‘Tis the season to watch holiday-themed horror, and we’re here to make that even easier for you. We’re breaking down the best holiday horror selections across the many streaming apps, and we kicked things off with AMC’s Shudder last week. Up next, Hulu offers a Holiday streaming hub of their own, including a “haunted holiday” section for spooky yuletide picks.
These are the best of the bunch, along with a hidden holiday title not included in their roundup!
A Christmas Carol (2019)
Pick just about any adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Christmas ghost story and it could apply to horror. The BBC’s A Christmas Carol miniseries nudges it further into horror with a foreboding atmosphere, witchcraft, and a slew of menacing ghosts and haunted memories. Guy Pearce stars as Ebenezer Scrooge, a miser visited by a trio of Christmas ghosts to change his selfish ways or else. In a much grimmer telling of the Dickens classic, expect Scrooge to get scared straight in a much more menacing form.
Pooka!
Director Nacho Vigalondo’s holiday entry of Hulu’s Into the Dark anthology series introduced a playful new holiday horror mascot, Pooka. Unemployed actor Wilson Clowes (Nyasha Hatendi) accepts a job to don the furry Pooka suit and portray the holiday’s hottest new toy to earn a buck. It sparks a rapid mental deterioration in the process. Wilson develops two personas: one as himself and another as Pooka. Mischief turns sinister, and a body count ensues. There’s far more than meets the eye to this twisty little tale.
Pooka Lives!
Juan of the Dead director Alejandro Brugués takes the reins on this sequel, putting Pooka at the center of a viral Creepypasta slasher. The eponymous Pooka gets a beefy makeover, and the sequel leans further into dark comedy. It’s bolstered by a cast known for comedic chops, including Rachel Bloom, Wil Wheaton, Jonah Ray, and Alicia Day. Malcolm Barrett stars.
I Trapped the Devil
Writer/director Josh Lobo’s Christmas film is a haunting portrayal of grief and familial guilt. When Steve’s brother and sister-in-law unexpectedly show up at his door to celebrate the holidays, they’re alarmed to discover he has a man locked in his basement. Steve insists he’s captured the devil. Paranoia and psychological terror are carried deftly on the shoulders of its three leads; this is brooding yuletide horror at its best.
Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale
A holiday horror story that hearkens back to Santa’s darker roots, this Norwegian fantasy horror follows Pietari, a boy whose belief in Santa is the very thing that will save everyone when an archaeological dig unearths the real thing. Too bad the real thing is the stuff of nightmares. Filthy elves galore, reindeer, gingerbread, and one monstrous version of Santa bring the yuletide fun and chaos. If you’re looking for a charming holiday horror movie that goes big on holiday motifs and iconography, albeit in a twisted way, this pick is for you.
The Lodge
Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala’s follow-up to Goodnight Mommy carries over the theme of children misbehaving. A family trip to the remote family lodge for Christmas becomes a harrowing voyage into potential madness when soon-to-be stepmom Grace (Riley Keough) is left alone to take care of step-children Aidan (Jaeden Martell) and Mia (Lia McHugh). When the children seem to be making peace with Grace, a blizzard knocks the power out, trapping them all with Grace’s dark past. Moody and atmospheric, The Lodge is bleak horror. Nothing about this holiday horror movie is merry or bright.
New Year, New You
Sophia Takal’s season one episode of Into the Dark brings tension and violence to New Year’s Eve. A New Year’s Eve party among old friends begins as a benign trip down memory lane but soon turns deadly as old grudges resurface. Suki Waterhouse and Carly Chaikin take cattiness to a new, lethal level as frenemies.
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This anthology features four segments of horror, but only the first is holiday-related. Jovanka Vuckovic’s “The Box,” based on Jack Ketchum’s short story of the same name, sees a family stricken by an unexplained illness after taking a peek at a stranger’s present on the train. Christmas is bleak for this family.