If you want a little more fear with your holiday cheer, Christmas horror is a growing genre, and December searches for Christmas horror movies are now more than double what they were in 2016, according to Google Trends. This year brings four new ones, Christmas at the Kringles, Violent Night 2 and Shudder’s Unholy Night and Red Snow, and the classics are streaming, many of them free on Tubi.
In this guide:
- My five picks
- New Christmas horror movies in 2026
- What’s coming, by date
- Where to stream every movie, in one table
- Christmas horror on Tubi, Netflix, Peacock, HBO Max and Shudder
- The banned Christmas horror movie
- Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve horror
- Christmas horror events and collectibles
- Frequently asked questions
My Picks: Five Holiday Horror Movies to Stream
Gremlins (1984)
Where to watch: HBO Max, rated PG, 1 hour 47 minutes.
A town is turned upside down when small creatures are accidentally unleashed and wreak havoc on it at Christmas. It is the only PG movie in this guide, which makes it the one for a family movie night.
Krampus (2015)
Where to watch: Peacock, rated PG-13, 1 hour 37 minutes.
A family faces Krampus, the demon from European folklore who punishes naughty children at Christmastime. Michael Dougherty directed it for Universal, with Adam Scott, Toni Collette and David Koechner.
Thanksgiving (2023)
Where to watch: HBO Max, rated R, 1 hour 46 minutes.
A year after a Black Friday riot, a Thanksgiving-inspired killer terrorizes Plymouth, Massachusetts, the birthplace of the holiday. Thanksgiving falls on November 26 this year.
Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984)
Where to watch: free on Tubi in its unrated cut, and on Shudder.
A boy who saw his parents murdered grows up to kill during the holiday season, dressed as Santa Claus. It set off protests and theater pullouts in 1984, which are in the banned movie section below, and last year’s remake is free on Tubi too.
Violent Night (2022)
Where to watch: Netflix, rated R.
Santa Claus, played by David Harbour, takes on mercenaries who try to rob a wealthy family’s mansion on Christmas Eve, with John Leguizamo and Beverly D’Angelo. Violent Night 2 picks up his story in theaters on December 4.
New Christmas Horror Movies in 2026
Violent Night 2
Where and when: in theaters December 4, from Universal Pictures.
David Harbour is back as Santa Claus, this time against a gangster, played by Jared Harris, who is terrorizing the merchants of the Silver Bell Mall, and Kristen Bell plays Mrs. Claus. “If you’re nice, you get presents from the Big Guy. If you’re naughty, you get justice,” Universal’s synopsis says. Tommy Wirkola directs again for 87North, the producers of John Wick and Bullet Train.
Unholy Night
Where and when: Shudder, December 4, as a Shudder Original.
Gino’s family Christmas Eve turns into a fight for survival when his long-dead grandmother drops by and goes on a murderous rampage, and more dead Italian relatives start turning up around the neighborhood.
Red Snow
Where and when: Shudder, December 11, as a Shudder Original.
In this Finnish horror comedy, Johanna, a 16-year-old emo teen, dreams of a vampire prince, and on Christmas Eve she gets Martti instead, a balding 49-year-old vampire who slips into a Santa suit to get into homes. It is the first feature directed by Ilja Rautsi, who wrote Hatching.
Christmas at the Kringles
Where and when: in theaters, where it opened October 30.
A family moves in next door to the Kringles, who celebrate Christmas all year and plan to hypnotize them, with Ron Livingston and Rachel Bilson as the parents and Rob Riggle as the drunk Santa who helps them fight back. Kevin Lewis, who directed Willy’s Wonderland, directed it, and my Christmas at the Kringles story has the cast, the rating and the trailer.
Silent Night, Deadly Night (2025)
Where and when: free on Tubi, rated R.
It is last year’s remake of the 1984 film, directed by Mike P. Nelson, with Rohan Campbell and Ruby Modine. In it, a troubled drifter is “haunted by a vengeful spirit that compels him to punish the naughty before Christmas,” Tubi’s listing says.
Joe Bob Conquers Christmas
Where and when: live on Shudder TV on Friday, December 4, then on demand from Sunday, December 6.
Joe Bob Conquers Christmas is a holiday special from The Last Drive-In, Shudder’s horror double-feature show hosted by Joe Bob Briggs and Darcy the Mail Girl, and one of the specials that followed its series finale. The two host a double feature of Christmas movies that Shudder says “ruined” the holiday when they came out, with their annual charity fundraiser running alongside.
