The Best Christmas Horror Movies (and Where to Stream Them)

The short answer

The best Christmas horror movies are Black Christmas (1974), Gremlins (1984), Krampus (2015), Violent Night (2022) and Rare Exports (2010). The first three are the classics. The last two are newer and more fun, and both are good picks for a mixed group. You can stream most of them in the US without renting. Gremlins is on HBO Max, Violent Night is on Netflix and Black Christmas is free on Tubi, according to JustWatch (checked October 30, 2026).

Christmas horror works because the holiday hands filmmakers so much to play with. Santa breaks into houses at night. Families are stuck together. Everyone's already a little on edge. The best films in this sub-genre lean into that, and the worst just put a killer in a red suit. We've focused on the first kind.

Christmas horror movies at a glance

Streaming details are for the US and come from JustWatch, checked October 30, 2026. Catalogues change, so check before movie night.

The classics

Black Christmas (1974)

This is the one to start with. A sorority house empties out for the holidays, and the women who stay behind start getting obscene phone calls. Then they start disappearing. Bob Clark made it on a budget of about $686,000, according to Wikipedia), and it's often listed among the first true slasher films. It came out four years before Halloween.

What makes it last is restraint. You hardly ever see the killer, and the film never explains him. Olivia Hussey and Margot Kidder are great, and the final shot is one of the coldest in horror. It was remade in 2006 (on Shudder) and again in 2019, and neither comes close.

Gremlins (1984)

Joe Dante's film, written by Chris Columbus, is the gateway Christmas horror movie for most people. A boy gets a cute creature called a mogwai as a present. There are three rules. They all get broken, and a small town's Christmas falls apart. Gremlins is very funny and properly nasty in places, and it was one of the two 1984 films whose violence pushed the MPAA to create the PG-13 rating. Stream it on HBO Max.

Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984)

This one is more famous for its controversy than its quality. Parents protested its killer-Santa ads in 1984, and the film was pulled from many theatres. Watched today, it's a rough, often silly slasher about a boy traumatised by a man in a Santa suit. It matters as history. It's on Shudder, AMC+ and Prime Video, and free on Tubi and Pluto TV.

Christmas Evil (1980)

A toy factory worker who's a little too obsessed with Santa decides to judge who's naughty and who's nice. It's slow and odd and much sadder than the title suggests. John Waters is a famous fan. Stream it on Prime Video or Tubi.

Tales from the Crypt (1972)

This Amicus anthology, directed by Freddie Francis, isn't a Christmas film overall. Its first story, "...And All Through the House," is a tiny holiday classic, though: Joan Collins kills her husband on Christmas Eve while an escaped madman in a Santa suit closes in. It's free on Tubi.

Modern Christmas horror

Krampus (2015)

Michael Dougherty, who made the Halloween anthology Trick 'r Treat, turns the Alpine legend of Krampus, Santa's dark companion, into a family-in-peril film. Adam Scott and Toni Collette lead a bickering extended family snowed in for the holidays. A little boy gives up on Christmas, and something answers. The creature effects are excellent and mostly practical. It's PG-13, scary enough for teenagers and not too much. Stream it on Peacock or Prime Video.

Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010)

A Finnish film from Jalmari Helander. An excavation on a mountain in Finnish Lapland digs up something the locals should have left buried, and the region's children start vanishing. It's dry, strange and funny in a very Finnish way, and it's unlike any other Santa film. Stream it on Prime Video or Tubi.

Better Watch Out (2016)

A babysitter and a 12-year-old boy are home alone when someone seems to be breaking in. Say no more. The film has a hard left turn about 20 minutes in, so avoid the trailer if you can. Chris Peckover directs, and it's on Peacock, Prime Video and Tubi.

Anna and the Apocalypse (2017)

A British zombie musical set at Christmas. It's exactly that, and it works better than it should. The songs are catchy and the cast is charming. It was released in the US on November 30, 2018. It's free on Tubi right now.

The Lodge (2019)

From Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala, the Austrian duo behind Goodnight Mommy. Two children are snowed in at a remote lodge with their father's new fiancée (Riley Keough) just before Christmas. Things go wrong slowly and then completely. It's the bleakest film on this list and the closest to psychological horror. If that's your thing, our best psychological horror movies list has more like it. On Tubi.

Violent Night (2022)

David Harbour plays a burned-out Santa who has to save a rich family from mercenaries on Christmas Eve. It's really an action comedy with horror-level violence, like Die Hard with a sleigh. Tommy Wirkola's film made $76.6 million worldwide, according to Wikipedia, and a sequel, Violent Night 2, is due in December 2026. Stream the first one on Netflix.

It's a Wonderful Knife (2023)

A teenager who survived a Christmas Eve killing wishes she'd never been born and gets her wish, in a world where the killer was never stopped. Tyler MacIntyre's film is a light, colourful slasher, and its riff on It's a Wonderful Life is clever. On Shudder and AMC+.

Terrifier 3 (2024)

Art the Clown goes on a Christmas rampage in a Santa suit. Damien Leone made it for about $2 million, and it became a surprise hit. Be warned: this is the most graphic film on the list by a long way. It's for gore fans only, and definitely not for a family night. On Prime Video.

Silent Night, Deadly Night (2025)

Mike P. Nelson's remake of the 1984 film came out on December 12, 2025. It's a fresh take on the killer-Santa story, and it's on Prime Video and Tubi.

Which one should you watch?

For a family night: Gremlins or Krampus. Both are scary, and both keep things fun.

For horror fans who want real fear: Black Christmas, then The Lodge.

For a group with mixed tastes: Violent Night or Anna and the Apocalypse.

For something you haven't seen: Rare Exports or Christmas Evil.

For gore: Terrifier 3, if you're sure.

Tips for a Christmas horror movie night

Pair an old one with a new one. Black Christmas followed by It's a Wonderful Knife shows how much the slasher has changed in 50 years.

Check ratings first. Gremlins is PG and Krampus is PG-13. Terrifier 3 is unrated in its full form and very graphic, so it isn't for most groups.

Use the free services. Tubi and Pluto TV have a surprising amount of holiday horror with ads, so you don't need another subscription to get started.

Why Christmas horror works

Holiday horror plays with the gap between how Christmas should feel and how it often does. The house is full of people who don't get along. Children are told a stranger will come down the chimney at night. The days are short and dark. Films like Black Christmas and Krampus get their power from those small tensions. They don't need a big monster.

There's also a practical reason. Christmas horror is cheap to make. You only need a house, snow and a costume. That's why the sub-genre is full of small, odd films, and why some of the best entries came from first-time or low-budget directors.

If you're planning a full season of scary movies, start with our best Halloween movies list and our Thanksgiving horror movies guide, then come back here in December. For the year's other big holiday list, see our best Thanksgiving movies.