The Best Horror Movies Streaming On Netflix Right Now
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The current selection of the best horror movies on Netflix proves that quite a few of the best movies on Netflix in general fall under the horror category and that a Netflix subscription could be all you need to satisfy your dark side. You could spend a whole night searching through the best streaming services to subscribe to for the scariest movies available, but that could be a time-consuming and sometimes costly commitment even more frightening than anything cinema has crafted so far.
As a longtime fan of the genre, I think the platform has some of the best horror movies of all time, despite the expiration of a few old-school classics. Nevertheless, when it comes to acclaimed recent thrillers or upcoming horror movies to keep your weary eyes open for, Netflix is a reliable source and the following are some of our freaky favorites now available.
Bone Tomahawk (2015)
Four men (including Kurt Russell in one of his most badass roles) go in search of the town doctor after she is kidnapped by a tribe of cannibals in 1890s Texas.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: What makes S. Craig Zahler’s Bone Tomahawk one of the best Western movies in recent memory is a consistently ominous tone throughout and moments of horrifying brutality that easily make it one of the genre’s all-time scariest entries.
Stream Bone Tomahawk on Netflix.
Cam (2018)
An internet model (played by Emmy nominee Madeline Brewer) discovers that her webcast and her life are being stolen from her by a doppelganger.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Director Daniel Goldhaber’s Cam is one of the best sexually explicit movies on Netflix, elevated by an intriguingly suspenseful and bizarre plot.
World War Z (2013)
Brad Pitt stars as a United Nations investigator who’s forced to abandon his family and search for the origins of (and hopefully a cure to) a virus turning humans into rabid, cannibalistic monsters.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Based on the hit novel by Max Brooks, World War Z is one of the most realistic zombie movies ever made for its earnest approach to exploring mankind’s response to such a catastrophic circumstance.
Stream World War Z on Netflix.
The Conjuring (2013)
Paranormal researchers Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) try to help a Rhode Island family rid their new home of a malevolent presence.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: One of the most acclaimed horror movies based on an alleged true story is James Wan’s The Conjuring – an old-school throwback to haunted house thrillers that kickstarted a shared universe of creepy favorites.
Stream The Conjuring on Netflix.
Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022)
A horror-inspired party game takes a horrifyingly realistic turn during a seemingly innocent get-together for a group of twentysomethings.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Also one of the best Pete Davidson movies, Bodies Bodies Bodies is a sharply satirical modern whodunit with a wild twist ending from director Halina Reijn.
Stream Bodies Bodies Bodies on Netflix.
Thanksgiving (2023)
A year after a tragic event on Black Friday, citizens of Plymouth, Massachusetts, begin to fall prey to an elusive, brutal killer.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Co-writer and director Eli Roth put out one of his best movies yet – let alone, arguably, the crown jewel of horror movies set around Turkey Day – with Thanksgiving, which is a feature-length adaptation of a fake trailer he directed for Grindhouse in 2007.
Stream Thanksgiving on Netflix.
The Wailing (2016)
When locals begin to suspect a mysterious illness affecting their village is the work of a demon, a police officer (played by Kwak Do-won) investigating the matter grows increasingly desperate to understand the source when his daughter becomes a victim.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Director Na Hong-jin’s The Wailing is one of the best Asian horror movies in recent memory for its twisted, modernized reinterpretation of dark fantasy lore.
Stream The Wailing on Netflix.
The Autopsy Of Jane Doe (2016)
A routine examination of an unidentified woman’s body (played by Olwen Catherine Kelly) found at a crime scene proves to be a living nightmare for veteran coroner Tommy (Brian Cox) and his colleague and son, Austin (Emilie Hirsch).
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Director André ?vredal makes a winning English-language debut with The Autopsy of Jane Doe, which already boasts a fascinating concept, but is heightened by its unrelentingly creepy, mysterious aura.
Stream The Autopsy of Jane Doe on Netflix.
The Babadook (2014)
Essie Davis gives a riveting performance as a single mother who fears that she and her young son (played by Noah Wiseman) are being taunted by an unsettling character from a children’s book.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: One of the best horror movies directed by a woman (namely writer and director Jennifer Kent) is The Babadook – a thought-provoking, allegorical examination of how grief affects motherhood that also introduced one of the scariest modern horror movie villains.
Stream The Babadook on Netflix.
Ouija: Origin Of Evil (2016)
A single mother (played by Elizabeth Reaser) who makes a living pretending to be a medium incorporates a seemingly harmless board game into her act, which comes with grave consequences, in 1960s California.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Only a horror master like writer and director Mike Flanagan could make an effective thriller out of a follow-up to a widely disliked horror flick like he does with Ouija: Origin of Evil, which serves as a prequel to 2014’s Ouija.
