls for the figure skater (Bobbi Salvör Menuez) new to their northern town. A relationship develops between them, which unlocks one's very primal side.

Where to watch: In theaters (and on demand Sept. 15).

'The Nun 2' (out now)

The ninth installment in the "Conjuring"-verse, this period sequel catches up with heroic Sister Irene (Taissa Farmiga) as she's called in to help when it appears the demonic Valak (Bonnie Aarons) has returned. This time around, the haunting lady is tearing a bloody swath through Europe and seeking a powerful holy relic.

Where to watch: In theaters.

Ranked: All 'The Conjuring' horror movies, including new sequel 'The Nun 2'

'Satanic Hispanics' (out now)

Just in time for Hispanic Heritage Month comes an anthology of shorts by five different Latino filmmakers. Police raid a house in El Paso, Texas, and find a bunch of dead Latinos and one survivor (Efren Ramirez). During questioning, he tells tales of demons, terrifying creatures, the undead and legends from Latin American folklore.

'Elevator Game' (out now)

Based on the real-life urban legend of the same name, a group of teens set out to debunk the online challenge, which if you ride an elevator in a specific sequence, you invoke a supernatural creature called the 5th Floor Woman. The kids play the game, don't follow the rules and the sinister spirit follows them home.

'It Lives Inside' (out now)

In this South Asian spin on the demonic thriller, Megan Suri plays a high school kid who rejects her Indian culture and family in order to fit in better, yet finds she has to lean into that tradition and heritage for salvation when a mythological spirit attaches itself to her ex-best friend.

Fall movie preview: 10 must-see films, from 'Killers of the Flower Moon' to 'Saw X' and 'Priscilla'

'No One Will Save You' (out now)

In this sci-fi psychological thriller, Kaitlyn Dever plays a young woman who's a pariah in her small town and almost never leaves the house. But that sanctuary becomes much less safe when extraterrestrials arrive and she has to fight to survive the night and avoid whatever nefarious plans they have for her.

Where to watch: Hulu .

'Deliver Us' (out now)

A team of priests is tasked by the Vatican to visit a remote convent when a nun (Maria Vera Ratti) claims she's pregnant with twins via immaculate conception. And for good reason: The church fears of an ancient prophecy that a woman will give birth to both the Messiah and the Antichrist.

Where to watch: In theaters and on demand.

'Saw X' (out now)

In a new installment set between the first and second "Saw" films, John Kramer (Tobin Bell), aka "the Jigsaw Killer," goes down to Mexico for a miracle cure for his cancer. It turns out to be a scam, and those shifty con artists become the latest victims of Kramer's signature sadistic torture traps.

'The Exorcist: Believer' (Oct. 6)

Fifty years after the original "Exorcist" scared the bejeezus out of everyone, director David Gordon Green's new direct sequel to the 1973 classic returns Ellen Burstyn as Chris MacNeil, who's called in to help when two young girls go missing in the woods and return days later with the devil inside them.

'Pet Sematary: Bloodlines' (Oct. 6)

Jud Crandall, the wise old neighbor from Stephen King's 1983 novel and the 1989 movie adaptation, gets an origin story with this 1960s-set prequel based on a chapter of the original book. Young Jud (Jackson White) dreams of leaving his rural hometown, yet circumstances instead lead to him confronting a dark family legacy.

Where to watch: Paramount+ .

'Totally Killer' (Oct. 6)

After 35 years, the infamous “Sweet Sixteen Killer“ returns on Halloween and 17-year-old Jamie (Kiernan Shipka) comes face to face with the maniac. While running for her life, she accidentally time-travels back to 1987 and gets help taking on the villain from an unlikely partner: her then-teen mom (Olivia Holt).

Where to watch: Prime Video .

'V/H/S/85' (Oct. 6)

The sixth film in the found-footage anthology series takes the scares back to the mid-1980s with five new tales by various directors, including "The Black Phone" filmmaker Scott Derrickson. The stories run the gamut from youngsters on a lake ski trip gone wrong, early virtual reality leading to something sinister, and a TV crew fighting a natural disaster.

'Vindicta' (Oct. 6)

In what is no one's dream first week on the job, a rookie paramedic (Elena Kampouris) becomes the target of a masked, spear-wielding serial killer in the midst of tearing a bloody swath through a paranoid city in the urban thriller, which also features Sean Astin and Jeremy Piven.

'When Evil Lurks' (Oct. 6)

Ezequiel Rodríguez and Demián Salomón star as brothers who discover a mutilated corpse with a demonic infection near their farmhouse that threatens their livestock. Unfortunately, they don't perform the proper rites of exorcism, leading to a supernatural plague breaking out in their rural community.

Where to watch: In theaters (and on Shudder and AMC+ Oct. 27).

'In the Fire' (Oct. 13)

Set in the 1890s, the movie stars Amber Heard as a New York doctor who travels to a remote plantation to help a boy with strange abilities. The special care doesn't go unnoticed, as the local priest ignites a war of science vs. religion when he believes the kid is possessed by the devil and the cause for many of the village's problems.

'Dear David' (Oct. 13)

After responding to online trolls, a comic artist (Augustus Prew) experiences sleep paralysis and chronicles increasingly malevolent occurrences around his apartment via tweets, believing he's haunted by a dead child's ghost. He's encouraged by his boss to continue the freaky thread, even if it means losing his grip on reality.

'Suitable Flesh' (Oct. 27)

In an adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's short story "The Thing on the Doorstep," Heather Graham stars as a psychiatrist harboring an obsession for a young patient with multiple personality disorder that leads to murder, madness and occult weirdness linked to an ancient curse.

'Five Nights at Freddys' (Oct. 27)

Chuck E. Cheese and his furry crew seemed like a pretty shifty lot back in the day. But it's Freddy Fazbear and Co. who give a night-shift security guard (Josh Hutcherson) the willies during his first day on the job in the horror film based on the video game.

Where to watch: In theaters and on Peacock .

Ranked: The best horror movies of 2023 so far (from 'The Pope's Exorcist' to 'Talk to Me')

• Entertainment

The 14 Most Anticipated Horror Movies of Fall 2023

A s spooky season approaches, the annual crop of fall fright flicks is beginning to roll out. In a year that's already seen the release of massive horror hits like M3GAN , Scream VI , Evil Dead Rise , and Talk to Me , the final quarter of 2023 has a lot to live up to.

But with offerings that range from new installments in the Conjuring , Saw , and Exorcist franchises to a diverse array of found footage films to a Blumhouse adaptation of a beloved video game, the season's lineup looks to be a strong one.

Here are the 15 most anticipated horror movies of fall 2023.

Read more: The 35 Most Anticipated Movies of Fall 2023

The Nun II (In theaters Sept. 8)

Five years after The Nun became the highest-grossing entry in The Conjuring universe with a global box office total of over $365 million , everyone's favorite evil-banishing nun, Sister Irene (Taissa Farmiga), is back to once again take on the demon Valak (Bonnie Aarons). Directed by Conjuring veteran Michael Chaves, The Nun II builds on the first movie's cliffhanger ending, with Valak using Maurice (Jonas Bloquet) as a vessel to wreak havoc after escaping the Abbey of St. Carta in Romania. "Maurice made his way to France and he's working at this boarding school as kind of a handyman," Chaves told MovieWeb . "But we know from the first film that there's something terrible inside of him, that Valak escaped within him, and events pull Irene back on this collision course with her old friend."

Satanic Hispanics (In theaters Sept. 14)

Winner of the Best Director(s) Award at Fantastic Fest 2022, Satanic Hispanics is a horror anthology featuring five shorts from five of the genre's leading Latin filmmakers: Alejandro Brugues ( Juan of the Dead ), Gigi Saul Guerrero (Bingo Hell ), Mike Mendez ( Big Ass Spider! ), Demián Rugna (Terrified ), and Eduardo Sánchez ( The Blair Witch Project ). The overarching narrative centers on a mysterious figure known as the Traveler (Efren Ramirez), the lone survivor of a gruesome massacre in El Paso who, after being taken in for police questioning, begins recounting a variety of terrifying tales—with each story spinning into one of the film’s shorts—from his unusually long life.

A Haunting in Venice (In theaters Sept. 15)

Based on Agatha Christie's chilling 1969 novel Hallowe’en Party , A Haunting in Venice marks Kenneth Branagh's third outing as Christie's famed Belgian detective Hercule Poirot. Set in post-World War II Venice, the supernatural mystery, also directed by Branagh, will see a now-retired Poirot attempting to solve the murder of a guest at a séance he attends on All Hallows' Eve. The adaptation serves as a sequel to 2022's Death on the Nile and features a star-studded ensemble, with cast members including Michelle Yeoh, Tina Fey, and Jamie Dornan.

It Lives Inside (In theaters Sept. 22)

From the producers of Get Out comes a coming-of-age horror that brings a terrifying creature from Hindu and Buddhist mythology to the big screen. The movie centers on Samidha (Megan Suri), a second-generation Indian American who begins rejecting her family's culture in an attempt to fit in at school. But when a demonic entity known as a Pishach latches on to her former best friend, Samidha must come to terms with her heritage in order to defeat the malevolent spirit. It Lives Inside is the debut feature from writer-director Bishal Dutta, who drew on his own childhood experience of emigrating from India to North America at the age of four as inspiration for the film. "As it developed, It Lives Inside formed its own dual identity much like mine," he said in a statement at SXSW . "On one hand, it is a love letter to the community and culture that raised me while on the other, it is a visceral experience that is designed to instill the same raw terror in its viewers that my favorite horror films instilled in me."

