The ongoing joys of being a horror fanatic are endless. Studios typically run at the opportunity to produce a combination of recycled horror content (remakes and sequels) as well as emerging stories, especially in the current boomof elevated horror. With horror being so hot, countless production companies know that there are many outlets of distribution, and streaming has become one of the most prolific. Essentially, streaming services like Shudder are throwing horror movies at the wall to see if they stick, because there is very little to lose.
While Shudder is beloved by fellow horror fanatics, other broader streaming platforms have a wide range of great horror that often goes overlooked. The streaming serviceHulubegan distributing a bevy of original horror films since they started to branch out and produce its own exclusive content in 2011. These, added to the massive amount of older and recent horror films that Hulu has licensed, means that the streaming platform is likely the top choice for horror cinema outside Shudder.
This is partly because Hulu has paid for a wide variety of lower-budget independent films that don’t cost too much to license. These are actually some of the best horror films on the platform, so let’s take a look at some of the scariest content here for fans of independent horror movies.
Updated March 23rd, 2023: If you’re a fan of thrilling indie horror films, then you’ll be happy to know this article has been updated with additional content and titles.
10The Lodge
The Lodgeinvokes a series of difficult emotions in the viewer, from anger, to sheer terror, to satisfaction with its jaw-dropping ending. In the midst of a family retreat to a secluded winter cabin for the holidays, Richard (Richard Armitage) is forced to abruptly depart for work, leaving his two children in the care of his fiancé Grace (Riley Keough).
The problem is, Grace is a mentally disturbed young woman whom Richard left his wife for. A great deal of tension is created when Richard nonchalantly leaves his children under the care of a woman who has had a past filled with instability, being the only survivor of a cult’s mass suicide.
With his first-hand knowledge of Grace’s past and how it has deeply impacted her mental and emotional state, why would Richard feel so confident with bringing that energy and baggage onto his children? Every aspect about him and his relationship with Grace just seems eerie and flat out creepy, and once the kids find out about Grace’s past, they begin to taunt her, unleashing a series of strange and creepy events in this excellent little Hulu movie.
Sebastian Stan became an internet sensation when he portrayed a twisted killer with a peculiar appetite in the horror thrillerFresh, which follows a romance-weary young woman (Daisy Edgar-Jones) who decides to take a chance on a charming man she meets in the grocery store, only to later discover he harbors a dark and terrifying secret.
Stan, whose devious on-screen counterpart performs a memorable dance number with Edgar-Jones, recorded himself doing a quirky dance while holding a knife to nab the villainous role; theactor later stated,“The dance sequences were a big concern for [Cave] and just in case she had any doubts that I could do it, I recorded myself in this video.”
Freshpremiered at the Sundance Film Festival before being released worldwide on Hulu, becoming the second -most streamed movie across all platforms T the time, while also becoming a knockout with critics and audiences alike. The horror hit was lauded for its bold storytelling, clever twists and turns, and its dark, satirical take on the world of online dating, with some callingFreshthe best horror film of 2022.
8Possessor
Director David Cronenberg’s son Brandon helmed this disturbing twist on body horror and sci-fi with the wonderfully distinct and dark filmPossessor. The film follows a woman (played brilliantly by Andrea Riseborough) who is tasked with using a dangerous machine which taps her into the minds of certain people. Possessing their bodies, she is able to carry out assassinations and crimes for a shady group led by an intense Jennifer Jason Leigh. It’s a trippy, weird, and sad horror masterpiece, albeit a divisive one.
The recent Finnish filmHatchingis an absolutely horrific tale, a psychological nightmare that’s actually scary. An abstract allegory for parenthood, conformity, and perhaps the transgender experience,Hatchingfollows a young gymnast in an emotionally hostile home, dominated by her awful mother. When the daughter brings home an egg one day, the entire household is shaken by what hatches out of it. It’d be a shame to spoil what happens in this infinitelyunsettling horror masterpiece, so you’ll have to check it out yourself if you can stomach it.
