Shudder, Prime Video, and Netflix expand Halloween horror libraries

Streaming services have released a slate of horror films for the Halloween season, offering options for viewers seeking titles outside major theatrical releases. The new additions include works from independent directors and international studios, distributed across several digital platforms.

Shudder has acquired rights to three new features. The platform now hosts Hallowarrior, directed by Ben Sottack. The film follows a 16-year-old girl named Pumpkin, played by Milly Shapiro, who believes she is the last human alive four years after a plague. She decorates her home for Halloween and broadcasts radio signals until three travelers arrive. The cast includes Shannyn Sossamon, A.J. Bowen, and Ajani Russell. Shudder also carries The Cycle, a thriller starring Deborah Ann Woll as a forensic anthropologist. Her estranged father, missing for 36 years, is found among two other victims in a crime scene. The third title is Infirmary, a supernatural film set in 2023. It follows a rookie security guard and a former Marine named Edward Yoon, played by Paul Syre Lee, during his first night shift at an abandoned psychiatric hospital in Los Angeles.

Prime Video offers Crushed, a film directed by Simon Rumley. The plot centers on a family in Thailand whose daughter, Olivia, is traumatized after seeing a video of animal cruelty. The cat, Missy, vanishes, and the daughter does not return home. The cast features Steve Oram, Nattapohn Rawddon, and Margaux Dietrich. Also available for rent and purchase on Prime Video is The Devil's Doorway. Directed by Aislinn Clarke, the 2018 Irish film follows two priests investigating a miracle at a Magdalene Asylum. The story reflects real-life scandals involving unmarked graves discovered in Dublin in 1993. The cast includes Lalor Roddy and Ciaran Flynn.

Apple TV and Rakuten TV host Amulet, a British horror film written and directed by Romola Garai. The film premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. It tells the story of Tomaz, a homeless ex-soldier played by Alec Secareanu. He is taken in by a nun, Sister Claire, played by Imelda Staunton, and moves in with a woman named Magda, played by Carla Juri. Tomaz experiences paranormal events and flashbacks to his former country.

Netflix has added Sumala, a 2024 film directed by Rizal Mantovani. Set in Semarang Regency in the late 1940s, the story involves a wealthy landowner and his wife struggling with infertility. The wife makes a pact with a black magic shaman. The condition requires her to raise twin girls with love until their 10th birthday. The husband kills the deformed twin, breaking the pact. The vengeful spirit of the dead twin possesses her sister.

Other platforms include specific niche offerings. FOUND, a free streaming service in the UK, hosts Be My Cat: A Film For Anne. This Romanian found footage film was directed, written, produced, and starred in by Adrian Țofei. The plot involves an aspiring filmmaker attempting to convince actress Anne Hathaway to star in his project. The Poughkeepsie Tapes is available on Prime Video and Tubi. Released in 2007, this mockumentary depicts a serial killer in Poughkeepsie, New York, and was mistaken by many viewers for a real documentary.

M.O.M.: Mothers of Monsters is available on Prime Video. Directed by Tucia Lyman, the film focuses on a mother who suspects her teenage son is planning a school shooting. She installs spy cameras in their home and finds an online community of other parents with similar fears. The House with Laughing Windows is available on Arrow Player. The 1976 Italian film directed by Pupi Avati follows an art restorer, Stefano, played by Lino Capolicchio. He travels to a secluded village in the Valli di Comacchio area to restore a church fresco. He discovers a tape recorder in an attic containing the voice of the fresco's painter discussing his crimes.

Penny Lane Is Dead is available on Shudder. Directed by Mia'Kate Russell, this Australian film is set in the summer of 1986. It follows high school graduates Penny, Toni, and Amy on a trip to a beach house. Penny's cousin, Kat, crashes the trip and feeds Penny a drug-laced cupcake. After Penny is found unconscious, Kat contacts her boyfriend, Angus, to seek revenge. The film stars Bailey Spalding, Tahlee Fereday, and Sophia Wright-Mendelsohn.