Editorials
The Ultimate Guide to the Horror You Should Be Watching from Now Through Halloween
Has October ever been this densely packed with horror offerings before? This Halloween season has been an absolute glut of glorious horror offerings from every possible corner of viewing. The theatrical releases have been coming at a steady clip, and streaming services have loaded up on frights. That doesn’t even touch upon annual Halloween fare like AMC’s FearFest or Freeform’s 31 Days of Halloween, and any other cable channels that have dedicated their month’s programming to horror. The choices available have been nothing short of overwhelming, in the best possible way.
Can every October be like this, please?
Because the selection is so vast, we’re here to help you plot out your viewing schedule in the final days until Halloween. So to prep your DVR, viewing parties, and Halloween binges; here’s everything coming our way between now and Halloween.
Theaters
Halloween – October 19
It’s only been a week since release, which means there’s still plenty of viewers holding out until the opening weekend crowd died down. Considering it’s also the final weekend before Halloween, there’s likely no better time than now to get reacquainted with Laurie Strode and Michael Myers. Our review.
Killer Kate! – October 26 (limited and on VOD)
Described as a love letter to the early works of John Carpenter by writer/director Elliot Feld, this horror film sees the titled character attending her estranged sister’s bachelorette party at a remote cabin in the woods. The gals are unaware they’re walking into a trap set in motion by a disturbed family of amateur killers who are out for blood. Things get downright savage.
Suspiria – October 26 (limited)
If you’re in the New York or Los Angeles area, you’ve got a chance to see this anticipated remake ahead of its November 2 wide release. Written by David Kajganich and directed by Luca Guadagnino, this iteration of Suspiria is a very, very different beast. At a lengthy two-and-a-half-hour run time, this remake is guaranteed to be polarizing. Our review.
VOD
The Dark – October 26
Justin P. Lange’s feature debut follows an unlikely friendship forged between a cannibalistic undead teen girl and a blind boy that she meets in the forest she inhabits. Both have suffered unimaginable abuse, and both find comfort in each other. But their road to healing is paved in a body count. Our own Luis called this one a “chilling tale of friendship and abuse.”
Slender Man – October 30
While this is currently available to purchase digitally, it becomes available for rent on October 30 for those that are curious but unwilling to own a copy of the movie. That’s understandable, considering this movie is nothing resembling the one director Ben Young set out to do. The plot feels overly familiar to The Ring, and in this case, it sees a group of teens fall prey to the iconic Creepypasta character thanks to an accidental summoning by way of viral video. Our review.
Heavy Trip – Available Now
“Symphonic post-apocalyptic reindeer-grinding Christ-abusing extreme war pagan Fennoscandian metal.” That description of the band at the center of Heavy Trip, Impaled Rektum, is a perfect summary of the humor on display in this love letter to metal. In this offbeat comedy from Finland, Turo is stuck in a small village where the best thing in his life is being the lead vocalist for the amateur metal band Impaled Rektum. The only problem? He and his band mates have practiced for 12 years without playing a single gig. The guys get a surprise visitor from Norway-the promoter for a huge heavy metal music festival-and decide it’s now or never. They steal a van, a corpse, and even a new drummer in order to make their dreams a reality. It’s not horror, but it is adjacent enough that horror fans will fall in love anyway. This is a film destined for cult status.
Netflix
Creeped Out
A modern-day Are You Afraid of the Dark meets Black Mirror kids anthology series that depicts creepy tales and ends with a lesson. The series is linked together by a masked ‘story collector’ called The Curious who appears in each episode.
Errementari: The Blacksmith and the Devil
A re-telling of an ancient fable about a Blacksmith who finds himself battling the Devil. In this story, the Blacksmith has captured a demon and lives a life of hermit-like seclusion away from the prying eyes of the townsfolk. All is going well until a desperate little girl, Usue, accidentally stumbles across the devil and unknowingly releases him. It is then left to the Blacksmith to reclaim his bounty, but this is easier said than done as he also finds himself at the end of a lynch mob that have come searching for the missing Usue.
Malevolent
Brother and sister team Angela (Florence Pugh) and Jackson (Ben Lloyd-Hughes) are nothing more than scam artists. Preying on the grief-stricken and the vulnerable, they convince the bereaved that Angela has the ability to contact the dead. It’s a simple con, until Mrs. Green (Celia Imrie) summons the pair to her home — the orphanage that was once stage to a string of murders of young girls — and Angela grows less and less certain of what’s actually real.
