The Best Horror Films You Can Stream Right Now: 'M3GAN,' 'Sick,' 'Barbarian' and More

The Best Horror Films You Can Stream Right Now: 'M3GAN,' 'Sick,' 'Barbarian' and More

We're almost halfway through the year, and we've seen a lot of great horror, from major theatrical releases to new drops on various streaming services. But for fans who really crave a scary movie, the current crop of releases is never enough. You want to build yourself a list that's as long as possible, sit down on the couch, and move through the best horror films you can find as often as possible. So, where do you find the very best streaming horror movies out there right now?

RELATED: From 'Nosferatu' to 'Get Out': The best horror movies of all time

That's where we come in. From classics to modern gems, here are 17 of the best horror films you can stream right now, plus where to find them, in alphabetical order.

Barbarian (HBO Max)

One of the most talked-about and acclaimed horror releases of last year, Zach Cregger's Barbarian, starts as a simple-yet-creepy case of misunderstanding, and then just keeps getting darker, stranger, and more over-the-top for the rest of its runtime. If you still haven't experienced one of 2022's best, now is the time.

The Beyond (Peacock)

Lucio Fulci, Italy's Godfather of Gore, might not be the first person you think of to direct a haunted house story set in Louisiana, but The Beyond remains a solid contender for his best film. The story of a woman who inherits a mysterious old house that also might be a hellmouth, it's packed with unforgettable moments of gore, as well as some often startling beauty.

Censor (Hulu)

Prano Bailey-Bond's Censor is both a journey through a certain chapter of film history and a frightening meta-textual look at violence, trauma, and its effect not just on how we perceive art, but on how we perceive reality. The film follows a censor working through the U.K.'s infamous "video nasty" ban era, who finds one filmmaker's work bears a shocking closeness to certain events in her own life, and it's one of the best horror films to come out of 2021.

The Changeling (Peacock)

One of the greatest haunted house films of all time, The Changeling follows a grieving composer (George C. Scott) as he heads to a secluded mansion to recover from the loss of his family and, hopefully, finally get started on some new work. What he finds when he gets there is the spirit of a child who might need his help, and a decades-old mystery waiting to be unraveled. Even if you've seen it a dozen times, it's the kind of film that still sucks you in with its haunting beauty.

The Exorcist III (Peacock)

A film that's gotten a lot of mileage out of internet chatter in recent years, The Exorcist III has undergone numerous reappraisals to reach the status of a beloved cult classic, a film that's in some ways just as scary as the original that inspired it. Directed by William Peter Blatty and adapted from his own novel Legion, the film calls back to the plot of the first Exorcist film while also exploring a horrifying serial killer narrative. Plus, it features one of the best jump scares in horror history.

M3GAN YT
M3GAN YT

His House (Netflix)

A pair of refugees settle in a new flat in a London neighborhood and try to settle into a new life far away from the country they fled. What happens next is one of the most terrifying blends of haunted house narrative and folk horror you're likely to find from the last 10 years. Tense, inventive, and packed with unforgettable scares, Remi Weekes' His House remains a must-see.

It Follows (Netflix)

If it feels like It Follows has made it onto just about every list of horror films you need to watch over the past decade or so, that's because It Follows really deserves that place in the modern horror canon. David Robert Mitchell's film about a mysterious force that pursues its victims to their deaths is as effective now as it was when it was released nearly 10 years ago.

M3GAN (Peacock)

One of the most-memed horror films of the 2020s so far, M3GAN arrived in theaters back in January and absolutely delivered on all the over-the-top fun we'd come to expect from its trailer. The story of the title artificial intelligence and her desire to forge a bond with the girl she's paired to at all costs, M3GAN is funny, violent, creepy, and full of wonderful little details that will make you want to watch again and again. Plus, now that it's made its streaming debut, you can catch both the theatrical and unrated cuts.

Mandy (AMC+)

A simple logger retreats to his woodland home to be with his beloved, only to be attacked by a sinister cult who captures and kills Mandy (Andrea Riseborough) and leaves the logger for dead. The problem? Well, said logger is played by none other than Nicolas Cage, and he's not about to go down without a very, very gnarly fight. Packed with eye-popping visuals and unforgettable Cage moments, Mandy is a modern horror classic.

Martyrs (AMC+/Shudder)

The movement known as New French Extreme is certainly not for everyone, and even those of us who do indulge in these powerful, brutal films often have to do so in small doses. If the films hit just right, though, you're in for some of the most impactful horror storytelling of your life. That's especially true of Martyrs, Pascal Laugier's film about trauma, transcendence, and transgression. What starts as a revenge story soon becomes something else entirely, as the film digs deeper and deeper into a web of secrets that brings one devastating and vicious reveal after another. It's an essential horror film from its era, but be warned: It's definitely not for the faint of heart.

My Bloody Valentine (HBO Max)

One of the best films to come out of the slasher boom of the early 1980s, this Canadian horror classic follows the youths of a small mining town as they try to throw the area's first Valentine's Day party in years. But unfortunately for all of them, the killer who got the holiday canceled in the first place is back, and he's got more than a few old scores to settle. The result is quite simply one of the most entertaining slasher films ever made.

The Outwaters (Screambox)

Screambox is quickly making a name for itself as a must-have horror streamer thanks to releases like last year's Terrifier 2, and now they've sweetened the deal with this found footage nightmare about a group of friends who head out to the desert to make a music video and instead find ... well, something else. With a structure that resembles The Blair Witch Project and a relentless horror tone that just keeps ramping up with each passing minute, The Outwaters is found footage done right.

Pontypool (AMC+)

A morning radio D.J. reports for work at the tiny Canadian local station where he's been lucky enough to find a job, and in between the usual morning banter and clashes with his producer, learns that something very wrong is going on outside. It feels like you're about to watch a traditional zombie narrative play out, but then Pontypool surprises you, and will continue to surprise you right up until its ending. It's one of the 21st century's great underseen horror gems.

Rachel Weisz and Brendon Fraser during the filming of The Mummy
Rachel Weisz and Brendon Fraser during the filming of The Mummy

Possession (Shudder)

Andrzej Zulawski's film about the twisted relationship between a husband (Sam Neill), a wife (Isabelle Adjani), and the dark force that seems to be driving them apart just recently landed on Shudder after years of being completely unavailable to stream anywhere. The news caused lots of horror fans to freak out, and with good reason. Possession is a cult masterpiece, an endlessly unnerving ride into the heart of darkness that will linger in your head for days.

SICK (Peacock)

Two best friends decide to leave their closed-down college and head to a family lake house to quarantine in luxury in the spring of 2020. What happens when they get there is much more than they bargained for, as a mysterious killer stalks the grounds outside, and the girls must find a way to survive not just a pandemic, but a single night alone. Directed by John Hyams and co-written by slasher legend Kevin Williamson, SICK is a thrilling new piece of survival horror fun.

The Wicker Man (Shudder)

The Wicker Man is not the first folk horror film, but it is the one that's held up as perhaps the ultimate in what the genre stands for and can achieve. Scenically beautiful, packed with tension and dread, and boasting dozens of unforgettable images, Robin Hardy's film about a strange island community and the policeman trying to infiltrate it still works 50 years after its debut, no matter how many times you've seen that ending.

The Witch (HBO Max)

So much has already been said about Robert Eggers' feature debut, which follows a family in Puritan New England who are slowly consumed by dark forces, that it feels like there's nothing else to say other than: Watch it. If you've already watched it, watch it again. If you've never seen it, turn all the lights out and get ready for a beautifully strange ride.

Looking for more streaming horror? Check out 10 killer slasher movies to stream on Peacock right now!