Halloween season has officially taken over HBO Max. Starting October 1, the platform unleashes a long list of horror classics to set the mood, from the original A Nightmare on Elm Street and Beetlejuice to The Sixth Sense, Poltergeist, The Exorcist, and more eerie staples, Newsweek reports. Tim Burton fans will also get their fix with Edward Scissorhands, Corpse Bride, and The Nightmare Before Christmas-adjacent vibes.

The scary lineup doesn’t stop there. October’s biggest arrival is IT: Welcome to Derry, a chilling HBO Original prequel series that expands on Stephen King’s horrifying universe. For horror fans who want fresh scares, The Substance and A24’s Bring Her Back land mid-month. These new entries balance the throwback titles with unnerving modern tales.

Family-friendly frights get their spotlight too, with Scooby-Doo, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, and Cartoon Network’s new episodes of Bugs Bunny Builders and Teen Titans Go!

Acclaimed Originals and A24 Gems

Beyond the haunted vibes, HBO Max continues to flex its variety. Adult Swim’s Smiling Friends returns for Season 3 on October 6, followed by Vgly Season 2 on October 9. CNN rolls out multiple documentaries, including The Alabama Solution and The United States vs. Harvard. TLC, Magnolia Network, and Discovery keep the reality TV pipeline strong with new seasons of 7 Little Johnstons, Graveyard Carz, Lakeside Retreats, and Mysteries of the Abandoned.

October also closes with prestige cinema. A24’s Sorry, Baby, Eva Victor’s debut feature, arrives October 30 after a wave of critical acclaim earlier this year. The darkly funny yet deeply emotional story follows a literature professor processing trauma and searching for a way forward. Critics have hailed it as a breakout moment for Victor, both in front of and behind the camera.

Comedy fans also get fresh laughs with An Intimate Evening with Adam Pally on October 17, while true crime devotees can dive into ID’s The Real Murders on Elm Street Season 2. The mix of scares, laughs, and heartfelt storytelling ensures Max has something for everyone this month.

Complete List of HBO Max Releases in October 2025

October 1

  • 2 Days in New York
  • 50 First Dates
  • A Nightmare on Elm Street
  • A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge
  • A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors
  • A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master
  • A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child
  • Alan Partridge
  • All Eyez on Me
  • Beetlejuice
  • Big, Beautiful Tariffs: A Fareed Zakaria Special (CNN Originals)
  • Broken English
  • Bronson
  • Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh
  • Christine
  • Confidence
  • Crime in the Streets
  • Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1932)
  • Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941)
  • Drag Me to Hell
  • Edward Scissorhands
  • Enemy
  • Fay Grim
  • Firestarter
  • Freaks
  • Freddy vs. Jason
  • Friday the 13th (2009)
  • From Hell It Came
  • Gone Girl
  • Gremlins (1984)
  • Halloween H20: 20 Years Later
  • Halloween: Resurrection
  • Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
  • Hereditary
  • Highway 301
  • House of Wax (1953)
  • House on Haunted Hill (1958)
  • I Died a Thousand Times
  • I Give It a Year
  • Indestructible Man
  • Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison
  • Insidious: Chapter 2
  • Insidious: Chapter 3
  • Interview with the Vampire
  • Intruder in the Dust
  • Isle of the Dead
  • It’s Complicated
  • Krypto Saves the Day: Halloween Havoc
  • Lady in the Lake
  • Los Cronocrimenes
  • Macabre
  • Marcel the Shell with Shoes
  • Mirror Mirror
  • National Velvet
  • Nora Prentiss
  • Paddy Chayefsky: Collector of Words
  • Page One
  • Pearl: The X-Traordinary Origin Story
  • Phenix City Story
  • Poltergeist (1982)
  • Practical Magic
  • Pride
  • Scooby-Doo (2002)
  • Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed
  • Shame
  • Talk to Me (2023)
  • Tension
  • The Black Scorpion
  • The Brothers McMullen
  • The Cyclops
  • The Disembodied
  • The Exorcist (1973)
  • The First Monday in May
  • The Gangster
  • The Harvey Girls
  • The Lobster
  • The Monster
  • The Mummy (1959)
  • The Mummy (2017)
  • The Mystery of the Wax Museum
  • The Picture of Dorian Gray
  • The Return of Doctor X
  • The Shining
  • The Sixth Sense
  • The Steel Jungle
  • The Switch
  • The Tattooed Stranger
  • The Unfaithful
  • The Walking Dead (1936)
  • The Watch
  • The Witch
  • Tickled
  • Tim Burton's Corpse Bride
  • Trick ‘r Treat
  • Uncut Gems
  • War for the Planet of the Apes
  • X
  • You Can't Get Away with Murder
  • Zombies on Broadway