Stream Ouija: Origin of Evil on Netflix.
It Follows (2015)
College student Jay Height (Maika Monroe) becomes targeted by a merciless shapeshifting entity only she can see as part of a curse that can only be passed down through sexual intercourse.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: One could argue that the spark of the horror genre’s modern renaissance was writer and director David Robert Mitchell’s It Follows – a stunningly unique, captivatingly suspenseful, and cleverly nuanced creepfest that has a follow-up called They Follow in the works.
The Fear Street Trilogy (2021)
A group of teenagers struggle to survive against multiple costumed killers while trying to uncover the dark secrets plaguing their town.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Inspired by a series of young adult horror novels by R.L. Stine, the Fear Street movies are a trio of fun old school horror throwbacks that each take place in a different time period to tell the full story.
Stream the Fear Street trilogy on Netflix.
His House (2020)
After taking refuge in England, a South Sudanese couple (played by Sope Disiru and Wunmi Mosaku) find themselves living a different kind of nightmare when they move into their new home.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Writer and director Remi Weekes’ BAFTA-winning debut, His House, is one of a few horror movies to earn 100% on Rotten Tomatoes for its powerful, grounded message amid an otherwise traditional haunted house movie conceit.
Run Rabbit Run (2023)
A single mother (played by Succession cast member Sarah Snook) is forced to confront her dark past as she tries to understand her young daughter’s (played by Lily LaTorre) concerning behavior.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Writer Hannah Kent and director Daina Reid crafted a horror film that effectively addresses grief and will keep you mystified until the shocking ending of Run Rabbit Run.
Stream Run Rabbit Run on Netflix.
The Ritual (2018)
Already traumatized by a tragic loss, a group of college buddies reunite for a hiking trip in the Swedish wilderness, only to find themselves haunted (or, more accurately, hunted) by a sinister presence.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: From director David Bruckner, The Ritual is an underrated Netflix original you should see for its old-school camping trip disaster enhanced by other shocking horror elements and relatable themes of friendship to keep it grounded.
Gerald’s Game (2017)
In her first collaboration with Mike Flanagan, Carla Gugino plays a woman who takes a weekend getaway with her husband (played by Bruce Greenwood), whose plans to spice up their love life take a devastating turn for the worse.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Without giving too much away, I would call this adaptation of Stephen King’s Gerald’s Game one of the most intense Netflix original titles by Flanagan for its deeply grim story about the survival of both the body and soul.
Stream Gerald’s Game on Netflix.
#Alive (2020)
A young man (played by Ah-In Yoo) lives in isolation to protect himself from a viral outbreak that has affected most of Seoul, Korea, and from the flesh-eating, reanimated corpses those infected have become.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: The Netflix original hit, #Alive, is a Korean horror movie offering a clever, claustrophobic take on the zombie genre.
The Babysitter (2017)
Cole's (Judah Lewis) latest night with the girl of his dreams – his fun and attractive babysitter, Bee (Samara Weaving) – becomes a living nightmare after discovering that she and her unexpected party guests are hiding a deadly secret.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Before leading Ready or Not, Samara Weaving's reign as one of Hollywood's top Scream Queens began when she played the titular antagonist of The Babysitter – McG's comical satanic panic throwback that later spawned a sequel.
Stream The Babysitter on Netflix.
Creep And Creep 2 (2014, 2017)
This pair of intense found footage thrillers chronicles the interactions of a disturbed – and disturbing – man (played by Mark Duplass) with two different videographers whose curiosities get the best of them.
Why they are some of the best horror movies on Netflix: Duplass and director Patrick Brice developed the concepts for Creep and Creep 2 (the first two installments of a planned trilogy), which are both full of shocking twists – the biggest surprise of all being that the stories are improvised pretty much from scratch.
Stream the Creep movies on Netflix.
In The Tall Grass (2019)
A pregnant woman (played by Laysla De Oliveira) and her brother (played by Avery Whitted) follow a young boy's cry for help into a large field of high-growing grass, but it soon becomes apparent that there is no way out.
Why it is one of the best horror movies on Netflix: Father/son writing duo Stephen King and Joe Hill’s novella, In the Tall Grass, inspired this survivalist thriller with elements of startling fantasy, engrossing mystery, and a menacing performance by The Conjuring star Patrick Wilson that makes this Netflix original one of the coolest surprises in horror of its year.
Stream In the Tall Grass on Netflix.
Whether you click on an old-school classic, freaky favorite, or one of Netflix’s own original horror movies, the platform is sure to keep you streaming into the wee hours of the night – partially because you might not be able to sleep.
