Modern Christmas traditions we all know and love, like decorating trees and singing carols, actually began in England during the Victorian era, a time when Gothic fiction also enjoyed popularity. It’s unsurprising, then, that Christmas Horror continues to delight and titillate centuries later. At its best, the subgenre complicates aspects of the holiday we may take for granted while also offering the antidote of a little thrill to all the sweetness of the holiday season.
Like all genres, Christmas Horror features distinct reoccurring tropes and motifs: “Psycho” Santa, or the Santa Slasher; ghostly figures haunted by past grief; the fantastical Krampus, who again darkens the ever-cheery vision of Santa; familial discord (to put it lightly); and, of course, films which offer a class analysis, critiquing the overconsumption encouraged during this time of year. The last decade has seen an explosion of entries, from classics like Gremlins to modern takes like Better Watch Out.
While most people may enjoy cozy comedies or holiday romances, there’s also room for seasonal frights. Think about it: the weather keeps everyone trapped in their homes, it gets darker earlier in the day, and for many people, the holidays can be an added stressor while they have to deal with family drama. It’s the perfect environment for the things that go bump in the night. Horror and the holidays go hand in hand. Plus, we’d argue some of the scariest holiday flicks are holiday classics in their own right.
Below, some of the scariest Christmas horror movies ever to help get you in the holiday spirit:
1 A Christmas Carol (1938)
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A Christmas Carol (1938) Official Trailer – Reginald Owen, Gene Lockhart Movie HD
Based on Charles Dickens’ novella of the same name, the original A Christmas Carol is an all-time classic, having seen numerous remakes over the years. It’s also, above all else, a ghost story. When Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by the ghosts of Christmases Past, Present, and Future, what they reveal is terrifying enough to transform his character completely by the film’s end.
2 It’s a Wonderful Knife (2023)
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It’s A Wonderful Knife Official Trailer | HD | RLJE Films | Ft. Justin Long, Joel McHale
It’s A Wonderful Knife—perhaps the Christmas movie—gets a slasher spin with 2023’s It’s A Wonderful Knife. The movie stars Jane Widdop (of Yellowjackets fame) as its George Bailey-esque heroine, and Scream King Justin Long as a would-be masked killer—who gets caught in his tracks and dies, but gets a second chance at unchecked violence when the protagonist wishes she’d never been born. It’s a goofy, fun, and quite violent take on a Christmas classic.
3 Silent Night (2023)
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Silent Night (2023) Official Trailer – Joel Kinnaman, Scott Mescudi
Silent Night isn’t quite a horror movie, but it’s a terrifyingly tense thriller that will almost certainly have you on the edge of your seat—while still filled with all sorts of holiday spirit. The movie (which stars Joel Kinnaman and features no dialogue) marks legendary director John Woo’s first American film in 20 years, and figures to be something like a silent, action-packed, Christmas-themed John Wick. Hell yeah.
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4 I Trapped The Devil (2019)
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I Trapped the Devil – Official Trailer I HD I IFC Midnight
A.J. Bowen has become an indie horror mainstay over the last decade and change, starring in genre staples like You’re Next and The House of the Devil, and he continues that demonic theme by starring in I Trapped The Devil. Bowen plays half of a couple who, on Christmas Eve, believe they’ve trapped Satan himself in their basement—just in time for the whole family to arrive. There’s lots of paranoia at play here, and the dread is palpable!
5 Christmas Bloody Christmas (2022)
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Christmas Bloody Christmas Exclusive Trailer (2022) Riley Dandy, Abraham Benrubi
Christmas Bloody Christmas isn’t doing too much—it follows a record store owner who staves off a Small Soldiers-esque robotic Santa Claus who goes Evil and starts murdering—but it’s effective at what it’s going for. Want Christmas? Want Santa? Want some kills? Here you go!