Christmas Horror Coming to Streaming, by Date
- November 1: Black Christmas (2006) arrived free on Tubi, and Christmas Evil, Better Watch Out, A Christmas Horror Story and Don’t Open Till Christmas joined Shudder.
- November 26 (Thanksgiving): Black Christmas (1974) and Black Christmas (2006) join Shudder.
- December 1: P2 (2007) and A Christmas Tale (2005) join Shudder.
- December 4: Violent Night 2 opens in theaters, Unholy Night premieres on Shudder, and Joe Bob Conquers Christmas airs live on Shudder TV.
- December 6: Joe Bob Conquers Christmas streams on demand on Shudder.
- December 11: Red Snow premieres on Shudder.
Where to Stream Christmas Horror Movies
| Movie | Year | Rating | Where to stream |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gremlins | 1984 | PG | HBO Max |
| Krampus | 2015 | PG-13 | Peacock |
| Violent Night | 2022 | R | Netflix |
| Christmas Bloody Christmas | 2022 | TV-MA | Netflix, Shudder |
| Black Christmas | 1974 | R | Free on Tubi, Peacock, Shudder from November 26 |
| Black Christmas | 2006 | R | Free on Tubi, Shudder from November 26 |
| Silent Night, Deadly Night | 1984 | R | Free on Tubi (unrated cut), Shudder |
| Silent Night, Deadly Night | 2025 | R | Free on Tubi |
| Christmas Evil | 1980 | R | Free on Tubi, Shudder |
| Don’t Open Till Christmas | 1984 | TV-MA | Free on Tubi, Shudder |
| P2 | 2007 | R | Free on Tubi, Shudder from December 1 |
| The Lodge | 2019 | R | Free on Tubi |
| A Christmas Horror Story | 2015 | TV-MA | Free on Tubi, Shudder |
| Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale | 2010 | R | Free on Tubi |
| The Mean One | 2022 | TV-MA | Free on Tubi |
| Better Watch Out | 2017 | R | Free on Tubi, Shudder |
| Anna and the Apocalypse | 2017 | R | Free on Tubi |
| It’s a Wonderful Knife | 2023 | TV-MA | Shudder |
| The Advent Calendar | 2021 | TV-MA | Shudder |
Tubi is free, and Netflix plans start at $8.99 a month, HBO Max at $10.99 and Peacock Premium at $12.99.
Christmas Horror Movies on Tubi, Netflix, Peacock, HBO Max and Shudder
Free on Tubi
- Black Christmas (1974, R): Bob Clark’s slasher about sorority sisters stalked by a stranger over the Christmas holiday, with Olivia Hussey, Margot Kidder and Keir Dullea. Terrifier director Damien Leone told io9 in 2024 that it is his favorite Christmas horror film and that Terrifier 3 pays homage to it, which is where Spirit’s Art in the Attic doll of Art the Clown gets its name.
- Black Christmas (2006, R): Glen Morgan’s remake, in which sorority sisters trapped in their house become the targets of an escaped killer, with Katie Cassidy, Michelle Trachtenberg and Lacey Chabert. It arrived on Tubi November 1.
- Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984, the unrated cut) and its 2025 remake (R): both in my picks and the new releases above.
- Christmas Evil (1980, R): a toy factory worker who was scarred as a child by learning that Santa Claus isn’t real has a breakdown and goes on a killing spree at Christmas. Lewis Jackson directed it.
- Don’t Open Till Christmas (1984, TV-MA): someone is killing anyone in a Santa suit, and Scotland Yard has to stop him. Edmund Purdom directed it and stars.
- P2 (2007, R): after leaving her office Christmas party, a woman is trapped in a parking garage and hunted through the night by a security guard, with Rachel Nichols and Wes Bentley.
- The Lodge (2019, R): a soon-to-be stepmom is snowed in with her fiance’s two children at a remote holiday village, with Riley Keough and Alicia Silverstone.
- A Christmas Horror Story (2015, TV-MA): evil spirits descend on the small town of Bailey Downs, and not even Santa Claus is safe, with William Shatner.
- Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010, R): an archaeological dig unearths an evil Santa Claus, and a boy and his father set out to capture him. Jalmari Helander directed it.
- The Mean One (2022, TV-MA): 20 years after a green figure in a Santa suit murdered her family, Cindy comes back to stop the Christmas-hating creature.
- Better Watch Out (2017, R): a babysitter has to protect a 12-year-old boy during a home invasion that keeps getting stranger, with Olivia DeJonge, Levi Miller and Patrick Warburton.