Tales from the Hood 2
Keith David stars as Mr. Simms to tell bloodcurdling stories about lust, greed, pride and politics through tales with demonic dolls, possessed psychics, vengeful vixens and historical ghosts. This sequel quietly snuck on to Netflix earlier this month. Our own Kalyn Corrigan reviewed the film out of Fantasia Film Festival, calling this the “timely horror anthology we need right now.”
Apostle
Richardson (Dan Stevens) has returned home, only to learn that his sister is being held for ransom by a religious cult. Determined to get her back, Thomas travels to the idyllic island where he uncovers a secret far more evil than he could have imagined. Gareth Evans invokes the unnerving folk horror of films like The Wicker Man, but dials up the gore and brutality to extreme levels. Our review.
The Curious Case of Christine McConnell
Wickedly talented baker and artist, Christine McConnell welcomes you into her terrifyingly delicious home to create delectable confections and hauntingly disturbing decor with the help of her colorful collection of creatures. This series is a whimsical combination of Jim Henson’s puppetry, Martha Stewart, and spooky creatures that go bump in the night.
The Haunting of Hill House
A modern reimagining of Shirley Jackson’s iconic novel, The Haunting of Hill House explores a group of siblings who, as children, grew up in what would go on to become the most famous haunted house in the country. Now adults, the family must finally confront the ghosts of their past. The latest by Mike Flanagan is a “genuine masterpiece of longform horror storytelling,” and begs to be seen more than once thanks to the sheer level of mind-blowing detail. As much of an emotional sucker punch as it is scary, this is a perfect seasonal treat.
Haunted
From the Executive Producers of The Purge franchise and Lore, Haunted gives a chilling glimpse into the first-person accounts from people who have witnessed horrifying, peculiar, extraordinary supernatural events and other unexplained phenomena that continue to haunt them. This is for those that like there Halloween filled with ghosts and docudramas.
The Night Comes for Us
Ito (Joe Taslim), a gangland enforcer, caught amidst a treacherous and violent insurrection within his Triad crime family upon his return home from a stint abroad. The latest by writer/director Timo Tjahjanto (Macabre, May the Devil Take You) isn’t horror by any stretch, but it is far gorier than most horror films would ever dare to go. For those that need a high-octane thrill ride with a heaping helping of viscera, this is worth the watch.
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
A dark reimagination of the Archie comic, following 16-year-old Sabrina as she is beginning her dark education as a sorceress, juggling her half-witch side and her half-human, normal life at Baxter High. Perhaps nothing else comes close to capturing the very essence of Halloween quite like this fun series of Satanism and witchcraft, and the horror nods are endless. A seasonal treat like no other, this is a much watch (our review).
Castlevania: Season 2
The year is 1475 in the eastern European village of Lugu. Lisa Tepes, doctor and wife of Dracula, is burned at the stake by the Inquisition for heresy. Insane with rage, Dracula unleashes an army of night creatures to exact revenge and wipe humanity from the face of the Earth.
Hulu
Huluween
Hulu’s hub for curated Halloween content isn’t just a center for horror TV and movies, but a showcase of eight creepy short films by up-and-coming filmmakers. “The Gillymuck,” “The Box,” “Horrifying Sounds,” “The Hug,” “Carved,” “Urn,” “Lippy” and “The Rizzle” are all available for viewing now, and the short with the highest viewership combined with judges’ highest scores will win $10,000 toward production of their feature length film. Budding filmmakers take note!
Into the Dark: “The Body”
This anthology series is unlike any that’s come before; each episode is a feature length film. Beginning October 5, a new episode airs every month on the first Friday of the month and will run year-round. The movie-a-month series will revolve around that month’s holiday, beginning with the Halloween themed episode “The Body.” Starring Tom Bateman, “The Body” follows a hitman who carries out his latest victim in plain sight on Halloween, pretending it’s simply a Halloween prop. When groupies latch on, it becomes a battle of will and wits.
Light as a Feather
This 10-episode supernatural series revolves around a group of teen girls being picked off one by one after a game of “Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board.” The surviving girls then must determine why they’re being targeted, and whether an evil presence is the one behind the murders. This is the first Hulu project to be based on a Wattpad story, and stars Ajiona Alexus, Liana Liberato, Peyton List, and more.
Shudder
This horror dedicated streaming service has been killing it all month with additions like Satan’s Slaves, Terrified, The Witch in the Window, and so much more. And they’re not done yet! Here are two more titles to be on the lookout for.
Channel Zero: Butcher’s Block
Dropping the day before the newest season premieres on Syfy, the third installment of the hit Creepypasta anthology series introduces Alice and Zoe Woods, sisters who have moved to a small town to start over—but instead encounter the hellish neighborhood of Butcher’s Block, home to sinister Joseph Peach and his eerily charismatic family. Directed by Arkasha Stevenson, Butcher’s Block stars Holland Roden, Olivia Luccardi, and Rutger Hauer.