No One Will Save You (Streaming on Hulu Sept. 22)

Sci-fi psychological thriller No One Will Save You stars Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated actor Kaitlyn Dever as Brynn Adams, an anxiety-ridden homebody who awakens one night to the sound of aliens breaking into her house. As the night goes on, Brynn must do whatever it takes to survive while battling the extraterrestrial beings that have invaded her safe space. In July, director Brian Duffield tweeted his own synopsis of the film: "If you wanted a movie where a bunch of greys try to abduct Kaitlyn Dever and she keeps being like, no thank you, we made that movie."

Saw X (In theaters Sept. 29)

Set between the events of Saw I and II , the latest Saw installment brings back Tobin Bell as Jigsaw Killer John Kramer for a sequel that takes viewers on a blood-soaked journey into the past. Directed by franchise veteran Kevin Greutert, Saw X follows a terminally-ill Kramer as he journeys to Mexico for an experimental medical procedure—only to realize the entire operation is a scam. This doesn't sit right with ol' Jigsaw, who goes to work devising a series of sadistic torture traps to unleash on those who wronged him. This time around, the story will be told from Kramer's perspective rather than that of his targets, according to Greutert. "[ Saw X ] is an emotional journey that you go on with John Kramer, and less a slaughterhouse that you experience from the point of view of the victims," he told Empire . "Obviously there will be people that can’t handle it, but I think it has a good chance of appealing to people beyond gore freaks."

The Exorcist: Believer (In theaters Oct. 6)

Fifty years after The Exorcist launched an entirely new subgenre of horror films, director David Gordon Green is revisiting the terrifying franchise for a new tale of demonic possession. The Exorcist: Believer serves as a direct sequel to William Friedkin's 1973 classic and sees Ellen Burstyn return in the iconic role of Chris MacNeil, mother of the once-possessed Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair), to help save two young girls who have fallen under the control of a demonic entity. It's intended to be the first entry in a new Exorcist trilogy, with the second film, The Exorcist: Deceiver , currently set for release on April 18, 2025.

Pet Sematary: Bloodlines (Streaming on Paramount+ Oct. 6)

Serving as a prequel to the 2019 film adaptation of Stephen King's terrifying 1983 novel Pet Sematary —the author's self-proclaimed “scariest property of all time"— Bloodlines is based on a previously untold chapter from the book that was also written by King. Set in 1969, filmmaker Lindsey Anderson Beer's feature debut centers on Jud Crandall (Jackson White)—the Creed Family's elderly neighbor from the original story—when he was still a young man with dreams of escaping his hometown of Ludlow, Maine. After discovering a local cemetery where the dead can be brought back to life (sort of), Jud must contend with a sinister family legacy that will forever connect him to Ludlow, and, alongside his childhood friends, battle an ancient evil with the power to destroy everything in its path.

Totally Killer (Streaming on Prime Oct. 6)

Starring Kiernan Shipka as a time-traveling teen out to stop the infamous "Sweet Sixteen Killer" from claiming her as a new victim 35 years after his initial murder spree, Totally Killer is a slasher comedy from horror powerhouse Blumhouse that promises to deliver its fair share of gore. Directed by Nahnatchka Khan ( Always Be My Maybe ), the movie follows 17-year-old Jamie (Shipka) as she travels back to Halloween night of 1987 and teams up with the teen version of her mom (Olivia Holt) to stop the masked maniac hunting her in the present from ever killing the three teenage girls that were his original targets.

V/H/S/85 (Streaming on Shudder Oct. 6)

Cult favorite horror anthology franchise V/H/S continues with a sixth found footage installment that delves into "the grim underbelly of the forgotten 1980s." Featuring segments from directors David Bruckner ( V/H/S ), Scott Derrickson ( The Exorcism of Emily Rose ), Gigi Saul Guerrero ( Bingo Hell ), Natasha Kermani ( Lucky ), and Mike P. Nelson ( Wrong Turn ), V/H/S/85, like its predecessors, follows a group of people who stumble across a collection of VHS tapes that contain a series of horrific recordings. While details about the plot have largely been kept under wraps, according to Deadline , the movie spotlights five episodes whose premises contain plenty of chilling promise: "scientists observe an unusual boy fixated on his TV, kids embark on a lake skiing adventure, a TV crew fights to survive a natural disaster, the early days of VR awaken something terrifying, and a deadly dream is captured on tape."

Malibu Horror Story (In theaters Oct. 20)

Set over the course of 10 years, Malibu Horror Story follows a crew of paranormal investigators as they dig into the mysterious disappearance of four teenage boys who went missing in the California hills after discovering a sacred Indigenous cave. Written and directed by Scott Slone, the found footage flick is more than a decade in the making and aims to put a new spin on the haunted Native American burial ground trope. "Our story is told through different perspectives, timelines, and layers of media that were compiled over several years," Slone said . "The goal was to incorporate all of those elements and place them inside of a conventional horror movie structure that would not only appeal to found footage enthusiasts but to a broader horror audience as well."

Five Nights at Freddy’s (In theaters and streaming on Peacock Oct. 27)

Following the success of M3GAN , Blumhouse is back with another highly-anticipated horror about killer animatronics. Based on Scott Cawthon's video game franchise of the same name, Five Nights at Freddy 's stars Josh Hutcherson as Mike Schmidt, a newly-hired night security guard at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza who comes to discover that something deadly is afoot at the abandoned family entertainment center. Directed and co-written by Emma Tammi, the movie adaptation of Cawthon's series has been in the works since April 2015, eight months after the release of the first game.

Thanksgiving (In theaters Nov. 17)

A holiday not often associated with horror gets the scary movie treatment in this slasher from Hostel director Eli Roth. Based on Roth's fake trailer of the same name that appears in 2007's Grindhouse , Thanksgiving chronicles the exploits of a serial killer who sets out to make a festive carving board out of the residents of a small Massachusetts town. While plot details are scarce, it was announced in February that Tiktok star Addison Rae had been cast in a lead role.

The Wait (TBD)

Described to Bloody Disgusting as a "sinister folk horror tragedy" that "portrays the macabre descent into hell of a man who suffered the tragic loss of his family," The Wait centers on the devastating fallout that ensues after Eladio (Victor Clavijo), a hunting estate keeper in the Andalusian countryside, takes a bribe from a veteran hunter. Written and directed by Spanish filmmaker F. Javier Gutiérrez, the film is expected to hit theaters in late 2023 or early 2024 following an expansive festival run.

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Fall Horror and Sci-Fi Preview 2023

Check out exclusive images from 12 of the most anticipated horror and sci-fi titles coming to theaters and streaming services this fall..

TAGGED AS: Horror , movies , Sci-Fi , streaming

Spooky season is just around the corner, which means many of us are already beginning to lock down our plans for Halloween, as well as the weeks leading up to it. Thankfully, there are a lot of  options both on the big screen and streaming at home in the near future to get all of us in the proper mood. We’ve collected 12 noteworthy horror and sci-fi films ranging from supernatural chillers to mystery thrillers for you to add to your calendar, each with a brand new exclusive image. Read on for our Fall Horror and Sci-Fi Preview!

The Nun II (2023)

(Photo by ©Warner Bros.)

Release Date: September 8 Where to Watch It: In Theaters

While 2018’s  The Nun ultimately served as a prequel to the franchise-spawning  The Conjuring , it’s not the last we’ll see of Sister Irene ( Taissa Farmiga ) and the haunting visage of the demon Valak (played by Bonnie Aarons ). Set four years after  The Nun , this sequel finds Irene at a boarding school in France, where she encounters Valak again and attempts to send him back to hell for good. Michael Chaves , who also directed the in-universe films  The Curse of La Llorona and  The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It , takes the reins here, with Jonas Bloquet returning to play Frenchie alongside newcomers Storm Reid and Anna Popplewell .

Satanic Hispanics (2022)

(Photo by ©Iconic)

Release Date: September 14 Where to Watch It: In Theaters

Horror geeks looking for a bit more variety in a single sitting will be happy to discover this festival darling of an anthology film with, as its title indicates, decidedly Latino flavor. Mike Mendez ( Big Ass Spider! ) kicks off the bookend story, which centers on the lone survivor ( Efren Ramirez ) of a gruesome massacre in El Paso, TX who is taken into custody by a pair of detectives. Know only as “The Traveler,” he regales the cops with a quartet of spine-tingling stories, all directed by Latin-American filmmakers with serious horror chops.

A Haunting in Venice (2023)

(Photo by ©Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

Release Date: September 15 Where to Watch It: In Theaters

Kenneth Branagh’ s third adaptation of an Agatha Christie classic (in this case, the 1969 novel Hallowe’en Party ) admittedly isn’t exactly a horror film, but the mystery certainly leans into the supernatural and feels appropriate for the season. Detective extraordinaire Hercule Poirot (Branagh), now retired and living in Venice, reluctantly accepts an invitation to a séance, where a guest is murdered and he’s tasked with sussing out the truth. As expected, the film boasts an impressive ensemble cast that includes Tina Fey , Jamie Dornan , Kelly Reilly , and recent Oscar-winner Michelle Yeoh , among others.

