There are so many joyous Christmas movies out there. Some come across as organic and others play as, well, saccharine. But, just as there are a ton of holiday hits that hoped to put smiles across the viewers’ faces, there have been nearly as many that wanted to make their audiences scream. Some are absurd, some are successful, and the list that follows represents the successful ones.
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The substantial box office success of Terrifier 3 (which is now available for digital rental) has shown that there is still a market for this perverse type of holiday flick. And why shouldn’t that be the case? Not everyone sits around waiting for their annual rewatch of Elf or National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation – and even for those that do, there’s nothing wrong with a little bit of festively frightful counterbalance viewing.
Here are some of the best Christmas horror movies out there – and where you can watch them.
Black Christmas (1974)
There are several movies that get credit for kicking off the slasher film sub-genre: Psycho and Peeping Tom (both 1960); Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, and John Carpenter’s Halloween. In-between Psycho and Texas Chain Saw there was Bob Clark’s Black Christmas, which deserves just as much credit as either Psycho or Halloween (the two that are typically cited the most).
Starring Romeo and Juliet‘s Olivia Hussey and Superman‘s Margot Kidder, this sorority house nightmare manages to be one of the most unsettling movies ever made, which if anything is a testament to the versatile talent of Bob Clark, who also directed the holiday classic A Christmas Story. Filled with more tense phone calls than blood, it’s a masterclass exercise in tension-building.
You can stream Black Christmas on Amazon Prime Video, Tubi or Peacock.
Gremlins (1984)
With Steven Spielberg’s name on the poster and a PG rating, it’s not surprised how many kids have grown up with Joe Dante’s Gremlins over the years. It’s even less surprising just how much the movie has scarred them. A wildly inventive horror-comedy, it’s one of 1984’s best films – but definitely not a PG film by any standard modern moviegoers understand.
In fact, Gremlins is one of two 1984 movies responsible for the PG-13 rating, with the other being Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (also from Spielberg). Even still, it’s a great starter horror film for the less fright-phobic kiddos out there. And once those kiddos become adults, the film’s humor becomes a satisfying bonus. Well-paced, perfectly-cast, and loaded with genius creature designs, it’s astonishing Gremlins has received neither a reboot nor a legacy sequel.
You can stream Gremlins on Max.
[RELATED: Why Kids Need More Scary Movies]
Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984)
Make no mistake, Silent Night, Deadly Night is not for everyone. But the controversial cult classic should be easily palatable for anyone who considers themselves a fan of Art the Clown. In fact, he makes the films psychotic Santa look nearly tame by comparison.
And, for those who do take to the film, be sure to check out Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2 (the first of four sequels). Not because it’s good by any means, but because it’s one of the most bonkers films ever made. The majority of it is stock footage from the first film, which can be easily skipped without regret, but there’s a third-act neighborhood rampage responsible for the “Garbage Day!” meme that is truly a sight to behold.
You can rent Silent Night, Deadly Night on Amazon or Apple TV.
Night of the Comet (1984)
An underseen genre-blender with style to spare, Night of the Comet is certainly one of the odder Christmas horror movies out there. For one, it’s also a Christmas sci-fi movie…and a Christmas comedy. Admittedly, it probably carries its holiday influence more subtly than every other entry on this list, but it does in fact take place around Christmas.
The plot follows two of the few remaining residents of Earth, which has recently been passed by a particularly strange comet. Those who stood outside to watch the comet have been turned to dust, and those who haven’t have been zombified. Fortunately for sisters Reggie and Sam Belmont, they remained inside. Unfortunately for them, while they no longer have to deal with their abusive wicked stepmother, they do have to deal with members of the undead stock boys and a group of shady government scientists. The film has some effective scares and an overall light tone that help it stick in one’s memory, but it’s really the two lead performances by Catherine Mary Stewart and Kelli Maroney that help it soar.
Stream Night of the Comet for free with ads on The Roku Channel and Pluto TV.
