Hello, dear readers! Today, we’re kicking off our 2021 Indie Horror Month celebration right here on Daily Dead, and I figured the best way to get things going was to put together a list featuring a bunch of my favorite independent genre movies that you can currently stream on a variety of platforms. As someone who was fortunate to grow up enjoying all sorts of films that were released outside of the studio system, and as someone who also continues to enjoy all the indie horror contributions that come along these days, there is definitely something for every kind of horror fan included here.
Check out this streaming list I’ve compiled here (in alphabetical order to make things easier), and we hope you’ll not only continue to check back throughout the entire month of April for all of our ongoing Indie Horror Month coverage, but that you’ll join us in paying tribute to the independent spirit of storytelling and filmmaking that helps make the horror genre as great as it is.
Happy Streaming and Happy Indie Horror Month!
Absentia (Available to Stream on Shudder & Tubi TV)
Disturbing visions haunt a pregnant woman as she begins to link a mysterious tunnel to the sudden disappearance of her husband years earlier.
Anna and the Apocalypse (Available to Stream on Hulu)
A zombie apocalypse threatens the sleepy town of Little Haven – at Christmas – forcing Anna and her friends to fight, slash and sing their way to survival, facing the undead in a desperate race to reach their loved ones.
The Blackcoat’s Daughter (Available to Stream on Netflix)
When their parents fail to pick them up for winter break, two students stay on at an all-girls boarding school in the company of a terrible presence.
The Blair Witch Project (Available to Stream on Netflix)
Three student filmmakers march into the woods to make a documentary about a fabled witch credited with a string of murders dating back 200 years.
The Brood (Available to Stream on HBO Max & Criterion Channel)
Frank Carveth and his ex-wife Nola are locked in a brutal custody battle over their daughter. Nola seeks therapy from Dr. Raglan, whose controversial practices include Psychoplasmics, a treatment that encourages patients to give form to their inner conflicts and anger. As the fragile Nola digs ever deeper into her own psyche, she gives birth to a series of mutant, homicidal children that carry on her wish for revenge against anyone who has ever wronged her.
Chopping Mall (Available to Stream on Amazon Prime & Shudder & Tubi TV)
In this slasher favorite, eight teenagers are trapped in a high tech shopping mall, pursued by killbots.
Day of the Dead (1985) (Available to Stream on Tubi TV & Pluto TV)
In the wake of a zombie apocalypse, scientists, military personnel, and civilians attempt to maintain order despite differing plans.
Dead Heat (Available to Stream on Shudder & Amazon Prime)
Maverick L.A.P.D. officer Roger Mortis (Treat Williams) is a good cop who will do anything to nail the bad guys. Even if he's got to die for it. Investigating some frightening goings-on, Mortis and his partner, Doug Bigelow (Joe Piscopo), pay a visit to Dante Laboratories. Here they discover the high-tech Resurrection Room churning out a weird band of recycled and indestructible criminals.
Dude Bro Party Massacre III (Available to Stream on Tubi TV)
A young bro infiltrates a fraternity after the serial killer Motherface murders his twin brother.
Excision (Available to Stream on Tubi TV)
Dreaming of a career in medicine, a teen girl with a chronically-ill sister becomes darkly obsessed with scabs, surgery, and losing her virginity.
The Eyes of My Mother (Available to Stream on Tubi TV & Vudu)
A shocking tragedy sends ripples through the life of a young girl, and as she blossoms into womanhood, her longing to connect takes a dangerous form.
Halloween (1978) (Available to Stream on Shudder)
An escaped killer returns home in John Carpenter’s classic.
Hatchet (Available to Stream on Tubi TV)
A local horror story of a man murdered by his father is proven true when a bunch of tourists encounter the ghost while on a boat in a Louisiana swamp.
Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II (Available to Stream on Shudder & Tubi TV & Vudu & Pluto TV)
A prom queen's tortured spirit rises to get revenge against the boyfriend responsible for her fiery death. He's now the high-school principal.
Hellraiser (Available to Stream on Criterion Channel)
A puzzle box reveals a realm of sadistic monsters led by a being named Pinhead.
Hellbound: Hellraiser II (Available to Stream on Hulu)
In the sequel to HELLRAISER, an occult-obsessed doctor calls forth the Cenobites.
House II: The Second Story (Available to Stream on Amazon Prime & Tubi TV)
Jesse McLaughlin's sitting on top of the world. He's a talented artist with a growing career and a beautiful girlfriend. And he's moving into a magnificent house. A very special house. A house which will plunge him into an incredible adventure... one where all of his dreams, fantasies and nightmares will be realized.
The Invitation (Available to Stream on Netflix)
A man accepts an invitation to a dinner party hosted by his ex-wife, an unsettling affair that reopens old wounds and creates new tensions.
Killer Klowns from Outer Space (Available to Stream on Netflix)
An alien band of killer clowns descends from the cosmos to harvest scores of small-town victims, cocooning their prey to eat them later.
Maniac (1980) (Available on to Stream on Shudder & Amazon Prime)
A twisted psychopath displays his victims’ scalps on mannequins in his apartment.
May (Available to Stream on Tubi TV)
May is an awkward loner with a difficult past just looking for human connection, but after a series of botched relationships, her desire turns deadly.
Night of the Living Dead (1968) (Available to Stream on Tubi TV & Kanopy)
When the dead come to life in this classic horror film, strangers sheltering in a farmhouse must unite to survive as the situation deteriorates.
Night of the Comet (Available to Stream on Tubi TV & Pluto TV)
When a passing comet snuffs out most of humanity, a pair of very ’80s Valley Girls hit the mall and battle hordes of blood-thirsty zombies.
Nightbreed (Available to Stream on Tubi TV & Vudu)
A distraught man’s psychiatrist frames him for murders he committed, which ultimately results in his death. But he comes back to life to seek revenge.