The South Korean, genre-defying thrillerParasitetells the story of two families who are divided by greed and class discrimination;it’s a modern tale for modern times. Its premise displays a poor family, the Kims, infiltrating the lives of a wealthy family, the Parks, after becoming their new employees. Although director Bong Joon-ho’s movie could be considered a dramatic thriller, it also segues into sheer horror at several unpredictable, violent, and shocking moments. At the same time, there are also occasions where comedy is depicted naturally.
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The hot sauce scene is a memorable favorite, a scene stemming from the Kim family’s plan targeting the Parks' current housekeeper, scheming to convince Mrs. Park that the housekeeper has been deceitful about her claim of being diagnosed with tuberculosis. Food, like almost everything else in the film, is cleverly used as “a violent weapon of class struggle,” according toVice. Horror or otherwise, this remains one of the best movies on Hulu.
5The Other Lamb
Born into an all-female cult led by the male Shepard (Michiel Huisman), a young Selah (Raffey Cassidy) begins to question everything instilled by the vicious leader. The heightened levels of isolation and seclusion that Selah feels as a character is reflected organically onscreen inThe Other Lamb.
She’s not able to freely speak of her doubts and concerns publicly because her fellow cult sisters will inform Shepard of her betrayal, leading to punishment. Selah’s character stands out among the modern dayfemale revolt against a patriarchal systemwhich oppresses women, and is the highlight of this dark, tense movie on Hulu.
4Honeymoon
Game of Thronesstar Rose Leslie appears opposite Harry Treadaway in the chilling supernatural horror filmHoneymoon, in which the pair portrays a newly married couple who decide to spend their romantic honeymoon at a secluded cabin in the woods. When the blushing bride is found wandering the land in the middle of the night, her husband becomes suspicious after her behavior turns erratic and increasingly sinister.
The spine-tingling flick marked Leigh Janiak’s feature film directorial debut (who would later helmtheFear Streettrilogy), and it had its worldwide premiere at South by Southwest where it earned positive praise. Leslie’s eerie performance was singled out by critics, as wasHoneymoon’s taut atmosphere, twisted storyline, and nightmarish breakdown of the couple’s relationship.
Both creepy and downright awkward,Spreefollows a disturbed 20-something Uber driver, Kurt Kunkle (Joe Keery), as he desperately tries to become a YouTube influencer. Finding work through a fictional rideshare app named Spree, Kurt places a series of go-pro cameras into his car and begins to livestream each ride as he starts to pick up passengers, drugging them with poisoned bottles of water and later killing them.
The screenlife horror layoutand main performance of this film is psychologically terrifying, and thanks to this movie on Hulu, just the thought of hopping into a rideshare now evokes goosebumps.
2False Positive
The horror filmFalse Positive, froma screenplay by John Lee and Ilana Glazer, takes viewers on a whirlwind of emotions from start to finish. Lucy Martin (Glazer, from the hilariousBroad City), a New York-based copywriter, lives alongside her husband Adrian (Justin Theroux) in Manhattan. Trying to conceive for years, the couple decides to seek the help of Dr. John Hindle, Adrian’s former instructor and one of the world’s most acclaimed fertility doctors.
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Lucy quickly becomes pregnant after Dr. Hindle inseminates her with a technique he invented, but things go from good to bad with Dr. Hindle (a damn creepy Pierce Brosnan) once Lucy uncovers his dark and malicious truth.The anxieties of pregnancy and motherhood(which also worked so well forRosemary’s Baby) are fiercely reflected in this nasty little horror movie on Hulu.
1I Trapped the Devil
Snuggle under the covers with a crucifix, a bottle of holy oil, and a shot of tequila for the highly unique and stylishI Trapped the Devil. Matt and his wife Karen arrive at the home of Matt’s estranged brother, Steve (an excellent Scott Poythress), to celebrate Christmas together. Though the two initially hoped for a peaceful family reunion, Matt and Karen are shocked to find that Steve has been holding a man hostage in his basement, claiming he is the devil. Yes, things go downhill from there as all hell starts to break loose (literally), though that is exactly what Steve is trying to prevent.
I Trapped the Devilis bathed in the beautiful neon glow of Christmas lights and has a truly artistic feel to it, while the performances from the only three actors make it feel like an incredible play. When looking for what to watch for Christmas or Halloween, somehowI Trapped the Devilcovers all bases.
