Scream time: The best horror movies on Netflix right now

Looking to spike your cortisol levels? Then we’ve got the Netflix streaming guide for you.

From old frights to new fears, we’ve scoured Netflix’s horror catalog to find the best cinematic nightmares for darkening your device. Of course, not all terrifying titles are born of the same fire and brimstone — so we’ve included a variety of ethereal ghost stories, stark home invasion horrors, gentrifying vampires, psychological thrillers, classic creeps, satirical scares, and more. Yes, Netflix originals like the Fear Street trilogy and I’m Thinking of Ending Things are on here. But we’ve also got genre staples and hidden gems.

Here are the best scary movies currently streaming on Netflix — all of them packed with eerie entertainment value, because you don’t need to sleep ever again. Happy haunting!

25. The Dead Don’t Die

If you want a zombie movie that’s off the beaten path, check out this star-stuffed, silly, and cerebral gem from Jim Jarmusch. Set in a small rural town, The Dead Don’t Die imagines an undead apocalypse in which zombies (or ghouls) still cling to the obsessions they had while living, like coffee, wine, and cell phones. But they will still eat your flesh, so watch out! 

If this quirky premise isn’t enough to entice you, then we dare you to resist this absolutely bonkers ensemble that includes Bill Murray, Adam Driver, Chloë Sevigny, Steve Buscemi, Tilda Swinton, Tom Waits, Danny Glover, Caleb Landry Jones, Rosie Perez, Iggy Pop, Carol Kane, RZA, Austin Butler, and Selena Gomez. — K.P. 

How to watch: The Dead Don’t Die is now streaming on Netflix.

24. El Conde

Chilean General Augusto Pinochet was one of history’s most notorious dictators and a voracious embezzler, to boot. What if he were “bloodthirsty” in a more literal sense? 

From Spencer director Pablo Larraín,  this pitch-black satire reimagines Pinochet (played here by Jaime Vadell) as a 250-year-old vampire, living in exile with a family whose ready to tear him (and each other?) apart over his vast fortune. Think of it as “Blood Succession,” but with a math-whiz nun at the center of it (Paula Luchsinger, who nearly steals the film). 

Filmed in lush black and white, El Conde is a dark, clever, and often gruesome gothic alternative history. It pulls off the feat of offering supernatural chills while never losing sight of the monstrous historical evils which it draws upon. — Rufus Hickok, Contributing Writer

How to watch: El Conde is now streaming on Netflix.

23. Under the Shadow 

Times are tense in 1980s Tehran for mother Shideh (Narges Rashidi) and her daughter Dorsa (Avin Manshadi). The former medical student is worried about running afoul of Iran’s repressive post-revolutionary government, and the country is mired in a seemingly endless war with Iraq. Her husband Iraj (Bobby Naderi) is called to serve as a doctor on the frontlines, and their apartment building is being shelled daily.

Things only get worse after a bomb hits their apartment building and lodges, unexploded, in the roof; as their neighbors flee to safer locations, the building becomes downright uncanny. Did the bomb let something — or someone — in? Precious objects are disappearing from their apartment or being thrown out entirely, which the feverish little girl blames on malevolent djinn. It’s up to Shideh to save not only her daughter’s life from all these external threats but her very soul from malevolent, seemingly mystical intruders. 

In his first feature-length film, Iranian-born director Babak Anvari proves adept at slowly ratcheting up the paranoid atmosphere and jittery details, before finally letting it all explode in the last act. — R.H. 

How to watch: Under the Shadow is now streaming on Netflix.

