Between horror classics like The Evil Dead and its own thrilling originals [1] like Bird Box, Netflix has quite the selection of films that'll freak you out. However, the process of narrowing down options and actually deciding what to watch can get a little overwhelming when one is faced with that expansive homepage. So, here's a solution: consider the following list your streaming schedule for each night in October leading up to Halloween [2]!
The lineup has a little of everything from ghost stories to survival thrillers and romances gone wrong, but they're all definitely varying degrees of scary, so if you're tolerance for frights is fairly low, feel free to check out Freeform's tamer, more family-friendly offering [3]. Those who are up to the challenge, however, can continue scrolling. Also . . . good luck.
Oct. 1: The Silence of the Lambs
Kick off your marathon with a classic: The Silence of the Lambs. Make sure to catch the critically acclaimed psychological thriller before it leaves Netflix on Oct. 31 [5].
Watch The Silence of the Lambs on Netflix. [6]
Oct. 2: Nightcrawler
Jake Gyllenhaal [7] transforms into a photojournalist with a nefarious way of getting the story in 2014's thrilling Nightcrawler.
Watch Nightcrawler on Netflix. [8]
Oct. 3: Zodiac
For a Gyllenhaal double feature, tune into David Fincher's star-studded, moody mystery about the Zodiac Killer.
Watch Zodiac on Netflix. [9]
Oct. 4: The Addams Family
Take a break from the drama and dread with The Addams Family, a dark comedy that's fun for, well, the whole family.
Watch The Addams Family on Netflix. [10]
Oct. 6: Fatal Affair
Nia Long is at the helm of this Netflix original about a lawyer who reconnects with an old friend, only for his affection to turn obsessive.
Watch Fatal Affair on Netflix. [12]
Oct. 7: You Get Me
Follow up Fatal Affair [13] with You Get Me, a similar rom-dram starring Bella Thorne.
Watch You Get Me on Netflix. [14]
Oct. 8: Winchester
Partly based on a true story, Winchester tells the tale of the heiress to a firearms company who tirelessly works on constructing a maze within her home so as to avoid the spirits who haunt her.
Watch Winchester on Netflix. [15]
Oct. 9: The Haunting of Bly Manor
The Haunting of Bly Manor [16], the follow-up to 2018's The Haunting of Hill House [17], hits Netflix on Oct. 9, and though it's technically a series, each episode is basically a bite-sized horror movie, so it's worth starting the season during your marathon.
Watch The Haunting of Bly Manor on Netflix. [18]
Oct. 10: I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House
In this gothic flick, a live-in nurse is hired to care for a retired horror author whose house carries a hair-raising history.
Watch I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House on Netflix. [19]
Oct. 11: In the Tall Grass
Based on a novella by Stephen King and his son, Joe Hill, In the Tall Grass is centreed around a group of people caught in a maddening maze disguised as a placid field.
Watch In the Tall Grass on Netflix. [20]
Oct. 12: The Platform
The Platform offers another premise with seemingly no way out: inhabitants of a "vertical self-management centre" are constantly forced to fight for their food in this dystopian Spanish film.
Watch The Platform on Netflix. [21]
Oct. 13: Bird Box
If you somehow missed Bird Box [22] when the entire internet was talking about it in 2018, what are you waiting for? If you haven't rewatched Bird Box since, now is as good a time as any!
Watch Bird Box on Netflix. [23]
Oct. 14: Hold the Dark
Jeffrey Wright stars in this psychological thriller about a retired wolf expert who journeys into the Alaskan wilderness to help a mother investigate her son's disappearance.
Watch Hold the Dark on Netflix. [24]
Oct. 15: Green Room
A touring punk band is forced to fight their way out of an isolated venue in this critically acclaimed thriller led by the late Anton Yelchin.
Watch Green Room on Netflix. [25]
Oct. 17: The Boy
A nanny is hired to look after an elderly couple's porcelain doll in The Boy, which has plenty of wild plot twists perfect for a marathon of this kind.
Watch The Boy on Netflix. [27]
Oct. 18: ParaNorman
Follow up The Boy with this (decidedly less creepy) stop-motion film about a boy who can communicate with ghosts and must use his supernatural skill to save his town from a witch's centuries-old curse.
ParaNorman hits Netflix on Oct. 18.
Oct. 19: The Perfection
In this twisted Netflix original, a young cellist reluctantly leaves her prestigious music academy to care for her mother, only to later befriend the prodigy excelling in her place.
Watch The Perfection on Netflix. [28]
Oct. 21: Veronica
Set in 1991 Madrid, Veronica tells the supernatural story of a teenager who unwittingly welcomes evil spirits into her home after attempting to communicate with her late father via Ouija board.
Watch Veronica on Netflix. [30]
Oct. 22: Paranormal Activity
Unfortunately, this lineup wouldn't be complete without this absolutely terrifying, generation-defining film that would go on to launch a six-part franchise with a seventh instalment in the works.
Watch Paranormal Activity on Netflix. [31]
Oct. 23: The Babysitter
After all those ghost stories, you're going to need a palate cleanser. Enter: this campy horror comedy, starring Samara Weaving and Bella Thorne, about a pre-teen's babysitter who turns out to be part of a satanic cult.
Watch The Babysitter on Netflix. [32]
Oct. 24: The Babysitter: Killer Queen
While you're at it, you might as well follow up The Babysitter with its fun, freshly released sequel [33].
Watch The Babysitter: Killer Queen on Netflix. [34]
Oct. 25: Cam
Madeline Brewer stars in this psychological thriller about a cam girl whose popular account is taken over by a doppelgänger.
Watch Cam on Netflix. [35]
Oct. 26: The Evil Dead
Bring it back to the early '80s with Sam Raimi's cult classic, sophomore film cult classic about a group of teens battling the undead in an isolated cabin.
Watch The Evil Dead on Netflix. [36]
Oct. 27: Cabin Fever
A friend group's idyllic, woodsy getaway is interrupted by the spread of a flesh-eating bacteria in Eli Roth's 2002 directorial debut, Cabin Fever — which, yes, was partly inspired by The Evil Dead.
Watch Cabin Fever on Netflix. [37]
Oct. 28: Sweetheart
Up next is Sweetheart, a thriller about a shipwreck survivor who not only must learn to stay alive on a deserted island, but also fight off the sea monster that comes to shore every evening.
Watch Sweetheart on Netflix. [38]
Oct. 29: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
With your marathon soon coming to an end, consider taking up this witchy Archie Comics series to keep the eerie vibes going into November.
Watch Chilling Adventures of Sabrina on Netflix. [39]
Oct. 30: The Witches
While you're already dabbling in a bit of witchcraft, why not give 1990's Anjelica Huston-led The Witches a whirl?
Watch The Witches on Netflix. [40]
Oct. 31: Poltergeist
And lastly, spend Halloween [41] with Poltergeist, which has remained a classic for a reason.
Watch Poltergeist on Netflix. [42]