The horror genre is home to some of the best movies of all time. There's something about a dark tale of horror and suspense that scratches the primal itch to be frightened without any of the risks involved in more extreme thrill-seeking ventures. Being wrapped up in a warm blanket on the couch with the perfect scary movie is an experience that every horror fan cherishes.
Another attraction of the genre is its sheer versatility. Whether it be slasher flicks, body horror, sci-fi, etc., there's a little something for everyone in the horror genre, regardless of which streaming service you have. And with incredible filmmakers like Alfred Hitchcock, Wes Craven, and M. Night Shyamalan having supplied film fans with some of the most quotable and rewatchable films of all time, there is no shortage of excellent titles to choose from. Here are 10 of the best horror films on streaming right now.
1
'Nosferatu' (1922)
Prime Video | Rotten Tomatoes: 97% | Dir. F.W. Murnau
Image via Film Arts Guild
With Robert Eggers' Nosferatu remake right around the corner, there is no better time to go back to F.W. Murrau's silent classic from 1922. Following a version of the Dracula storyline, the film follows Count Orlok (Max Schreck), a mysterious figure who invites a man by the name of Thomas Hutter(Gustav von Wangenheim) to his secluded Transylvanian castle, with the intent of purchasing a home near that of Hutter and his wife. Orlok soon lets Hutter know of his vampiric nature and of his infatuation with Hutter's wife, Ellen (Greta Schroeder).
Whereas quite a few silent films have begun to show their age, Nosferatu is a shining example of a film that remains remarkably effective to this day, earning its place among the best silent films of all time. Its thick sense of atmosphere and dread permeate the whole picture, captivating the viewer from scene one with its ambient tone and eerie gothic imagery. Nosferatu is essential viewing for anyone with an interest in film history, and it stands as (arguably) the best horror film of the 1920s.
Netflix | Rotten Tomatoes: 97% | Dir. Alfred Hitchcock
Image via Paramount Pictures
Alfred Hitchcock's 1960 classicis one of the most iconic horror films of all time, and with good reason. The film starts out by following the character of Marion Crane (Janet Leigh), a secretary on the lam after stealing a sum of $40,000 from her employer. Crane winds up taking refuge for the night in the seedy and eerily vacant Bates Motel, operated by the seemingly kind but awkward Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), who may have some dark secrets of his own.
Psycho is an all-timer horror movie, and a showcase of what Hitchcock always did best, crafting a suspenseful tale that invests the audience in its characters while winding up the tension like a guitar string. The captivating dialogue, Perkins' career-best performance, and one of the most iconic film endings of all time are just a few of the things that make Psycho stand the test of time, still chilling audiences to this day. Just don't watch the Gus Van Sant remake by mistake.
Continuing with another 1960s horror film, Robert Wise's The Hauntingis a stirring ghost tale that ranks among the filmmaker's best work. The film follows Dr. John Markway (Richard Johnson), an anthropologist with a keen interest in psychic phenomena, invites two women, the eccentric Eleanor (Julie Harris) and the daring Theodora (Claire Bloom), to Hill House, a mansion which is said to be haunted. Soon after arriving, Eleanor begins to suspect that these supernatural rumors may just be true.
Atmosphere is the keyword when describing what makes The Haunting so special. Wise's use of shadows mixed with the incredible production design and interesting characters create something far more palpable and subtly terrifying than what most modern haunted house moviesare able to conjure up, not even The Haunting's own 1999 remake. It's an often underappreciated classic that's a must-see for any fan of supernatural or psychological horror.
Prime Video | Rotten Tomatoes: 84% | Dir. Tobe Hooper
Image via New Line Cinema
No horror list is complete without at least mentioning Tobe Hooper's magnum opus, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. The iconic stomach-churning classic needs no introduction, but the story follows a young Sally (Marilyn Burns) going on a trip with her brother and closest friends to visit her grandfather's grave, which has been rumored to be vandalized, before they run into the chainsaw-wielding maniac, Leatherface (Gunnar Hansen), and his deranged family of sickos.
What makes The Texas Chain Saw Massacre so effective to this very day is its authenticity. The dingy, dirty, carcass-ridden setting of rural Texas is all sweat and grime, invoking a sense of uncleanliness that few films have been able to replicate. Where it lacks in creative or gory kills, it more than makes up for its nasty authenticity, made all the better by the film's unfortunate production history, with The Texas Chain Saw Massacre undergoing principal photography in the middle of a Texas heat wave, accidentally giving the movie an extra layer of authenticity, at the cost of the misery of its cast and crew.