No One Will Save You (2023)

(Photo by ©20th Century Studios)

Premiere Date: September 22 Where to Watch It: Hulu

Booksmart star Kaitlyn Dever headlines this tense home-invasion thriller with an otherworldly twist. She plays Brynn, a lonely young woman isolated from her community who spends most of her time at home, until she’s visited by rather unfriendly aliens creeping around her house and it becomes a game of survival. This is the sophomore feature of writer-director Brian Duffield , who penned both 2017’s The Babysitter and 2020’s  Underwater , and whose debut Spontaneous was a cheeky rom-com set against the backdrop of spontaneously exploding high school seniors. In other words, he knows what he’s doing here.

The Creator (2023)

Release Date: September 29 Where to Watch It: In Theaters

Falling on the sci-fi side of the spectrum is this futuristic — albeit timely — action thriller about mankind’s battle against artificial intelligence. John David Washington stars as an ex-special forces soldier who is tasked with leading a team to hunt down and destroy a powerful AI that threatens the end of humanity, only to discover the AI has been created in the form of a young child. Co-writer and director Gareth Edwards cut his teeth on genre films like  Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and 2014’s  Godzilla , and the cast includes names like Gemma Chan , Ken Watanabe , Sturgill Simpson , and Allison Janney .

Saw X (2023)

(Photo by ©Lionsgate)

Taking a page out of other storied horror franchises that harkened back to their roots for a new installment,  Saw X is a direct throughline between the original  Saw and  Saw II , as series villain John Kramer ( Tobin Bell ) seeks his grisly revenge against a group of medical scammers in Mexico who falsely promised a miracle treatment for his cancer. Shawnee Smith also returns to reprise her role as Jigsaw protégé Amanda Young , and she’s joined by Synnøve Macody Lund , Steven Brand , and Michael Beach , while  Saw VI and  Saw 3D director Kevin Greutert takes on directorial duties.

Pet Sematary: Bloodlines (2023)

(Photo by Philippe Bosse/Paramount+)

Premiere Date: October 6 Where to Watch It: Paramount+

Speaking of storied franchises, Paramount+ takes us back to the world of Stephen King’s  Pet Sematary with this prequel to the 2019 adaptation . Set in 1969 Maine, the story centers on the Jud Crandall character, played in the recent film by John Lithgow and portrayed here by Jackson White , who is forced to reckon with his own family history and the dark secret that ties him to his hometown. This Paramount+ exclusive is the feature debut of Lindsey Anderson Beer , who co-wrote the film, and features appearance from Pam Grier and David Duchovny .

V/H/S/85 (2023)

(Photo by ©Shudder)

Premiere Date: October 6 Where to Watch It: Shudder

The  V/H/S series has been the contemporary standard-bearer for found footage horror anthology films, and Shudder brings us another installment, this time set in the nostalgia-bathed decade of the ’80s. A made-for-TV documentary serves as the framing narrative for a chilling mix of gory thrills, with all the big hair, colorful clothing, and synthwave tunes you could ask for. The directors behind the five short films on offer include David Bruckner ( The Ritual ,  Hellraiser ), Scott Derrickson ( Sinister ,  The Black Phone ), and doing double duty between this and  Satanic Hispanics , Gigi Saul Guerrero .

The Exorcist: Believer (2023)

(Photo by ©Universal Pictures)

Release Date: October 6 Where to Watch It: In Theaters

After successfully bringing the  Halloween franchise back to life with a new trilogy, David Gordon Green is hoping to do the same with  The Exorcist , beginning with this new installment that is also intended to be the first of three films.  Believer follows a widowed single father ( Leslie Odom Jr. ) whose daughter and her friend disappear in the woods one day, only to return and begin exhibiting some disturbing symptoms. Desperate for answers, he attempts to track down someone who has had similar experiences, namely Chris MacNeil ( Ellen Burstyn ). Expectations are high for this one, due to Green’s previous horror credentials and Burstyn’s return to the franchise.

In the Fire (2023)

(Photo by ©Saban Films)

Release Date: October 13 Where to Watch It: In Theaters, on Demand, and Digital

Seemingly in direct competition to  The Exorcist: Believer , we have this psychological thriller that pits science against religion. Amber Heard stars as a doctor who travels to a remote plantation to treat a young boy who demonstrates unusual abilities. The local priest ( Eduardo Noriega ), however, believes the boy is possessed and doesn’t believe conventional medicine can help him. This is  the first foray into the genre for director and co-writer Conor Allyn , whose best known film to date is the 2021 neo-Western drama No Man’s Land .

Five Nights at Freddy's (2023)

Release Date: October 27 Where to Watch It: In Theaters and on Peacock

Video game adaptation Five Nights at Freddy’s might be the most anticipated horror offering of the season, considering how long the source material’s fans have been waiting for it. In development since 2015, the project really ramped up production once Blumhouse took over, and now its release is right around the corner. The story centers on a down-on-his-luck security guard ( Josh Hutcherson ) who takes the night shift at an abandoned pizza parlor, where he learns the animatronic mascots come to life at night and wreak murderous havoc. This is the sophomore solo effort from director Emma Tammi , and it co-stars genre fan favorite Matthew Lillard .

Suitable Flesh (2023)

Premiere Date: October 27 Where to Watch It: In Theaters and Everywhere You Rent Movies

Rounding out the month is this thriller with a bit of a horror pedigree behind it. Heather Graham stars as a once-successful psychiatrist accused of murdering one of her patients who recounts her horrific fall from glory to a colleague. That colleague is played by Barbara Crampton , the star of such cult hits as Chopping Mall and  Re-Animator , the latter of which was also penned by this film’s writer, Dennis Paoli . This psychological chiller by Joe Lynch ( Mayhem ) has already impressed critics on the festival circuit, so it could be a sleeper hit for Halloween.

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The 10 most exciting horror movies releasing in fall 2023

We can hardly wait.

Without a doubt, 2023 has already proven itself as a polarizing calendar period in cinema history — especially with the summer blockbuster witnessing the cinematic battle between Barbie and Oppenheimer . That being said, it’s about time for the tide to shift and the wheels to finally begin turning on this year’s hotly-anticipated spooky season. So far, massive mind-melting horror hits such as Scream VI , M3GAN , Evil Dead Rise , and Talk to Me have kept us on our toes and kept our skin crawling with their terrorizing brilliance.

But as great as the first half of the year has been in regards to bone-chilling horror projects, it’s certainly worth noting that a vast multitude of horror movies are set to perfectly depict the spooky season in a huge way. In doing so, several ever-popular franchises and universes are introducing fresh-faced installments which will keep the horror community on their toes and discussing these films for years to come. 

So, let’s pull back the spooky curtain and explore the 10 most exciting horror movies set to release in the fall of 2023.

The Nun II (Sept. 8)

The ever-popular Conjuring universe is set to expand itself once more with the arrival of The Nun II . While the feartastic film is officially set to release in theaters tomorrow, early showings are happening tonight, with horror fanatics and Conjuring supporters flocking to the megaplexes to experience the demon known as Valak for another spine-tingling outing. With promotion happening surrounding the next Conjuring universe installment happening since the summer months, it certainly comes as no surprise that the film is being massively hyped up.

A Haunting in Venice (Sept. 15)

Piggybacking on what is sure to be a knockout performance from star Kenneth Branagh, one movie possibly not being talked about as much as others on this list would be A Haunting in Venice . But despite the movie possibly not being as hyped, there’s absolutely no denying that the horror flick is resulting in plenty of excitement as the days draw closer to its release. Serving as a sequel to last year’s Death on the Nile , the project’s star-studded cast and spooky premise undoubtedly has horror fans ready to go.

It Lives Inside (Sept. 22)

With a simple title as intimidating and unsettling as this, it would feel like an absolute travesty if we didn’t include It Lives Inside on this list. In a familiar feel to Australian feature Talk to Me , the upcoming horror extravaganza centers around a young girl named Samidha who encounters a demonic spirit connected to her Indian culture and heritage. Not much else is known about the spine-tingling project, but it’s hard to deny that the horror movie deserves a rightful place on this list.

Saw X (Sept. 29)

Easily one of the most hyped and anticipated horror movies on this list belongs to the tenth installment in the ever-iconic Saw franchise, Saw X . One of the smartest moves the franchise could have executed is the return of Tobin Bell as John Kramer — which is exactly what filmmakers behind the Saw team decided. This time around, the upcoming horror flick serves as a sequel to Saw (2004) and a prequel to Saw II (2005) and will follow Kramer on a trip to Mexico to try and cure his terminal cancer. When all else fails, thrill-seeking viewers are rewarded with a deeper dive into Kramer’s warped trap inspiration.

