As the leaves begin to change and the crisp autumn air settles in, there’s an unmistakable sense of excitement in the atmosphere. October has arrived, and with it comes the perfect opportunity to indulge in one of our favorite pastimes—watching spine-tingling, heart-pounding, and hair-raising horror movies.
READ: 15 Horror/Thriller Movies Released in 2023 to Watch This October
Whether you’re seeking a good old-fashioned scare, a psychological thriller that will keep you guessing, or a supernatural tale that sends shivers down your spine, our curated list of the “31 Best Horror Movies to Watch in October” has you covered. We’ve unearthed a diverse selection of films that will cater to every horror enthusiast’s tastes, from classic cult favorites to contemporary gems that will have you sleeping with the lights on.
READ: Black Horror Movies: 74 Horror and Thriller Movies With Black Lead or Cast
So, grab your popcorn, dim the lights, and prepare to embark on a month-long journey filled with terror, suspense, and the kind of adrenaline-pumping cinematic experiences that only October can deliver. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself looking over your shoulder and questioning every creak in the floorboards—after all, that’s the magic of October and the allure of horror. Get ready for a hauntingly good time as we countdown to Halloween with the “31 Best Horror Movies to Watch in October.”
The Reading
Emma Leeden details the loss of her family in her new book “Invasion.” To generate press, she agrees to a staged reading by Sky Brown in her fortified home. But Sky’s spiritual connection is real and evil emerges in a house they can’t get out of.
Spell
While flying to his father’s funeral in rural Appalachia, an intense storm causes Marquis to lose control of the plane carrying himself and his family. He soon awakens wounded, alone and trapped in Ms. Eloise’s attic. Eloise claims she can nurse him back to health with a hoodoo figure she’s made from his blood and skin. Unable to call for help, Marquis desperately tries to break free from her dark magic and save his family from a sinister ritual before the rise of the blood moon.
In Fabric
A lonely divorcee visits a bewitching London department store to find a dress to transform her life. She soon finds a perfect, artery-red gown that unleashes a malevolent, unstoppable curse.
J.D’s Revenge
“J.D.’s Revenge” is a supernatural thriller that follows the story of a law student named Ike who becomes possessed by the vengeful spirit of J.D. Walker, a nightclub owner killed in the 1940s. As Ike grapples with the eerie transformation, he must uncover the dark secrets of J.D.’s past to break free from the sinister influence before it consumes him completely.
Bones
“Bones” is a horror film that tells the story of a charismatic and vengeful gangster named Jimmy Bones, who returns from the dead to haunt the neighborhood he once ruled after being betrayed and brutally murdered. As his malevolent spirit seeks retribution, a group of individuals must uncover the truth behind his death and put an end to the supernatural terror he brings to their lives.
Black Box
After losing his wife and memory in a car accident, a single father undergoes an agonizing experimental treatment that causes him to question who he really is.
Beloved
The work examines the destructive legacy of slavery as it chronicles the life of a black woman named Sethe, from her pre-Civil War days as a slave in Kentucky to her time in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1873. Although Sethe lives there as a free woman, she is held prisoner by memories of the trauma of her life as a slave.
Kindred
Plagued by mysterious hallucinations, a pregnant woman suspects that the family of her deceased boyfriend has intentions for her unborn child.
A Haunted House 1 or 2
Young couple Malcolm (Marlon Wayans) and Kisha (Essence Atkins) have just moved into their dream home. As they settle in, they learn that they’re not alone — not because the house is haunted, but because Kisha is possessed by a demon. Desperate to salvage his relationship — and more importantly — his sex life — Malcolm hires a coterie of paranormal specialists, which includes a priest and ghost busters, to banish the unwelcome intruder from Kisha’s body.
His House
A refugee couple makes a harrowing escape from war-torn South Sudan, but then they struggle to adjust to their new life in an English town that has an evil lurking beneath the surface.
