Picture: Paramount Pictures
It’s that time of year. The trees are browning, and the nights become darker, which means only one thing – Halloween! Netflix releases its slate of horror movies for the month, and 2024 has a fantastic selection on the way. Below, we’ve hand-picked
For October, we’ll give you two extensive lists of movies you should watch. That’s because it’s Halloween season, and it felt right to highlight some brand-new horror, thriller, or other Halloween-adjacent titles on the way. As always with our best-of lists on what’s coming up, we’ll be splitting this list up into two halves, with the first four picks covering Netflix Original titles and the other four touching on the licensed movies coming to Netflix in the US (other region’s availability will vary).
As a quick aside, Netflix’s new licensed horror for Halloween is pretty impressive for the first year in a long time. It comes as Netflix has greater access to catalogs from rivals, which had been held back in prior years as many rival companies to Netflix are looking for cash.
New Netflix Original Horror Coming in October 2024
Don’t Move (2024)
Coming to Netflix: October 25th
Kelsey Asbille and Finn Wittrock will headline this new horror thriller, which is arguably Netflix’s biggest swing for the Halloween season from the film division. It comes from producer Sam Raimi, who knows a thing or two about horror. The premise follows a woman who has been injected with a paralytic agent and must do all she can to outrun the seasoned hunter in a remote forest.
Jacob on our team has already seen the film, and while I can’t reveal his exact thoughts (the review embargo is close to the release), he did have plenty of enthusiasm for his interview with the two directors, which will be coming down the track.
The Bad Guys: Haunted Heist (2024)
Coming to Netflix: October 3rd
Picture: Netflix
Those are the two big Halloween movies for adults, but what about for kids? While the big new series for families is the DreamWorks series combining Monster Trucks and well-known villains, Netflix will also be releasing its second animated special for The Bad Guys globally. Very much like the Christmas special that came last year, this 24-minute special sees the gang (sadly not voiced by the same lineup as the movie) crew embark on a high-stakes Halloween heist to swipe a priceless amulet from a spooky mansion.
The Platform 2
Coming to Netflix: October 4th
When it comes to looking back at Netflix’s past horror output few stick out quite like The Platform. The Spanish film really wowed when it first dropped back in 2019 (and even attracted high recommendations from the likes of Adi Shankar), depicting a dystopian vertical prison where a platform of food is lowered down, leaving those up top to feast and those at the bottom likely to starve. It’s a complex film and stands out as one of the best international films Netflix has ever made. Next month, we will get the long-awaited follow-up, featuring some new faces and a new twist, although the main concept remains unchanged.
Outside
Coming to Netflix: October 17th
Finally, we come to the end with yet another international Halloween pick, which will join the Netflix Original Library. We’re referring to a new Filipino zombie movie that will deploy some of the country’s best talent behind and in front of the camera. Based on the people we’ve spoken to, this has the potential to be one of the biggest and best movies from the region to date. The plot centers on a mother and father who take their sons to the father’s idyllic childhood farmhouse to escape an ongoing zombie outbreak. What seemed to be a good idea on paper turned into another nightmare. Sid Lucero, Beauty Gonzalez, Marco Masa, and Aiden Patdu lead the cast in this movie, which looks like it’ll keep your heart’s bpm at a stable 100+.
Licensed Halloween Movies Coming to Netflix in October 2024
A Quiet Place: Part II (2021)
Coming to Netflix: October 12th
A Quiet Place returned in 2021 for its second part and kicked off with one of the most spectacular opening sequences I can think of. It continues the story of the Abbots surviving in a world where roaming monsters are attracted to sound, with Emily Blunt leading the cast this time and Cillian Murphy being the significant new addition to the cast. Like the first film, it’s a tense affair and will have you glued to your seat with fantastic sound design and stunning acting.
See For Me (2021)
Coming to Netflix: October 6th
Picture: IFC
Canadians have already been streaming See For Me since October 2023, and Netflix US will receive this crime thriller for the first time next month onwards. From director Randall Okita, the film sees a blind catsitter going up against violent thieves committing a home invasion, and she fends them off with a mobile app. Critics and audiences have been ultimately mixed on this one since its premiere three years ago, although any crime thriller that tries something new gets a positive in my book. The film stars Emily Piggford, George Tchortov, and Jessica Parker Kennedy.
Scream (2022)
Coming to Netflix: October 11th
Given that we’ll likely have months (if not a full year) before we see Jenna Ortega back on our screens for the highly anticipated new season of Wednesday, this will hopefully provide some stopgap for that long wait. Ortega was among a huge ensemble cast assembled for this continuation, with Neve Campbell and Courtney Cox notably returning to their roles as Sidney and Gale, respectively. Set a quarter of a century after the original, a new killer is donning the classic mask and targeting a new group of teenagers.
Gena Radcliffe joined a plethora of good reviews when the movie dropped in early 2022 for The Spool, saying, “The spirit of Wes Craven lives on in the fifth installment of horrors smartest slasher franchise.”
Halloween (2018)
Coming to Netflix: October 1st
Our final pick is another recent horror reboot/continuation of the legendary John Carpenter movie Halloween. Jamie Lee Curtis is the big draw here, reprising the role of Laurie Strode, who is going toe-to-toe with Michael Myers, who returns after four decades. Since this 2018 edition was released, two sequels have been produced, with another on the way for 2025. However, by all accounts, this entry is by far and away the best.
We’ll have more Halloween picks for you in the weeks to come! In the meantime, which of these new Halloween-flavored movies will you be checking out? Let us know in the comments down below.
