This Halloween season has got everyone in a mood to curl up with a truly frightening and scary horror, one that will really make them cower underneath the blankets, and Netflix has most certainly provided for its subscribers. Currently underway at Netflix, is a massive project to stockpile years of the best and most memorable hits, old and new, to bulk up their horror collection. From old classics, like the Poltergeist, to some of the most popular titles in the history of the genre which gave birth to modern sequels such as Cult of Chucky and Red Dragon, Netflix has truly thought of everything.
Below is a full list of Netflix’s latest releases, and some recommendations for the most gruesome and scariest ones, starting with their newest additions. It would also be good to check out this year’s releases and see what great works new writers, directors, and cast members have contributed to the genre.
Anaconda – 1997
This all-time favorite is back on Netflix for us to relive how a funny cast, made up of Ice Cube, Jennifer Lopez, Jon Voight and Owen Wilson survive a gruesome onslaught of a giant snake.
House of 1,000 Corpse – 2003
Almost 20 years later, this horror has significantly influenced the genre over the years. Inspired by gore masters like Lewis and Argento this horror was director Rob Zombie’s first film of two couples who are sent down a terror-riddled road to a house of 1,000 corpses due to nothing less than an empty fuel tank and a flat tire.
Horns – 2012
This is Joe Hill’s first significant movie adaption from his 2010 novel of the same name. In this horror comedy, a young man (played by Daniel Radcliffe) is accused of killing his girlfriend and wakes up to horns and paranormal superpowers. Joe Hill has enjoyed a vast and loyal following among readers and until this very successful adaptation.
He Never Died -2015
This horror follows the life of an immortal loner who became a complete hermit to protect himself and others around him. He mistakenly forms a close relationship with someone, and let’s just say it was not a good idea. Henry Rollins makes an outstanding lead in this captivating horror.
Elizabeth Harvest – 2018
This vivid reimagining of the story Bluebeard follows the life of a young woman married to a rich and powerful man who instructed her never to enter a specific room in their house. What is he hiding? What is she not allowed to see? Curiosity naturally gets the better of the young wife. What will she find?
What Keeps You Alive – 2018
This indie thriller is a startling reminder that everyone has secrets, even the ones we love. It tells the story of Jules and Jackie who take a trip to Jackie’s old family home to celebrate their anniversary but unsurprisingly, everything goes completely wrong. Starring Brittany Allen and Hannah Emily Anderson, this is one intense horror not to be missed.
We Summon the Darkness – 2020
This indie horror is quickly making its rounds on Netflix viewers. It follows the story of three women who meet a bunch of guys at a mental concert and decide to take them back to their home. But all is not as it seems the women soon find out in this clever thriller.
Bird Box
In this Netflix Original, Sandra Bullock plays a woman who survives the apocalypse. What is the apocalypse? Well people start seeing strange things which makes them go insane. It may not be one of the best, but with Sandra Bullock’s excellent performance, it is worth a watch when you have time to kill.
The Blackcoat’s Daughter
This horror is actually really interesting and follows two separate plotlines. Two girls at boarding school are on a holiday break when supernatural events start to occur and things go horribly wrong. As another girl makes her way to school, the two independent plots converge in the final scene. This is not one to be missed!
The Evil Dead
The origins of this horror lies in the 1980s film by Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell. This low-budget film which turned into a classic in the genre, produced superior sequels, a TV series, a comic book collection and inspired the next generation of horror filmmakers. Why not see where it all began?
Poltergeist – 1982
This horror film is Tobe Hooper’s haunted house story about the suburban Freeling family who begin to experience very strange things happening in their house. Using the old-school simple terrors that makes the hairs on your back stand up, this one is really not one to miss out on.
Killer Klowns from Outer Space – 1988
It’s all in the title. It is all thanks to VHS that this low-budget film became a horror classic. It’s the story of clown-looking aliens that descend on earth to kill the human population. What more do you need in a horror film?
The Silence of the Lamb – 1991
Horrors don’t get better than this classical, an adaption of Thomas Harris’ gripping thriller about Clarice starling and Dr. Hannibal Lecter. With a career-defining performance from Sir Anthony Hopkins and Jodie Foster, this one is still an all-time favourite in everyone’s books.
Raising Cain – 1992
This unforgettable horror is one of Brian De Palma’s most divisive films. It follows the life of a seemingly unstable child psychologist who finally loses it after finding out his wife is having an affair. His breakdown results in the emergence of multiple personalities including a scared little boy and a ruthless thug. This suspense-ridden horror is a web of intrigue for viewers.
The Crow – 1994
Not exactly a horror but also not a superhero movie, this film tells the dark story of a rock musician who returns from the dead in search of vengeance against those who harmed him in life. Everyone eagerly saw the movie when it came out, if you haven’t maybe it’s time to get up to speed with this classic.
