A Spooky Guide to All the New Horror Streaming in October

Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: Matt Infante/Peacock, AMC+, Robert Falconer/Prime

The pumpkin-spice flavors are back, the leaves are changing, and the MLB playoffs have begun. It’s October. That also means scary movies and specials all over streaming. This year is lighter in quantity compared to past Octobers, but it has some high-profile offerings, including new projects from TV horror kings Ryan Murphy and Mike Flanagan, along with new chapters in the stories of Jason Voorhees and Dexter Morgan. We’ve picked out eight standout series vying for your horror-loving soul, along with an alternate list of eight if you want to keep the frights flowing.

It premiered in September, but there will be new episodes of Ryan Murphy’s most recent monstrous creation through October. Watch the latest installment of a series that’s celebrating its 15th anniversary with a season dedicated to everyone’s favorite haunted number. Joey Pollari plays a hospice caretaker with triskaidekaphobia who ends up working at a building called the Apollyon, which happens to house characters from past seasons of AHS. The result is a rogues’ gallery of Murphy regulars reprising multiple roles, including Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, Emma Roberts, and Jessica Lange. It’s early in the season, but Coven and Apocalypse seem to be the main inspirations so far, which should make AHS fans happy — if they can figure out what’s going on.

What is it about the legend of Carrie White that has made her one of the most resilient characters in horror history? It’s been more than a half-century since Stephen King’s book unleashed this superpowered girl into the world, and she’s already been the subject of multiple films, including a genre classic in Brian De Palma’s version and even a decent remake with Chloe Grace Moretz. Is there enough left here for an eight-episode miniseries? If anyone can pull it off, it’s the king of King adaptations, Mike Flanagan. The director of Doctor Sleep and Gerald’s Game developed this limited series starring Summer H. Powell as Carrie, alongside Samantha Sloyan as her abusive mother. A few new faces and Flanagan regulars (Kate Siegel, Rahu Kohli) fill out the cast on one of the season’s most interesting new series, horror or otherwise.

What if Widow’s Bay took place a little further north and had a sea monster? That’s kind of the vibe of this clever Canadian miniseries from Jesse McKeown. Josh Hartnett tries on his best Newfoundland accent to play Calvin Penney, an ice harvester in the small village of Snook’s Arm, a place where the residents are being threatened with governmental relocation when a much bigger danger surfaces from under the ice. A bit of fishing-village whimsy intertwined with underwater kaiju action? Give it to us now. This one co-stars Mackenzie Davis, Charlie Heaton, and Natasha Henstridge.

No, this is not another adaptation of one of Stephen King’s most heartbreaking books. It’s the most interesting-looking true-crime documentary of a month that’s saturated with new miniseries and specials about real-life monsters. It follows the impossible tale of Dorothy Lou Thompson, an owner of a New Orleans pet cemetery who was murdered in 1985, her case going ice-cold for decades. In 2009, a detective reopened the case and found a witness who claimed that Thompson’s ghost had come to them with possible information to solve the case. And then another person had the same story. Is the unsettled specter of a murdered woman able to solve her own crime? That’s the question driving this three-part series.

After a tumultuous production that saw the departure of original showrunner Bryan Fuller (Hannibal), this long-gestating prequel is finally almost here, now led by showrunner Brad Caleb Kane. It has somehow been 17 years since the last Friday the 13th flick, but the producers at A24 are counting on the timelessness of Jason Voorhees, even if he’s not the real star of this show. That title belongs to recent Emmy winner Linda Cardellini as Pamela Voorhees, the character that anyone who’s actually seen the first Friday the 13th will recall as the actual original villain of this franchise. A few episodes played at TIFF to middling responses, but it’s still going to be fascinating to see how this killer universe’s first project in a generation handles the character’s legacy.

More Canadian horror! This one is inspired by the legend of Baba Yaga, and it’s another series that premiered at TIFF, where it was pretty well-liked. Creator Kat Sandler (Kim’s Convenience) adapts her own 2019 play of the same name for this eight-part supernatural tale that stars Carrie-Anne Moss and Noah Reid. The latter plays an investigator who is looking into the disappearance of a commercial fishery heir in this haunted corner of North America. It leads him to cross paths with Moss’s Katherine, a university professor who may be the one to draw a connection to the legendary witch character that gives this show its title. Critics who saw two episodes in Toronto said it was “thrilling” and “surprisingly sexy” — in other words, an October hit.

One of the most unexpected things happened in 2025: Dexter Morgan finally got the resurrection he deserved. After an awful original series finale and a couple of mediocre spin-offs, everything came together for Dexter: Resurrection, a blast of old-fashioned Dexter greatness with tight plotting, fun guest stars, and a thrilling climax. The creators return for season two just over a year later with an insane new cast of familiar faces, including Brian Cox as the New York Ripper, Dan Stevens as the Five Borough Killer, Bokeem Woodbine, and a returning Uma Thurman and Desmond Harrington (aka Quinn). It promises more of the twisted fun of season one. Long live, Dexter Morgan.

Apple has to get in the mix just before Halloween, right? On Devil’s Night, they premiere a new crime drama starring Liev Schreiber, Zazie Beetz, Stephen Graham, Bill Camp, and Rory Culkin. If that insane A-list cast isn’t enough to hook you, how about this: Rowan Joffe’s show is about a serial killer in a small Pennsylvania town. We know almost nothing beyond that thin premise and the ensemble, but what else do you really need?

➼ Coven Academy (Freeform, Disney+, and Hulu, October 1) — Freeform launches its annual “31 Nights of Halloween” campaign with this new series about three teenage witches that stars Malina Pauli Weissmna, Tiffani Thiessen, and Malachi Barton.

➼ Family Guy: Happy Hell-o-ween (Hulu, October 5) — It wouldn’t be a Halloween Streaming Guide without a Family Guy seasonal special. These must do well for Hulu because there’s a new one every year.

➼ Vampirina: Teenage Vampire: Season 2 (Disney+, October 6) — Based on the animated hit Vampirina, this show about a teenage bloodsucker returns for another round of teen-aimed horror-comedy.

➼ Haunted Hotel: Season 2 (Netflix, October 9) — Will Forte, Eliza Coupe, and Syler Gisondo voice characters in Netflix’s animated riff on Ghosts: a story of, well, a haunted hotel.

➼ Is It Cake? Halloween (Netflix, October 9) — Netflix tries to get more out of the Is It Cake trend with a special built around Halloween-themed creations.

➼ R.L. Stine’s Pumpkinhead 2 (Tubi, October 9) —No, not the R-rated ’80s horror franchise. This is a creation of the wildly successful teen horror writer behind Goosebumps, a sequel to a 2025 Tubi original. This one co-stars Elvira!

➼ Apocalypse Z: New World (Prime, October 30)— Apparently, 2024’s Spanish-language zombie flick is one of Prime Video’s biggest international hits. A sequel was inevitable.

➼ Shudder Originals: V/H/S/Mixtape, Infirmary, Hallowarrior, and Big Baby (Shudder, Fridays) — We can’t pick just one Shudder original this year, so just know that everyone’s favorite horror streaming service has a new movie for you every Friday.

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A Spooky Guide to All the New Horror Streaming in October