Christmas Horror Movies
Not everyone wants their Christmas viewing served with a side of sentimentality. For those who prefer their stockings stuffed with dread, the Christmas horror genre delivers. From the proto-slasher Black Christmas to the gleefully unhinged Krampus, these films prove that silent nights are the perfect setting for something terrible to happen. Tinsel optional. Screaming guaranteed.
Scary Christmas Movies That Subvert the Season
The Christmas horror genre works because it inverts everything the season stands for. Silent nights become the backdrop for something lurking. Festive decorations turn sinister under the right lighting. Black Christmas (1974) invented the slasher formula before Halloween existed, and it did it with a sorority house at Christmas. Krampus took the anti-Santa legend and turned it into a genuinely scary Christmas film with creature effects that hold up. These are the scary Christmas movies that earn their scares honestly.
Christmas Slasher Movies and Cult Favourites
The Christmas slasher subgenre has a loyal following and a surprisingly deep catalogue. Silent Night, Deadly Night caused a moral panic in 1984. Christmas Evil (1980) is considered by John Waters to be the greatest Christmas film ever made. Jack Frost turns a serial killer into a mutant snowman, which is exactly as ridiculous as it sounds. For horror fans, the Christmas slasher movie is its own tradition - one that pairs better with eggnog than you might expect.
Horror Films Set at Christmas
Not every Christmas horror movie is a slasher. Gremlins plays the holiday setting for dark comedy. Die Hard - whatever side of that debate you fall on - uses Christmas Eve as the backdrop for one of the greatest action films ever made. Eyes Wide Shut unfolds across the holiday season with a creeping unease that never lets up. The best horror films set at Christmas use the season's forced cheer as contrast, making the darkness darker by comparison.