Sleepy Hollow – 1999
This is Tim Burton’s unforgettable take on the classic Washington Irving story about a headless horseman. Starring Johnny Depp as Ichabod Crane, a man from New York sent to a small town to investigate a couple of mysterious murders committed by a supernatural villain.
Session 9 – 2001
This truly terrifying horror is about a group of co-worker who set out to remove asbestos from an old and abandoned mental asylum, but they soon discover that they are not alone. Directed by Brad Anderson and shot in Danvers State Mental Hospital, this film has the perfect setting and cast to create tension necessary to sell the story. This might be one of the scariest horror films you can ever watch.
Red Dragon – 2002
With Sir Anthony Hopkins stellar performance as Dr. Hannibal Lecter, this is the second adaptation of the novel Red Dragon, the first of which was Michael Mann’s Manhunter, but this one is definitely worth a watch.
Underworld – 2003
This action horror is about an orphaned vampire who works for a vampire clan as a murderer. But soon she is faced with the decision to save a human doctor or leave him to the fate of the machinations of werewolves. What will she do?
Shutter – 2004
This Thai horror is one the best foreign films currently on Netflix about a couple that accidentally hit a woman after a night of partying. But strange things start to happen with the photographs they take. Blending multiple genres, this horror redefines ghost stories and cleverly incorporates themes such as vengeance and regret.
Pan’s Labyrinth – 2006
This fantasy horror by Guillermo Del Toro contains just enough nightmare fuel and extremely dark real-world themes to classify it as a horror on this list. It’s about Ofelia, a young girl who is subjected to the brutal cruelty of her step-father who is a captain during the Spanish Civil War. She is left to decide who the real monsters are: her step-father to a child-eating monster called the Pale Man.
Splice – 2009
This horror is one of a kind. A pair of genetic engineers get carried away and create an unnatural creature they call Dren. Things get a little weird because they decided to do the impossible.
Sinister – 2012
A man discovers that the home he lives in is also the site of some gruesome murders and he sets out to find the movies to prove it. Both films in the franchise are on Netflix, recommend you start with Scott Derrickson’s original film and then move onto the unforgettable sequel. It’s worth your time!
As Above, So Below – 2014
In this horror film directed by John Erick Dowdle, is presented as found footage of a documentary crew’s horrifying experience exploring the Catacombs of Paris. This film came out just when people got over the hype of found footage films, but not that one of the best of the lot is back and on Netflix, many people will surely be interested in rewatching it.
The Guest – 2014
This vicious indie thriller is an ode to the likes of ‘80 thrillers. A vet journeys to the home of a fellow fallen soldier and worms his way into their lives. But can he be trusted?
Creep – 2014
A man with terminal cancer recruits a videographer to help him film a diary for his young son. But as it turns out, the man is lying and the videographer becomes a toy of a ruthless killer who likes to play with his victims before killing them. Starring Mark Duplass and Patrick Brice, this intense horror is filmed only on a hand cam which adds to the effectiveness of this terrifying horror.
The Invitation – 2015
Karyn Kusama’s return to feature film directing could not have gone better than this truly creepy horror starring Logan Marshall-Green. A man attends a dinner party at the house of his ex-wife. She makes a startling revelation which makes him think he is going insane.
Green Room – 2015
In this horror directed by Jeremy Saulnier, the late Anton Yelchin plays a member of a music band at an event that is run over by violent Nazis. Of course, things take a very twisted turn in the wrong direction as the band is faced with violent brutality from all fronts. This is one to watch.
I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House – 2016
In this Netflix Original, Ruth Wilson plays a caretaker that tends to the needs of an elderly horror writer who suffers from dementia. It seems as if this old lady’s house is haunted but how will Lily, the caretaker get out of this situation? This is one creepy and unforgettable horror.
The Autopsy of Jane Doe – 2016
Starring Brain Cox and Emile Hirsch, this horror follows the small-town life of a coroner and his son as one night they receive a body, a body of a woman they can’t figure out. At first appearance she looks perfectly fine, but upon autopsy, they find her insides to be all mangled. It does not take long before they delve into the mystery of the death of Jane Doe.
Under the Shadow – 2016
This Irianian horror film is not like your typical ghost stories, it is about a woman whose house is haunted by a djinni in the Iran-Iraq Wars of the 1980s. As the tension builds, she finds the world outside to be just as dangerous as the world inside her home. Dealing with the fear of losing her husband in the war, she has no time to worry about the djinni haunting her home. But she has no choice.
Hush – 2016
This horror takes place in one night as a deaf woman tries to evade a killer trying to break into her home to kill her. Starring Kate Siegel, this is an epic story of cat and mouse, and director Mike Flanagan cleverly made use of sensory deprivation to make this film one of the best horror movies of 2016.