The Exorcist: Believer (Oct. 6)

Much like Saw X , The Exorcist: Believer is quickly climbing up the ranks and becoming one of the most anticipated horror movies of the entire year. Serving as a sequel to Willliam Friedkin’s The Exorcist , the 2023 follow-up centers around a pair of demonically possessed teenage girls whose lives are threatened by the mere existence of evil. In an attempt to reverse the curse so to speak, the parents of the girls enlist the help of Chris MacNeil — the mother of 12-year-old Regan MacNeil who was possessed by the demon Pazuzu in the OG flick. With a premise and trailer as horrifying as this, there’s no discounting we’re all absolutely excited.

Pet Sematary: Bloodlines (Oct. 6)

While it’s true that unnecessary prequels typically feel like a tarnish on a franchise, it’s hard to deny just how influential and unsettling the narrative surrounding Pet Sematary truly is. As a result, it seems fairly obvious that the upcoming prequel to 2019’s Pet Sematary would end up on this list — especially with spooky season just firmly around the corner. Much like the familiar narrative as showcased in Stephen King’s iconic novel, Bloodlines is set to follow controversial character Jud and the sinister secrets and devious instances which occur due to a local pet cemetery. It might not seem that intimidating, but we’re definitely excited.

V/H/S/85 (Oct. 6)

As if Oct. 6 wasn’t already proving to be a major day in terms of movie releases, it’s become apparent that the spooky season calendar has added another horror movie. This time, horror die-hards can patiently await the sixth installment in the ever-popular V/H/S anthology series. With a variety of prior installments in the found footage series leaving us all with our jaws to the floor, another face-numbing feature is expected to grace the horror platform Shudder during the first week of October. Seeing as there’s only a few weeks left until its arrival, revealing our excitement would be an understatement.

Five Nights at Freddy’s (Oct. 27)

At this point, it almost feels like anything Blumhouse touches turns into cinematic gold. Fresh on the heels of M3GAN ’s success earlier this year, the supernatural live-action Five Nights at Freddy’s movie is almost here. Based on the ever-popular horror video game, the upcoming adaptation is set to terrify us all with its classic animatronic killers and eerie goodness. Of course, it certainly helps when you enlist a star-studded team featuring Matthew Lillard and Josh Hutcherson. With only a little over a month left until the spooky project releases in theaters, it’s clear that folks are anticipating seeing this story brought to life on the big screen.

Thanksgiving (Nov. 17)

Is there anything better for the fall/spooky season than a blood-stained horror movie about Thanksgiving ? Typically regarded as one of the most popular holidays of the entire year, it feels necessary to include the upcoming horror movie from Eli Roth on this list. Centered around a sinister serial killer with a knack for carving folks up like turkeys, it’s not difficult to understand why Thanksgiving is shooting up the ranks and easily becoming a much-anticipated feature. So be sure to clear up your schedule just a few days before the actual Thanksgiving holiday to witness this insane slasher.

The Strangers: Part One (TBD)

For months now, The Strangers 3 has remained untitled and had its information kept secretive by creatives behind the project. But according to the movie’s official IMDb page, the third film in the Strangers universe has been slapped with The Strangers: Part One as its title. According to various interviews — especially from the film’s lead stars — the upcoming horror film is going to serve as an “expansion” for the Strangers realm. As a result, interest has unsurprisingly increased for the movie, with the horror community itching to know when the project will officially release.

About the author

Taylor mansfield.

Fascinated by the art of journalism, Taylor Mansfield has been writing for over 10 years. In the present day, she lends her expertise as a Staff Writer / Editor for WGTC, tackling a broad range of topics such as movies, television, celebrity news, and of course… *anything* horror! Because wherever there is horror — Taylor isn't far behind. She has previously contributed to entertainment sites such as GamersDecide, MovieWeb, and The Nerd Stash.

Read more stories from Taylor Mansfield

Halloween 2023: The scariest new movie and TV releases to ring in spooky season this year

By Jabeen Waheed

Halloween 2023 looks better than ever, or excuse us, horrifying than ever, when it comes to some spooky new movie and television releases.

Yes, that's right, with each year that passes, the horror genre keeps getting better and better and makes us want to cosy up under the covers with the lights dimmed while challenging ourselves to see how much of a scare we can handle. Whether it's a possessed child in dire need of assistance, an old curse being unleashed in a small town, a good ol' slasher or the next instalment of our favourite horror movie franchise, we are so ready.

"The trailer brings back unsettling memories of sterile rooms and masked male doctors."

By Cat Hufton

First of all, nothing says Halloween more than the new Exorcist movie, which stars the brilliant Ellen Burstyn, who was in the original 1973 movie. Then we have the tenth instalment of the Saw movie, and we need to catch up with what Jigsaw has been up to. But if you find it challenging to stay up to date with movie franchises, then there's a whole load of new movies, such as Five Nights at Freddy's , which will ensure that we'll never sign up for a late shift ever. Then there are some great teen offerings, such as Totally Killer on Prime Video and the new Goosebumps reboots.

Mike Flanagan also returns to Netflix 's horror scene with his new limited series The Fall of the House of Usher , or if you're looking for something a bit different, i.e., the extraterrestrial, catch Kaitlyn Dever in Disney+ 's No One Will Save You . Or, for something a bit lighter, Kim Kardashian stars alongside Emma Watson in the new season of American Horror Story .

So carve out the pumpkins, light the candles, and get comfortable for the best nine new film and show releases for Halloween 2023.

The Exorcist: Believer

Cast: Ellen Burstyn, Leslie Odom. Jr, Ann Dowd, Jennifer Nettles, Norbert Leo Butz, Lidya Jewett, Olivia Marcum Plot: The original Exorcist movie in 1973 terrified the living daylights out of us, and so we're more than thrilled that the sixth instalment of the movie franchise, which also serves as a direct sequel to the first movie, will be here just in time for the spooky season. In this new terrifying flick, single father Victor Fielding is forced to seek help from Chris MacNeil, the only person alive who can truly assist him, when his daughter, Angela, and her friend Katherine show signs of demonic possession. Release: 13 October in cinemas

American Horror Story: Delicate

Cast: Emma Robert s, Kim Kardashian, Plot: The 12th instalment of Ryan Murphy's brilliant horror series will be female-heavy, with Emma Watson taking on the lead role of a Hollywood actor who is expecting a baby but begins to suspect that other forces are trying to interfere with her pregnancy. Kim plays her manager, Siobhan Walsh, so move over Kris Jenner! Release: Yet to be confirmed. But it will air on Disney+

Cast: Justin Long, Rachael Harris, Zack Morris, Isa Briones, Miles McKenna, Ana Yi Puig, Will Price Plot: The new Goosebumps reboot, which is based on R.L. Stine's bestselling book series, will follow a group of five high schoolers as they embark on a horrifying journey to investigate the tragic passing of teen Harold Biddle, who died three decades earlier. Along the way, they unearth many dark secrets about their parents' past that help them get to the bottom of the mystery. Release: 13 October on Disney+

Totally Killer

Cast: Kiernan Shipka , Olivia Holt, Julie Bowen Plot: The infamous "Sweet Sixteen Killer" returns to town on Halloween night, 35 years after the shocking murder of three local teens. With the killer out to hunt down his fourth victim, 17-year-old Jamie ignores her overprotective mother to come face to face with the manic. However, in doing so, she accidentally time-travels back to 1987, the year of the original killings. Release: 6 October on Prime Video

Cast: Tobin Bell, Shawnee Smith, Synnøve Macody Lund, Steven Brand, Michael Beach Plot: Can you ever get tired of Jigsaw's game? No, but the answer would probably be much different for his unfortunate victims. In the tenth (yes, tenth!) instalment of his popular and long-running horror franchise, John Kramer, aka Jigsaw, heads to Mexico for a risky and experimental medical procedure that has been hailed as a miracle cure for his cancer. However, when he finds out the entire operation is a scam, he turns the tables on the con artists... Release: 29 September in cinemas.

Five Nights at Freddy’s

Cast: Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, Piper Rubio, Kat Conner Sterling, Mary Stuart Masterson, Matthew Lillard Plot: Ever worked a night shift? It's long and lonely, but we bet you've never had to fight for your life during it! For troubled security guard Mike Schmidt, when he accepts a night-time job at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza at a once-successful family entertainment centre, he soon learns that his shift won't be easy to make it through as he meets the centre's deadly four animatronic mascots – Freddy Fazbear, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy. Release: 27 October in cinemas

Cast : Elizabeth Hurley, Mia Jenkins, Tara Fitzgerald, Jack Stewart Plot: This is the ultimate creepy tale of children having to pay for the sins of their parents. In Piper , Liz and her daughter Amy start fresh after relocating to a small town in Germany. However, things quickly take a dark turn when a local girl dies in horrifying circumstances. At the same time, a dark secret from Liz's past awakens an evil entity named Piper, who seeks redemption by taking the children of those parents who have done wrong. That is when Liv knows that Mia is in grave danger. Release: 16 October on digital

No One Will Save You

Cast: Kaitlyn Dever Plot: We'd watch anything starring Kaitlyn Dever, including the upcoming science fiction horror thriller. In this Brian Duffield film, the actress takes on the role of Brynn, a woman living a life of solitude in her childhood home when unearthly intruders suddenly pay her a visit. Release: 22 September on Disney+

By Sheilla Mamona

By Fiona Ward

The Fall of the House of Usher

Cast: Kate Siegel, Rahul Kohli, Carla Gugino, T'Nia Miller Plot: Mike Flanagan, the man who brought us The Haunting of Hill House and The Haunting of Bly Manor , is now back with this new limited horror series, The Fall of the House of Usher , based on the short story of the same name and other works by Edgar Allan Poe. The series centres on siblings Roderick and Madeline Usher, who have built a pharmaceutical company into an empire of wealth, privilege, power, and also corruption. However, they are soon forced to confront their troubling paths when their children start dying in mysterious and brutal ways. Release: 12 October on Netflix

By Lilly Delmage

Best Horror Movies on Netflix Right Now (October 2023)

Our monthly update of the scariest movies available on netflix..