6 Silent Night (2021)
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Silent Night – Official Trailer
A bunch of movies with this title! Well, it makes sense. Anyway, this movie is a Christmas-set horror that’s all about the existential dread of what just might be a bunch of people’s last nights on earth. Keira Knightly, Matthew Goode, Lily-Rose Depp, and Kirby Howell-Baptiste lead the cast that do some impressive work, particularly for a genre that tends to lean toward the, well, less subtle side.
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7 P2 (2007)
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P2 Trailer (2007)
Yellowstone fans should not skip this one. Wes Bentley—best known these days as Jamie Dutton on Taylor Sheridan’s mega hit western—plays a menacing, evil security guard who takes a woman (Rachel Nichols) hostage in a Christmas-set exercise in terror.
8 The Shining (1980)
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The Shining | 4K Trailer | Warner Bros. Entertainment
We’re going to cheat a little bit for a couple of these, so just bear with us. The Shining may not be set on Christmas, but Stanley Kubrick’s classic is about as iconic of a Winter-set horror movie as you can possibly find. And if being secluded in the freezing cold with your family doesn’t give Christmas vibes, then what does?
9 Misery (1990)
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Misery (1990) – Official Trailer
Again: no explicit Christmas ties here, but there’s something that feels deeply tied to the holiday season about being held captive inside a secluded place during a frigid blizzard, just as Paul Sheldon (James Caan) is when he meets Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates). This isn’t just one of the best Stephen King adaptatons, but one of the best horror movies overall. A total blast with some great characters and performances built in.
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10 30 Days of Night (2007)
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30 Days of Night (2007) Trailer #1 | Movieclips Classic Trailers
If Vampires are your flavor, 30 Days of Night is a great bite to taste. This moody, atmospheric flick—it quite literally is about a month-long nightfall in an Alaskan small town—finds a bunch of vampires descending upon the town, and the people trying their best to stave them off. There’s no real Christmas connection, but you’ll want to watch all this cold weather from the coziness of your home. And if you’ve been enjoying the Josh Hartnett renaissance, he’s right at home as the lead here.
11 Let The Right One In (2008)
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Let the Right One In Official HD Trailer
Sure, it’s not a holiday movie in the traditional sense, but the quaint, wintry setting of a Stockholm suburb sets the stage for this tale of revenge and blossoming young love. A boy, bullied by his classmates, meets his next-door neighbor who just so happens to be a murderous vampire. The two bond over feelings of isolation, which ends in a bloody scene at a pool.
12 Let Me In (2010)
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Let Me In (2010) Trailer #1 | Movieclips Classic Trailers
A quick cheat here. We usually wouldn’t recommend most horror remakes, but the American version of Let The Right One In, titled Let Me In, is actually worth your time. From director Matt Reeves (Cloverfield, The Batman), anyone who liked Let The Right One In should check this one out if only to see how they compare.
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13 Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984)
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Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984) – Official Trailer
Silent Night, Deadly Night is typically remembered as the quintessential Santa Slasher, whose success, despite controversy upon its initial release, would go on to spurn a five-film franchise as well as a 2012 remake. After witnessing his parents murdered by a man in a Santa suit on Christmas Eve, Billy is sent to a violently oppressive Catholic orphanage where he is routinely punished for what are clearly trauma responses. Years of abuse and repression culminate in a murderous rampage.
14 The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
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The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) Official Trailer #1 – Animated Movie
Who among us didn’t watch this movie so much, it could be recited verbatim by our teen years? A classic, no matter how predictable. Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King of Halloweentown, is mired in an existential crisis when he discovers the existence of Christmas(town). Iconic for its incredible score by Danny Elfman, stop-motion animation, and one of the greatest weirdo love stories of all time.
15 The Gingerdead Man (2005)
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The Gingerdead Man Trailer
If you’re a fan of schlocky horror like the Leprechaun or Critters series, this one’s for you. The Gingerdead Man riffs on the premise of Child’s Play, except in this case, the serial killer’s soul ends up in…a gingerbread cookie. Solid low-stakes horror and a great group-watch since it doesn’t necessarily require all that much engagement (apart from the laughs).
