Winter break is here. Wait, are there winter breaks this year? In all honesty, I don’t even know. I just know what we’re all staring down another round of lockdowns when we would normally be getting ready to travel and do more exciting things. Regardless, like me, you’re probably jumping between streaming platforms looking for something to watch to fill the time. Luckily, services like Netflix are constantly updating their rosters.

With that in mind, we thought we’d save you some search time by listing some of our favorites that are currently available on the streaming giant including everything from classic frights to Netflix originals.

Take a look at the list below–in no particular order–and start watching today!

Incarnate

I love a good film about exorcism, especially if the filmmaker tries something different, and 2016’s Incarnate did exactly that. Dr. Ember (Aaron Eckhart) is a scientist with the ability to enter the mind of a person who has been possessed, working with the person to dislodge the evil entities rather than approaching the subject from a religious angle. It’s a system that works, but when he is called to the home of a woman whose son is possessed and out of control, has he finally met his match?

Poltergeist

A great horror movie can almost feel like comfort food, especially those nostalgia-laden films that chilled us when we were kids. Few do that better than Tobe Hooper’s Poltergeist. When the Freelings first begin to notice strange happenings in their house, they almost think its exciting. It’s certainly different. When those energies turn dark, however, the family will have to band together with the help of a psychic to reclaim their daughter who has been pulled into another dimension. This film is worth it for the performance by Zelda Rubinstein as Tangina alone!

As Above, So Below

I’m a sucker for found footage films when they’re done well, and As Above, So Below is done very, very well. Miles and miles of twisting, reality-altering catacombs lie beneath the streets of Paris and Scarlett (Perdita Weeks) is determined to uncover their secrets. When the catacombs turn against her and her crew, forcing them to face terrible deeds from their past, it will take everything they have to survive and find their way back to the surface.

The Evil Dead

Sam Raimi’s deranged 1981 horror comedy is on Netflix, folks! This is a film I can watch over and over and over again. The inimitable Bruce Campbell takes the lead as Ash, a guy who just wanted a nice vacation in the woods with his girlfriend and friends. Unfortunately for them, the cabin holds dark secrets, and after a recording of the previous occupant reading from the Necronomicon is played, all hell actually breaks loose.

The Autopsy of Jane Doe

There is something deeply unsettling about André Øvredal‘s The Autopsy of Jane Doe. Brian Cox and Emile Hirsch star as father and son coroners who find themselves with a mysterious Jane Doe on the table. From the first cut, something appears to be wrong, and by the end of the night, they find themselves fighting for their lives. This is one hell of a movie that surprised audiences when it was first released and continues to hold up.

Session 9

Brad Anderson proved himself a master of tension and suspense with Session 9. The film centers on an asbestos cleanup crew that lands a job at a former asylum. What should be a quick job turns into a nightmare from which none of them may escape. The film is chilling from its inventive filming to its tight storytelling. The film has been on Netflix off and on since it was first released. If you haven’t seen it, now is the time do so. You will not be disappointed!

His House

No other movie took me by surprised in 2020 the way that His House did. Focused on a couple who escape to England from war-torn South Sudan, the film is a twisting, turning masterpiece of tension and storytelling that inverts every trope in the genre and subverts expectations. You must watch this film!

The Monster

Kathy is driving her daughter to the girl’s fathers house late at night. When they hit a large animal, the car refuses to restart and before long they realize something stalks the night. Monsters are real and Kathy and Lizzy are about to meet one face to face. This film is so much more than meets the eye. If you’ve only seen it once, you haven’t seen it all.

Creep

I don’t think any of us expected what we found the first time we watched Creep. The unsettling, quirky movie from Mark Duplass and Patrick Brice sucks you into its story quickly and grips you to the very end. Aaron, a videographer, answers a Craigslist ad placed by Josef. He’s looking for someone to film a farewell message, but as time goes by Aaron realizes–too late–that Josef has something perhaps more sinister in mind.

The Ritual

Four friends reunite for a backpacking trip through Sweden only to find themselves hunted by a terrifying creature in this bone-chilling film from David Bruckner based on the novel by Adam Nevill. The film made a lot of “Best of” lists the year it was released and remains one of the better newer horror films Netflix has curated.

Would You Rather?

Brittany Snow and Jeffrey Combs star in this film about a young woman who will do anything to pay for life-saving treatments for her brother. When she is invited by the eccentric Combs to play a game for a chance to do exactly that she jumps at the chance but soon finds that the rules are deadly. This darkly comedic film is one that really took me off guard the first time I saw it and it’s a favorite I have returned to many times over the years.