Summer of 84
After suspecting that their police officer neighbor is a serial killer, a group of teenage friends spend their summer spying on him and gathering evidence, but as they get closer to discovering the truth, things get dangerous. From the directors behind Turbo Kid, François Simard, Anouk Whissell, and Yoann-Karl Whissell, Summer of 84 isn’t afraid to get dark.
Amazon Prime Video
This streaming service is a treasure trove of repertory horror films and hidden gems. It may be light on original programming (so far), but Amazon is also great for adding some surprising new releases:
The Strangers: Prey at Night
Director Johannes Roberts takes a much different approach in this follow up to Bryan Bertino’s 2008 home invasion thriller. Drawing influence from John Carpenter’s ‘80s films like Christine, this sequel follows a family of four staying at a secluded mobile home park for the night that are stalked and then hunted by three masked psychopaths. Amazon Prime Video is an overachiever; both the rated and unrated edition are currently available for streaming.
Slice
When a pizza delivery driver is murdered, the city is on the hunt for the murdered. A disgraced werewolf is the prime suspect, but in a town full of ghosts, witches, and humans there’s more to this mystery than pizza. An irreverent horror comedy by first time feature director Austin Vesely, Slice stars Chance the Rapper, Zazie Beetz, Hannibal Buress, Joe Keery, and more. If you want something more lighthearted this Halloween season, this might be for you (our review). It’s the equivalent of a spooky Saturday morning cartoon.
Lore: Season 2
A unique anthology series based on Aaron Mahnke’s podcast that explores folklore-based horror in a sort of documentary/live-action podcast format returns for a second season with a new showrunner at the helm. Some of the new episodes will harken back to familiar episodes of Mahnke’s podcase, and some will feature wholly new stories.
TV
Channel Zero: The Dream Door – October 26, Syfy
Two words: Pretzel Jack. But if you need more than that to tune in to the newest season of Channel Zero, here’s the details: Based on the Creepypasta short story “Hidden Door” by Charlotte Bywater, “Channel Zero: The Dream Door” follows newlyweds Jillian (Maria Sten) and Tom Hodgson (Brandon Scott), who have each brought secrets into their marriage. When they discover a strange door in their basement, those secrets start to threaten their relationship — and their lives. Perhaps the bloodiest season yet, “The Dream Door” also features horror vet Barbara Crampton in a supporting role. This six-episode season airs nightly beginning October 26 and concludes on Halloween night.
Ghost Adventures Live – October 31, Travel Channel
In Ghost Adventures Live, Zak Bagan and the crew takes over Bagan’s Las Vegas Haunted Museum for a four-hour live event with special guests and spooky surprises. Before the live event airs on Halloween night, there will be a pre-show Q&A, and the Travel Channel social media pages will host giveaways.
Stan Against Evil: Season 3 – October 31, IFC
Season 3 picks up immediately after the events of the Season 2 finale, with Stan (John C. McGinley) and Evie (Janet Varney) back in Willard’s Mill dealing with the consequences of Stan traveling through time to save his dead wife, Claire. In doing so, he opened a portal between the Land of the Living and the Land of the Dead, allowing evil forces to truly take over the town and even some of its inhabitants. For those still mourning the loss of Ash vs Evil Dead, this horror comedy series created by Dana Gould may fill the void.
DVD/Blu-ray
Mandy – October 30
The spellbinding feature by Panos Cosmatos that people won’t stop gushing about (for good reason) heads home this Tuesday. Starring Nicolas Cage, Andrea Riseborough, and Linus Roache, Mandy sees the lives of a couple brutally shattered by a nightmarish hippie cult and their demon-biker henchmen, propelling a man into a spiraling, surreal rampage of vengeance. Pick up a copy on DVD or Blu-ray, along with a box of mac and cheese, for a great night in.
After fifty years of continuous writing, Stephen King has become a genre unto himself.
The unrivaled Master of Horror made a splash in 1974 with his debut novel Carrie and has been terrifying readers ever since. Two years later, Brian De Palma brought this shocking story to the screen with an equally electrifying horror film that remains a genre classic and a prototypical example of “Good For Her” horror. This dual debut seemed to open the floodgates, unleashing endless waves of Stephen King films.
From the highs of Misery, Cujo, and The Shawshank Redemption to the schlocky fun of Cat’s Eye, Creepshow, and Children of the Corn, the last five decades have seen just about every notable horror creator take a stab at the author’s massive collection.
