Curate Your Spooky Season by Streaming These Halloween Movies and Shows

Spooky season has arrived! What does that mean? Well, it means that it’s time to sit in front of our televisions and binge-watch Halloween movies and shows while eating delicious candy. So now that we have a myriad of streaming platforms to choose from, what are the best movies and shows to celebrate the holiday on each one?

We’ve got Netflix, HBO Max, Paramount Plus, and our favorite … Huluween! Plus, a few others, so read on (if you dare) to see which movies and shows will get you into the Halloween spirit.

Netflix is nothing if not expansive, so we wanted to bring some variety to your Netflix Halloween streaming. If you haven't already watched Mike Flanagan’s The Midnight Club, turn it on now!

If you’re looking for something a little more upbeat but will still give you some chills, we recommend The Curse of Bridge Hollow, starring Marlon Wayans, Kelly Rowland, and Stranger Things star Priah Ferguson. It’s also not too late to snuggle up with spooky, binge-worthy TV series like The Watcher and Cabinet of Curiosities.

Stranger Things is now a classic Netflix staple, but it still holds up and makes for a great theme for Halloween parties, while The Babysitter movies are our favorite campy Halloween movies. They call back to Hollywood’s B-movies in a way that’s effective, hilarious, and still scary. Netflix also released several original films and TV shows in 2022 that will likely curb your horror fix. There’s The Good Nurse starring Eddie Redmayne and Jessica Chastain, which is horrifying and based on a true story.

When it comes to series, HBO Max doesn’t have anything too scary, but its movie selection is vast. All the Harry Potter films are currently on HBO Max, and yes, we know they’re not technically Halloween movies but what better time of year to watch them?

Plus, Halloween is significant in Harry Potter. Take the troll attacks on Halloween in Sorcerer’s Stone and the Chamber of Secrets opening on Halloween in the second movie, among many more examples.

Although HBO Max has old classics like The Blob and I Married a Witch, as well as newer classics like Scream and Nightmare on Elm Street, we also want to remind you that Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away is definitely spooky enough to be a Halloween classic.

And cult classics like The Craft, which is about a group of schoolgirls learning how to be witchy, feel so new every time we watch that we can’t recommend it enough.

HBO Max is also loaded with family-friendly content to enjoy before or after a night of Halloween activities like trick-or-treating and parties. The streaming platform houses the Gremlin movies and several Scooby-Doo Halloween specials. Additionally, the outlet has the classic spooky musical, Little Shop of Horrors starring Rick Moranis.

A newer streaming platform, Paramount Plus has its own Halloween selection. Night of the Living Dead is probably their most classic Halloween film, while Zodiac, which is not technically considered a “Halloween” movie, is still worth a watch. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, and Robert Downey Jr., Zodiac takes on the story of the famed and anonymous Zodiac Killer.

Of course, don’t miss Evil, an original CBS series about a forensic psychologist, Catholic seminarian, and technology contractor working together to uncover the secrets of some mysterious paranormal activities. Paramount Plus also released a few spooky original movies to show they can hang with the other platforms.

The Orphan sequel, Orphan: First Kill, is still available to stream after coming out in July 2022, as well as Significant Other, starring Maika Monroe and Jake Lacy. If thrillers aren’t your thing, Paramount Plus has spooky classics like 1991’s The Addams Family and the Monsters High movie.

One of our all-time favorite Halloween movies, Coraline, has a home on Prime Video. The stop-motion film follows a young girl split between worlds, not unlike Stranger Things, but more macabre and less of a thriller.

Then there's Lore, Amazon's original series based on the podcast of the same name. Every episode tells a spooky story based on real life, so it is effectively terrifying.

And Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a must-watch classic starring Sarah Michelle Gellar as a teenage vampire slayer gifted with mysterious powers.

The Halloween collection also includes several female-led horror films. The streaming service has the 2014 high school thriller Jennifer’s Body, where Megan Fox plays a possessed high school cheerleader, which sounds frightening.

Its movie game is strong, but not ready for Halloween. However, as far as television shows go, we know that “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown,” is just one episode of the animated classic Charlie Brown, but it’s too good not to watch during this spooky season.

On top of that, Julianne Moore stars in Lisey’s Story, a new show based on Stephen King’s novel about a woman living through disturbing events that reignite memories of her late husband.

Yes, we mean Hulu, but seriously, check out their dedicated Huluween site. Hulu is the place to go for both cult classics and more traditional Halloween films. A '90s favorite, Edward Scissorhands, starring Winona Ryder and Johnny Depp, is now a cultural touchpoint and a very charming film about a “spooky” outcast.

Hulu’s also the place to watch one of our favorite television anthologies, The Twilight Zone. Every episode has its merits, but the show is known for plunging viewers into a world beyond space and time, in which anything is possible, including freak accidents and the paranormal.

And finally, The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a must-watch on Halloween. Theaters around the country screen the classic, and moviegoers dress in costumes and participate in activities. Fun fact: Anyone who hasn’t been to a Rocky Horror showing is considered a “virgin.”

We love Halloween culture.

How could we forget Disney Plus? Well, we can’t. Disney Plus houses two of the all-time best Halloween films: Nightmare Before Christmas and Hocus Pocus. Nightmare Before Christmas is one of Tim Burton’s most widely popular films, created fully in stop-motion in the early '90s. It should be watched every Halloween and Christmas.

Hocus Pocus, on the other hand, is a drive-in and outdoor movie favorite because it’s so quotable and fun to watch in groups. Every line is a masterclass in writing, and every line delivery, especially from the witches played by Bette Midler, Kathy Najimy, and Sarah Jessica Parker, is a masterclass in acting.

And, in October 2022, Disney Plus FINALLY granted our early ‘90s wishes and gave us a Hocus Pocus sequel starring all three original witches. So, what better way to celebrate Halloween than with a Hocus Pocus watch party?

Disney Plus also has most of the Disney Channel Original Movies (DCOMs) on its platform, including Twitches 1 and 2, Don’t Look Under the Bed, Under Wraps, and The Haunted Mansion starring Eddie Murphy. Disney Plus also has Halloweentown, potentially the most iconic Halloween DCOM of all time.

So there you have it: our favorite Halloween movies and television shows on every major streaming platform. Trick or treat or watch TV!