8 of the Best Slasher Films to Stream Right Now

“Horror movie” is such a broad term. You’ve got your supernatural films involving ghastly ghosts and demons, undead zombies, psychological mind-jobs, and “elevated” cinematic horror, like that of Jordan Peele or Ari Aster, designed for more refined horror fans. As for me, I prefer slasher movies—the ones where a psycho killer lets loose on a group of helpless victims, picking them off one at a time.

If you’re a slasher fan, the problem is finding good ones to stream. Some of the best (like the Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street series) aren’t always available for streaming, and platforms like Netflix are littered with “slashers” so bad that Ghostface wouldn’t clean his knife with them.

Don’t worry, though: I’ve rounded up the definitive list of the best slasher films you can stream right now!

8

Halloween

Horror fans love to argue over which film began the slasher trend; for me, it all starts with John Carpenter’s iconic 1978 film Halloween. After all, this movie introduced several staples of the genre, including a masked killer stalking young people. Among those young people is Jamie Lee Curtis, making her cinematic debut. This is the movie that arguably defined her career and crowned her as the first “Scream Queen’ of modern cinema, and she would reprise this role many times across multiple films in this sprawling franchise.

While Curtis and the rest of her young castmates add some much-needed humanity to the film, this movie is all about Michael Myers. His creepy mask is burned into the minds of everyone who saw this film, and his ability to stalk and slash his way through suburbia remains unparalleled. Special kudos also go to Donald Pleasence as Myers’ doctor, a man who maintains (rightfully so) that his patient is no longer a man and has become the embodiment of pure and unrelenting evil.

7

Scream

In the ‘90s, the slasher seemed largely played out. Films featuring Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees had been delivering diminishing returns, and the tropes of the genre seemed just as dead as any onscreen killer’s victim. But in 1996, Wes Craven’s Scream turned the genre on its head, featuring a masked killer cutting his way through a group of teens who are almost painfully pop culture savvy.

As such, the film had a powerful dual appeal to both younger audiences (those closer in age to the onscreen victims) and older audiences (those who memorized the same horror tropes this film both lampoons and subverts). Charismatic cast members like Neve Campbell, Rose McGowan, and Matthew Lillard help bring the movie’s hilariously quotable dialogue to life. Whether you love slashers for cool killers, fun victims, or memorable kills, Scream has a bit of everything.

It spawned a franchise of mostly solid sequels, but the original is still the bloody best.

6

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

To this day, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre stands out as one of the most demented horror films ever made. The intimidating killer Leatherface instantly became a pop culture legend thanks to his over-the-top design: who wouldn’t be scared of a chainsaw-toting guy who wears the skin of others? While not as overtly scary, the rest of Leatherface’s creepy cannibal family helped spook general audiences by underscoring the movie’s grim message that unspeakable horror could be hiding within any unassuming house throughout the nation.

As a kind of proto-slasher, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre sets itself apart by keeping the audience on its toes. Like the characters in the film, we never know what is going to happen next. Every moment feels fresh and unpredictable, and the sudden arrival of Leatherface is still as vividly terrifying now as it was back in 1974. Even though the franchise started going off the rails with its later sequels, the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre is still the perfect film to show anyone who needs a good scare.

5

Sleepaway Camp

Sleepaway Camp is another movie that zigs whenever you expect it to zag. Its camp setting and bevy of young victims make it seem like this is going to be a clone of Friday the 13th. Unlike most of the movies featuring Jason Voorhees, though, this film spends plenty of time focused on the young attendees of the titular sleepaway camp. Plus (and I saw this as a guy with a Jason tattoo), the kills in this movie are way more creative than most of those doled out in Friday the 13th or other horror movies aimed at ‘80s kids.

And while I won’t spoil it, Sleepaway Camp has a deliriously unpredictable ending that is even more impactful now than it was decades ago. The youthful cast, led by veteran horror star Felissa Rose, is just great: they help to sell the naivete and innocence of youth and make the audience sympathize with their vulnerability. And I do mean vulnerable: unlike many later horror films, Sleepaway Camp doesn’t hesitate to visit some very gruesome fates on its child characters!