2

  • Air India Crash: Declassified (Discovery, 2025)
  • E.B. White's Charlotte's Web, Season 1
  • Mysteries of the Abandoned, Season 12 (Discovery)
  • The Friday the 13th Murders, Season 1 (ID)
  • The Real Murders on Elm Street, Season 2 (ID)

October 3

  • Bring Her Back (A24)
  • Where We Call Home, Season 4 (Magnolia Network)

6

  • SMILING FRIENDS, Season 3 (Adult Swim)

October 7

  • Dr. Sanjay Gupta Reports: It Doesn't Have to Hurt (CNN Originals)
  • One Day in October, Season 1

8

  • Alex vs America, Season 5 (FOOD Network)
  • Baylen Out Loud, Season 2 (TLC)

October 9

  • Vgly, Season 2 (Max Original)

10

  • Bugs Bunny Builders, Season 2G (Cartoon Network)
  • Homes With a View, Season 1 (Magnolia Network)
  • Lu & The Bally Bunch, Season 1D (Cartoon Network)
  • The Alabama Solution (HBO Original)
  • The Substance (MUBI)

October 11

  • Bering Sea Gold, Season 19 (Discovery)
  • Impractical Jokers, Season 12A (truTV)

12

  • The Chair Company, Season 1 (HBO Original)
  • The Snake Catcher, Season 1 (Animal Planet)

October 15

  • 7 Little Johnstons, Season 16 (TLC)
  • Graveyard Carz, Season 20
  • Mother May I Murder?, Season 2 (ID)
  • Pan

17

  • An Intimate Evening with Adam Pally (HBO Original)
  • Baby Assassins Everyday!, Season 1
  • Beach Cottage Chronicles, Season 5 (Magnolia Network)
  • Ignite, Season 1
  • La Grande Maison Tokyo Special
  • La Grande Maison Tokyo, Season 1
  • Light of My Lion, Season 1
  • Love is for the Dogs, Season 1
  • Mr. Mikami's Classroom, Season 1
  • Please Die My Beloved, Season 1
  • The Thaw, Season 3 (Max Original)
  • True Beauty, Season 1
  • Until I Destroyed My Husband's Other Family, Season 1
  • Vivant, Season 1
  • Who Saw The Peacock Dance in the Jungle?, Season 1

October 19

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  • Anything But Gray, Season 1 (Magnolia Network)

20

  • Haha, You Clowns, Season 1 (Adult Swim)

October 21

  • Armed Only With A Camera: The Life And Death of Brent Renaud (HBO Original)
  • The Simril(l)s: A Family in Black and White, The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper (CNN Originals)

22

  • Holmes Family Rescue, Season 3 (HGTV)
  • Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody

October 23

  • Expedition X, Season 10 (Discovery)
  • Dangerously Obese, Season 2 (TLC)

24

  • Lakeside Retreats, Season 1 (Magnolia Network)
  • Teen Titans Go!, Season 9D (Cartoon Network)

October 26

  • IT: Welcome to Derry, Season 1 (HBO Original)

27

  • Naked and Afraid Brazil XL, Season 1 (discovery+)

October 28

  • Country Doctor (HBO Original)
  • The United States vs. Harvard, The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper (CNN Originals)

29

  • American Monster, Season 13 (ID)
  • Survival of the Beast, Season 1 (Animal Planet)

October 30

  • Fatal Engineering, Season 1 (Science)
  • Sorry, Baby (A24)

31

  • House Hunters: Volume 10, Season 246 (HGTV)
  • Jonathan Ross Haunted Homecoming, Season 1 (Travel)
  • Old Home Stories, Season 1 (Magnolia Network)