Halloween may still be weeks away, but horror movies have no limit on enjoyment. As one of the most prolific and profitable subgenres in cinema, audiences are always in the mood for some spooky scaries. Fortunately, thanks to the accessibility of streaming services, places like Netflix are home to a plethora of chilling choices. Between original offerings and licensed titles, there’s a horror movie for anyone and everyone. To get you started, we’ve tracked down some of the must-see horror titles currently available to stream on Netflix.

Oh, and when you're done here, be sure to also check out our best Halloween movies list, or our Best Horror Movies of All Time .

Best Horror Movies on Netflix

Please note: This list pertains to U.S. Netflix subscribers. Some titles may not currently be available on international platforms. This article is frequently amended to remove films no longer on Netflix and to include more horror movies that are now available on the service.

The Strangers (2008)

“Because you were home,” a line that will live in horror-movie infamy thanks to The Strangers. It’s a home invasion film based purely on coincidence, which is the most frightening predicament. Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman give tremendous performances as victims caught in an unthinkable cat-and-mouse scenario. The Strangers is horrifyingly relevant and needs nothing more than to implode the idea of our houses being safe spaces like few home invasion films have, and ever will, deliver.

47 Meters Down: Uncaged (2019)

I won’t lie and say the 47 Meters Down sequel is better than 47 Meters Down. The original nails the basics of shark cinema like the best have in the past, which this sequel doesn’t try to match. Uncaged instead leans into the more B-Movie nature of fin flicks, turning the movie into an underwater slasher riff where the sharks are the killer. It’s the moment where a Great White sneaks up on a diver like Jason Voorhees lurking behind a counselor that won me over, so if you’re into a campier brand of aquatic horror, Unchanged should be on your list.

The Pope’s Exorcist (2023)

I won’t say The Pope’s Exorcist is a horror masterclass. I will say that The Pope’s Exorcist is more fun than you’d expect. The film understands that the least exciting part of most exorcism films is the exorcism itself, building this zany Vatican demmon-chasing world around Russell Crowe’s Father Gabriele Amorth. Expect more than just memeable moments of Crowe zipping around on his scooter. Like I said in my review, “Those who want something profound will be utterly doomed, while others who love to laugh through questionable pulp that aims to entertain might find more enlightenment than they expect.”

Circle (2015)

Clever indie filmmakers can make something out of nothing. Aaron Hann and Mario Miscione’s Circle is an excellent representation of that idea, about 50 people who wake up in a dark room arranged in a circular formation. The premise is simple: someone has to die every two minutes. That’s it. Hann and Miscione turn social experimentation into a thriller about characters arguing their point about why they should be the one who lives another round, relying on dialogue to sell the existential dread at the script’s core. Minimalism is the film’s secret ingredient: getting straight to the point and keeping a quick pace in a way that never loses our attention.

Lights Out (2016)

Before David F. Sandberg took on Annabelle and joined forces with Shazam, he gained notoriety for his short film Lights Out. The bite-sized thriller was so successful it spawned a feature film that’s filled with Scotophobia (fear of darkness), unleashing a monster that hides in the shadows. It’s filled with jump scares, but that’s alright because Sandberg executes them so well. Teresa Palmer anchors the spooky survival story as someone who must wield light like a weapon against the shadow-dwelling villain, leading to fantastic fear-first scenes where you’ll hold your breath.

I See You (2019)

I See You refuses to play by conventional horror movie rules. Sometimes you’re watching a missing person procedural. Other times, it feels like a found footage home invasion thriller. Helen Hunt leads a cast of characters struggling with frustration in the homestead, there’s a killer on the loose, and you’ll learn what “Phrogging” is, which leads to the more suspenseful elements of I See You. It’s better as a domestic horror story than a dramatic examination of family frustrations, which is why it belongs on this list. The frights are frightful and fears put center stage when storytelling works — credit where credit is due.

Eli can feel like a horror movie Mad Libs as the story keeps evolving, but that becomes the film’s ultimate charm. It’s about a boy suffering from an auto-immune disease trapped in a quarantine environment who begins to ponder his imprisonment. The “Bubble Boy” beginning turns into a haunted house thriller that becomes an even crazier third act that I won’t spoil for you now. I’m not saying every big swing is successful, but I’ll go to bat for Eli as a horror film that loves to prove expectations wrong. Give me weird and wild over conventional any day — especially when you have the freedom of streaming releases over theatrical constraints.

Nobody Sleeps In The Woods Tonight (2020)

In the mood for a 2020s Polish slasher created by lovers of 80s American horror trends? Bartosz M. Kowalski uses the campground massacre template to execute a contemporary slasher that feels as throwback as rereleases of Crystal Pepsi. It's a familiar brand of campers meeting gruesome fates one by one with a massive emphasis on practical effects, the goriest and most obscene of which become an overall saving grace. Kowalski aims to prove that Polish slashers can hack 'em up with the best of them, even if there's not much else to praise with the same enthusiasm. If you want blood, you've got it by the truckload.

Girls With Balls (2018)

It’s killer rednecks versus a championship volleyball squad in Girls With Balls. Expect a horror comedy with exploding heads and a musical cowboy acting as a narrator who sings about the gratuitous violence on screen. Don’t expect a brilliant subversion of gender tropes in slasher movies — Girls With Balls is an effects-heavy slaughter spree that doesn’t try to be anything else. International approaches to comedy make some jokes harder to laugh at stateside, so as long as you can focus on the balls-out aggression on screen, you should find entertainment in another bloody backwoods fight for survival.

The Block Island Sound (2020)

Kevin McManus and Matthew McManus summon a creepy coastal caper from the depths of Rhode Island waters. It’s more eerie than aggressive as multiple subgenres swirl together in this unsettling waterlogged mystery. You can expect psychological horror, eco-horror, aquatic horror, even possession horror as Block Island community members try to understand the unexplainable events washing upon their shores. The Block Island Sound weaponizes the idea of "siren songs," toys with out-of-body nightmares, and mixes a spoonful of grief into the batter as storytelling churns like a storm that won’t pass.

The Invitation (2022)

Is The Invitation worthy of standing alongside the best vampire movies of all time? Nah. Is it still Good Actually™, especially after being unfairly pegged as a pre-release dud due to a marketing campaign that wasn't as aggressive as prior summer horror releases? Absolutely. Ready or Not and a host of erotic vampire thrillers appear to lend influence, and while The Invitation is never as successful as its inspirations, it's still a worthwhile bloodsucker watch with gorgeous production designs primed to entertain as a choice weekend night Netflix pick.

Before I Wake (2016)

It’s the Mike Flanagan movie that gets talked about the least — in my experience — yet deserves the world. Flanagan does what he does best: tell a powerfully emotional story using fear, family, and creatures. Jacob Tremblay plays an adopted child who’s terrified of falling asleep because of a ghoulish figure known as “The Canker Man.” Butterflies and fantasy worlds don’t detail the scariest horror experience, as Flanagan leans on childhood imaginations that turn traumatic memories into inescapable boogeymen. Maybe it’s that softness of scare volumes — coupled with unfortunate studio bankruptcies that forced an unceremonious Netflix dump premiere — that caused such comparatively little fanfare over the years (considering Flanagan’s hype elsewhere). Hopefully my recommendation can help Before I Wake find new streaming life.

Under The Shadow (2016)

Babak Anvari’s Under the Shadow is a phenomenal cross section of national trauma invaded by nightmare demons. A family in war-torn Iran is plagued by visits from djinns as if exploding bombs outside and military threats weren’t enough. Anvari manipulates shadows and creates haunted architectures under Iraq-Iran conflict conditions, highlighting the terrors of both. There are some extremely effective scares and fresh deliveries of otherwise common fright-flick molds because, when in doubt, turn to international flavors for something original.

The Wretched (2019)

Brett Pierce and Drew T. Pierce dive into soilborne folklore horror with a heavy helping of witchcraft. It’s poster with a backward-turned skeleton antler headdress that sells extreme horror imagery, but it’s actually what I’d consider rather feisty gateway horror. It’s like a demonic spinoff of Wife Swap, as a child in a summer vacation town thinks his neighbor is a witchy entity tied to child disappearances in the area. Backstory elements can be a bit scattershot, but when Abbie — played by Zarah Mahler — activates the film’s horror thrills whether that’s Wendigo-esque forms or contortionist body-horror? The Wretched proves why it’s a perfect entry point for young horror fans who get a strong coming-of-age tale that doesn’t hold back when it comes to Friday night frights that will test the whole family.

Read our review of The Wretched .