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Is it a stretch to call The Nightmare Before Christmas a true horror movie? Sure, but it’s arguably more of one than Hocus Pocus. And, when it comes to horror-esque movies that are appropriate for the youngsters, Henry Selick’s classic is about as good a choice as there can be.
Loaded with great songs and brought to life via gorgeous stop motion animation, it’s a film that looks and sounds as impressive in the 2020s as it did in 1993. And, for fans of Tim Burton, it’s a treasure trove, as the Edward Scissorhands and Beetlejuice‘s filmmaker’s fingerprints are all over it as producer and story writer. At just 76 minutes, it’s also more than a little likely to retain the kids’ interest long enough to cook dinner (that is, if the adults can resist watching it alongside them).
Stream The Nightmare Before Christmas on Disney+.
Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010)
Finnish horror comedy Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale is a film unlike any other. The narrative follows a research team as they drill a fell in hopes of finding ancient Sámi artifacts. They are spied on by a pair of little boys, one of whom goes missing just as hundreds of reindeer are slaughtered by what is assumed to be a wolf. The other little boy, Pietari, discovers that one of his father’s wolf traps has killed a skinny, naked elderly man. But, upon bringing the naked man into the warmth of his father’s workshop, they discover that he’s alive.
Unfortunately for them, he’s also one of Santa Claus’ elves. But Santa isn’t the holly jolly type, he’s the horned and homicidal type, and he’s in a nearby hanger defrosting in a swiftly melting ice block. Part parody and part straightforward horror, Rare Exports is a movie that works on multiple fronts from beginning to end.
Stream Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale on Peacock and Pluto TV.
Silent Night (2012)
Not to be confused with John Woo’s Joel Kinnaman-fronted actioner from 2023, 2012’s Silent Night is instead a loose remake of Silent Night, Deadly Night. It’s also just about as objectively good as a movie in its franchise can be. It’s still willing to be over-the-top and gory, but it’s nonetheless a more tightly constructed and self-aware film than the 1984 original.
For the most part, Silent Night discards of the flashback-dependent structure of the original, but it does keep the DNA of the killer’s identity relatively intact. It’s also successfully creepy when it needs to be, never quite devolving into a routine slasher. It even managed to do fairly well with critics, primarily thanks to standout work from Jaime King in the lead. Silent Night isn’t high art, but it makes for a terrific companion piece on double feature night alongside 2009’s My Bloody Valentine 3D (which also just so happens to star King).
Stream Silent Night for free with ads on Tubi or Hulu.
Krampus (2015)
Movies like Krampus come from big studios (in this case Universal Pictures) very rarely, which helps make them an extra special treat. A grim black comedy with some terrific monster designs, from teeth gnashing gingerbread men to the horrifying Der Klown, Michael Dougherty’s movie is a widely appealing modern minor classic that has a lot of fun being what it is. It’s also equipped with a believably tumultuous family dynamic, primarily fueled by terrific performances, especially from Toni Collette, Allison Tolman, and the late Conchata Ferrell of Two and a Half Men fame.
Krampus was director Michael Dougherty’s second helmed film after 2007’s Trick ‘r Treat. And, while it’s not quite as solid as that cult-classic, it’s obvious why he was the choice to helm the Monsterverse mash Godzilla: King of the Monsters. There’s a remarkable amount of world-building given its slim runtime and slimmer $15 million budget, but what really makes Krampus a winner is that everyone involved, both in front of and behind the camera, seem to be on the exact same page regarding exactly what tone the movie should convey. That’s quite the feat, considering it balances itself across multiple genres throughout the entire narrative. It’s also a film unafraid to take risks, especially when it comes to killing off likable characters played by likable people (not that every character in the film is likable). And, when it comes to endings, the film’s final scene is a terrific gut-punch…essentially the bittersweet version of a lump of coal.
Stream Krampus on Max.
