Best scary shows on Netflix
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Looking for the best scary shows on Netflix? You've come to the right place because we've picked the best spooky and horror offerings from the streaming giant.
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Horror fans will be all too familiar with Mike Flanagan, whose latest project The Fall of the House of Usher is his final collaboration with Netflix. He's definitely the front-runner for some horror hits you really shouldn't miss.
But there are also some hidden gems and more independent offerings too, so hopefully we've given you plenty of options whether you're a seasoned horror lover or you're finally braving the genre.
So read on, if you dare!
Best scary shows on Netflix
The Haunting of Hill House
Number of seasons: 1
Approximate episodes per season: 10
Average episode length: 60 minutes
Mike Flanagan's The Haunting of Hill House is based on the famous horror novel of the same name, and its adaptation is one of the scariest things the streamer has to offer. One moment in particular made me scream and fall off my chair... it's that intense!
The ominous 10-part series follows Hugh and Olivia Crain and their five children move into Hill House to renovate the mansion in order to sell it. But they start experiencing paranormal phenomena, resulting in a tragic loss.
26 years later, the siblings and their estranged father reunite and are forced to confront how the house has deeply affected all of them.
This series also marked the Netflix debut for Victoria Pedretti who went on to play Love Quinn in the hit thriller You.
Midnight Mass
Number of seasons: 1
Approximate episodes per season: 7
Average episode length: 60 minutes
Midnight Mass is another Mike Flanagan offering and is equally as ominous as Hill House.
This seven-part gothic series follows a young man who returns to his isolated hometown, hoping to rebuild his life after serving four years in prison for killing someone in a drunk-driving incident.
However, he arrives at the same time as a mysterious, charismatic young priest (played brilliantly by Hamish Linklater) who begins to revitalize the town's flagging faith. His arrival also coincides with mysterious events that keep occurring, forcing people to become suspicious of the new arrival.
The Midnight Club
Number of seasons: 1
Approximate episodes per season: 10
Average episode length: 60 minutes
The third and final Mike Flanagan series on our list is The Midnight Club. Despite being canceled after one season, it's still a brilliant watch and features some great self-contained stories that are bound to scare viewers.
The series follows a group of eight close terminally ill young adults who live in a hospice together. They meet at midnight every night to tell each other scary stories. In addition, they have made a pact that the first one to succumb to their disease is responsible for communicating with the others from beyond the grave.
It takes inspiration from the novel of the same name, as well as short stories adapted from other Christopher Pike books.
Archive 81
Number of seasons: 1
Approximate episodes per season: 8
Average episode length: 60 minutes
Archive 81 is a creepy series that's based on the popular horror podcast of the same name.
It follows Dan, a man who is hired by a mysterious company to restore video footage of a grad student's documentary project about an apartment building that burned down. Of course, the job is not what it seems and he soon finds himself in the middle of a dangerous mystery involving the disappearance of a director and a secret cult.
Sadly, Archive 81 was canceled after one season but it's still a gripping watch and one you'll want to binge as it reels you in and doesn't let you go.
Dead Set
Number of seasons: 1
Approximate episodes per season: 5
Average episode length: 25 minutes
Before Black Mirror, Charlie Brooker made Dead Set, a short horror series about what might happen if the zombie apocalypse happened while unknowing people were living in the Big Brother house.
Before they know it, the iconic reality TV set becomes a shelter from the hoard of zombies causing carnage outside, and it isn't long before things start to escalate and spiral rapidly out of control.
The series featured cameos from actual Big Brother housemates as well as legendary host Davina McCall, giving that eerie plausibility that Brooker has become known for.
Japanese Tales of the Macabre
Number of seasons: 1
Approximate episodes per season: 12
Average episode length: 25 minutes
Horror anthologies are growing in popularity, and Japanese Tales of the Macabre is no exception. It was created by celebrated horror manga artist Junji Ito and features a collection of his most bizarre, disturbing, and terrifying tales.
With 12 unique episodes to sink your teeth into, in whatever order you please, this is a great choice if you want a more flexible horror series to enjoy.
You can expect stories about a photographer with an interest in spirits, a woman who has lost half of her face, and a tragic hit-and-run accident.
Sweet Home
Number of seasons: 1
Approximate episodes per season: 10
Average episode length: 60 minutes
In this Korean series, we follow Cha Hyun-soo, a suicidal high school student who moves into 1410 Green Home after his family is killed in a car accident.
Soon after he moves in, monsters begin appearing around the city. People inside the apartment are left trapped inside the building, realizing that monsters are lurking everywhere outside and that it's too dangerous to go there.
As a result of this, Hyun-su and the other Green Home residents shield themselves inside the building in the hope of surviving as long as they can, and the series is certainly a wild ride!
What's more, Seasons 2 and 3 are on the way, so there'll soon be more Sweet Home for fans to enjoy.
Hellbound
Number of seasons: 1
Approximate episodes per season: 6
Average episode length: 60 minutes
Another great Korean offering is Hellbound, which explores a world where people start receiving messages from supernatural creatures telling them they will soon be dragged to Hell for their sins. As panic set in, a cult leader (Yoo Ah-in) preaches to the country that they should shame the sinners and hope to receive salvation.
Fans of dark fantasy stories will love this one due to the gruesome supernatural monsters and the intense storyline, making this one of the most successful Netflix Korean dramas.
Cabinet of Curiosities
Number of seasons: 1
Approximate episodes per season: 8
Average episode length: 60 minutes
Another excellent horror anthology entry is Cabinet of Curiosities, which features short films directed by horror directors such as The Babadook's Jennifer Kent and Twilight's Catherine Hardwicke.
The series also features introductions from legendary filmmaker Guillermo del Toro before each film, and there's plenty going on here from ghosts, to creepy paintings and mysterious lotions that promise to transform your life... but at what cost?
Ratched
Number of seasons: 1
Approximate episodes per season: 8
Average episode length: 60 minutes
Serving as a prequel to Miloš Forman's 1975 film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, this series follows the infamous Nurse Mildred Ratched. Sarah Paulson takes on the role for this origin story, which is directed by American Horror Story's Ryan Murphy.
The series sees Mildred as she arrives in Northern California to work for a leading psychiatric hospital where new and unsettling experiments have begun on the human mind. Mildred presents herself as the perfect image of what a dedicated nurse should be, but she begins to infiltrate the mental health care system and those within it, revealing a much darker side to her.
We also have a best Netflix shows guide which includes everything from true crime to comedy.
