Autumn’s cozy sweaters and crisp leaves mark the season for spine-chilling stories, spine-tingling thrills, and late-night frights. Halloween enthusiasts everywhere are diving into the endless collection of movies that elevate the season, Vulture reports. From nostalgic slashers to thought-provoking horror, these five films are streaming now and will bring the eerie vibes you need. How much horror can you handle? Let’s dive into these top picks for a spooky Halloween lineup.

1. Scream (1996)
Streaming on Max

A foundational horror classic, Scream continues to terrify and entertain decades after its 1996 debut. It’s no ordinary slasher; this movie rewrote the rules for horror with its iconic, self-aware take on the genre. Set in the fictional town of Woodsboro, Scream follows the story of Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), a high school student whose life spirals after a masked killer named Ghostface terrorizes her town. The film doesn’t just deliver scares but cleverly satirizes horror’s tropes, with a winking edge that had never been seen before.

Fast forward to today: Scream lives on, with a fifth movie arriving in 2022 and a sixth in 2023. As fans anticipate a seventh installment, it's the original Wes Craven classic, available on Max, that delivers true horror and dark humor that hasn’t aged a day. If you're new to the series, this is the one to start with—it’s as iconic as the slasher genre gets.

2. Mr. Crocket (2023)
Streaming on Hulu

Imagine the eerie charm of Pee-wee’s Playhouse mixed with the terror of Freddy Krueger, and you’ll start to get a sense of Mr. Crocket. Directed by Brandon Espy, this unsettling film takes us back to the VHS era with a faux children’s show hosted by the titular Mr. Crocket (Elvis Nolasco), a cheerful character with a disturbing secret. The plot centers on Summer (Jerrika Hinton), who, in a bid to calm her young son Major (Ayden Gavin) after a family tragedy, turns to Mr. Crocket’s show. What begins as innocent entertainment quickly takes a sinister turn as Mr. Crocket’s on-screen antics reveal a twisted agenda of abducting children and stealing their joy.

Espy brilliantly captures the unsettling vibe of 1990s children's TV, using puppetry, vibrant sets, and retro animation to tell a darker story about grief and generational trauma. As Major’s mother fights to protect him, Mr. Crocket shifts from unsettling to downright terrifying, and Espy’s direction ensures you won’t forget this film anytime soon. Mr. Crocket is a fresh, must-see addition to Halloween streaming.

3. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
Streaming on Max

Freddy Krueger, the disfigured villain in his trademark red and green sweater, is the ultimate nightmare made flesh. In A Nightmare on Elm Street, Krueger doesn’t just hide in shadows; he invades dreams, where sleep becomes the ultimate danger. The plot revolves around Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp) as she tries to outsmart Freddy, who kills his victims in their sleep. The dread intensifies as Nancy realizes that the real threat isn’t in the waking world but in her subconscious, where Freddy is king.

Wes Craven’s classic blends supernatural and psychological horror, making viewers question whether any safety exists at all when even sleep can betray you. Elm Street is perfect for those looking to dive into slasher horror with a surreal edge, and Robert Englund’s Freddy remains one of the genre’s most chilling icons. If you’ve never seen this 1984 classic, now is the time—Max has it waiting.

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4. The Babadook (2014)
Streaming on Netflix

Few films in recent years have mastered the art of psychological horror like The Babadook. Directed by Jennifer Kent, this Australian thriller explores the terror of grief through the eyes of a single mother, Amelia (Essie Davis), who struggles to care for her son after her husband’s death. Her son, Samuel (Noah Wiseman), becomes convinced that a monster from a mysterious children’s book, the Babadook, is haunting them. While the creature initially seems like a child’s imagination gone wild, the line between reality and delusion blurs as Amelia herself begins to sense its presence.

Kent’s film isn’t just about jump scares but dives into deeper fears about motherhood, loss, and the fragility of the human psyche. The Babadook doesn’t give easy answers, and its understated scares linger long after the credits roll. This film has quickly become a modern horror staple and, with good reason, sits among the best films of the 2010s. It’s now on Netflix, so add it to your queue if you’re ready for some spine-tingling drama.

5. I Saw the TV Glow (2023)
Streaming on Max

Director Jane Schoenbrun’s I Saw the TV Glow is a haunting homage to 1990s nostalgia, centering on two lonely teens, Owen (Justice Smith) and Maddy (Brigette Lundy-Paine), who find a shared obsession with an obscure TV show, The Pink Opaque. Set in 1996, the film immerses viewers in a world of fuzzy VHS memories and eerie vibes reminiscent of The X-Files. Their fascination with the show is more than just an escape; it becomes a shared universe that threatens to overwhelm them as the boundaries between fiction and reality begin to dissolve.

Schoenbrun crafts a narrative that taps into both the perils of nostalgia and the struggles of identity during adolescence. For those who grew up finding comfort in weird late-night television, I Saw the TV Glow brings a chilling and highly relatable resonance, weaving in supernatural elements that intensify the horror. A true find on Max, this film rounds out our top five Halloween picks.

This Halloween, get ready to turn down the lights, queue up these films, and dive into hours of perfectly curated terror. Whether you’re in the mood for classic slasher antics or eerie psychological suspense, these selections have you covered.