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16 Gremlins (1984)
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Gremlins | Trailer | Warner Bros. Entertainment
Gremlins’ sheer chaos and absurd hilarity pretty much guarantee a great viewing experience. When Billy (Zach Galligan) receives the gift of an adorable little beast called a mogwai, we come to discover that like most things in nature, Gizmo’s cute-suit disguises some significantly less-cute consequences when he isn’t properly cared for. Self-reproducing, his many eventual counterparts lay waste to the serenity of the Christmas-time suburban landscape, spreading mischief and debauchery wherever they go. The film is surprisingly anti-capitalist in message, critiquing the hyper-commodification of the holiday and preposterousness of white flight suburbia. Nevertheless, it’s still dated (shall we say), housing some distinctly less-kosher qualities, like overtly fetishized orientalism and, of course, killing its token Black character first.
17 Rare Exports (2010)
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RARE EXPORTS: A CHRISTMAS TALE | Official Australian Trailer
Of the absolute onslaught of Krampus-oriented movies produced last decade, Rare Exports is easily the best. Set in northern Finland close to the Korvatunturi mountain (significant both as a borderland between Finland and Russia as well as being the folkloric location of Santa’s factory), this coming-of-age-within-masculinity story doubles as an eco-horror narrative a la The Thing. A British research team excavates something they didn’t understand or expect to find, hereby unleashing a slew of existential threats to the nearby community (typical colonizer shit). Onni Tommila stars as Pietari, a young boy trying to earn his father’s affection whose knowledge of the Indigenous folklore helps him save the day. Delightful though this film is, it’s also entirely absent women (despite all the children) and further traffics in a type of toxic masculinity that teaches boys they’re unworthy and incapable of being emotionally expressive human beings.
18 Black Christmas (1974)
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Black Christmas (1974) – Official Trailer (HD)
The original 1974 Black Christmas is most notable as one of the earliest slasher films, having had a huge influence on John Carpenter prior to the 1978 release of Halloween. Derived from a combination of urban legend as well as a real-life series of murders which occurred in Westmount, Montreal during an early 1940’s holiday season, the film details a group of sorority girls who are stalked and tormented by an unknown killer. Masterful in its pacing, the film evokes all the real-life terror of essentially being a prey item. For both its influence on the genre and its feminist subtext, the film received both a 2006 and 2019 remake, with the former delving deeper into the killer’s backstory, and the latter revamping the original story with a whole new ending.
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19 Inside (2007)
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À l’intérieur (Inside) Trailer HD
A woman is attacked on Christmas eve in this French horror film. The target of this evil stranger/spirit/terror: the woman’s unborn child. Whether it’s straight horror film or some demonic retelling of the Christian nativity story, the film is as stylish as it is relentless.
20 Christmas Evil (1980)
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Christmas Evil (1980) – Trailer HD 1080p
Christmas Evil is easily one of the best films on this list and chronically underrated, both for its impact on the Santa Slasher as a subgenre and its willingness toward subversiveness. As its name suggests, this movie does a complete critique of the holiday: particularly, its commodification under capitalism.
21 Eyes Wide Shut
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Eyes Wide Shut (1999) Official Trailer – Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman Movie HD
Though neither wholly a Christmas nor horror movie, Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut nevertheless uses elements of both to much success in creating this film’s surrealist dream-like atmosphere. Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman star in what is a truly labyrinthine story about marriage, jealousy, obsession, and the utter unknowability of those we love.
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22 Anna and the Apocalypse
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ANNA AND THE APOCALYPSE Official Trailer (2018)
Let’s list the genres: zombie, Christmas, horror, musical. (Also, a bit of romance.) Are you not on board? This British film is an aggressive nod to several horror/cult/musical classics, including West Side Story, The Breakfast Club, and Rocky Horror Picture Show. It also brings together a standout cast of actors you’ve probably never seen before. Truly the perfect holiday party flick.