Candyman (1992 or 2022)
Skeptical graduate student Helen Lyle (Virginia Madsen) befriends Anne-Marie McCoy (Vanessa Williams) while researching superstitions in a housing project on Chicago’s Near North Side. From Anne-Marie, Helen learns about the Candyman (Tony Todd), a knife-wielding figure of urban legend that some of her neighbors believe to be responsible for a recent murder. After a mysterious man matching the Candyman’s description begins stalking her, Helen comes to fear that the legend may be all too real.
The Boy Behind The Door
In The Boy Behind the Door, a night of unimaginable terror awaits twelve-year-old Bobby (Lonnie Chavis) and his best friend, Kevin (Ezra Dewey), when they are abducted on their way home from school. Managing to escape his confines, Bobby navigates the dark halls, praying his presence goes unnoticed as he avoids his captor at every turn. Even worse is the arrival of another stranger, whose mysterious arrangement with the kidnapper may spell certain doom for Kevin. With no means of calling for help and miles of dark country in every direction, Bobby embarks on a rescue mission, determined to get himself and Kevin out alive… or die trying.
Get Out
Now that Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) and his girlfriend, Rose (Allison Williams), have reached the meet-the-parents milestone of dating, she invites him for a weekend getaway upstate with Missy and Dean. At first, Chris reads the family’s overly accommodating behavior as nervous attempts to deal with their daughter’s interracial relationship, but as the weekend progresses, a series of increasingly disturbing discoveries lead him to a truth that he never could have imagined.
Gothika
The life of psychiatrist Miranda Grey (Halle Berry) is derailed after she nearly hits a girl with her car one night. Later, Miranda wakes up in her own mental hospital under the care of her peer, Pete Graham (Robert Downey Jr.). Completely disoriented, Miranda is accused of killing her own husband, but she has no memory of anything after she encountered the girl. Slowly Miranda begins to uncover what happened, but she has to escape the asylum to solve the mystery.
Angry Black Girl and Her Monster
It explores the idea that death is a disease that can be cured, through the story of Vicaria, a brilliant teenager who embarks on a dangerous journey to bring her murdered brother back to life.
Eve’s Bayou
Over the course of a long, hot Louisiana summer, a 10-year-old black girl, Eve Batiste (Jurnee Smollett), discovers that her family’s affluent existence is merely a facade. The philandering of her suave doctor father, Louis (Samuel L. Jackson), creates a rift, throwing Eve’s mother, Roz (Lynn Whitfield), and teenage sister, Cisely (Meagan Good), into emotional turmoil. Eve, though, manages to find some solace with her quirky psychic aunt, Mozelle (Debbi Morgan).
Blacula
During a visit to Transylvania, an African prince (William Marshall) gets turned into a vampire by Count Dracula (Charles McCauley). Sealed in a coffin for several lifetimes, “Blacula” reawakens in 1970s Los Angeles. Leaving a trail of bloodless victims in his wake, he pursues Lina (Vonetta McGee), a woman who bears a striking resemblance to his dead wife. Meanwhile, Dr. Gordon Thomas (Thalmus Rasulala) and top cop Lt. Peters (Gordon Pinsent) are hot on the bloodsucker’s trail.
Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror
“Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror” is a compelling documentary that explores the history and evolution of Black representation in the horror genre, from its early roots to contemporary cinema. Through insightful interviews and analysis, it sheds light on the social and cultural significance of Black characters and creators in the world of horror, offering a thought-provoking journey through the genre’s complex relationship with race and identity.
Sweetheart
A shipwreck survivor on an uninhabited tropical island must fend off a malevolent force that surfaces each night.
Us
Accompanied by her husband, son and daughter, Adelaide Wilson returns to the beachfront home where she grew up as a child. Haunted by a traumatic experience from the past, Adelaide grows increasingly concerned that something bad is going to happen. Her worst fears soon become a reality when four masked strangers descend upon the house, forcing the Wilsons into a fight for survival. When the masks come off, the family is horrified to learn that each attacker takes the appearance of one of them.
