Can’t Wait for Halloween? Stream These 9 Horror Movies Now
It may only be August, but we can already smell the pumpkin spice in the air. From Gilmore Girls to Over the Garden Wall, there’s no shortage of great shows with autumn vibes to pick for this year’s fall binge. Or, if creepiness, not comfort, is your cup of tea, there are a lot of horror movies hitting theaters this fall, like horror/mystery The Invitation and highly anticipated X prequel Pearl.
But if you, like us, want to start celebrating Halloween early — and without leaving the comfort of your AC or paying movie theater prices — we have just the thing. Thanks to the many streaming services, there are films you can watch right at home, from Prey to Fear Street: 1978.
Scroll down for horror movies, old and new, campy and classic, funny and frightening, to meet all of your spooky needs ahead of the holiday.
Fear Street: 1978
If you, like the rest of the world, simply cannot get enough Sadie Sink after Stranger Things Season 4 — and rewatching the “All Too Well” short film just isn’t doing the trick anymore — try Fear Street: 1978. It makes the most sense to watch the Netflix Original horror trilogy in the order in which they were released (starting with 1994 and ending with 1666), but you certainly don’t have to. Its epic soundtrack, which features hits from David Bowie, Kansas, and The Velvet Underground, coupled with Sink’s performance as sassy, brave Ziggy elevate this Fear Street above the other two, and the nostalgic summer camp setting, as teens try to survive a possessed counselor on a murder spree, makes it the perfect end-of-summer horror watch.
Available on Netflix
Prey
Through Prey, easily one of the best horror movies of 2022, director Dan Trachtenberg gives the Predator series the 10 Cloverfield Lane treatment, breathing new life into what is perhaps the most famous sci-fi horror franchise of all time. The prequel to the 1987 Predator (which is also available to stream on Hulu) is a refreshing addition to the Alien and Predator Cinematic Universe, and Amber Midthunder’s performance, as a skilled Comanche warrior protecting her tribe from the alien hunting humans for sport, is seriously Prey-sworthy.
Available on Hulu
Scream (1996)
This iconic slasher boasts the perfect balance of horror, mystery, and comedy. From horror queen Neve Campbell to Shaggy himself (Matthew Lillard), every performance in Wes Craven’s 1996 masterpiece is perfect. Like Prey, this flick is the perfect start to a Scream marathon — and this month may be your last chance to have one for a while! Every film in the franchise (except the 2022 Scream) will be leaving Paramount+ on August 31, so stream them while you can! (Or, consider binging all of Craven’s works — nearly every entry in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise can be found on HBO Max.)
Available on Paramount+
Candyman
If you’ve already seen Nope and are now (understandably) craving more of Jordan Peele’s unique and addicting brand of horror, you may be heartbroken to learn that the only two other Peele-directed thrillers, Us and Get Out, are not currently available on any streaming platforms. Fortunately, Candyman, which was co-written by Peele, is. Thematically similar but also radically different from the 1992 horror film of the same name, Candyman is an entertaining, scary, visually stunning and thought-provoking watch — just be careful not to say the antagonist’s name out loud if you stream it.
Available on Prime Video
Creep 2
The Creep films are (to put it lightly) character-driven, and Mark Duplass is the man that makes them live up to their name. Both have extremely small casts, small budgets, and are intimate, unhinged and hard to look away from — in the best way possible. While, once again, it makes more sense to watch the films in chronological order, Desiree Akhavan’s performance (as the videographer who’s the serial killer’s latest target), chaotic energy, and chemistry with Duplass in Creep 2 give it a slight edge over its predecessor.
Available on Netflix
Orphan: First Kill
The first Orphan may not be critically acclaimed, but it has become a horror staple and boasts one of the best plot twists in the genre. Now, over a decade after its release, a prequel, Orphan: First Kill, just released in theaters and on Paramount+. In First Kill, the talented Isabelle Fuhrman reprises her iconic role as scheming orphan Esther, and Julia Stiles takes on the role of her new motherly figure, filling the (very big) shoes of horror legend Vera Farmiga.
Available on Paramount+
Malignant
Malignant is not for the faint-hearted, weak-stomached, or fans of subtle horror. The 2019 film split audiences down the middle (not literally, thankfully) but if you tend to lean toward campier horror and/or find yourself drawn to director James Wan’s style, you will almost certainly enjoy this flick about a woman who has visions of murders. And, if you find yourself wanting more Wan content — he is a legend in the genre, after all — nearly all of his most iconic films are also available to stream: the original Saw (Tubi), The Conjuring (Netflix, HBO Max), and Insidious (Netflix).
Available on HBO Max
Jennifer's Body
Though it definitely falls in the outer limits of the “horror movie” categorization — it’s a horror comedy with a couple of jump scares and a pinch of gore — Jennifer’s Body is a must-watch for lovers of not only both genres, but also fun, fashion and queer films. Teen movie legends Amanda Seyfried and Megan Fox as Needy and Jennifer, two high schoolers in a homoerotic friendship, are explosive, campy and hilarious. Like many LGBTQIA+ films, Jennifer’s Body flopped at the box office — mostly due to a misleading marketing campaign — but has now become a cult classic, and for good reason.
Available on Prime Video
The Platform
Gore? Check. Suspense? Check. Effective social commentary? Check. This 2019 Spanish thriller can tick practically any horror movie box you could muster. The Platform takes place at a vertical prison of over 300 levels and each month, the levels change randomly. The higher level, the better because the prisoners’ only source of sustenance (one table’s worth of food) starts at the top and descends each day, and there is no rationing — it’s first come, first served. As you can probably imagine, things spiral very quickly, and every scene of The Platform will have you on the edge of your seat.
Available on Netflix
