Peacock Just Added the Weirdest Horror Movie of the 2000s (And It’s Scarier Than You Remember)

Spooky Season is upon us, which means it’s the perfect time of year to take a deep dive into the horror genre. Each of us has our own favorite classics that we revisit every October, and many genre fans also take this opportunity to discover some twisted oddities we may not have seen before. This Halloween season, there’s a 2000s cult classic streaming on Peacock that you need to give a try, and there’s a good chance many of you will add it to your regular October rotation.

Dead Silence, from modern horror legend James Wan, is arguably the wildest horror film of the 2000s — and that’s saying a lot. This 2007 thriller has all of the craziness you expect from Wan’s most insane and visionary pictures (Malignant fans, this is right up your alley), but shoved inside the body of a creepy puppet. Yes, it’s got the imagination of Wan’s wildest dreams and the terrifying imagery of wooden dolls. When you throw in that specific 2000s style and music, you’ve got a one-of-a-kind horror movie.

Peacock added Dead Silence to its streaming lineup on October 1st, making it easily accessible for everyone to stream in the month leading up to Halloween. As you’re putting together your October horror binges, Dead Silence needs to be on your list.

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What Is Dead Silence (And Why Should I Watch It?)

This is a movie I recommend to everyone who enjoys horror, but especially so if you’ve got that specific millennial taste when it comes to the genre. Think about the style of Malignant with the transitions of Saw, all shot through that same not-quite-sepia filter as House of Wax. There’s something about that mid-2000s era of horror movie that has stuck with us ’90s kids, and Dead Silence is one of the truest to that time period.

If you’re not familiar, Dead Silence stars Ryan Kwanten (not Jared Padalecki, despite what your memory might be telling you) as a young widower who returns to his haunted hometown in search of answers about his late wife. All trails lead to the ghost of a ventriloquist and the deep ties his family has to her.

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The premise itself sounds wild, but I promise it doesn’t hold a candle to the swings this movie actually takes. I don’t want to spoil much here, because if you haven’t seen it yet, you’re in for a treat. Dead Silence really takes the puppet angle to new extremes, and used the dolls to deliver a twist that I still think about on a semi-regular basis.

What gets me about Dead Silence is how frightening it remains all these years later. Yes, it can be incredibly silly, but it’s a lot scarier than a movie this ridiculous has any right to be. There is some downright haunting imagery in here. Some of the horrifying spirit designs and jump-scares in Dead Silence feel like direct precursors to The Conjuring, which Wan would direct six years later. For all of its ridiculousness, there is some real underlying terror here, making Dead Silence the best of both worlds.

You will have fun with this movie. You will probably also wake up in the middle of the night with visions of wooden dolls trying to steal your soul. What more could you ask for?