22. Run Rabbit Run

Succession star Sarah Snook has more to worry about than the Roy family in this Aussie chiller. She plays Sarah, a divorced mother and fertility doctor suddenly in charge of her late father’s estate — which includes her estranged mother, Joan (Greta Scacchi), who is in the beginning stages of dementia and is in an adult care home. If that weren’t enough, Sarah’s young daughter, Mia (Lily LaTorre), has begun acting strange. First, it’s the stray rabbit she’s brought home and started dressing like. Then, it’s some creepy crayon drawings and insistent demands to visit Joan, whom Mia has never met. Finally, it’s the girl’s conviction that she’s not Mia at all but Alice, Sarah’s sister who went missing when they were children at the same age Mia is now. Is Alice back for some sisterly spooks? Director Daina Reid makes deft use of unnerving sound design, creepy visuals, and a pervasive sense of dread and danger to strongly suggest the answer is yes. — R.H. 

How to watch: Run Rabbit Run is now streaming on Netflix.

21. The Babysitter

Y’know, I’m not sure The Babysitter really works as a movie; it’s more the idea of a movie loosely strung together by one-liners and style. Still, it’s a fun way to kill a few hours. Samara Weaving stars as the titular childcare professional, a popular teen with a passion for human sacrifice and one-liners. Judah Lewis stars as the kid being babysat, with supporting performances by Hana Mae Lee, Robbie Amell, Bella Thorne, and Andrew Bachelor. The sequel, released in 2020, is more of the same — so if you like the first, do a double feature. — Alison Foreman, Entertainment Reporter

How to watch: The Babysitter is now streaming on Netflix.

20. 28 Years Later 

The third film in the 28 Days Later film series returns director Danny Boyle and screenwriter Alex Garland to the franchise. And they hit the ground running with a bold new world of zombie horror. With the initial breakout of the Rage virus decades old, the United Kingdom has been abandoned by the rest of the world, which has been largely untouched by the contagion. However, some survivors have carved out cozy communities, rich in culture, religion, and stringent rules to keep things from going undead. 

12-year-old Spike (Alfie Williams) has been raised in such a community by his loving but ill mother (Jodie Comer) and his brave archer father (Aaron Taylor-Johnson). But when his dad takes him for a scavenging trip in the untamed forests, where the infected have evolved in new and terrible ways, Spike begins a fight not only for survival but for a new day. Deeply harrowing, emotionally walloping, and scary as hell, 28 Years Later will leave you shivering. — K.P. 

How to watch: 28 Years Later is now streaming on Netflix.

19. Velvet Buzzsaw

From the dude behind the brilliant 2014 psychological thriller Nightcrawler comes a hilarious — and horrifying — send-up of the Los Angeles art scene. In writer-director Dan Gilroy’s epic Velvet Buzzsaw, Jake Gyllenhaal, Rene Russo, Toni Collette, and half a dozen other performers you probably love act their hearts out as fine art appreciators hunted down and killed by their priceless pieces. (Seriously, Billy Magnussen gets strangled by a painting of monkeys. It’s awesome.) — A.F.

How to watch: Velvet Buzzsaw is now streaming on Netflix.

18. Blood Red Sky

Netflix’s Blood Red Sky is one of those horror movies made so much better by knowing as little as possible going into it that I’m going to try to say as little as possible to get you to watch it. Directed by Peter Thorwarth, who co-wrote the script with Stefan Holtz, this action horror adventure combines the best parts of Flight Plan with tinges of A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night. Star Peri Baumeister is completely breathtaking as a woman attempting to protect her son from hijackers aboard a transatlantic voyage. — A.F.

How to watch: Blood Red Sky is now streaming on Netflix.

17. The Ritual

In director David Bruckner’s scenic tour of a hellscape, four pals hike through northern Sweden to honor a departed friend. Of course, their trip soon morphs into a torturous and never-ending nightmare — with a killer lead performance by Rafe Spall. Slippery and divisive, this movie begs to be picked apart. More likely than not, you’ll love the world it creates but hate the way it ends. Or, like me, you’ll love the world it creates and how it ends. Have fun with it! And pack bug spray! — A.F.

How to watch: The Ritual is now streaming on Netflix.