23 Tales From the Crypt (1972)
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Tales from the Crypt (1972) – Trailer HD 1080p
The first cinematic rendering of the EC Comics series, which would eventually bless us with the beloved ‘90s rendition, is structured as a five-part anthology wherein a group of tourists become trapped in a catacomb where they encounter the Crypt Keeper (Ralph Richardson). Revealing to each of them the matter of their deaths, the first tale, “…And All Through the House” has Joanne Clayton (Joan Collins) struggling between managing a messy coverup- having unceremoniously murdered her husband on Christmas Eve- and the escaped killer in a Santa suit who is stalking her house.
24 Who Slew Auntie Roo? (1971)
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Whoever Slew Auntie Roo? (1971) – Trailer HD 1080p
Who Slew Auntie Roo? is almost classical to Christmas horror, retelling the fairy tale, “Hansel and Gretel” to incorporate elements of the Gothic tradition. Shelley Winters stars as Auntie Roo, a Miss Havisham-esque character haunted by the loss of her young daughter and husband who invites orphaned children to her manor every year for Christmas. Unhinged by grief, she is compelled to kidnap a girl named Katie, who bears an uncanny resemblance to her daughter.
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25 The Children (2008)
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The Children Trailer
This low budget British horror flick will have you avoiding small kids for some time after watching. Recalling some of the best demon child films like The Omen, The Children is a solid entry in the horror genre and, with the story based around the holidays, a great film to ring in the new year with some jump scares.
26 Elves (1989)
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ELVES trailer
We must first state the obvious: This is a completely batshit movie. It is not good. Most would call it trash and they wouldn’t be wrong. But it’s the type of wreckage that’s so bad it becomes almost…surprising. The plot is near indecipherable, involving three girls, a pagan ritual, Nazis, and a genetic experiment involving evil elf copulation. It also features excellent lines like, “I’m sorry my friends bled all over your fucking store, you want me to stay here and clean it up asshole?” Not dissimilar to Tommy Wiseau’s The Room in tone and crap level, but with Christmas. And Nazi elves.
27 Dead End (2003)
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Dead End 2003 Trailer | Ray Wise | Lin Shaye | Mick Cain
Many of us can relate to that feeling of eternal damnation when it comes to obligatory time spent in close quarters with family during the holidays. Starring Ray Wise, Lin Shaye, and Alexandra Holden, this contemporary re-imagining of Jean-Paul Sartre’s No Exit earns big laughs with its unabashedly dark humor and thoroughly developed characterizations while still managing to be legitimately disconcerting. The Harringtons are heading to Grandma’s for Christmas Eve dinner when dad, Frank (Wise) decides to “take a shortcut.” Disposing with the saccharine sentimentality of most Christmas fare, Dead End takes viewers along for the family drive from hell where it becomes clear that all these relationships have truly hit a dead end (trigger warning for the requisite casually racist/homophobic family member).
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28 A Christmas Horror Story (2015)
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A Christmas Horror Story Official Trailer #1 (2015) William Shatner Horror Movie HD
Like other entries on this list, A Christmas Horror Story uses an anthology format, though with a distinct twist. Instead of lining up the four tales one by one, storylines are interwoven, creating a sprawling vision of one night of terror in the town of Bailey Downs. A group of friends encounter a vengeful ghost; one family is stalked by Krampus while another realizes one of their own has undergone a… transformation. We also get Santa and Krampus doing battle in a mall so there’s that. Fun fact: This film is set in the same fictional town as 2000’s Ginger Snaps.