Tales from the Hood
A creepy mortician, Mr. Simms (Clarence Williams III), attempts to scare teenage drug dealer Stack (Joe Torry) and his friends straight by telling them four horrifying stories. One is about a guilt-riddled cop (Anthony Griffith) who goes crazy after ignoring his corrupt partner (Michael Massee). He also tells of a meek schoolboy (Brandon Hammond) with terrifying supernatural powers. Although the young thugs want to take their drugs and escape Mr. Simms, he still has two more tales to tell.
Spawn
Covert government assassin Al Simmons (Michael Jai White) is killed after being double-crossed by his boss, Jason Wynn (Martin Sheen). Upon arriving in Hell, Simmons is offered an opportunity to return to Earth if he’s willing to lead an evil army. He accepts, and is reincarnated as a “Hellspawn” — a twisted, horribly disfigured version of his former self. However, Spawn serves as a force of good, much to the dismay of the Devil’s henchman, a wicked clown (John Leguizamo).
Sugar Hill
When nightclub owner Langston (Larry D. Johnson) refuses to sell out to local mob boss Morgan (Robert Quarry), he is beaten to death by a gang of hired thugs. His grief-stricken fiancee, Diana “Sugar” Hill (Marki Bey), vows revenge for his murder and turns to aged voodoo authority Mama Maitresse (Zara Cully). Together they conjure up the demonic spirit of Baron Samedi (Don Pedro Colley), who agrees to help Sugar. He raises an army of zombies and sets them upon Langston’s killers.
Ma
A lonely middle-aged woman befriends some teenagers and decides to let them party in the basement of her home. But there are some house rules: One of the kids has to stay sober, don’t curse, and never go upstairs. They must also refer to her as Ma. But as Ma’s hospitality starts to curdle into obsession, what began as a teenage dream turns into a terrorizing nightmare, and Ma’s place goes from the best place in town to the worst place on Earth.
Master
Three women strive to find their place at a prestigious New England university that may disguise something sinister.
The People Under The Stairs
When young Fool (Brandon Adams) breaks into the home of his family’s greedy and uncaring landlords, he discovers a disturbing scenario where incestuous adult siblings have mutilated a number of boys and kept them imprisoned under stairs in their large, creepy house. As Fool attempts to flee before the psychopaths can catch him, he meets their daughter, Alice (A.J. Langer), who has been spared any extreme discipline by her deranged parents. Can Fool and Alice escape before it’s too late?
The First Purge
To push the crime rate below one percent for the rest of the year, the New Founding Fathers of America test a sociological theory that vents aggression for one night in one isolated community. But when the violence of oppressors meets the rage of the others, the contagion will explode from the trial-city borders and spread across the nation.
Def by Temptation
Joel (James Bond III), a quiet divinity student from North Carolina, starts to question his faith. So he heads to New York to visit his friend K (Kadeem Hardison), a struggling actor, who takes him out bar-hopping. They meet a gorgeous seductress (Cynthia Bond) who turns out to be a succubus, a demon spirit luring black lotharios to their deaths. When she sets her eyes on Joel, K turns to the help of Dougie (Bill Nunn), a drunken cop who specializes in supernatural investigations.
Ganja & Hess
Germs from the stab of an ancient dagger turn two lovers (Duane Jones, Marlene Clark) into immortal vampires.
The Craft
“The Craft” is a supernatural horror film that revolves around a group of teenage girls who form a coven and experiment with witchcraft, only to see their newfound powers spiral out of control as they seek revenge and personal empowerment. As their spells grow darker, they must confront the consequences of their actions and the dangerous forces they’ve unleashed.
Blade
A half-mortal, half-immortal is out to avenge his mother’s death and rid the world of vampires. The modern-day technologically advanced vampires he is going after are in search of his special blood type needed to summon an evil god who plays a key role in their plan to execute the human race.
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