Everything That’s Streaming in October 2026

Pamela Voorhees. Clowns who may be Evil. Mysterious sea creatures. Awful teenagers. True crime. Found footage horror. Road trips from hell. Spooky season is finally here, and viewers can find all of the above and more streaming this month to ring in Halloween.

Elsewhere, Netflix’s long-awaited East of Eden miniseries adaptation arrives alongside a who’s-who of documentaries about comedians, Ben Affleck directs a new crime thriller, a new animated show in the world of Avatar (the airbenders, not the Na’vi) finally arrives, Vision is back on your TV sets and John Cena is driving fast cars again.

Read on for Book & Film Globe’s definitive guide to the top titles this October.

Netflix

East of Eden (Oct. 1) — Elia Kazan directed the 1955 film version of John Steinbeck’s great American novel; now, Kazan’s granddaughter Zoe Kazan writes and showruns the Netflix miniseries adaptation.

This updated version will “focus new attention on its indelible antihero, Cathy Ames (Florence Pugh),” according to Netflix. Christopher Abbott, Mike Faist, Hoon Lee, Joseph Zada, Tracy Letts, Martha Plimpton and Ciarán Hinds also star.

All seven episodes drop Oct. 1.

Who Is Martin Mull? (Oct. 7) — In the first of several documentaries about comedians debuting on Netflix this month, the late Bob Saget examines the life of late character actor, musician, comedian, talk show host and painter Martin Mull. Fred Willard also pops up as a talking head in the trailer, making this film one of the last times we may get to see those three men on camera.

Below (Oct. 8) — Josh Hartnett returns to the horror genre, this time in a new limited series about a Newfoundland fisherman taking on a mysterious sea creature that’s haunting his town. Charlie Heaton and Mackenzie Davis co-star.

Animals (In select theaters and on Netflix Oct. 9) — Ben Affleck is back in the director’s chair for a crime thriller about an LA mayoral candidate (Affleck) who only has a few hours to come up with the ransom payment when his son is kidnapped. The only problem is he spent most of the family money on the mayoral campaign, and now he and his wife (Kerry Washington) have to get their hands dirty to pay the kidnappers.

Norm: The Tale of Norm Macdonald (Oct. 16) — Judd Apatow directs this documentary about the life of the late comic Norm Macdonald. (Apatow also co-directed the documentary about Maria Bamford, mentioned below.)

The One About Matthew Perry (Oct. 27) — Rounding out a very documentary-heavy month for Netflix is this feature-length look at the life of late Friends actor Matthew Perry, complete with interviews with his family members and his closest friends.

Also playing:

Haunted Hotel Season 2 (Oct. 9)

Michael Che: Shot in Minnesota (Oct. 13)

Tyson (Oct. 13)

Hunting Gary Glitter (Oct. 14)

The Diplomat Season 4 (Oct. 15)

Nobody Wants This. Season 3 (Oct. 22)

Paralyzed By Hope: The Maria Bamford Story (Oct. 23)

SCTV: The Greatest Show You’ve Never Heard Of (Oct. 30)

Visit Netflix for a full list of releases.

 

Hulu

Phony (Oct. 20) —The new show from Marcel the Shell With Shoes On screenwriter Nick Paley is a mystery comedy about a teen (Sam Nivola) who wakes up from a car accident to find that his mother (Connie Britton) has seemingly been replaced by an imposter. Paley has compared the show’s tonal mix to My So-Called Life and Freaks and Geeks, but with a mystery element.

Clown Panic (Oct. 7) — Remember 2016, when it felt like there was a new sinister clown sighting every day? This documentary examines that weird cultural phenomenon. There’s even a talking head portion from a “good clown” (sample quote: “I don’t know any clowns that want to go kill a bunch of kids. I mean, that’s your customers.”).

Jamie Foxx: Take Care of Yourself (Oct. 7) — Jamie Foxx is back for an all-new stand-up special where he riffs on getting older, living in an all-white neighborhood and more.

Also playing:

The Lowdown Season 2 (Oct. 14)

Visit Hulu for a full list of releases.

 

BritBox

Ludwig Season 2 (Oct. 13) —  Puzzlemaster (and, now, police consultant) John “Ludwig” Taylor (David Mitchell) continues his search for his missing twin brother, with the help of his brother’s wife Lucy (Anna Maxwell Martin), in this new season of the hit mystery show.

Also playing:

War and Peace (Oct. 5)

Time Season 3 (Oct. 22)

Visit BritBox for a full list of releases.

 

Disney+

VisionQuest (Oct. 14) — Vision (Paul Bettany) continues on in life after WandaVision as he attempts to understand himself via the AI personalities embedded in his programming. He is helped by a mysterious teenager, who may or may not be his reincarnated son. James Spader reprises his role as Ultron, this time in person.

Visit Disney+ for a full list of releases.

 

Apple TV

Matchbox The Movie (Oct. 9) — Extraction franchise director Sam Hargrave brings Mattel’s toy car IP to the big (small) screen, starring John Cena as a spy who reunites with his childhood “Matchbox Gang” one night — Jessica Biel, Sam Richardson, Teyonah Parris and Arturo Castro — and is then framed for stealing a nuclear warhead. Now, the gang has to put their childhood skills of playing with Matchbox cars to the test in real life. Should be a good holdover until Cena stars in the next Fast & Furious film, whenever that may be.