In recent years, this singular subgenre has begun to burst at the seams, expanding to include Stephen King-esque fare. In 2016, brothers Matt and Ross Duffer debuted Stranger Things, a sci-fi series heavily inspired by two of King’s most famous books. The Netflix series remixes Firestarter and It by following a little girl with psychic powers and an intrepid group of kids on bikes who must battle an otherworldly foe and a sinister government agency. With its clever blend of modern effects and comforting nostalgia, this gateway horror series paved the way for Andy Muschietti’s It adaptation which remains the highest grossing horror film of all time.
Four years later, Mike Flanagan would create Midnight Mass, a spiritual adaptation of King’s second novel Salem’s Lot. Published in 1975, the book sees a tiny New England town torn apart by a centuries-old vampire. Though Flanagan’s story is perhaps more tender, both iterations of the classic horror tale follow close-knit communities shaken to their core by the presence of an ancient evil.
In addition to these recent hits, 2025 was a banner year for the Master of Horror. Audiences delighted in six mainstream adaptations, including the massively popular It: Welcome to Derry which chronicles earlier cycles of the titular clown’s reign. With this boost to King’s cultural cache, it’s no surprise that we’ve begun to see more unofficial adaptations of the author’s work and horror creators who build their own unique castles in King’s creative sandbox.
So what defines a Stephen King-esque story?
For the past fifty years, the prolific author has dipped his toes in nearly every subgenre from supernatural stories and grisly gore to western fantasy and science fiction. Including his vast catalogue of short fiction, King has tackled ghosts, demons, werewolves, zombies, aliens, mutants, and self-driving cars, not to mention bizarre monsters of his own creation. But what truly unites this vast array of horror is King’s focus on relatable characters. In his 2000 memoir/instructional text On Writing, the prolific author describes the amusement he finds in writing disparate characters, placing them in horrific scenarios, then exploring the ways they try to survive.
An unofficial Stephen King adaptation may take place in the author’s native New England — bonus points if it’s set in Maine — and reference his well-known heroes and villains. But what makes the King connection unbreakable is a character-driven story about average people who band together in the face of abject terror.
Weapons Captures Small Town Stephen King
Following his 2022 shocker Barbarian, Zach Cregger returned with Weapons, a sprawling story that begins in a doomed elementary school. On an otherwise ordinary day, Justine (Julia Garner) arrives at her desk to find that all but one of her students have disappeared. As the mystery grows increasingly violent, Justine and Archer (Josh Brolin), the father of a missing boy, find their way to the home of Alex (Cary Christopher), the class’ only surviving student. In some ways reminiscent of Salem’s Lot, Weapons swings wildly through the unfortunate town, introducing us to its flawed inhabitants as we watch their lives fall apart.
Cregger’s setup nods to a pair of King short stories. Both “Suffer the Little Children” and “Here There Be Tygers” tackle monstrous presences in elementary schools, but as Weapons reaches its final act, Constant Readers may remember another Stephen King tale. Featured in his 1985 collection Skeleton Crew, “Gramma” introduces us to George, a little boy tormented by an aging witch. On an afternoon alone with his sickly grandmother, the frightened child gradually realizes that the imposing old woman has been waiting for an opportunity to cast a spell that will extend her own life by possessing his body.
Alex finds himself similarly tortured by his aunt Gladys (Amy Madigan), a garish witch who orchestrates a desperate plot to sustain her own strength. Transforming humans into mindless weapons, Gladys has taken over Alex’s family home and lured his classmates to the basement. Holding them in a comatose state, she syphons off their energy to extend her own supernatural life.
Vastly different in many ways, both “Gramma” and Weapons hinge on a sinister witch who uses horrific magical spells to sacrifice the bodies of her vulnerable prey.
Hokum Echoes The Shining and 1408
It’s nearly impossible to watch a film about a haunted hotel without thinking of King’s third novel, The Shining. This icy story follows Jack Torrance, an angry writer struggling with his sobriety and a shameful incident haunting his past. Accompanied by his wife and young son, Jack has taken a job as the winter caretaker for the Overlook, a haunted hotel situated high in the Rocky Mountains. Snowed in, Jack finds himself tormented by dangerous ghosts who amplify his greatest fears.
Damian McCarthy’s Hokum follows a similarly troubled figure. Ohm Bauman (Adam Scott) is a surly writer who travels to the Bilberry Woods Hotel in rural Ireland to spread his parents’ ashes. Haunted by his own tragic past, Ohm finds himself trapped in the honeymoon suite, a decaying room that’s been permanently closed to protect visitors from a dangerous witch trapped within its walls. Visual nods to King’s text abound with woodcut figurines and an animated clock, mirroring ominous descriptions found in King’s text.
