Contributor, PEOPLE
Looking for something scary to watch this Halloween? You’ve come to the right place.
To help you decide which flick to stream, we narrowed down the best spooky movies on Hulu. Whether you're in the mood for gore and jump scares or much lighter fare (Monster House, anyone?), there's plenty to choose from.
If you're worried about being too scared, you can make sure to skip anything that sounds like it might keep you up at night. Bothered by sharks? Avoid 47 Meters Down. Snakes too much to handle? Anaconda is not for you. Have a limit when it comes to gore and torture? Please don't watch Hostel.
And if you don’t want to be scared at all this season, there are a couple of tamer choices for you, too. From horror classics like The Blair Witch Project and The Exorcism of Emily Rose to psychological thrillers like Parasite and Black Swan to lighthearted flicks like Ghostbusters and Hotel Transylvania, here are the best movies to stream on Hulu this Halloween.
47 Meters Down shows a cage-diving expedition gone very wrong. Mandy Moore and Claire Holt star as sisters who go cage diving in Mexico, but they have to find a way to save themselves after their cage plummets to the depths of the sea and their oxygen supply starts running out. All while sharks are circling, of course.
Watch 47 Meters Down on Hulu
A man must deal with heartbreak and a monster following him in After Midnight. Hank's girlfriend, Abby, leaves him and while he tries to win her back, he's also fighting off an unknown creature that's trying to break into his home. Jeremy Gardner and Brea Grant star.
Watch After Midnight on Hulu
The comedy-horror movie All My Friends Hate Me is about a man (Tom Stourton) who returns home after a volunteer trip and celebrates his 31st birthday by going on a weekend away with his friends from college. But, while it starts as a usual reunion, he grows increasingly paranoid and suspicious of the group and their motives toward him.
Watch All My Friends Hate Me on Hulu
In Anaconda, a documentary crew is taken hostage by a snake hunter attempting to find a giant anaconda along the Amazon River. They’re then forced to help him in his terrifying mission. Jennifer Lopez, Ice Cube and Jon Voight star.
Watch Anaconda on Hulu
Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis star in Black Swan, which centers around a woman (Portman) who loses touch with reality as she prepares to star in the ballet Swan Lake and compete with a rival dancer (Kunis). Portman won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of the spiraling ballet dancer. Other costars include Winona Ryder, Vincent Cassel and Portman’s real-life husband Benjamin Millepied.
Watch Black Swan on Hulu
Superhero movies can also be horror movies, as evidenced by Blade. Adapted from a Marvel comic, the film stars Wesley Snipes as a half-human-half-vampire. Blade can hunt vampires thanks to his powers, which gives the movie its horror edge.
Watch Blade on Hulu
Snipes came back for Blade II four years later. This time, Blade joins up with one faction of vampires when a group that intends to destroy both humans and vampires poses an existential threat.
Watch Blade II on Hulu
In the third Blade movie, the titular hero continues his attempt to protect humans from vampires and battles a familiar villain, Dracula (Dominic Purcell). Costars in this installment include Ryan Reynolds and Jessica Biel.
Watch Blade: Trinity on Hulu
The Blair Witch Project took the country by storm in 1999, with some viewers unable to tell if the faux-documentary horror movie was real or fake. The found footage-style film follows a group of students (Rei Hance, Joshua Leonard, Michael Williams) who head into the woods to document the Blair Witch. Naturally, horror ensues, and the film is all that’s left behind when the friends disappear.
Watch The Blair Witch Project on Hulu
Jennifer Connelly stars in Dark Water as Dahlia, a mother who moves into a new apartment with her young daughter, Cecilia (Ariel Gade). The two soon discover the apartment leaks dark water from the roof and faucets. It’s also haunted by the ghost of a vengeful young girl, who begins communicating with Cecilia.
Watch Dark Water on Hulu
Katie Holmes, Guy Pearce and Bailee Madison star in Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark. The 2010 movie is about a family who moves into a home that eight-year-old Sally realizes is haunted by creatures living in the basement. Making things even more spooky, the creatures have an obsession with teeth.
Watch Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark on Hulu
For something lighter and more family-friendly, there’s Double, Double Toil and Trouble. Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen‘s Halloween movie from 1993 is about twin sisters who learn that their great aunt (Cloris Leachman) has been cursed by her own twin (also Leachman) and that they are the only ones who can break the spell.