Still the gold standard for sci-fi horror and creature features, Ridley Scott's Alienis a masterpiece, in every sense of the word. The simple story of the Nostromos' crew being terrorized by an extraterrestrial force is one of cinema's most recognizable, with production design and creature effects unparalleled even by the most recent Alien movie, 2024's Alien Romulus. It's been said a lot in this list, but the atmosphere of Scott's original Alien is second to none, and the Nostromos is one of the most engrossing settings in film, period. While the whole Alien franchise is streaming on Hulu, it's the first film that still stands as the absolute best (sorry, James Cameron, Aliens is great too).
Wes Craven's Scream franchisechanged the slasher genre forever with its meta embrace of slasher movie tropes and intriguing sense of mystery, with the 1996 original standing as the best of the bunch. The film also introduced series protagonist Sidney Prescott, played by Neve Campbell, who, nearly 30 years later, remains the gold standard for Scream Queens, and horror protagonists as a whole. But as a standalone effort, Scream is a perfectly paced and sharply written slasher flick in its own right, offering up the tropes one might expect while also lovingly mocking the subgenre's tried and true formula with clever dialogue and surprising twists and turns that still feel so fresh, even when coming back to it after seeing Scream's five sequels.
Max | Rotten Tomatoes: 86% | Dir. M. Night Shyamalan
Image via Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
While director M. Night Shyamalan's later career has been hit-and-miss, to say the least, there's no denying that Shyamalan was at the top of his game when The Sixth Sensecame about in 1999. A box office sensation and awards darling alike, the supernatural horror flick follows Dr. Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis), a child psychologist who begins treating young Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment), who shares with Crowe the long-kept secret that he can see and communicate with the dead.
While its iconic ending is enough to give it timeless status, The Sixth Sense doesn't get quite enough credit for being an incredible character drama first and foremost, usually the spooky supernatural trappings as a backdrop for a quietly effective film about grief and confronting one's own mortality. Willis turns in some of the best work of his career, while young Haley Joel Osment and Academy Award-nominee Toni Collettegive the film its emotional core. Shyamalan truly crafted one of the finest supernatural horrors of all time with this one.
Train to Busan is a contained thriller with a claustrophobic setting that really works to bring the horror and unbelievable tension of the situation to its boiling point, sustaining suspense throughout its entire runtime. Whereas many zombie flicks favor gore over character depth, Train to Busan wisely gives a nice emotional edge with its nuanced characterization that makes you care for its central father-daughter pair. There are plenty of gnarly zombie kills and action-packed moments, but the film knows when to stop and give the audience time to get to know its characters, which is a rare feat in this subgenre especially.
Hulu | Rotten Tomatoes: 90% | Dir. Julia Ducournau
Image via NEON
The body horror subgenre has had a really impressive run as of the last five years or so, and Julia Ducournau's Titaneis arguably the best that this subgenre has seen so far in the 2020s. This is a film so distinct in its style and execution that one may find it quite hard to describe. But that's also part of the fun of Titane; not knowing what's around the next corner is a huge aspect of what makes this unsettling yet sensitive tale all the more riveting. Combine that with impeccable sound design and special effects work, and you have one of the most strikingly original films the 2020s have had to offer.
The most recent release on this list, I Saw the TV Glow is a melancholic dive into the surreal and uncomfortable, asking the audience what it means to feel secure with your place in the world. Led by two nuanced performances fromJustice Smith and Brigette Lundy-Paine, I Saw the TV Glow tells the story of Owen (Smith), an outsider who finds a kindred spirit in Maddy (Lundy-Paine) who introduces him to her favorite late-night teen show, The Pink Opaque. But after Maddy mysteriously disappears, Owen's reality begins to crumble as the line between the fictitious world of The Pink Opaque begins to blur with the real world.
Jane Schoenbrun's follow-up to We're All Going to the World's Fair is a tender yet deeply haunting representation of identity and body dysmorphia that crafts a world so isolated and distinct that no two viewers will read everything the exact same way. Not to mention the film's incredible soundtrack that captures a nostalgic sense of melancholy that no movie has been able to capture in quite the same way. It's one of 2024's best films, and easily among the best horror films currently streaming.
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