4

Terrifier 2

Whether you love or hate the character, Art the Clown has become the definitive horror icon of our modern age. Beneath some startling makeup, David Howard Thornton uses body language to infuse Art with a scarily surreal quality, like a killer cartoon come to life. Art is in rare form in Terrifier 2, a movie focusing on a teenage girl whose family lands in the monster’s clownish crosshairs. If you’re not familiar with the franchise, though, beware: the hallmark of the Terrifier series is gruesomely over-the-top kills, so this slasher sequel isn’t for the squeamish.

One of the persistent criticisms of the original Terrifier movie is that it barely had a plot: we basically just watched Art stalk some poor women, and the script was little more than an excuse for some gory (and admittedly very, very scary) kills. Terrifier 2 addresses that criticism by giving our protagonist added agency and giving our antagonist some murky mythology. The narrative doesn’t always make sense, but that hardly matters for audiences just looking for a scary good time.

3

American Psycho

Most iconic slasher films focus on their monsters being obvious outcasts, which is why the genre is filled with masked or disfigured monsters hunting down hapless coed victims. American Psycho (adapted from the Brett Easton Ellis novel of the same name) subverts this trope by focusing on Patrick Bateman, a wealthy New York City investment banker. He’s insanely handsome and obscenely rich, so there’s no reason for him to become a killer. That’s a big part of what makes this movie so scary, of course: the idea that the last person you would ever suspect may be hiding bodies inside a closet full of designer suits.

This movie adaptation adds some much-needed black comedy (it’s honestly one of the best horror comedies ever made), which is one of the reasons that many of Bateman’s quotes (from fretting over someone else’s business cards to geeking out over Huey Lewis) have become beloved memes. As Bateman, Christian Bale steals almost every single scene, which is that much more impressive in a film with Hollywood heavyweights like Willem DaFoe. His charisma helps the film cast a kind of spell over the audience, inviting us deeper into a cinematic world so repulsive that it’s almost impossible to look away from.

2

X

X kicks off a trilogy of horror movies by Ti West that includes Pearl (still Mia Goth’s greatest film) and MaXXXine. Each film has its charms, but X fits the slasher archetype best thanks to its plot. Set in 1979, the movie focuses on a group of young people trying to shoot an adult film. But the owners of their intended venue don’t take kindly to what they are doing, and they are all too willing to kill these younger people for their transgressions.

On the surface level, X offers the blend of sex and violence fans have come to expect from slashers, and the period setting is enough to remind audiences of genre classics like Halloween and Friday the 13th. However, West uses these expected tropes as a springboard to offer crunchier commentary on everything from fame to old age. His performers (including franchise lead Mia Goth and genuine Scream queen Jenna Ortega) are more than up to the task, helping create a horror movie that makes you think when it’s not making you squeal in fright.

1

Black Christmas

As mentioned before, there is a constant debate over which film is the first slasher. While I will always maintain that the answer is John Carpenter’s Halloween, you can make a fair case for Black Christmas, a holiday movie about a killer stalking the members of a sorority. As another kind of proto-slasher, the movie features familiar elements, including young victims, a mystery killer, and POV shots from the killer’s perspective.

Slasher fans enjoy Black Christmas for many reasons, including the intimate setting and the memorable kills. The movie is also notable for starring John Saxon, whom horror buffs may know best for his role in the Nightmare on Elm Street films. Additionally, the movie stars a pre-Superman Margot Kidder, which is great fun for anyone who ever wanted to see how Lois Lane might fare in a horror movie. While it’s not exactly in the mold of later slashers like Friday the 13th, Black Christmas is a gift that just keeps on giving.

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Looking for a good slasher? It can be hard to find the ones worth watching, considering how many bad films are out there. Don’t worry, though: each of these films is a real “cut” above the rest!