There’s nothing like a good horror movie to make you shudder in your shoes, or a cheesy one to make you laugh in dark delight.
If you love the horror genre, you’ll take them all.
And Shudder brings them to you — the good, the bad, and the ugly — all neatly packed in one place for your screaming — er, streaming — enjoyment.
Not only does the streaming service serve up a vast collection of horror movies and TV shows from the past and present, including both Hollywood and cult classics, it also delights viewers with a slew of original programming.
The upcoming Horror’s Greatest docuseries and the uber popular variety show, The Last Drive-in with Joe Bob Briggs are just two examples.
Add in original film productions such as Late Night with the Devil, Christmas Bloody Christmas, and the V/H/S franchise reboot, it’s easy to see why Shudder is the king of horror streaming.
The King of Horror Streaming
What I love most about Shudder, as a horror fan, is that everything is in one place.
With the multitude of streaming services available and the vast movie and TV show libraries to go along with them, sometimes it becomes a living nightmare digging around trying to find something new to watch.
With Shudder, you know what you’re getting because it’s all horror, all the time.
In other words, a horror lovers dream come true.
An added bonus is that sometimes you’ll dig up movies you forgot existed until they pop up as you’re scrolling through Shudder’s catalog of films.
And because they rotate their collection regularly, there is always something new to sink your teeth into, or an old favorite to rewatch.
Their catalog is also curated by an actual human being, a big plus in this age of AI and computer-generated everything.
What that means is Shudder has programming that is watchable, unlike some of the garbage you step into on other streaming services when you click on a horror movie or show that looks appealing but turns out to be anything but.
Movies With Friends
One of the most entertaining ways to watch Shudder’s collection is with Joe Bob Briggs and his Last Drive-In show.
He’s a Shudder staple, but I never bothered to check him out until recently and, wow, what a blast.
I honestly didn’t think I would like the show because I thought it was going to be something similar to Mystery Science Theater with people talking over the film, but it’s not that at all.
It’s kind of like a Svengoolie or Elvira, but better. Seriously.
Along with Darcy the Mail Girl, he does his schtick before, during, and after whatever film or films he decides to showcase.
Some of the films are classic and cult films you’ve already seen.
Others are ones you might never have heard of, so being able to discover new movies in this fashion is an added bonus.
And even if you don’t like the featured film, you’re going to get some enjoyment out of it just because of the way Joe Bob Briggs presents it.
The Last Drive-In is set up like a late night talk show and sometimes he has guests, including actors from whatever film is being featured.
But it’s the interaction between Joe Bob and Darcy that is most amusing.
He’s extremely blunt and she’s extremely “innocent,” especially when she gets indignant about things like hunting rabbits.
Is it cheesy? Of course.
But Joe Bob provides such interesting insight into the upcoming film that you want to watch it with him — and stick around to see what other knowledge he decides to share during breaks.
His trademark and a highlight of the show is “Drive-In Totals” where he totals up notable moments throughout the movie, including kills, oddities, body parts, and other fun facts and trivia.
It’s like a little game you can play with yourself while watching to see if you can catch everything he pointed out.
Briggs’s popularity comes from two similar shows he previously hosted: Joe Bob’s Drive-In Theatre which aired on The Movie Channel from 1986 to 1996, and MonsterVision which aired from 1996 to 2000 on TNT.
A little over a decade after MonsterVision was canceled, Shudder revived the series into what it is now.
Joining Briggs in his new venture was his enormous fan base.
In 2018, when he hosted a 24-hour live movie marathon to launch the new series, it was so popular, it crashed Shudder’s live feed.
None of this is new, but it’s another example of the gems to be discovered on Shudder.
Even when you think you’re not going to enjoy it, you might be surprised, like I was, and I’ve been a subscriber to Shudder for quite some time.
Horror Until I Die
If Joe Bob Briggs is not your thing, but you still want to stick with horror television, Shudder has got you covered there, too.
Popular series like Hannibal, A Discovery of Witches, Chucky, Stan Against Evil, Preacher, and many others are just a click away, all collected in one tidy space.
And if you love anthology series like me, then Creepshow, based off the 1982 movie (which was based off the EC comics of the same name), is a must.
Sometimes those little mini-movies are creepier than full-length films.
A docuseries like 101 Scariest Movie Moments of All Time is not only a great way to reminisce about some your favorite horror movie moments as you listen to industry professionals share theirs, but you also might discover some new movies you never knew about.
I came across quite a few gems from watching that series.
In that same vein, Shudder’s upcoming Horror’s Greatest, produced by the same team as 101 Scariest Movie Moments of All Time, will delve into some of the most iconic horror movies of all time in various sub-genres.
Directors, actors, writers, and others will discuss their must-see films and share why we should all watch them too, if we haven’t already.
These are the types of shows that can generate lots of heated discussion among horror fans whether it’s in places like Reddit or in your living room with your fellow horror fan friends.
Horror’s Greatest premieres on August 27.
Movies to Die For
Shudder’s bread and butter, of course, are its movies.
Aside from its rotating catalog of Hollywood films, foreign horror, and cult classics, their original films are to die for.
There are so many films to choose from and so many more to recommend that if I listed all my favorites, we’d be here for days.
However, one movie well worth mentioning and well worth watching, even though it’s not an original Shudder film, is #ChadGetsTheAxe.
Directed by Travis Bible, this 2023 movie is one that, had it not been for Shudder, I would never have known it existed.
It follows a group of social media influencers who decide to visit an abandoned house that was once used by a Satanic cult.
On the surface, it looks corny as hell.
But while it does have its corny moments, it’s a surprisingly good movie about the horrors of social media.
It’s not necessarily scary, but it’s creepy in a quirky kind of way, and thoroughly engaging until the very end.
One film that is scary and a mind-bending creep-fest that is exceptionally good is Late Night with the Devil, an original Shudder film released in April of this year.
It’s about a late-night talk show host played by David Dastmalchian who thinks he can save his failing show by bringing on a supposedly possessed girl on Halloween night in 1977.
Late Night with the Devil is unpredictable, totally mind-blowing, and one of the best examples of why Shudder is a horror lover’s dream come true.
Are you a Shudder subscriber?
What gem have you discovered on the streaming service?
Share your favorites in the comments below!