Ever since Tubi debuted in 2014, it has made a name for itself while competing with paid streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, and HBO Max for viewer attention because it’s a completely free (albeit ad-supported) service. Considering some of the paid services basic tiers also feature ads, that makes Tubi one of the most impressive services out there. That wouldn’t be the case if Tubi didn’t have a similarly impressive line-up of content, but as the years have progressed the available content has only gotten better. This includes everything from relatively new releases to the genre we’re covering here: horror.
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In fact, Tubi’s lineup is so good that there are plenty of other excellent horror films that didn’t make the cut including: The Slumber Party Massacre, the original My Bloody Valentine, Creepshow 2, Terrifier, Eden Lake, Sleepaway Camp, and Mom and Dad, among others. Not every title on Tubi stays there for a particularly long time, so catch these titles while they’re available.
1) The Stepfather
Fueled by a genuinely unsettling performance by Terry O’Quinn, The Stepfather is one of the 1980s’ definitive psychological horror films. It’s a simple concept: a serial killer ingratiates his way into families and murders them when they inevitably disappoint him in some small way. “Inevitably” because O’Quinn’s Jerry Blake (AKA Henry Morrison AKA Bill Hodgkins) is genuinely impossible to please. He wants those around him to come from a storybook, but life isn’t a storybook. Too bad for his new wife, Susan, and stepdaughter, Stephanie, he doesn’t much care for separating reality from storybook fantasy.
Tubi also has Stepfather II (which is again led by O’Quinn), Stepfather 3 (which does not feature O’Quinn), and the 2009 remake.
2) Hellraiser
Clive Barker’s Hellraiser is about as inventive a horror film as there is. It yanks you into its grim, gruesome world and doesn’t let you go until the credits roll. Then there are the demonic Cenobites, each equipped with a distinct, horrific appearance that’s impossible to shake from one’s memory, especially the iconic Pinhead. But they’re not a major presence in the original Hellraiser. Instead, it follows Clare Higgins’ Julia Cotton as she seduces and sacrifices a slew of men in an effort to bring back her sadomasochistic brother-in-law, Frank, with whom she shared a fling and who is now on the run from the aforementioned Demon headhunters and torture artists. Toss in excellent performances from Ashley Laurence as Julia’s daughter-in-law, Kirsty (one of horror cinema’s top tier final girls) and Andrew Robinson as Julia’s husband, Larry, and Hellraiser is an A-level horror classic.
The streaming service also offers a few other installments of the franchise. These include Hellbound: Hellraiser II, Hellraiser Revelations, and Hellraiser: Judgment. Revelations and Judgment are very skippable (they don’t even feature Doug Bradley as Pinhead), but Hellbound is the second-best of the franchise and would make for a great addition to the first one on horror movie double feature night.
3) The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
Tobe Hooper’s threadbare-budgeted The Texas Chain Saw Massacre stands firm as one of the scariest films ever made. The world it shows feels distinctly real, and even without showing much blood it nonetheless makes the viewer feel every ounce of the pain of the Sawyer family’s victims.
Tubi also has the highly underrated The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (once again directed by Hooper), 2013’s Texas Chainsaw, and 2017’s Leatherface. If you’re in the mood for more of the director’s work though, check out Lifeforce, Eaten Alive, and Invaders from Mars, all of which are also on Tubi.
4) Friday the 13th
The attractor of much controversy and critical ire at the time of release, Friday the 13th has nonetheless gone on to kick off one of horror cinema’s longest running and most important film franchises. And, in hindsight, the violence of the Saw franchise makes Friday the 13th look absolutely tame by comparison.
Tubi only has the original Friday the 13th, but it’s a case of the first one being the best one anyway, even if many of the sequels are all excellent, too. If afterwards you’re in the mood for another ’80s slasher holiday classic, check out My Bloody Valentine or Prom Night.
5) An American Werewolf in London
A horror-comedy with a fairly bleak ending, An American Werewolf in London was something of a major departure for director John Landis. Prior to this he had directed straightforward comedies The Kentucky Fried Movie, National Lampoon’s Animal House, and The Blues Brothers. After this he directed Trading Places, Spies Like Us, and Coming to America among other similarly comedic material. But American Werewolf, while laced with smart comedic moments, is first and foremost a horror film, one fueled by a compelling central dynamic between its two leads, played by David Naughton and Jenny Agutter, a scene-stealing from-the-grave role for Griffin Dunne, and cinema’s ultimate werewolf transformation sequence.
And while it doesn’t come from the same creatives, An American Werewolf in Paris is also on Tubi. Admittedly, it only has a wolf hair’s worth of London‘s effectiveness, but it’s worth a watch for ’90s film fans. If you want to watch another genuinely excellent werewolf movie on Tubi, be sure to check out Werewolves Within.
6) Killer Klowns from Outer Space
From makeup artists the Chiodo Brothers, Killer Klowns from Outer Space is one of the ’80s very best cult films. With a perfect blending of horror and comedy (emphasis on the latter), it’s highly entertaining, and more than good enough to wonder why the Chiodos never tried their hand at building a film from the ground up again.
Tubi has a host of silly horror comedies that make for fine companion pieces to Killer Klowns, as well. For instance, Attack of the Killer Tomatoes, The Return of the Living Dead, Critters, and all six Warwick Davis-fronted Leprechaun movies.
7) 28 Weeks Later
With 28 Years Later set to be one of summer 2025’s biggest horror hits, there’s no better time to catch up on the films that came first. 28 Days Later just made its way back into the world of streaming after being unavailable to rent or own for quite some time, but Tubi doesn’t have it.
What they do have is the similarly excellent 28 Weeks Later, a movie with a dynamite opening that doesn’t slow down for the remainder of its runtime. Don’t bother with 28 Months After, though, as it’s a cheap, unaffiliated knock-off.
8) Hush
Now that Mike Flanagan’s The Life of Chuck is in theaters, there’s no better time to catch up on the other entries of his IMDb page. You’ll need a Netflix subscription to watch the series The Haunting of Hill House, Midnight Mass, and The Fall of the House of Usher, but with Tubi you can watch one of his very best movies.
Flanagan’s other two Stephen King movies, Gerald’s Game and Doctor Sleep, aren’t on Tubi, but Hush is. It’s a tightly constructed man in a mask film with a commanding lead performance by Flanagan’s wife, Kate Siegel, who also co-wrote the film with him.
9) Get Out
Jordan Peele’s Get Out isn’t just one of the best horror films of the 2010s, it’s one of the decade’s most important movies, regardless of genre. Unlike the vast majority of other horror movies, even its top-tier entries, it earned a lot of awards season love, and for good reason. It succeeds in being scary, but not as well as it succeeds in making the viewer think.
Peele’s Us and Nope are not on Tubi, but without a doubt they did not live up to the startling strength of his directorial debut. Both are fun, interesting movies, but Get Out is in a league of its own.
10) Gremlins
Not just one of 1984’s best horror movies, but one of its best movies in general, Joe Dante’s Gremlins is one of the decade’s most inventive and thoroughly entertaining adventures. It’s also one of the great starter horror films for the younger members of the audience on family movie night.
Once you’re done with Gremlins, check out Dante’s Gremlins 2: The New Batch. It’s far different tonally, but a goofy, fun ride, nonetheless. If you want more Dante, you can then tune into his segment of Twilight Zone: The Movie (a remake of “It’s a Good Life,” the best part of the movie) and his iconic cult classic Piranha.
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