The 25 Scariest Movies on Netflix: ‘Pearl,’ ‘The Conjuring,’ ‘Fear Street,’ and More

[Editor’s note: This guide was published in fall 2021 and has been updated multiple times since.]

As Netflix’s library of films ebbs and flows, finding the right movie to watch can feel like bailing out an ocean with a spoon. And if you’re looking for a quality horror movie in particular, the search only gets harder. With the reality that Horror is one of the cheapest genres to produce (not to mention, a famous crowd-pleaser among the bored and looking for anything new crowd), streamers like Netflix are cluttered with a veritable tsunami of bloody titles that sometimes seem indistinguishable from one another. Curating the 25 scariest movies on Netflix is then quite a process of selection and reduction.

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If you’re looking for a good horror movie to watch on Netflix that will truly scare you, picking a final selection can prove a more daunting task than sitting through yet another “Haunting of Hill House” rewatch; with or without its beloved “Bly Manor” chaser. But while the streamer’s priorities seem to shift as quickly as its content selection grows, Netflix’s horror library remains a high point — with original triumphs, including Guillermo del Toro’s “Cabinet of Curiosities” and a sizable offering of Mike Flanagan works.

From classics and a few box office toppers to obscure foreign titles you might have never discovered without the all-powerful algorithm, there’s something for every horror fan to enjoy. Just take “The Fear Street Trilogy,” which tells a surprisingly simple tale that writer/director Leigh Janiak smartly broke into three chapters. The filmmaker’s story of teens trapped in a cursed town is told across as many time periods, and allowed Janiak to explore ghostly images of the 17th century alongside ’70s slasher cliches and ’90s suspense tropes. Plus, three decades means three times as many cast members, with “Fear Street” featuring performances from Sadie Sink, Gillian Jacobs, Kiana Madeira, Fred Hechinger, Ashley Zuckerman, Maya Hawke, and many, many more.

To make your job of movie choosing just a little easier, we’ve compiled an updating list of some of the scariest horror movies currently available on Netflix. While much of the horror films on Netflix typically don’t have much blood in their veins, if you dig through you can find a robust list of slashers, monster movies, ghost stories, and thrillers to munch up like candy. Keep reading for our picks of the 25 scariest movies on Netflix, including “His House,” “Gerald’s Game,” “The Perfection,” and selections from “Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities.” All titles are available as of November 1, 2024, and are listed in no particular order.

With editorial contributions by Alison Foreman, Christian Zilko, Chris O’Falt, Steve Greene, Tambay Obenson, Eric Kohn, and Zack Sharf.

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