- Anna and the Apocalypse (2017, R): a zombie outbreak hits the town of Little Haven, and Anna and her friends fight, slash and sing their way through it.
Netflix
- Violent Night (2022, R): Santa Claus against mercenaries on Christmas Eve, one of my picks.
- Christmas Bloody Christmas (2022, TV-MA): a malfunctioning robot Santa Claus goes on a bloody rampage on Christmas Eve, with Riley Dandy, Sam Delich and Jonah Ray. It also streams on Shudder.
Peacock
- Krampus (2015, PG-13): the folklore demon who punishes naughty children, one of my picks.
- Black Christmas (1974, R): also free on Tubi.
HBO Max
- Gremlins (1984, PG) and Thanksgiving (2023, R): both in my picks.
Shudder
- It’s a Wonderful Knife (2023, TV-MA): a year after saving her town from a killer, Winnie Carruthers finds herself in a nightmare parallel universe where things are much worse without her.
- The Advent Calendar (2021, TV-MA): a French film in which a woman named Eva gets a strange advent calendar as a gift.
- Also streaming now: Christmas Bloody Christmas, Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984), Christmas Evil, Better Watch Out, A Christmas Horror Story and Don’t Open Till Christmas.
- Coming to Shudder: both Black Christmas films on November 26, P2 and A Christmas Tale (2005) on December 1, and the new Shudder Originals Unholy Night on December 4 and Red Snow on December 11.
What Was the Banned Christmas Horror Movie?
Silent Night, Deadly Night, the 1984 film about an ax-wielding killer dressed as Santa Claus, was kept off screens in several cities by protests, though TriStar, its distributor, said it would not pull the film. TriStar canceled its television ads after some TV stations had already stopped running them over viewer complaints, UPI reported on November 15, 1984.
That week, the film was pulled from three theaters in New York, and the two major chains in Billings, Montana, said they had no plans to show it. Nearly 200 protesters, including a Moravian priest, picketed the Interboro Theater in Brooklyn, some with signs reading “Santa’s Not a Hitman.” TriStar kept its print ads, which showed Santa Claus thrusting his arm down a chimney with an ax in his hand. The film still took in $1,432,800 that weekend in about 400 theaters, eighth at the box office.
Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve Horror Movies
- Thanksgiving (2023, R, HBO Max): the Plymouth, Massachusetts slasher in my picks, for the week of November 26.
- New Year’s Evil (1980, R, free on Tubi): as a New Year’s Eve party rages, the host of a punk rock TV show gets on-air calls from a killer. Emmett Alston directed it.
Christmas Horror Events and Collectibles This Season
- Krampus & Kin, Universal Horror Unleashed in Las Vegas, select nights November 19 to January 10: Krampus and five more winter creatures from European folklore, and a Kill Vault Video area where guests browse holiday horror films. It is included with admission, from $14.99 plus tax. My Krampus & Kin story has the creatures and the food.
- Christmas Incarceration, the Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield, Ohio, December 5, 11 and 12: Blood Prison’s Christmas haunted house, from $25. My Christmas Incarceration story has the tickets and the age limit.
- Estate of Evil, Hersheypark’s Christmas Candylane, select dates November 13 to January 3: a Dark Nights haunted house reopened as a holiday open house, decorated by its murderous staff. My Estate of Evil story has the rooms.
- Art in the Attic, Spirit Christmas: Terrifier’s Art the Clown as a $34.99 holiday doll, in my Art in the Attic story.
- Der Krampus (Deadly Red) Ornament, Sideshow: a $56 Krampus for the tree, in my Krampus ornament story. Monster High’s Krampus doll follows on December 3, in my Skullector story.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where can I watch Christmas horror movies for free?
Tubi streams 13 of the movies in this guide for free, including both Black Christmas movies and both versions of Silent Night, Deadly Night.
Where can I watch Black Christmas?
Both the 1974 Black Christmas and the 2006 remake are free on Tubi. Peacock also streams the 1974 film, and both join Shudder on November 26.
Where can I watch Krampus?
Krampus (2015) streams on Peacock.
What new Christmas horror movies are on Shudder?
Unholy Night premieres on Shudder December 4 and Red Snow on December 11.
When does Violent Night 2 come out?
Violent Night 2 opens in theaters on December 4, 2026.
This year’s Halloween horror is in my Halloween 2026 streaming guide. I update this guide weekly through December.
Last updated: November 5, 2026.