29 Day of the Beast (1995)
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The Day of the Beast | Official Trailer | Streaming Free on Cineverse
A Catholic priest, hoping to stop the birth of the antichrist on Christmas Eve, decides to commit a series of crimes to bring himself into contact with Satan. The result is a wicked black comedy and maybe the perfect viewing experience for the bah humbug crowd who can’t stand Christmas.
30 Krampus (2015)
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Krampus – Official Trailer (HD)
2015 was a big year for Christmas horror. Starring Toni Collette and Adam Scott, this entry likely had one of the biggest budgets on this list, visible in its legitimately cool monsters. It’s also likely one of the sappiest and most family friendly. A (minorly) dysfunctional family is forced to band together to survive Christmas Eve when the spirit of Krampus and all his various mischief-makers is conjured.
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31 The Lodge (2019)
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THE LODGE Official Trailer (2019) Riley Keough Horror Movie HD
Like Dead End, The Lodge is Christmas-adjacent, where the holiday isn’t present so much in its aesthetic treatment (there are no bodies bound in neon lights here), but in the complicated situations and emotions that come up for many this time of year. When two traumatized children are forced to spend a couple days in an isolated mountain lodge with their (equally traumatized) soon-to-be stepmom, the situation quickly disintegrates. Indeed, viewers be warned, this film is dark and easily the heaviest on this list.
32 Better Watch Out (2016)
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BETTER WATCH OUT Official Trailer (2017) Thriller Movie HD
While there are definitely aspects of this movie that aren’t great, there are a number of things this modern Christmas slasher does well. For one, its twist is genuinely surprising, breathing fresh air into a category that tends toward repetitive. It’s also super deft at creating and holding tension throughout while offering astute commentary on the real monsters of suburbia and just how terrifying they actually are.
33 Mercy Christmas (2017)
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MERCY CHRISTMAS – TRAILER
For anyone who has or is currently suffering under The Boss From Hell, this one’s for you. When Michael Briskett is invited to Christmas dinner by who-he-thinks-is his dream girl, he’s horrified to discover she’s related to his boss—and that he’s what’s for dinner. A super clever critique of capitalism that is preposterously hilarious without sparing an ounce of violence (of the super cathartic kind).
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34 The Advent Calendar (2021)
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The Advent Calendar – Official Trailer [HD] | A Shudder Original
This Shudder original follows a woman who receives a strange advent calendar in the mail – one that delivers a terrifying and bloody gift each day leading up to Christmas. This French film is an underrated gem for those of us who like a little fear with our hoildays.
35 The Retaliators (2021)
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The Retaliators | Official Trailer
Fans of mysteries and revenge films will enjoy The Retaliators, which follows a pastor who investigates his daughter’s brutal murder and ends up learning more about the dark world she found herself in before her death.
36 Jack Frost (1997)
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Jack Frost (1997) – Trailer [HD]
Not to be confused with the equally terrifying Michael Keaton film from 1998, Jack Frost follows a serial killer who dies in a car accident, then is revived as a snowman. After his reincarnation, Jack becomes set on getting revenge on the town’s sheriff.
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37 Await Further Instructions (2018)
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Await Further Instructions Trailer #1 (2018) | Movieclips Indie
A family becomes trapped in their own home on Christmas and have to contend with a mysterious black substance and their TV sending them strange messages.
38 Violent Night (2022)
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Violent Night – Official Trailer
David Harbour stars in this 2022 spin on Santa Claus. Rather than simply a jolly guy delivering toys, he’s also a guy who kicks serious butt when a group of mercenaries attack a family on Christmas Eve.
39 Hosts (2020)
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HOSTS Official Trailer (2020) Horror Movie
A family invites their seemingly sweet neighbors over for Christmas in this horror movie. What starts off jovial quickly becomes terrifying.
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40 Red Snow (2021)
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Red Snow – Official Trailer
A romance author takes on vampires in this terrifying yet hilarious Christmas tale.
Article originally posted on: https://www.menshealth.com/entertainment/g34438331/scary-christmas-horror-movies/