The Invitation

Logan Marshall-Green (Upgrade) stars in this film directed Karyn Kusama about a man who accepts an unexpected invitation to a dinner party hosted by his ex-wife. The two split up after the death of their son, and she disappeared for a while. Now she’s back with a brand new purpose that will have you biting your nails as it’s put into play.

Gerald’s Game

When I first read Stephen King’s Gerald’s Game, I thought, “Well, this is one that’ll never be adapted.” Then along came Mike Flanagan (The Haunting of Hill House) a couple of decades later. He teamed up with Netflix to prove me wrong. Flanagan directed one of the finest King adaptations to date with Gerald’s Game. He just seems to get the material and his star, Carla Gugino, gives the performance of a lifetime in the film.

Holidays

From New Year’s Day to Christmas and all points in between, this anthology film will obliterate every holiday memory you’ve ever had. That’s all I’ve got. Watch it. You’ll love it.

The Babysitter

I love everything about this bonkers horror comedy. The cast is brilliant, the jokes are hilarious, and the ending will blow your mind. Cole is kid who is used to being picked on by everyone except for his babysitter, Bee. But Bee isn’t all she appears to be as Cole finds out after he stays up after his bedtime on exactly the wrong night.

1BR

Sarah is trying to start a new life in Los Angeles, and she thinks she’s found a good starting place when she finds a nice apartment. There’s a catch, however, that first rears its head with a list of rules that are set in stone with an ugly set of consequences for breaking them. Now all she wants to do is escape, but is it too late?

Tales from the Hood 2

A sequel 23 years in the making, Tales from the Hood 2 is an all-new anthology starring Keith David as Portifoy Simms, brought in to tell stories to an AI robot but Simms has his own agenda in mind. The stories a chilling and outgrageous and the sequel itself is worthy of the original. Netflix was the perfect home for this film and I hope it never goes away.

Hush

Hush is another Netflix and Mike Flanagan venture, this time centered on a deaf author who lives in a gorgeous home in the woods. All is well until she finds herself in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse with a psychotic, sadistic killer that will push her survival skills to their limits. This film is worth watching for Kate Siegel’s performance alone!

Vampires vs. The Bronx

When vampires invade the Bronx under the guise of gentrification, they have no idea the fight they’ll have on their hands. This Netflix horror-comedy packs a stronger punch than I first expected. It’s definitely one of my favorites of the year, and I highly recommend it!

Truth or Dare

Truth or Dare, written by Thommy Hutson and Ethan Lawrence, is in my humble opinion far superior to the Blumhouse film by the same title that came out at around the same time. The tale focuses on a group of friends who get together on Halloween night in a reportedly haunted house to play a game of Truth or Dare with terrifying consequences.  As a bonus, the film includes an appearance by scream queen Heather Langenkamp!

The Car (1977)

Before there was Christine, there was The Car. James Brolin stars in this film about a small desert town terrorized by a possessed black sedan with murder on its infernal mind! If you haven’t seen this classic, you don’t know what you’re missing!

Horns

Daniel Radcliffe stars in this adaptation of the novel by Joe Hill (Locke & Key). After Iggy’s (Radcliffe) girlfriend is murdered, the town decides he is responsible. It seems the whole world is against him until he wakes up one morning with horns protruding from his forehead. Now, whenever Iggy’s around, people begin to confess their sins and this town is full of them! The premise is crazy, but it somehow works! If you haven’t seen it, you must.

13 Sins

This remake of the Thai movie 13 Beloved aka 13 Game of Death stars Mark Webber as Elliott, a man counting on a promotion in order to be able to marry and provide a home for his pregnant girlfriend. When he’s fired unexpectedly by his crooked boss, he thinks everything is over until a mysterious phone call comes through offering Elliott the chance to make a lot of money fast. All he has to do is complete 13 tasks in an allotted amount of time. The first isn’t so bad, but as each progressive task becomes more deadly, Elliott finds himself in a situation he never could have dreamed.

The Guest

When a stranger shows up on the Petersons’ doorstep claiming to have known their son who was killed in combat overseas, they welcome him into their home. The family soon realizes that a string of accidental death that begin after his arrival might be tied to the mysterious stranger, however, and their world will never be the same again. More of a thriller than outright horror, the film is no less a nail-biter that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Veronica

Veronica finds herself in danger after she and her friends play with a Ouija board late one evening. The girl is soon haunted and hunted by an evil presence that will stop at nothing to have her. This film caused quite the stir when it was first released on Netflix. It’s a fine example of Spanish horror that is definitely on the must see list.