Watch Double, Double, Toil and Trouble on Hulu
The Exorcism of Emily Rose combines horror with legal drama. Part of the movie follows Emily Rose (Jennifer Carpenter), a college student who undergoes an exorcism after medication fails to help her with psychosis and epilepsy. The other part focuses on the trial of the priest (Tom Wilkinson) who performed the exorcism and his lawyer (Laura Linney).
Watch The Exorcism of Emily Rose on Hulu
False Positive follows Lucy and Adrian (Ilana Glazer, Justin Theroux), a couple who are struggling to conceive a baby. They decide to see a renowned doctor (Pierce Brosnan), who they believe will solve their problems, but everything is not as it seems, as Lucy finds out as soon as she gets pregnant.
Watch False Positive on Hulu
A very dark comedy about dating and cannibalism? That’s what you’ll get with Fresh. The gory horror movie stars Daisy Edgar-Jones as a woman who begins dating a new man, played by Sebastian Stan, only to discover the disturbing truth about him when they take a weekend trip away.
Watch Fresh on Hulu
The 2011 comedy-horror movie Fright Night is a remake of the 1985 film of the same name. This time around, Anton Yelchin stars as a teenager, Charley, who learns that his neighbor, Jerry Dandrige — played by Colin Farrell — is a vampire, and attempts to keep himself and his loved ones safe from his bite.
Watch Fright Night on Hulu
Take it back to 1984 with the original Ghostbusters. The film stars Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis as three parapsychologists who start a business to capture ghosts after they appear in New York City and soon become involved in a multidimensional mystery. Costars include Sigourney Weaver, Ernie Hudson and Rick Moranis.
Watch Ghostbusters on Hulu
Need more ghost-busting? The 1989 sequel is also streaming on Hulu. This time, the Ghostbusters reunite and save the day once again when the paranormal activity starts back up five years later.
Watch Ghostbusters II on Hulu
Remakes are popular in the horror genre, and a new one for this year is Hellraiser, which is a reboot of the franchise that began in 1987. The film is about a woman (Odessa A'zion) who accidentally summons demons from another dimension using an ancient puzzle.
Watch Hellraiser on Hulu
The Hostel movies are only the horror picks for you if you can seriously handle gore. The first movie follows students traveling around Europe who get convinced to stay in a hostel in Slovakia. Upon arrival, however, they find out that those who stay are kidnapped and tortured. Jay Hernandez and Derek Richardson star.
Watch Hostel on Hulu
In the sequel, another group of students ends up as part of a kidnapping scheme in which rich people pay to watch people be tortured. This time Lauren German, Bijou Phillips and Heather Matarazzo star.
Watch Hostel: Part II on Hulu
If you’re looking to get the kids involved (or simply want to watch something a little less scary), Hotel Transylvania is for you. In this animated movie, Count Dracula (Adam Sandler) owns a hotel for monsters. While throwing a birthday party for his daughter, Mavis (Selena Gomez), a human (Andy Samberg) enters the premises, threatening the hotel’s existence and becoming a crush for Mavis.
Watch Hotel Transylvania on Hulu
Lupita Nyong’o takes on zombies in Little Monsters, a comedy-horror movie about an unlikely group who has to protect a group of school children during a zombie attack. Nyong’o plays a kindergarten teacher, who is taking her class on a field trip when the zombie outbreak begins.
Watch Little Monsters on Hulu
The Lodge follows Grace (Riley Keough), a woman who survived the cult she was raised in and is now preparing to marry Richard (Richard Armitage) and become the stepmother to his two children (Lia McHugh, Jaeden Martell). During a Christmas visit to their family’s lodge, she begins having haunting visions, and her relationship with the children becomes strained — to say the least — as they try to figure out the mystery that seemingly has them trapped there.
Watch The Lodge on Hulu
Monster House is exactly what it sounds like. This animated movie is about three kids investigating a house in their neighborhood that isn’t just haunted but literally comes alive. The voice cast includes Mitchel Musso, Steve Buscemi and Maggie Gyllenhaal.
Watch Monster House on Hulu
If you already find carnivals spooky, prepare to be horrified by Nightmare Alley. Bradley Cooper stars as Stan Carlisle, a mysterious man who works his way up in the carnival world, eventually scamming people by claiming to be a psychic before his scheme spirals out of control. Costars include Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara and Toni Collette.