16. Apostle

Before Michael Sheen became the angel Aziraphale in Amazon’s Good Omens, he celebrated religion in a, uh… “different” way. Apostle is a completely bonkers period horror film that features Sheen at his most terrifying, playing a cult leader with an affinity for bloodletting and other “creative” religious sacraments. Lead Dan Stevens keeps the slow-paced narrative moving, with stunning supporting performances by The Politician‘s Lucy Boynton and Welsh stage actor Mark Lewis Jones. — A.F.

How to watch: Apostle is now streaming on Netflix.

15. The Blackening

In 2022, Barbershop director Tim Story brought a hilarious horror offering to the slasher subgenre with The Blackening. The film, written by Tracy Oliver and Dewayne Perkins, prods the trope that Black characters usually die first in slasher flicks. So what happens when all of the friends who gather in a remote cabin where they are stalked by a masked killer are also Black? Well, a wild game begins that’s meta, outrageous, and a razor-sharp critique of this slasher cliche. 

The crackling ensemble cast boasts Dewayne Perkins, Grace Byers, Jermaine Fowler, Melvin Gregg, X Mayo, Antoinette Robertson, Sinqua Walls, Jay Pharoah, and Yvonne Orji. And together, they make a movie that’s an absolute must-see. In his review for Mashable, contributing writer Robert Daniels cheered, “The Blackening is a subtle, thought-provoking, yet endlessly rapturous take on the horror genre sure to invite more spins on its unique vision.” — K.P. 

How to watch: The Blackening  is now streaming on Netflix. 

14. Jaws

In 1975, Steven Spielberg gave rise to the blockbuster with this iconic creature feature. Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw, and Richard Dreyfuss star as an unlikely trio of a local sheriff, a sea captain, and a shark expert. Together, they brave the waters off Amity Island to do battle with a man-eating great white shark. Though not as action-packed as today’s blockbusters, this nerve-rattling adaptation of Peter Benchley’s beach read was scary enough to drive audiences wild and turn the tide of shark sentiment against the sea beast for decades. 

Yet nothing in the fear-mongering Shark Week can compete with the action of man versus sea beast that goes down here. And even after 50 years, you’ll want to cheer when Brody snarls, “Smile, you sonovabitch!”* — K.P. 

How to watch: Jaws is now streaming on Netflix.

13. Cam

One of the most underrated titles in Netflix’s original horror catalog, Isa Mazzei and Daniel Goldhaber’s Cam combines the tumultuous world of professional webcam modeling with the insidious terrors of a body-snatching whodunnit. The Handmaid’s Tale‘s Madeline Brewer stars as Alice Ackerman, an ambitious performer eager to climb up the digital ranks who finds herself confronted with a doppelgänger gunning to take her spot, her fans, and maybe…her life. — A.F.

How to watch: Cam is now streaming on Netflix.

12. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Thirty-six years after Beetlejuice first thrilled audiences, director Tim Burton and his leading man Michael Keaton reunited for a sequel that was worth the wait. Winona Ryder returns as Lydia Deetz, who is drawn back to her former creepy home because of a death in the family. While there, she bickers with her stepmom Delia (a divine Catherine O’Hara) and her headstrong teen daughter (Jenna Ortega), who’s gotten a bit too close to the dead. 

If you’re seeking something spooky but not flat-out scary, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a terrific pick. As I wrote in my review for Mashable, “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is pure Burton, passionate, untethered, and indulgent. Fans of the original movie will have plenty of reason to cheer, and even more to cackle.” — K.P. 

How to watch: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is now streaming on Netflix.

11. Bram Stoker’s Dracula 

In 1992, Francis Ford Coppola unleashed a bold and sexy reimagining of the 1897 novel Dracula upon the world. Gary Oldman stars as the eponymous vampire, who is drawn inescapably to a young Englishwoman named Mina Harper (Winona Ryder). This is a problem for her husband, a bewildered Jonathan Harker (Keanu Reeves), who is subjected to torment and romantic rivalry from the Count. But of course that’s not all. 