A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) (Available to Stream on HBO Max)
A group of teenagers are terrorized by Freddy Krueger, an evil being from another world who gets to his victims by entering their dreams and killing them with gloves that have knife blades attached to each finger.
Phantasm (Available to Stream on Tubi TV & Pluto TV)
Remastered 1979 horror classic about two brothers who discover that their local cemetery is run by a ghoulish mortician wreaking havoc on the damned.
Possessor (Available to Stream on Hulu)
Using brain-implant technology, an elite corporate assassin takes control of other people’s bodies to execute high-profile targets. As she sinks deeper into her latest assignment, Vos becomes trapped inside a mind that threatens to obliterate her.
Pumpkinhead (Available to Stream on Tubi TV)
A father invokes the demon Pumpkinhead to avenge his son's death at the hands of big-city bikers in this horror classic filled with the essence of evil.
Resolution (Available to Stream on Tubi TV)
The plans of a man imprisoning his drug-addicted friend in a remote San Diego cabin to detox him are being mysteriously corrupted.
Santa’s Slay (Available to Stream on Tubi TV)
It turns out that Santa Claus (Bill Goldberg) is not really the sweet old fellow that we all know and love. In fact, he's a devil and the only thing that's kept his bad side in check was a bet he lost with an angel. After 1000 years of playing nice, the bet is up and Santa is about to open up a can of holiday Whoop-Ass! The only glimmer of hope comes from an old man (Robert Culp) with a secret, his grandson (Douglas Smith) and his girlfriend (Emilie de Ravin).
Saw (Available to Stream on HBO Max)
Live or die…make your choice! In the 2004 classic that launched this bone-chilling horror film series, two men awaken in a dingy bathroom chained to pipes—victims of a maniac known as Jigsaw who wants them to play his deranged game.
The Signal (2008) (Available to Stream on Tubi TV & Pluto TV)
A horror film told in three parts from three perspectives, in which a mysterious transmission which invades every cell phone, radio and TV, turning people into killers.
Sleepaway Camp (Available to Stream on Shudder & Tubi TV & Pluto TV & IMDb TV)
Following the death of her family, Angela is sent to a camp for the summer. After her arrival, brutal accidents begin to kill the other campers.
Slumber Party Massacre (Available on Shudder & Amazon Prime & Tubi TV & Pluto TV)
In this cult horror classic, a maniac on the loose takes his weapon of choice, a huge power drill, to a gathering of unsuspecting young women.
Slumber Party Massacre II (Available to Stream on Shudder & Amazon Prime & Tubi TV & Pluto TV)
A teenage girl and her friends find themselves terrorized by a psychotic rock star who has a weaponized guitar fitted with a drill bit.
Spring (Available to Stream on Shudder & Hulu & Tubi TV)
After the death of his mother and a fight in a bar that could lead to jail time, Evan leaves California for Italy, where he falls for Louise (Nadia Hilker), a young woman who he soon discovers is harboring a dark, primordial secret.
The Stepfather (1987) (Available to Stream on Tubi TV)
After murdering his entire family, a man remarries a widow with a teenage daughter in another town and prepares to do the same thing all over again.
The Stuff (Available to Stream on Amazon Prime & Tubi TV)
A dairy conglomerate hires an FBI agent-turned-industrial mole to investigate a new dessert product that once eaten starts eating your body alive.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) (Available to Stream on Shudder & Tubi TV & Criterion Channel)
A group of friends are terrorized by a chainsaw wielding madman and his depraved family in this legendary horror.
Tragedy Girls (Available to Stream on Hulu)
Best friends Sadie and McKayla are on a mission to boost their social media fandom as amateur crime reporters hot on the trail of a deranged local serial killer. After they manage to capture the killer and secretly hold him hostage, they realize the best way to up get scoops on future victims would be to, you know, murder people themselves. As the @TragedyGirls become an overnight sensation and panic grips their small town, can their friendship survive the strain of national stardom? Will they get caught? Will their accounts get verified?
Tucker & Dale vs. Evil (Available on Kanopy)
Relaxing in your cabin is tough when screaming teens keep mistaking you for a backwoods killer. Awkward.
Vamp (Available to Stream on Tubi TV)
A group of fraternity pledges head for the seedy side of the city in search of strippers and discover a sinister spot called The After Dark Club. But when the bar’s luscious dancers turn out to be bloodthirsty vampires led by the kinky Katrina (Grace Jones), the evening takes on a freaky new twist. Can these guys survive a bizarre onslaught of vixens and vamps, or will the armies of the undead take the ultimate bite out of their night?
The Voices (Available to Stream on HBO Max)
Ryan Reynolds is an off-his-meds screwball who ponders his murderous impulses with the help of his talking pets in this "demented delight" (New York Post).
Waxwork (Available to Stream on Tubi TV)
A wax museum owner uses his horror exhibits to unleash evil on the world.
The Witch (Available to Stream on Kanopy)
Believing that a witch has cursed their family, pilgrims homesteading on the edge of a primeval New England forest become increasingly paranoid.
Heather A. Wixson was born and raised in the Chicago suburbs, until she followed her dreams and moved to Los Angeles in 2009. A 14-year veteran in the world of horror entertainment journalism, Wixson fell in love with genre films at a very early age, and has spent more than a decade as a writer and supporter of preserving the history of horror and science fiction cinema. Throughout her career, Wixson has contributed to several notable websites, including Fangoria, Dread Central, Terror Tube, and FEARnet, and she currently serves as the Managing Editor for Daily Dead, which has been her home since 2013. She's also written for both Fangoria Magazine & ReMind Magazine, and her latest book project, Monsters, Makeup & Effects: Volume One will be released on October 20, 2021.
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