Tenzing (In select theaters Oct. 9; streaming on Apple TV Oct. 16) — This film is based on the true story of Nepalese-Indian climber Tenzing Norgay (Genden Phuntsok), who became the first to summit Mount Everest, along with Edmund Hilary (Tom Hiddleston). This film showcases the relationship between Norgay and Hillary during their Everest expedition, an “ascent defined as much by the tensions between backgrounds, classes and competing ambitions as by the perils of the mountain itself,” according to Apple TV. Willem Dafoe co-stars.

Nocturne (Oct. 30) — Liev Schreiber plays Jonah Lynn, a former soldier turned homicide detective in search of a quiet life in western Pennsylvania. When serial killer Jurek Walter (Stephen Graham) threatens his town and his family, Jonah must protect his newfound peace. The search for Walter’s latest victim forces Jonah to put his surrogate daughter Saga (Zazie Beetz) on the case in a deadly game.

Also playing:

The Last First: Winter K2 (Oct. 2)

Small Prophets (Oct. 7)

Where’s Wanda? Season 2 (Oct. 21)

Visit Apple TV+ for a full list of releases.

Prime Video

Carrie (Oct. 7) — Mike Flanagan’s latest Stephen King adaptation is a modern-day series update on King’s first novel. What would happen to Carrie White if she were cyberbullied? We’re about to find out.

Also playing:

Helluva Boss Season 3 (Oct. 14)

The Terminal List Season 2 (Oct. 21)

Visit Prime Video for a full list of releases.

 

HBO Max

War (Oct. 1) — Dominic West and TV shows about marital issues go together like McNulty and insubordination at this point. Here, West plays a British tech entrepreneur who’s divorcing his international film star wife (Sienna Miller). The show focuses on the teams of lawyers representing each spouse.

The Pet Cemetery Murders: A Ghost Story (Oct. 11) — This documentary about the re-opening of a mysterious 1985 cold case murder of a pet cemetery owner in Louisiana delves into one community’s long-standing history of bloodshed and trauma.

Kordell Stewart: Slash & Burn (Oct. 27) — A new documentary about former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kordell “Slash” Stewart examines the harm done to Stewart after a rumor got started in the ’90s about his sexuality.

Also playing:

The Housemaid (Oct. 9)

The Death of Robin Hood (Oct. 16)

Kate Berlant: Parmesan (Oct. 16)

The Invite (Oct. 23)

Visit HBO Max for a full list of releases.

 

Peacock

Crystal Lake (Oct. 15) — Pamela Voorhees (Linda Cardellini) gets an origin story in this Friday the 13th prequel series from A24 and Peacock. All eight episodes drop on Oct. 15, but wouldn’t it have made more sense to release it weekly back in September to time it for a Friday, Nov. 13 finale? Oh well. It looks fun.

Visit Peacock for a full list of releases.

 

Shudder

V/H/S Mixtape (Oct. 9) — The found footage series continues for Spooky Season, this time in an anthology of films about the horror of sound. To that end, this ninth installment of the V/H/S franchise features original music videos from Flying Lotus and an anthology segment directed by RZA. Jim Henson’s Creature Shop also supplies some original puppets for one segment.

Infirmary (Oct. 2) — When a guard at an old psych hospital vanishes on the first night on the job, his found bodycam footage shows unexplainable incidents.

Hallowarrior (Oct. 16) — A girl named Pumpkin is the last girl on earth following a humanity-ending plague. Every year around Halloween, she scavenges for materials — except for this year, when a group of raiders (led by Shannyn Sossamon) arrive to threaten her.

Fangoria Chainsaw Awards (Oct. 25 livestream) — Fangoria highlights the best in horror films with its annual awards show, hosted this year by Devon Sawa.

Also playing:

Curse of the Ghoul Logs (Oct. 1)

The Cycle (Oct. 23)

Joe Bob’s Halloween House Party (Oct. 23 livestream)

The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula Season 7 (Oct. 27)

Visit Shudder for a full list of releases.

 

Criterion Channel

Highway Horror — The Cars That Ate Paris, The Hitcher, Maximum Overdrive, Joy Ride, The Appointment, Race with the Devil, more

Made-for-TV Terror — Duel, Someone’s Watching Me!, Salem’s Lot (1979), Dark Night of the Scarecrow

Unwelcome Guests — Rosemary’s Baby, The Night of the Hunter, Play Misty For Me, Pacific Heights, The Gift, You’re Next, Funny Games, more

Possessions — Jennifer’s Body, Possession, The Omen, The Faculty, The Wailing, more

Directed by Dario Argento — The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, The Cat o’ Nine Tails, Inferno, Tenebrae, Two Evil Eyes

Directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa — Cure, Pulse, Cloud, Serpent’s Path, more

Visit the Criterion Channel for a full list of releases.

Paramount+

Avatar: Seven Havens (Oct. 9) — While Netflix is still releasing its live action version of the original animated Avatar: The Last Airbender series, this new Paramount+ animated series debuts with a whole new avatar – and this time, it looks like there are two of them.

Original series creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko are back with this new series set after the events of The Legend of Korra, where the avatar is seen as a threat, not a savior. A young Earthbender discovers that she’s the next avatar and that she has a long-lost twin sister. She must uncover her origins while being hunted by both spirits and humans.

Also playing:

Tulsa King Season 4 (Oct. 16)

All The Queen’s Men Season 5, Part 2 (Oct. 21)

Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 (Oct. 30)

Visit Paramount+ for a full list of releases.