If watching the news is getting you down, you can take some small measure of comfort in the fact that we’re living in the golden era of streaming video content. It may not warm your heart as much as a steady paycheck or actual human contact, but at least it can offer some distraction while you’re stuck sheltering at home.
While Netflix is downgrading resolutions to preserve bandwidth and prevent a catastrophic crash, you might want to head over to Hulu to binge watch countless dramatic TV series currently streaming. Of course, if horror is more up your alley (or you just want a different brand of horror than they’re serving up 24/7 on CNN), you’ll find a ton of great horror movie options on Hulu to fill your weekend. Here are a few must-watch flicks available on Hulu right now for horror buffs or anyone seeking the jolt of a jump scare to shake their mindless malaise.
Pet Sematary (2019)
Stephen King’s books, no matter how wildly entertaining on the page, rarely make for good cinematic adaptations (with a few notable exceptions like The Shining, The Shawshank Redemption, and Misery – oh, the humallety…) If you saw the 1989 version of Pet Sematary, you may have been one of the extremely rare few who felt underwhelmed (apart from Fred Gwynne’s wide-eyed look of terror, which is pure cinematic gold…that man is an American treasure).
The updated version not only has better scenery and lighting and creepier kids (WTF with those masks?!), but it also features a new ending, so you have something to look forward to.
Paranormal Activity 2 (2010)
Missed the first one? Fear not. Like most horror movie sequels, seeing the first one (or the first five) is not a prerequisite. The voyeuristic sequel follows the conceit of the first with a “found footage” style (hand-cam, security cameras). Strange events unfold after a couple celebrates the birth of their son, launching the family into a sinister nightmare. It’s not groundbreaking, but jump scares abound.
Crawl (2019)
This movie starts with a hurricane in Florida, which may be terrifying, but isn’t exactly the stuff of nightmares. However, things go sideways fast for Haley (Kaya Scodelario at her wide-eyed best) when she decides to extract her missing father from the path of natural disaster. Instead, she finds her father injured and herself trapped in a rapidly flooding house, being hunted by giant, vicious alligators. This creature feature pits woman against nature in a fast-paced race against the clock.
Ghost Stories (2018)
There are many movies that start with the premise of investigating paranormal phenomena (see The Conjuring series for a good example). This one involves professor Phillip Goodman, a skeptic known for debunking supernatural claims. When he’s given three case files by a colleague who was unable to debunk them, he finds himself investigating, and being stalked by a shadowy figure along the way. If you’re looking for a bit of a slow burn without a lot of CGI trickery, you’re sure to love the build-up and the twist ending of Ghost Stories.
Jeepers Creepers (2001)
Some horror films are unwittingly amusing. Others are clearly in on the joke. This film takes jabs at horror movie tropes with a self-aware attitude, but still devolves into campy fun of the monster hunt variety.
It all starts with a brother and sister driving home from college, only to witness someone dumping a body into a tunnel in the middle of nowhere. Of course, they have to investigate, which sets them on a collision course with a well-known secret, a horde of bizarre locals, and a monster that has its sights set on them.
The House That Jack Built (2018)
Director Lars von Trier has a knack for making an audience uncomfortable, so it’s no surprise that he’s dabbled in horror. This psychological thriller aims to take a peek inside the mind of brilliant serial killer Jack (played with gleeful intensity by Matt Dillon). We follow him through 12 years of murder as he attempts to turn death into an artform, spinning further into madness and coming closer to capture along the way.
IT: Chapter 2 (2019)
Bill Skarsgård’s utterly nightmare-inducing turn as the demonic Pennywise from the 2017 adaptation of Stephen King’s clown-themed horror was enough to put anyone off children’s birthday parties for life.
In the follow-up, the Losers Club that defeated him as kids must reunite to face him again, even though they’ve mostly forgotten the horrifying events of their youth after leaving their hometown of Derry. As they prepare to face the creepy clown a second time, each one is confronted by Pennywise and forced to face their darkest secrets. They might not make it out alive.
Annabelle: Creation (2017)
What’s worse: Creepy clowns or demonic dolls? Let’s just agree that turning our childhood memories into nightmares is never a good thing. This prequel to 2014’s Annabelle (itself a prequel to 2013’s The Conjuring), explores the origin story of the titular doll. When bereaved parents Samuel and Esther prayed to see their deceased daughter again, they were unwittingly convinced to let a demon inhabit one of dollmaker Samuel’s creations. Death ensues.
Sinister (2012)
Do you ever wonder about the number of writers who get mixed up in supernatural shenanigans? If movies are to be believed, it’s a lot. This film opens with struggling crime writer Elliot Oswalt (Ethan Hawke), moving his family into a new home (where a family was murdered, natch), only to discover a box of home movies that he can’t help but voyeuristically watch.