Watch Nightmare Alley on Hulu
No Exit follows a young woman (Havana Rose Liu) who becomes stranded at a rest area during a blizzard while traveling to visit her mother in the hospital. While there, she witnesses a kidnapping and tries to save the child involved. Meanwhile, she grows suspicious of the other people who are trapped alongside her.
Watch No Exit on Hulu
Oculus is about two siblings who try to figure out the power of a haunted mirror — first as children, and later as adults. The antique mirror causes hallucinations and can influence those around it. Karen Gillan and Brenton Thwaites star as the older versions of the siblings.
Watch Oculus on Hulu
Parasite made history in 2020, becoming the first non-English film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. The dark comedy is about a poor family who infiltrates a wealthy family’s home under the guises of being a chauffeur, tutor and other jobs. But, they find out that surprises lie within the house. The ensemble cast includes Song Kang-ho, Choi Woo-shik, Park So-dam, Jang Hye-jin, Lee Sun-kyun and Cho Yeo-jeong.
Watch Parasite on Hulu
Most of the Predator franchise movies are available on Hulu (save 2018’s The Predator). The first movie in the series stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as the leader of a paramilitary group, who encounter the Predator (Kevin Peter Hall) — an alien that hunts humans.
Watch Predator on Hulu
In the second Predator film, the Predator returns and this time is fought off by a Los Angeles police department. Schwarzenegger did not return for the sequel, and instead the lead character of an LAPD lieutenant is played by Danny Glover.
Watch Predator 2 on Hulu
Twenty years after the second movie came the release of Predators. This time, a group of people finds themselves suddenly on an unknown planet, which they realize is used by alien groups to hunt humans. The cast includes Adrien Brody, Topher Grace, Alice Braga and Laurence Fishburn.
Watch Predators on Hulu
The Predator franchise gets a prequel with Prey, a new release for 2022. Set in the 18th century, the movie focuses on a Comanche woman, Naru (Amber Midthunder). Naru has to protect her tribe against an alien Predator, as well as French traders, who are providing a different sort of threat to her people.
Watch Prey on Hulu
The cult movie The Rocky Horror Picture Show combines the genres of musical, horror and comedy. Adapted from a 1973 musical theater production, the film is about a couple (Susan Sarandon, Barry Bostwick) who end up at the home of Dr. Frank N. Furter (Tim Curry) and join his convention full of eccentric characters. The film is a tribute to sci-fi and horror B-movies.
Watch The Rocky Horror Picture Show on Hulu
A complicated mother-daughter relationship is at the center of Run, starring Sarah Paulson and Kiera Allen. Without giving too much away, high school student Chloe (Allen) finds out that her mother, Diane (Paulson), has been going to extreme lengths to keep her close.
Watch Run on Hulu
Chances are, you know the big twist in The Sixth Sense already — it was only one of the biggest pop culture sensations at the turn of the millennium. The movie stars Bruce Willis as a psychologist and Haley Joel Osment as a young patient who says he can communicate with dead people.
Watch The Sixth Sense on Hulu
The cult comedy So I Married an Axe Murderer is about a man (Mike Myers) who meets the supposed love of his life, a woman (Nancy Travis) who works at a butcher shop. But, as time goes on, it becomes increasingly evident that she may actually be a serial killer.
Watch So I Married an Axe Murderer on Hulu
Joe Keery stars in Spree as a rideshare driver obsessed with finding viral fame online. The way he goes about this involves his passengers and murderous live streams where their fate plays out. Costars include Sasheer Zamata, David Arquette and Mischa Barton.
Watch Spree on Hulu
Claire Foy stars in Unsane as Sawyer, a woman who unintentionally signs herself into a psychiatric facility after seeking treatment for trauma due to a stalking incident. Things take off from there, with Sawyer both attempting to flee the facility and escape the man (Joshua Leonard) who had been following her. Jay Pharoah and Juno Temple costar.
Watch Unsane on Hulu
You’ve Got Mail isn’t scary, but it is known for being very autumnal and cozy — still appropriate for October. The classic rom-com stars Meg Ryan as a woman who owns an independent bookstore and Tom Hanks as a member of a family who owns a large bookstore chain. The two fall for each other online, before realizing their careers are in direct competition.
Watch You’ve Got Mail on Hulu
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