Incantation (2022)

Kevin Ko’s Taiwanese found footage flick Incantation speaks in clichés, but that doesn’t make them any less frightening. You’ll get a few good jolts as a mother must protect her daughter from evils she called upon by breaking religious taboos. Translation: foolish viral video ghost hunters defy the unknown and pay consequences both then and later. The script is murky on the camera’s rules regarding who is filming from a found footage sense and taboo happenings around the entity’s curse. Nevertheless, there’s an interesting concept around interactive found footage horror that smacks of the Ring franchise in its social media focuses, and you’ll yip a few scared noises — you could do way worse on Netflix.

Read our review of Incantation .

There’s Someone Inside Your House (2021)

Patrick Brice’s slasher adaptation accomplishes two massive feats for modern horror flicks: keeps us guessing and slaughters without restraint. It’s another film about teenagers getting sliced and diced by a masked killer, but it’s stylish and fierce enough to carve its own path. Situational misdirects keep audiences guessing who could be guilty of mass murder as characters point fingers while blood runneth everywhere from church confessional booths to aflame corn mazes. Don’t expect the next Scream or anything, just a solid contemporary slasher that succeeds when it matters most.

Coming Home In The Dark (2021)

Are you in the mood for something insufferably bleak and sweater-gnawing tense (meant as a compliment)? That’s Ozploitation flick Coming Home in the Dark. It’s a vacation tragedy that sees a family on a road trip who encounters the evilest of humans. It’s the epitome of wrong place, wrong time, and captures the ultimate parental horror of mothers and fathers trying to protect their children. There are no further cat-and-mouse complications — people are the real monsters of horror, no demons or supernatural entities needed.

Cargo (2017)

One of Netflix's first original horror films is still one of my favorites. Ben Howling and Yolanda Ramke's Cargo stars Martin Freeman as a father traversing the Australian outback with his daughter — also, there are zombies. Think The Walking Dead as an undead film that's more about its human characters facing survival drama than zombie action, except this one packs sturdy emotional stakes. Freeman's traveler encounters psychos, ferocious walkers, and weather elements that add thrills to Cargo, but what's unexpected is how a baby doesn't weigh the narrative down. Child subplots in horror are a tricky formula to crack that Cargo gets right, as the fears of protective parents translate into a hearty zombie experience.

Read our review of Cargo .

The Babysitter (2017)

Does The Babysitter indulge McG’s tendencies as a director who loves popular needle drops and quotes pop culture like a middle schooler who discovered HBO? Yes. Is it also written by Brian Duffield of Spontaneous fame — a magnificent young adult dark comedy – and does it star modern scream queen in the making, Samara Weaving? Thankfully, these saving graces play into McG’s bounce-about take on horrific humor as a child realizes his babysitter is performing a cult ritual while mom and dad are out for the night. A supporting cast including Robbie Amell, Bella Thorne, Hana Mae Lee, and Andrew Bachelor all have their moments subverting specific “hunted home alone” tropes — still, The Babysitter is Samara Weaving’s showcase. Tune in, share some laughs, soak in a devilish Weaving performance, and check out Netflix’s funniest spooky original so far.

Read our review of The Babysitter .

The Ritual (2017)

Netflix's original horror game rose to another level with The Ritual, David Bruckner's directorial debut outside segments in The Signal, V/H/S, and Southbound. Four friends take a northern Swedish hiking trip in memory of their deceased fifth, only to become victims of a woodland nightmare. Visions begin by layering psychological horror as the characters confront fears or guilt, then cultism adds communal dread, and lastly, Bruckner delivers on creature-feature goods. One source of terror feeds into the next and provokes future traumas, all interconnected as Bruckner weaves in and out of multiple horror subgenres with ease. There's so much to enjoy as Swedish forestation becomes an isolated outdoor prison, and then all hell breaks loose. Bruckner flaunts his filmmaking chops in a significant way.

Blood Red Sky (2021)

Peter Thorwarth’s Blood Red Sky boils down to vampires on a plane — but not like the SYFY channel throwaway such a title suggests. Nadja (Peri Baumeister) is a bloodsucking mother whose only motivation is to keep her son alive from hijackers who want to crash a commercial flight. It’s far tenser and emotionally comprehensive than expected, staying far away from being another Snakes on a Plane knockoff. Performances are substantial, whether gruff terrorists or ferocious mothers, while intensity drives home an action-horror experience like airliner blockbuster Non-Stop but with more sucked blood. It's a solid vampire movie worth your time.

Crimson Peak (2015)

If you can't make it out to a theater to check out Nightmare Alley yet, or are just looking for the perfect follow up after seeing Guillermo del Toro's latest, the impeccable Crimson Peak is the perfect film for you. One of the most gorgeous films in a man whose entire filmography is known for how jaw droppingly stunning, it is features incredible performances from Tom Hiddleston, Mia Wasikowska and Jessica Chastain. This hauntingly human story will keep you guessing as supernatural forces seem to swirl around Edith Cushing and Sir Thomas Sharpe.

Apostle (2018)

Director Gareth Evans did not come to play with the gorgeous and gory Apostle . While the Netflix original is several years old at this point, it still feels like this one never got the attention it quite deserved. Before the era where Netflix original films were super prevalent, Apostle follows Thomas Richardson (played by none other than Dan Stephens) as he seeks out to rescue his sister from a strange, secluded cult.

#Alive (2020)

No one does a zombie movie quite like South Korea, and #Alive is one of the absolute best. A video game streamer decides to lock himself in his apartment while a zombie outbreak destroys the surrounding city of Seoul, but just as he’s losing all hope, he discovers that his neighbor in the apartment across from him is also still alive. The two create a zipline to share food, and share walkie-talkies to communicate with one another, while zombies terrorize the world outside of their walls. It’s a film as much about the human need for interaction as it is about survival, and the constant threat of zombies keeps keeps every moment filled with exhilarating tension.

Creep (2014)

Fans of POV/found footage horror films, rejoice, because Creep is one of the best in this style. In Patrick Brice’s directorial debut, Creep follows a filmmaker named Aaron who answers a strange man named Josef’s online ad to film him for the day, the final request of a man claiming to be dying of cancer hoping to make a video for his unborn child. Upon arrival, Aaron realizes that there’s something super weird about Josef and with the camera constantly rolling, we witness the absurdity and danger in store for Aaron. Come for the wild as hell Mark Duplass performance, stay for the Peachfuzz mask. If you love it, Netflix also has the sequel — Creep 2.

The Fear Street Trilogy

Leigh Janiak was the talk of the summer when Netflix dropped the cinematic trilogy based on the popular book series by “Goosebumps” author R.L. Stine, Fear Street . The Fear Street trilogy brought three separate movies to tell one cohesive story about the cursed town of Shadyside and the inhabitants impacted by generational horror. Each film is predominantly set in a different time period, delivering a little treat for fans of slashers, hauntings, teen horror, queer horror, and folk horror. The three films work best when watched all together, but each film can successfully stand on its own, making it a must-see trilogy.

Gerald’s Game (2017)

Stephen King’s Gerald’s Game was considered to be his “unfilmable” work, but if anyone is capable of proving King wrong, it’s Mike Flanagan. The man behind The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, Midnight Mass, Hush, Doctor Sleep, and others successfully tackled Gerald’s Game and provided one of Netflix’s best original horror releases. Gerald’s Game is a terrifying descent into madness and home to a dynamite leading performance by Carla Gugino.

His House (2020)

Remi Weekes truly made something special with His House , arguably one of the scariest films on the Netflix roster. A haunted house story on the surface, His House centers on a refugee couple escaping war-torn Sudan only to find that the English town they’ve fled to may be just as harrowing as the land they left. The source of the film’s horror lies not just with the supernatural elements, but also with themes of grief, guilt, abandonment, xenophobia, and assimilation. It’s a powerful haunt that will linger with you long after the credits roll.

May The Devil Take You (2018)

If there’s one area where Netflix thrives with their horror offerings, it’s with their international selection of scares. Genre fans have been praising the work of Timo Tjahjanto for years with his standout shorts in The ABCs of Death and V/H/S/2, but his feature film work in Indonesia is arguably his best, and Netflix’ acquisition has brought his work to mainstream Western audiences. In May The Devil Take You, a young woman visits her father’s former home trying to find the answer regarding his mysterious illness, only to discover the horrifying truth about his past.

The Perfection (2018)

Go into The Perfection as clueless as possible (but be aware of some triggering rape stuff), because half the fun of this psychological horror film is trying (and failing) to guess just what happens next. Allison Wiliams plays a former cello prodigy who returns to her prestigious music school to find that she’s been replaced by the new star student, Lizzie played by Logan Browning. The Perfection plays with exploitation film conventions and completely subverts them on their head in absolutely unpredictable ways. It’s a wild thrill ride and truly, perfection.

Vampires Vs. The Bronx (2020)

Vampires have been used as metaphors for a variety of othering, but Vampires Vs. The Bronx highlights humanity’s true villain –gentrification. After a trio of young best friends discover a brood of vampires are preparing to destroy The Bronx, they take matters into their own hands and get the community together to fight back against the monsters invading their home. Calling it The Lost Boys for a new generation feels too easy, but the Frog Brothers would be proud do see how Miguel, Bobby, Luis, Gloria, Lil Mayor, and the rest of the gang tackle the aptly named Murnau real estate film. Leave the stake, take the adobo.