This lusty tale also follows the sexual exploration and vampiric damnation of Mina’s bawdy bestie Lucy (Sadie Frost), who’s been toying with the hearts of three dashing men (Cary Elwes, Richard E. Grant, and Billy Campbell). But once she turns, it’ll be up to the peculiar vampire expert Van Helsing (Anthony Hopkins, doing the most) to break them from her spell of seduction for good! Amid all this, there’s blood, shapeshifting, sex, and Tom Waits as the wretched familiar Renfield. What more could you ask for? — K.P. 

How to watch: Bram Stoker’s Dracula  is now streaming on Netflix.

10. 1922

Directed by Zak Hilditch and based on Stephen King’s novella of the same name, 1922 tackles classic themes of guilt, envy, and evil through the grim lens of the American Dust Bowl. Thomas Jane and Molly Parker square off to striking effect, painting a portrait of a marriage that is as at once remarkably absurd and nauseatingly plausible. The couple’s son, played by Dylan Schmid, is just as compelling, with a heartbreaking storyline you won’t soon forget. (FYI, fans of the book, there are big changes to the adaptation’s ending that didn’t bother me but could bother you.) — A.F.

How to watch: 1922 is now streaming on Netflix.

9. Train to Busan

South Korean director Yeon Sang-ho gave the zombie subgenre fresh life with this riveting and terrifying 2016 offering. Set in Seoul, Train to Busan begins like a family drama: a divorced, workaholic dad (Gong Yoo) must take his young daughter (Kim Su-an) to her mother in Busan. It’s a train trip in which the kid just wants her dad to show he loves her. And he will — but not the way either of them ever could have predicted. 

A zombie outbreak hits Seoul, and just as the train is leaving the station one of the infected boards. Now, the riders are trapped on a high-speed train with a growing horde of zombies. And finally this dad will drop all thoughts about work and focus on his child. A motley crew of passengers will band together (and occasionally betray each other) to make for a movie that is dizzyingly intense. But the flashiest scares come from the zombies, whose performers are so committed to contorting, thrashing around, and generally causing mayhem that you’ll forget this is fiction. — K.P. 

How to watch: Train to Busan is now streaming on Netflix.

8. Vampires vs. the Bronx

Want a movie that’s got excitement, comedy, a scorching message about the evils of gentrification, and is a kid-friendly romp? Then take a bite out of Vampires vs. the Bronx. Oz Rodriguez’s PG-13 horror-comedy centers on Afro-Latino teens, who recognize that a flurry of missing person posters and influx of rich white folks with tote bags means bad news for the neighborhood. Together, they team up Monster Squad-style to take down the bloodsuckers and save their community. With a sharp wit, a warm heart, a rich sense of atmosphere, and an equal appreciation for the Blade movies and ’80s Amblin, Vampires vs. the Bronx is an easy watch full of rewards.* — Kristy Puchko, Entertainment Editor

How to watch: Vampires vs. the Bronx is now streaming on Netflix.

7. The Fear Street trilogy

Director Leigh Janiak pulls off a small movie miracle in her Fear Street trilogy, delivering consistently fun and fright-filled sequels that just keep getting better. Start your journey off with Fear Street Part One: 1994, in which we meet the cursed teens of a town named Shadyside. For years, the suburban haven has been terrorized by mass murderers — all of them normal townspeople who seemingly “snapped” over nothing.

Across Fear Street Part Two: 1978 and Fear Street Part Three: 1666, get to the bottom of the mystery behind these killings and their connection to the legendary Shadyside Witch. Based on the Fear Street books by R.L. Stine, this is a punchy slasher with enough gore and goofs to fuel a straight-through binge. — A.F.

How to watch: The Fear Street trilogy is now streaming on Netflix.