That’s where the trouble begins, as the films reveal the murders and Elliot is drawn into the mystery of pagan deity Bughuul (AKA the boogie man), who kills families and eats children’s souls. Is his family next? Take a wild guess.
Children of the Corn (1984)
Another Stephen King entry, this tale of creepy kids with cultish sensibilities takes small-town America (fictional Gatlin, Nebraska) from Bible-belt to bloodthirsty when all the children decide to follow “He Who Walks Behind the Rows,” a malicious deity who directs them to kill all adults.
When unsuspecting Vicky (the unshakable Linda Hamilton) and boyfriend Burt (Peter Horton) are passing through and accidentally hit a boy in the road, only to discover his throat has been cut, they get caught up in a fight to save the children and stop the false god in the cornfield.
28 Days Later (2002)
Ever wondered what would happen if Outbreak met Night of the Living Dead? Good news—you’re not alone. While this hybrid of medical disaster and paranormal horror lacks the slow-burn finesse and existential dread of Romero’s classic, it finds its happy medium between action, gore, and commentary on the hubris of humankind.
Tropes abound (plague monkeys, mysterious disease that turns people into rage monsters, naïve belief by authorities that there’s no possible way the infection could spread beyond their perimeter, etc.). However, it’s still a mesmerizing whirlwind of bloodshed and horror—or, as I like to call it, the “first date test.”
The Wretched (2019)
What makes witches go bad? Centuries of persecution? Death by hanging, pressing, or burning at the stake? The influence of the devil? This film attempts to answer literally zero of these burning questions. Instead, it spins the yarn of a witch who inhabits the bodies and lives of others to lure people into her tree-root prison and then makes their loved ones forget they ever existed. Teenager Ben, the only one who seems to realize the witch has hijacked his neighbor, must try to stop her and save the innocents she has kidnapped.
Let the Right One In (2008)
You may already be familiar with the 2010 American remake of this vampire flick, starring the highly emotive Chloe Grace Moretz. However, if you were thoroughly impressed and you don’t mind subtitles, you should definitely check out the Swedish original, which focuses less on gore and more on the story of young love. Okay, a 12-year-old boy falls in love with his mysterious vampire neighbor, who appears to be about his age. She simply needs him for survival. It all plays out in a dark, cold, treacherous landscape, where the sad culmination seems like a foregone conclusion.
Train to Busan (2016)
Who needs the last train to Clarksville when you can board a bullet train barreling through a zombie-infested wasteland en route to Busan? Oh yeah, and the zombie contagion has definitely found its way onto the train. An inattentive father must fight to save his daughter’s life in this post-apocalyptic nightmare if only he can figure out who to trust and how to survive the train to Busan.
The Clovehitch Killer (2018)
If Matt Dillon can play an unhinged serial killer (see The House That Jack Built), why can’t Dylan McDermott? In this picture, McDermott plays a god-fearing husband and father, a scout troop leader, and an all-around wholesome everyman, but why won’t he help with the couponing?!
He has his own hobbies, which his son, Tyler, discovers when he breaks into the locked shed. They include a creepy polaroid collection, murder room schematics, and a too-neat pegboard of tools that screams homicidal maniac. So is he the notorious Clovehitch killer responsible for the deaths of 10 women (and maybe more)? Follow Tyler’s quest to find out.
Sputnik (2020)
What happened to good-guy aliens like E.T. and Mac (read: knockoff E.T., although incredibly, with a bigger budget)? These days, the aliens are all creepy AF, and Sputnik leans in hard with the story of a Russian astronaut who returns from his stint in space as the only survivor of a crew. Or so he thought. In “reality,” an alien hitched a ride home in his body, and now psychologist Tatyana Klimova (Oksana Akinshina, rocking a painfully severe bun that proves she’s serious) must try to save his life by separating the parasite from the host.
The Lodge (2019)
Add “winter” or “Christmas” to the title, and you’ve got a Hallmark holiday classic in the making. Luckily, this horror from Hammer is nothing of the sort. It starts when a man takes his kids and fiancé on a winter trip to a mountain lodge, replete with wood paneling, frosted glass, and blue-lit pallor. When daddy leaves for work, the kids get stuck in a blizzard with their soon-to-be stepmom, only to find out she was the lone survivor of a cult mass suicide. Then, as the demons from her past begin coming to life, you’ll start to wonder who’s behind it.
Southbound (2015)
A dark and lonely highway is a great place to see things that aren’t there or run things over that you didn’t see because you were looking at your phone. This film, which takes place over the course of one night on a deserted stretch of highway, deftly intertwines five stories with characters plagued by mysterious, floating apparitions. It will leave you wondering if the title is a thinly veiled euphemism for hell, or more specifically, the road leading to it.
Disclosure: Clicking on these links and making a purchase may earn us a small referral fee, at no extra cost to you. Learn more here.