See our list of the best vampire movies for more like this.

Upcoming Netflix Horror Movies for August

Netflix has a near constant churn of movies coming and going from the platform. We've looked ahead at the next August to find the upcoming horror movies coming to the platform.

• It Follows (2014) - October 11
• Deliver Us From Evil (2014) - October 12
• Look Away (2018) - October 15
• Disco Inferno (2023) - October 20

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6 Podcasts for the Spooky Season

These shows deliver disturbing true stories of everyday horror, lively recaps of scary movies and creepy scripted dramas about the supernatural.

By Emma Dibdin

There’s an adage about horror movies, often attributed to Alfred Hitchcock : What you don’t see is more frightening than what you do. This makes audio dramas excellent vehicles for the horror genre, because the absence of visual storytelling forces listeners to fill in the gaps. Whatever the mind conjures up, custom-made for unique neuroses and fears, may well be scarier than any tangible monster or ghoul.

These shows take advantage of this in different ways, delivering disturbing true stories of everyday horror, lively recaps of scary movies for those too scared to watch the real thing, and gloriously creepy scripted dramas about the supernatural.

‘Alice Isn’t Dead’

As much as the open road is a symbol of freedom in American fiction, it also represents danger, especially if you’re a woman traveling alone. That type of peril underlies every moment of Joseph Fink’s enthralling, disturbing series, which follows a female truck driver on a cross-country quest to uncover the truth about her wife’s supposed death. Fink, best-known to podcast fans as a co-creator of “Welcome to Night Vale,” was inspired to write “Alice Isn’t Dead” after spending hours alone on the road on tour, and he and lead voice actress, Jasika Nicole, deftly capture that psychological experience, the half-formed glimpses of towns you pass through, and the strange, stream-of-consciousness thoughts that arise after too much time alone. Consisting of audio journals and dramatic scenes set at roadside diners and rest stops, “Alice Isn’t Dead” is — like a lot of the best horror stories — more about sadness than fear, exploring the feeling of an incomprehensible loss through the supernatural.

Starter episodes: “Omelet”

‘Too Scary, Didn’t Watch’

Have you ever read the Wikipedia page for a horror movie you’re interested in, but too afraid to watch? You’re not alone — this one-degree-removed method of horror consumption is common, and it’s the linchpin of this fun and addictive recap podcast. Sammy Smart is a horror aficionado who watches the movies so her more fearful co-hosts, Emily Gonzalez and Henley Cox, don’t have to. Over more than 200 episodes, the trio have covered modern classics like Jordan Peele’s “Get Out” and Ari Aster’s “Hereditary,” mainstays like “The Shining” and, so-bad-they’re-good gems, like the baffling 2006 remake of “The Wicker Man” starring Nicolas Cage. Like many podcasts of this ilk, it’s the chemistry among the three hosts that makes “Too Scary, Didn’t Watch” so appealing — Gonzalez, Cox and Smart will soon begin to feel like your parasocial best friends, hiding behind the couch cushions with you.

Starter episode: “Midsommar Revisited”

‘Let’s Not Meet’

In the glut of true crime podcasts, this self-described “true horror” show finds its lane by exploring the more subtle and insidious examples of everyday fear. In each episode, the host, Andy Tate, narrates several stories, in which listeners describe unsettling encounters with people whom they hope never to run into again. While some are overtly violent, featuring attempted murders or assaults, many of the most disturbing ones are more ambiguous, leaving the listener with an unresolved, unnameable sense that something is deeply wrong. The show is deliberately minimalistic, with limited music and sound cues, and that stripped-back style adds to the sense of paranoia and dread.

Starter episode: “Hotel”

‘Dr. Death’

Not for the faint of heart (or stomach), this mind-boggling true story of a dangerously incompetent neurosurgeon is a spiritual companion to “Dirty John,” another early hit from the podcast network Wondery. Hosted by the science journalist Laura Beil, the seven-episode season chronicles how Dr. Christopher Duntsch, a seemingly talented surgeon with glowing reviews from his former patients, wound up maiming or severely injuring more than 30 people over the course of a yearslong spree at multiple Texas hospitals. Aside from the visceral body horror, the most terrifying aspect of this story is the systemic one: how red flags were either missed or ignored by the authorities who should have intervened. Duntsch’s story is the focus of Season 1, while subsequent seasons (available only on Wondery’s paid tier) chronicle similarly sprawling cases of medical malpractice and fraud.

Starter episode: “Three Days in Dallas”

‘The NoSleep Podcast’

NoSleep, long one of the biggest forums on Reddit, bills itself as a place to share “scary personal experiences. ” It’s a tongue-in-cheek description, of course, because the stories shared are fictional, but the emphasis on original, first-person horror narratives is what makes the community so much fun, conjuring an atmosphere of scare-hungry children gathered around a campfire, competing to freak each other out. This spinoff podcast recreates that magic in an anthology series format, repackaging the most popular user-submitted stories as narrated audio dramas, complete with eerie music cues and soundscapes. Now in its 19th season, the show has a near-bottomless back catalog of chilling tales, and while they’re no longer all taken from the forum, the high-quality chills are consistent.

Starter episode: “The Stairs and the Doorway”

‘The Magnus Archives’

When this British audio drama debuted in 2016, it was billed as a horror anthology series set at the Magnus Institute in London, a fictional center for paranormal research. But over the years, a broader mythology has emerged to weave together these seemingly unconnected supernatural stories into an immensely satisfying serialized narrative. The premise is as follows: Jonathan Sims, a new head archivist at the institution, sets out to turn into audio form a neglected collection of historical statements, and along the way unearths tapes full of chilling, fragmented dispatches from ill-fated past researchers. These statements, along with supplemental research from Sims and his team, gradually unravel a terrifying truth. The fewer specifics you know going into “The Magnus Archives,” the better — along with its genuinely spine-tingling plot, the series features unusually rich and well-developed characters whose arcs are never sacrificed for the sake of cheap thrills.

Starter episode: “Angler Fish”

The State of Podcasting

Over the last few years, the industry has been one of the hottest corners in media..

In its third season, “The Dream” trains its gimlet eye on the big business of life coaching , with a twist.

Emma, Duchess of Rutland, learned the art of running a castle on the job. Then she started interviewing other duchesses  on how they make it work on her own podcast.

Tenderfoot TV, the studio behind the hit U.F.O. podcast “High Strange,” is leaning in while other companies are pulling back .

Bob Crawford is part of the folk-rock band the Avett Brothers. He’s also the host of a new podcast about John Quincy Adams .

After taking over the beloved radio show and podcast “Radiolab,” Lulu Miller and Latif Nasser are gently making it their own .

Whether you are looking for feel-good listens , fashion takes  or career tips , we can help you find your next favorite podcast.

35 Horror Movies That’ll Satisfy Your Need for Spookiness in 2022

Get ready to scream!

On this list, you can expect to see another horrifying masterpiece from Jordan Peele, a much-anticipated thriller starring Harry Styles and Florence Pugh , the final installment in the Halloween movie franchise (maybe), and a WHOLE lot more. And we'll be sure to keep this list updated with new trailers and release dates as they're confirmed, so if you're a horror movie fan, make sure to keep this page bookmarked. Now, without further ado: all the new and upcoming scary movies from 2022 that will have you sleeping with the lights on until at least 2023. Maybe 2024.

Released in January, the fifth installment of the iconic Scream movie franchise is set 25 years after the original film, following a new Ghostface killer and a whole bunch of new victims (as well as some old ones, of course). Get ready to see familiar faces including Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette.

Also released in January, this action thriller follows a couple on a trip to a remote seaside villa in Vietnam, where they find themselves swept out to sea by a sudden storm...and also surrounded by a group of great white sharks. Fun!

Texas Chainsaw Massacre

This sequel to the 1974 classic horror film came out in February, following Leatherface as he emerges after 50 years of hiding and torments a new batch of victims in his remote Texas town.

Released in February, this thriller revolves around a college student who gets stuck in a blizzard during a trip home. Luckily, she isn't alone, as she's stranded along with a group of others...but as it turns out, one of the people among them is a kidnapper.

You Are Not My Mother

When her bedridden mother goes missing, Char is understandably disturbed, but when she returns, things get increasingly erratic and frightening. The title alone should give you a dark hint at what's to come here.

In the mood for a horror comedy ...starring the Foo Fighters? Then you gotta watch Studio 666 , which came out in February and follows the rock band as they move into a creepy Encino mansion to record their 10th album.

Released in March, Fresh stars Daisy Edgar-Jones as a young woman who discovers that her new BF (played by Sebastian Stan ) has an appetite for flesh. Unfortunately for her, she discovers this during an isolated weekend away with him.

Regina Hall stars in this psychological horror (which came out in March) as the first Black "master" at an elite New England university, where dark secrets—and the ghost of a woman accused of witchcraft—seem to linger everywhere.

This Sandra Oh -led supernatural horror flick also came out in March, revolving around a woman whose quiet farm life is turned upside down after her estranged mother arrives from Korea for a *very* unexpected visit.

