The best free streaming services are stacked with horror movies that you can readily watch. Yes, you’ll have to put up with ads and the quality won’t be as good as a 4K Blu-ray, but that only adds to the haunting experience if you ask me.
Not sure where to start? I’ve picked out five very different horror movies from some of the genre’s most acclaimed filmmakers, including John Carpenter, Darren Aronofsky and David Lynch, that you can stream right now for free.
1) The Fog (The Roku Channel, Kanopy)
Watch On
Release date: 1980
Rotten Tomatoes score: 76%
Length: 89 minutes
Director: John Carpenter
Main cast: Adrienne Barbeau, Jamie Lee Curtis, Janet Leigh
It’s hard to believe that John Carpenter releasedThe Fog after his horror-defining masterpiece Halloween, but I’m firmly of the belief that the 80s was his best decade of movies, which means this supernatural ghost story kicks off an incredible stint of films that get better and better.
What begins with a foreboding tale about a disastrous shipwreck after a crew mistook a distant campfire for a lighthouse soon takes a paranormal turn as a spooky fog descends on a small coastal town. Cue one of the most atmospheric horrors you’ll ever see.
2) The Craft (Samsung TV Plus)
Watch On
Release date: 1996
Rotten Tomatoes score: 57%
Length: 100 minutes
Director: Andrew Fleming
Main cast: Robin Tunney, Fairuza Balk, Neve Campbell
What do witches, outcasts and Love Spit Love’s cover of The Smith’s ‘How Soon Is Now?’ have in common? I’ll forgive you if the supernatural TV show Charmed was the first thing to come to mind, but how could you forget about the cult classic coming of age film The Craft.
The movie follows four self-proclaimed ‘weirdo’ teenagers who start a coven and get carried away with their growing powers, as harmless chanting spells soon escalate into invoking a deity that puts a rift in their friendship.
3) Eraserhead (Plex, Kanopy)
Watch On
Release date: 1977
Rotten Tomatoes score: 87%
Length: 89 minutes
Director: David Lynch
Main cast: Jack Nance, Charlotte Stewart, Allen Joseph
It’s almost impossible to compile a list of horror movies without including at least one from one of the greatest directors from the genre of all-time, and luckily for me, David Lynch’s directorial debut is streaming for free.
Best described as a living nightmare, this body horror is riddled with a parent’s anxiety – it’s the typical type of fear of having a baby that ends up resembling a feeble alien that screams uncontrollably? You know the type.
4) Pi (Kanopy, Xumo Play)
Watch On
Release date: 1998
Rotten Tomatoes score: 88%
Length: 85 minutes
Director: Darren Aronofsky
Main cast: Sean Gullette, Mark Margolis, Ben Shenkman
Before Knowing (which is one of the best Nicolas Cage films around) sent audiences on a wild goose chase to find meaning in a series of seemingly unconnected numbers, there was Darren Aronofsky’s psychological mystery Pi.
Obsessed with finding a hidden number sequence that could predict the stock market (and decipher the meaning of the universe, naturally), a genius mathematician is sent to the brink of madness in a whirlpool of self-destruction.
5) 1408 (Samsung TV Plus, The Roku Channel)
![1408 (2007) Original Trailer [FHD] - YouTube](https://wowtechtoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/1761587453_763_maxresdefault.jpg)
Watch On
Release date: 2007
Rotten Tomatoes score: 79%
Length: 104 minutes
Director: Mikael Håfström
Main cast: John Cusack, Tony Shalhoub, Len Cariou
It wouldn’t be right to round off this list of free horror movies to stream during Halloween week without including at least one film based on a Stephen King story. Enter 1408 – the hotel room that must be avoided at all costs.
If we’ve learnt anything from watching a paranormal author spend the night in a haunted room to debunk its terrifying reputation, it’s to believe any warning that tells us not to stay there. Of course, if you want to see what happens when you don’t, be my guest.
The best TVs for all budgets
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can also follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form, and get regular updates from us on WhatsApp too.
Read the full article here
