16 Streaming Halloween Treats You Get for Staying Home This Year

It’s that time of year again, and I know that many of you out there look forward to this day all year. But there’s scarier things out there this weekend than ghosts and goblins, and for once, it’s the people who won’t be wearing a mask that are the most frightening. So please, stay home this year, eat candy to your heart’s content and maybe watch a movie.

Here are 16 movies that are currently playing on at least one major streaming service, perfect for the season and catering to a variety of tastes.

The Addams Family (1991) and Addams Family Values (1993)
Director: Barry Sonnenfeld

Paramount Pictures
Streaming on Amazon Prime

Charles Addams creations have seen numerous incarnations, but these two live-action films are far and away the best. The late Raul Julia and the incomparable Angelica Huston are creepy, kooky and altogether perfect, and with Christopher Lloyd as Uncle Fester and a star-making performance from Christina Ricci, you can’t go wrong visiting the family. The first of the two films is also available on Netflix and Hulu.

Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986)
Directors: Ridley Scott, James Cameron 

Brandywine Productions
Streaming on HBO MAX

“In space, no one can hear you scream.” For over 40 years, that tagline, Sigourney Weaver and monsters bursting out of people’s chests have been a big part of popular culture. And the scariest part? That weird collective nightmare we all had where they just kept making more after the second movie. Thank heavens that was only a bad dream.

Batman: Gotham by Gaslight (2018)
Director: Sam Liu

Warner Animation
Streaming on DC Universe 

This wickedly entertaining, if grisly, alternate take on the Dark Knight mythology has Bruce Wayne tracking down Jack the Ripper in Victorian Era Gotham City. This R-Rated feature may be animated, but it’s definitely not for kids.

The Birds (1963) and Psycho (1960)
Director: Alfred Hitchcock 

Alfred J. Hitchcock Productions
Streaming on Peacock

Two of the all time classics from the master of suspense—one in color, one in black and white—these movies set the standard for big scares on the big screen.

Hocus Pocus (1993)
Director: Kenny Ortega

Walt Disney Pictures
Streaming on Disney+

Sarah Jessica Parker‘s cleavage stars in this family favorite that prompted a generation to ask “Mommy, what’s a virgin?” This shrill, obnoxious movie is frankly not my cup of witch’s brew, but it has a very strong fan base, proving once and for all that a nostalgia cult classic and a good movie are not always the same thing. But hey, that’s just me and every other critic at the time it came out talking, and we all have our guilty pleasures. If you love this movie, own that fact proudly, and enjoy it. I like to watch Santa Claus: The Movie every year, so believe me, I’m not judging you.

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Director: Henry Selick

Touchstone Pictures and Skellington Productions
Streaming on Disney+

Tim Burton’s best film by far is actually directed by someone else, though his influence is all over it. When it comes to charmingly macabre animated fun, to paraphrase Jack Skellington, there are few who would deny that, at what it does, it is the best.

The Others (2001)
Director: Alejandro Amenábar

Las Producciones del Escorpion
Streaming on Hulu and HBO MAX

In The Others, Nicole Kidman gives one of her most memorable performances in a haunting ghost story (see what I did there?) about a devoutly religious mother who moves her family to the English coast during World War II and waits for word on her missing husband while protecting her children from a rare photosensitivity disease that causes the sun to harm them. A classic of suspense and surprises.

Pan’s Labryinth (2006)
Director: Guillermo del Toro

Telecinco Cinema
Streaming on Netflix

It may not be the most escapist choice, but Guillermo del Toro’s masterpiece, a horror/fantasy tale set against the rulership of Spain, is a transfixing visual feast and a fraught emotional journey that leads to great rewards. 

Paranorman (2012)
Directors: Sam Fell and Chris Butler

Laika
Streaming on Netflix 

In this delightful stop-motion animated film, Norman Babcock (voiced by Kodi Smit-McPhee) has the ability to speak with the dead, and often prefers their company to the living. A wonderful film about tolerance, diversity and love.

The Shining (1980) and Doctor Sleep (2019)
Directors: Stanley Kubrick, Mike Flanagan

Hawk Films and Intrepid Pictures
Streaming on Hulu and HBO MAX

If you’re looking to get away from it all, may I suggest the Overlook Hotel? The Torrence family didn’t have the best experiences there, but both Jack (Jack Nicholson) and, many years later, his son Dan (Ewan MacGregor) made it a memorable place for the rest of us. 

Interview with a Vampire (1994)
Director: Neil Jordan

The Geffen Film Company
Streaming on Hulu

I’m normally not a fan of vampire stories, but this one captivated me, and the sequence where Louis (Brad Pitt) tells of experiencing the world vicariously through the magic of a darkened cinema is dear to my heart.

Trick or Treat (1952)
Director: Jack Hannah

Walt Disney Studios
Streaming on Disney+

This nine-minute short is my number one Halloween tradition from childhood. When Uncle Donald spoils all the fun of Halloween for his nephews, Huey, Dewey and Louie, a real-life witch named Hazel decides to help them get their candy.