Released in March, this slasher flick follows a group of actors as they set out to make an adult film in rural Texas. But when their elderly hosts find out what their guests are up to, things take a dark turn.

Christina Ricci stars in this one as a woman in an abusive relationship who attempts to escape with her seven-year-old son...but they end up in an equally-terrifying situation at a remote farmhouse.

You Won't Be Alone

This horror flick debuted in April, telling the story of a young girl who is kidnapped and transformed into a witch by an ancient spirit in 19th-century Macedonia.

This one's about a preteen gymnast with a perfectionist mother who finds an odd egg in the woods...and things devolve once it hatches an unusual creature.

We're All Going to the World Fair

In this coming-of-age horror drama (which came out in April), a lonely teen who lives with her widower father becomes obsessed with an online role-playing horror game, and as you can probably expect, things get REAL creepy.

Choose or Die

This Netflix original premiered in April, following a broke young coder who decides to play a creepy computer game from the '80s, not realizing that—rather than playing for money—she's actually playing for her life.

Torn Hearts

Released in May, this horror flick from Blumhouse Television and Epix tells the story of a country music duo who visit the eerie mansion of their fave music idol, only to find themselves in an increasingly twisted situation.

The Innocents

This Norwegian movie hit the United States in May 2022, and it stands as the highest-ranked horror movie of the year on Rotten Tomatoes . It's about a group fo children during summertime who start to reveal very dark, supernatural secrets when adults turn their backs.

Firestarter

Also released in May, this remake of the 1984 original is all about a young girl who can create fires with her mind...and the government officials who want to use her for their own dark purposes.

In this folk horror film, a widowed young woman goes on a solo trip to the English countryside only to discover that she's not actually alone and that someone—or something—may be stalking her.

Maika Monroe stars in this one as Julia, a young actress who moves to Bucharest with her boyfriend and finds herself being watched by a sinister neighbor, all while a serial killer terrorizes the city.

Corinne Sullivan is an Editor at Cosmopolitan , where she covers a variety of beats, including lifestyle, entertainment, relationships, shopping, and more. She can tell you everything you need to know about the love lives of A-listers, the coziest bedsheets, and the sex toys actually worth your $$$. She is also the author of the 2018 novel Indecent . Follow her on Instagram for cute pics of her pup and bébé. 

Jasmine Ting is a Filipino journalist based in New York City. You can spot her either at the movie theater for the latest A24 release, on the couch binge-watching the latest K-dating show, or on the 7 train listening to her latest audible obsession (be it music or a podcast). To see what she’s up to when she’s not plopped in front of a big screen, follow her on Instagram @jasminepting.  

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The 7 Best New Horror Movies to Stream on Shudder September 2023

Mark your calendars, there's only one month left until October!

As a general rule of thumb, September 1 is one of the most common dates people agree on as the day you are “allowed” to start putting Halloween decorations up. With children and college students returning to school, the smell of fall is finally in the air. October is just around the corner and horror fans around the world are building steam , desperately searching for new ways to satiate their cravings for blood, gore, and violence. Shudder is adding plenty of new and exciting movies to its catalog to keep you occupied during the last stretch before October arrives.

This handy guide will help you pick out your next nightmare!

RELATED: How Jennifer Reeder Gives Blood Agency & Aura In New Horror Movie 'Perpetrator'

Perpetrator (2023)

Available on: September 1

Director: Jennifer Reeder | Runtime: 100 minutes | Sub-Genres: Mystery, Supernatural

Cast: Kiah McKirnen, Alicia Silverstone, Chris Lowell, Melanie Liburd

This Shudder Original film follows headstrong teenager Jonny ( Kiah McKirnen ) as she is sent away to live with her estranged Aunt Hildie ( Alicia Silverstone ). At her new school, she notices there have been strange disappearances of other young women and is determined to find out what happened to them, and who’s behind their disappearances. She also learns that there is a history of magic in her family, as discovered through an old family spell on the eve of her 18th birthday. She goes through a terrifying transformation with her Aunt Hildie guiding her. With newfound powers and capabilities, Jonny is ready to find and take on the Perpetrator .

Blood Flower (2022)

Available on: September 8

Director: Dain Said | Runtime: 102 minutes | Sub-Genres: Possession, Supernatural

Cast: Idan Aedan, Bront Palarae, Remy Ishak

Blood Flower , originally titled “Harum Malam,” is the first Shudder Original movie to come from Malaysia. The film focuses on 16-year-old Iqbal ( Idan Aedan ), an apprentice faith healer, as he tries to hide and suppress his ability to communicate with the dead in order to fit in with his friends. However, a particularly malevolent spirit enters his apartment and he is forced to acknowledge and use his sixth sense to prevent the spirit from destroying his life. Sometimes evil spirits don’t need a reason to want to cause harm, but occasionally there’s more backstory that becomes unearthed as the protagonist tries to stop them. What dark family secrets will come to light as Iqbal tries to exorcise this spirit?

Elevator Game (2023)

Available on: September 15

Director: Rebekah McKendry | Runtime: 94 minutes | Sub-Genres: Supernatural, Thriller

Cast: Megan Best, Gino Anania, Adam Hurtig, Madison MacIsaac, Verity Marks

Following the latest TikTok challenge , a group of teenagers decides to record themselves playing what is known as the Elevator Game . The rules of the game seem simple enough, and if done properly, the ritual is said to be able to summon a spirit. Not fully believing in this new urban legend, the group sets up cameras to see if they can catch any paranormal activity as they play the game. Of course, one of them breaks the rules and takes a peek when he is supposed to keep his eyes closed. Now, with the ritual only half complete, they leave a doorway wide open for spirits (or demons) to freely enter their world. They’ll have to face their fears and complete the Elevator Game one last time to shut the door once and for all.

The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster (2023)

Available on: September 22

Director: Bomani J. Story | Runtime: 92 minutes | Sub-Genres: Science Fiction, Thriller

Cast: Laya DeLeon, Denzel Whitaker, Chad L. Coleman, Reilly Brooke Stith

Loosely based on the classic horror novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley , The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster follows a brilliant young woman, Vicaria ( Laya DeLeon ), who believes that death is only a disease that can be cured by science. After her older brother is brutally murdered, Vicaria goes into full Victor Frankenstein mode and decides to attempt to resurrect him. She just wants to bring her family back and put an end to the violence in their lives, but she quickly learns that her brother has turned into a bloodthirsty monster with sights on revenge. In the infamous words of Pet Sematary ’s Jud Crandall, “Sometimes dead is better.”

Nightmare (2023)

Available on: September 29

Director: Kjersti Helen Rasmussen | Runtime: 100 minutes | Sub-Genres: Psychological, Thriller

Cast: Eili Harboe, Herman Tømmeraas, Dennis Storhøi, Peter Førde

This Norwegian thriller follows a young couple, Mona ( Eili Harboe ) and Robby ( Herman Tømmeraas ) who have just moved into an apartment, thanks to Robby’s new job. The apartment isn’t perfect and is in need of some repairs, but otherwise, they are happy with the location. Soon after moving in, Mona begins to experience night terrors on a daily basis. As the days go on, the nightmares get worse and more intense. Robby thinks she’s just nervous because they are trying to start a family, but Mona is convinced that she is actually being targeted by a mythical demon known as “The Mare.”

The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)

Available on: September 4

Director: André Øvredal | Runtime: 86 minutes | Sub-Genres: Supernatural, Suspense

Cast: Brian Cox, Emile Hirsch, Ophelia Lovibond, Michael McElhatton

This movie has received the blessing of the “King of Horror” Stephen King , who describes the film as “Visceral horror to rival Alien and early Cronenberg.” The Autopsy of Jane Doe is set in a morgue with the father-son team, Tommy ( Brian Cox ) and Austin ( Emile Hirsch ) Tilden. They receive the body of an unidentified woman, who was found at the scene of a multiple homicide. The police want an official cause of death by the morning, but they soon realize that this Jane Doe is not what she seems. Despite having no external signs of damage, her wrists and ankles are shattered, her lungs have signs of extreme smoke inhalation, and her tongue has been cut out. In addition to these discoveries, they remark on the fact that her body indicates she just died recently, but the milky coloration of her eyes suggests she's been dead for days. If you’re looking for a spooky movie with ties to the Salem Witch Trials and Hocus Pocus is too tame for your liking, this movie should hit the mark.

Come True (2020)

Available on: September 11

Director: Anthony Scott Burns | Runtime: 105 minutes | Sub-Genres: Science Fiction, Thriller

Cast: Julia Sarah Stone, Landon Liboiron, Tiffany Helm, Chantal Perron

This science-fiction horror movie follows teenage runaway Sarah ( Julia Sarah Stone ) who enlists in a sleep study to make extra cash. As she takes part in the study, she begins to have terrible nightmares and starts to question her reality. Other sleep study volunteers begin to experience similar issues, claiming to see the same shadowy figure at the foot of their beds. While the people conducting the study are able to visualize the images of the participants’ dreams, they don’t seem to take any of their concerns seriously, despite several incidents resulting in injury. This movie will make you think twice before enlisting in any kind of experimental study.

Stay tuned here to see what Shudder has in store for the best month of the year for horror movies!