It’s October, so grab your buckets of candy, light the candles, and watch these family Halloween movies.
Image by Annamaria Ward
Halloween is approaching and that means preparations for this spooky holiday are in full swing. You are probably starting to decorate your house, stocking up on candy, and choosing the perfect costume. But you don’t have to wait until October 31 to start the festivities. There’s no better time to cozy up on the couch and watch a creepy movie than October. However, finding the perfect Halloween movie to watch with the family can be a challenge. You want something with spooky spirit, but without being too scary for the kids. Have no fear (pun intended), we are here to solve your problem with this list of the best Halloween movies on Netflix to watch with the whole family.
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Casper (1995)
Image via Universal Pictures
Run Time: 101 minutes | Director: Brad Silberling
Cast: Malachi Pearson, Christina Ricci, Bill Pullman, Cathy Moriarity
“Casper the friendly ghost, the friendliest ghost you know!” This song just about sums up what you need to know about Casper (Malachi Pearson), the first fully CGI lead character in a feature film. This adorable ghost is based on the character from Harvey Comics. Aptly named, Kathleen “Kat” Harvey, played by Christina Ricci, is a teenage girl who moves into the haunted Whipstaff Manor. She and Casper form a friendship, as they each deal with processing death in their own way. This film touches on the themes of love and loss, while still being appropriate for children.
Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015)
Run Time: 89 min | Director: Genndy Tartakovsky
Cast: Adam Sandler, Andy Samberg, Selena Gomez, Kevin James
When the comedy of Adam Sandler meets the monsters of Halloween, audiences get Hotel Transylvania 2. Full of our favorite creatures such as werewolves, mummies, and vampires, we get the monster’s perspective on the world. We are introduced to our protagonist, Count Dracula (Sandler), in the first Hotel Transylvania, which shows that he created a hotel in Transylvania that only monsters can patronize. That all changed one day when Johnny, a human male played by Andy Samberg, enters the hotel. Johnny gets entangled in a romance with Dracula’s daughter, Mavis (Selena Gomez). In the second film, the vampire-human couple has a child named Dennis (Asher Blinkoff) who has yet to show his abilities as a vampire. This concerns Dracula and he and his friends attempt to help push Dennis along. In the end, we are left with lessons about acceptance and mutual respect between all creatures. There have been two other sequels to the film spanning the last decade.
Home (2015)
Image via DreamWorks Animation
Run Time: 94 min | Director: Tim Johnson
Cast: Jim Parsons, Rihanna, Steve Martin, Matt Jones, Jennifer Lopez
If you thought E.T. was a cute alien, wait until you meet Oh (Jim Parsons). Oh is an outcast from the alien race called the Boov. The Boov begin an invasion of Earth, sending humans to the Australian Outback. This is when Oh and Gratuity “Tip” Tucci (Rihanna) meet and become friends. Tip and her cat are searching for her mother because they got separated during the invasion and Oh promises to help them. But can an alien species really be trusted?
Hubie Halloween (2020)
Image via Netflix
Run Time: 102 min | Director: Steve Brill
Cast: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Julie Bowen, Ray Liotta, Rob Schneider
Adam Sandler makes another movie on this list with Hubie Halloween. The Halloween comedy hit Netflix right when audiences really needed a pick-me-up in 2020. Sandler provided all the laughs with his cooky character of Hubie, the Halloween Helper. Hubie is kind-hearted and looks out for his town to make sure “tricks” don’t get out of hand. However, he is unpopular and is bullied by his fellow townsfolk. But this Halloween, Hubie will become the hero that the town needs to have a truly happy Halloween.
Goosebumps (2015)
Run Time: 103 min | Director: Rob Letterman
Cast: Jack Black, Dylan Minnette, Odeya Rush, Amy Ryan, Ryan Lee, Jillian Bell
Based on the popular children’s horror book series, Goosebumps, this film centers on a fictionalized version of the Goosbumps author, R.L. Stine (Jack Black). After Stine’s books are accidentally unlocked, the monsters he has written about are released in his town. These include the frightening Slappy the Dummy, The Abominable Snowman of Pasadena, The Werewolf of Fever Swamp, and more. Stine, his daughter Hannah (Odeya Rush), and their neighbor Zach (Dylan Minnette) work together to put all the monsters back into the books where they belong. For those of you who want to explore the Goosebumps world even further, a rebooted television series is now streaming on Disney+ and Hulu. Viewer beware, you’re in for a scare!
A Babysitter’s Guide to Monster Hunting (2020)
Run Time: 94 min | Director: Rachel Talalay
Cast: Tamara Smart, Oona Laurence, Ian Ho, Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson
Mixing the genres of fantasy, horror, and comedy is A Babysitter’s Guide to Monster Hunting. The plot centers on Kelly Ferguson (Tamara Smart) who is babysitting a little boy named Jacob (Ian Ho). After Jacob tells Kelly of his fears of monsters, he is abducted by three monsters and taken to the Boogeyman. The Boogeyman plans to utilize the imagination of Jacob to create an army of monsters. But not all hope is lost because a secret society of babysitters is on the case of rescuing Jacob.
Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005)
Image via Aardman Animation
Run Time: 85 min | Director: Nick Park and Steve Box
Cast: Peter Sallis, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter
This stop-motion animated feature serves the whole family because it is a parody of classic horror flicks. Parents will enjoy the references to some of their favorite monster movies, while children will enjoy the cute duo of Wallace (Peter Sallis) and Gromit. Wallace is an eccentric inventor and Gromit is his loyal pooch. They attempt to solve a rabbit problem in their town, but their problems are much larger than they imagined.
Nightbooks (2021)
Run Time: 103 min | Director: David Yarovesky
Cast: Winslow Fegley, Lidya Jewett, Krysten Ritter
Another movie on the list based on a horror-fantasy children’s book is Nightbooks. We meet Alex Mosher (Winslow Fegley) who has a preoccupation with writing scary stories. This talent comes in handy when he is lured into a witch’s magical apartment. The witch, Natacha (Krysten Ritter), demands that Alex tell her a scary story with an unhappy ending every night, otherwise, he will die. Another captive in the apartment, Yasmin (Lydia Jewett), and Alex decide to plan a dangerous escape. Will they manage to escape Natacha’s clutches, or will they be doomed to this nightmare forever?
Gnome Alone (2017)
Image via Netflix
Run Time: 85 min | Director: Peter Lepeniotis
Cast: Becky G, Josh Peck, Olivia Holt, Madison De La Garza
Gnome Alone is a computer-animated fantasy comedy about a girl named Chloe (Becky G) and the garden gnomes she bands together with. When Chloe moves into a new house she accidentally unleashes a portal, allowing little monsters called Troggs into her universe. The Troggs are the gnomes’ mortal enemies, and they explain to Chloe that she must undo the damage that she caused. If Home Alone and Gremlins had a baby it would be this movie.
We Have a Ghost (2023)
Image via Netflix
Run Time: 127 min | Director: Christopher Landon
Cast: David Harbour, Jahi Winston, Anthony Mackie
Another light-hearted entry on this list, We Have a Ghost follows The Presley Family who move into a creepy house. The youngest of the family, Kevin (Jahi Winston), discovers a ghost in the attic who has no memory of what happened to him in his life on Earth. Together Kevin, his neighbor Joy (Isabella Russo), and the ghost (David Harbour), put together the pieces of what happened and help the ghost with his unfinished business.