The Girl with All the Gifts – 2016
This is one of the best zombie-horrors that most people have not yet seen. This post-apocalyptic story is about children who are prisoners in an underground bunker because they have the ability to decimate the future. The complex and frightening horror is a new take on classic ideas.
Train to Busan – 2016
This South Korean zombie horror is one of the best horrors on Netflix right now. It’s a thrilling tale from start to finish, extensive character development and a gripping end.
1922 – 2017
This Stephen King adaptation starring Thomas Jane is about a man who convinces his son to help him kill his wife to prevent her from taking her share of the family money, leaving their family farm and moving to the big city. Both father and son struggle to come to terms with what they’ve done.
Super Dark Times – 2017
Starring Owen Campbell and Charlie Tahan, this thriller about four teenage boys find a katana belonging to one of their older brothers. Boys will be boys, they took the katana to the park for some fun but a terrible accident occurs when a fight breaks out. This engaging horror starts off as a coming-of-age film but then turns very dark very quickly.
It Comes at Night – 2017
This moody horror about trust and survival is one of director Trey Edward Shults best works, starring the likes of Joel Edgerton, Christopher Abbot, Riley Keough and Kevin Harrison Jr.
Cult of Chucky – 2017
This is the seven movie of the Chucky series. With the voice of Brad Dourif as the devil doll, director Don Mancini spared no expense to produce another instalment of his terror doll for all the world to enjoy. The classics never go out of fashion.
Gerald’s Game – 2017
Another one of Mike Flanagan’s better works, this horror follows the story of the successful and attractive Gerald and Jessie, his docile wife as they go away for a romantic weekend to reconnect with each other. One thing leads to another, and when Gerald dies of a heart attack after involving his wife in his rape fantasy, she is stuck in handcuffs with her dead husband next to her. Jessie is forced to confront her inner demons and those lurking outside as she tries to free herself from this compromising position.
The Endless – 2017
Justine Benson and Aaron Moorhead wrote, directed and starred in this epic supernatural thriller about two brothers who returned to the cult from which they escaped years prior. However, things are not as they remembered them to be. This intricate indie horror has already attracted the attention of many horror-lovers, why not give it a go?
The Ritual – 2017
Directed by David Bruckner, this story deals with a man struggling to overcome the loss of a friend who died in the course of a robbery. To deal with the pain, he and his friends set out a hiking trip in northern Sweden, and as expected, things don’t go according to plan.
Calibre – 2018
This thriller follows the story of two Scotsmen on their hunting trip when something goes very wrong and a small boy ends up dead. They attempt to cover up the accident instead of reporting it but will they get away with it?
Cam – 2018
This horror stars Madeline Brewer who plays a cam girl who wakes up one day to find out that she is still online, or to be more precise, a woman who looks exactly like her is still online. This is one of Madeline Brewer’s best performances and definitely worth a good look.
Cargo – 2018
A man suddenly loses his wife to illness and ends up in a downward spiral. Within 24 hours he will become one of the walking dead zombies that plague Australia, but before that he needs to find a safe home for his baby girl. This horror is one of the better horror in the wave of zombie-based horrors to hit the screens.
Apostle – 2018
A Netflix original directed by Gareth Edwards, this action horror is a period film that follows a man trying to rescue his sister from a remote cult. A slow-burner, this horror starts off pleasant and dreamy only to turn into a dark and scary reality for the characters.
Ravenous / Les Affamés – 2018
Another film from the zombie movie movement, this undead thriller explores who we are as people and what we do when we fall into the depths of depravity.
Sweetheart – 2019
This horror has gained a loyal following on Netflix. It tells the story of a survivor of a boat crash who washes up on a deserted island only to come find out that she is not alone. This survival horror is visually striking with just the right amount of scary moments to keep you glued to your seat.
Girl on the Third Floor – 2019
This grisly horror about a man who remodels a home in the Chicago suburbs uncovers some truly bad things in the old house. This brutal horror has a dark sense of humour that resonates with the horrors of the ‘70s and ‘80s. Starring wrestler C.M. Punk, this is not also not one to miss.
IBR – 2020
This indie thriller would have been lost to history if it was not for streaming services like Netflix. This truly creep thriller follows a young woman who recently moved into a new apartment in Los Angeles. She soon finds out her neighbors are not who they appear to be.
The Platform – 2020
This Spanish hit horror film is one of the most-watched horrors on Netflix about a futuristic prison that transports food via a platform from the first floor to the last, however by the time the platform gets to the last floor there is hardly any food left. It is a clever futuristic take on how society disintegrates due to individual greed and selfishness.