6. The Perfection

From cellos and foreplay to hallucinations and hiking, The Perfection does absolutely whatever it wants. Featuring Allison Williams in her best role since Get Out and Dear White People‘s Logan Browning in her best part ever, this vibrant genre blend will get a reaction out of you. Not necessarily a good reaction, but a reaction nonetheless. It’s body horror meets psychological thriller meets occult drama meets classical music. With bugs. And vomit. I, for one, loved it! — A.F.

How to watch: The Perfection is now streaming on Netflix.

5. His House

Writer-director Remi Weekes’ His House is easily my favorite scary Netflix release from 2020. Wunmi Mosaku and Sope Dirisu star as refugees from South Sudan seeking asylum in Britain who are assigned to live in an eerie neighborhood where they aren’t welcome. Spectacularly frightening and ruthlessly critical of its subject matter, His House delivers everything it must — and then some. — A.F.

How to watch: His House is now streaming on Netflix.

4. Gerald’s Game

Another romp from Mike Flanagan, based on one of Stephen King’s lesser-known terrors, Gerald’s Game follows a couple on a romantic trip to a remote cabin where things are totally fine and nothing bad happens. Just kidding! It’s so, so, so bad! This survival thriller rooted in psychosexual trauma offers an exquisite performance by Carla Gugino, who is devastating nearly every moment she is on screen. Really. It’s Haunting of Hill House times 10. Watch it for her. — A.F.

How to watch: Gerald’s Game is now streaming on Netflix.

3. Creep

Oh, you thought you liked Mark Duplass? Because he was the love interest in all those indie rom-coms, played that doctor in The Mindy Project, and is easily the best character in The Morning Show? Well, think again! In Creep, a found-footage film that foregoes pageantry for a stark sense of panic, Duplass plays a strange loner named Josef that freelance documentarian Aaron, played by writer-director Patrick Brice, can’t quite pin down. Duplass’ performance is intoxicating, and Brice imagines a universe so compelling it absolutely merits its equally great sequel (also on Netflix). — A.F.

How to watch: Creep is now streaming on Netflix.

2. Incantation

Kevin Ko’s Taiwanese horror freaked people out so much that it even started a TikTok challenge and managed to become the all-time highest-grossing horror film in Taiwan. “When one imagines horror movies, it’s almost impossible to not associate them with jump scares, monsters, or slashers,” wrote Rizwana Zafer for Mashable. “Incantation does not rely on any of those typical horror movie factors, so it’s not really ‘scary’ in the traditional sense. Instead, Ko manages to terrify us using suspense and dread, built on the intimacy and psychological terror of the heroine. He plays on our deepest fears to scare us, incorporating elements of gore, trypophobia, and the eeriness of the unknown, that something evil is always lurking in the background.”* — Shannon Connellan, UK Editor

How to watch: Incantation is now streaming on Netflix.

1. I’m Thinking of Ending Things

Emotional demolitions expert/filmmaker Charlie Kaufman destroys audiences once more in the mind-boggling I’m Thinking of Ending Things. Adapted from Iain Reid’s novel of the same name, this cryptically titled psychological thriller follows a woman, played by Jessie Buckley, and her boyfriend, played by Jesse Plemons, on a disturbing visit to his parents’ remote farmhouse. What follows? Well, that depends on who you ask.

A transfixing meditation on art, existence, value, authorship, isolation, and more, I’m Thinking of Ending Things is a truly one-of-a-kind experience as profound as it is disquieting. You may not have a great time in this house of abstract horrors (especially when Toni Collette is on-screen doing those classically terrifying Toni Collette things), but it will be a lasting one.* — A.F.

How to watch: I’m Thinking of Ending Things is streaming on Netflix.

* denotes that this blurb appeared in a previous Mashable list. 

UPDATE: Oct. 2, 2025, 3:30 p.m. EDT This story was originally published on Oct. 23, 2019. It has been updated to reflect Netflix’s current streaming library.