Another terrifying sequence sees Ohm staring with horror at a closed door, the only thing separating him from the approaching witch. As the door knob slowly turns, Constant Readers remember Jack’s narrow escape from the ghostly woman in room 217. And Ohm’s popular Conquistador books directly reference King’s long-running fantasy series The Dark Tower which follows a gunslinger named Roland Deschain tasked with protecting the nexus of the universe.
In addition to these thematic comparisons, Hokum bears striking resemblance to King’s terrifying short story “1408.” Collected in 2002’s Everything’s Eventual, the terrifying story follows Mike Enslin, a dejected writer who’s risen to fame penning essays about his adventures in haunted locations. Mike arrives at the Hotel Dolphin and bullies his way into the titular room, despite the manager’s dire warnings. McCarthy nods to this story with an ominously misplaced hotel room door, reminiscent of King’s entry to 1408, an unsuspecting portal that appears to move each time Mike looks away.
However, McCarthy’s most direct reference lies in a minicorder Ohm uses to capture notes. Trapped inside the dreaded honeymoon suite, this device offers well-timed messages while sitting next to a decomposing corpse. Mike records his time in 1408 with his own trusty minicorder. Described for the reader, his tape has captured the man’s slow descent into madness as the room prepares to swallow him whole. With conclusions that differ wildly in tone, both Ohm and Mike find their lives irrevocably changed by encounters with the supernatural realm.
Widow’s Bay Builds Its Own Version of Castle Rock
Katie Dippold’s Widow’s Bay has taken the idea of an unofficial King adaptation and turned it into an art form. The Apple TV series sees the residents of the titular island plagued by a curse that dates back centuries. Not only does the picturesque hamlet not accommodate wifi connections, those born on the island face certain death should they ever try to leave. Desperate to modernize the tiny town, Mayor Tom Loftis (Matthew Rhys) draws in waves of tourists just as a new cycle of terror begins.
Blending horror with deft comedy, Dippold makes cheeky references to King’s body of work. Tom warns that, “there’s something in the fog,” reminding readers of King’s 1980 novella The Mist. And Loftis’ own stay in the town’s haunted hotel sees him tormented by the ghost of a murderous clown. We even spy a vintage King hardback peeking out of a local book trade box.
In many ways Widow’s Bay feels like a new iteration of the author’s Little Tall Island, a tiny village off the coast of Maine. In addition to the 1992 novel Dolores Claiborne and a handful of harrowing short stories, this quaint fishing village is also the setting for King’s 1999 teleplay Storm of the Century. Premiering on ABC primetime, this tragic tale follows a terrified group of islanders who batten down the hatches for a dangerous Nor’easter only to find a more sinister threat lurking within.
Constant Readers may also be reminded of Castle Rock, the author’s favorite fictional town.
First introduced in the 1981 novel Cujo, the charming village becomes the star of Needful Things, King’s satire about consumerism. After several Castle Rock stories, we’re reintroduced to its residents as they gossip about the arrival of Leland Gaunt and the grand opening of his curio shop. Anything their hearts desire can be found in his varied inventory, so long as they’re willing to pay the price. Pitting cantankerous neighbors against each other, Gaunt ignites a wave of grisly violence by exploiting long-held resentments and feuds.
The town’s only defense against this supernatural threat is beleaguered sheriff Alan Pangborn. Still grieving the deaths of his wife and younger son, Alan struggles to connect with his older child and pick up the pieces of his shattered life. Also a widower, Loftis struggles to raise his own restless son and explain the strange details of his wife’s tragic death. Attempting to unravel the island’s dark secrets, Tom is aided by quirky residents including a surly fisherman named Wyck (Stephen Root) and Patricia (Kate O’Flynn), an earnest Town Hall employee. King’s own novels feature many of these proactive alliances with disparate characters combining their strengths to overcome insurmountable odds.
With Widow’s Bay renewed for a second season and Mike Flanagan’s Carrie series on the horizon, the future seems bright for new King adaptations, both spiritual and directly pulled from his catalogue. The prolific author also shows no signs of slowing down with two publications nearing release. His upcoming novel, Other Worlds Than These, is the long-awaited third Talisman book which teases direct ties to his Dark Tower world. Holly Forever will be a new installment of his crime series, offering a different kind of genre fare.
This embarrassment of riches spawning multiple worlds seems ripe for spiritual adaptation and will likely inspire horror creators for decades to come.
Kate O’Flynn, Stephen Root and Matthew Rhys in “Widow’s Bay,” now streaming on Apple TV.
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