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6 Horror Movies That Deserve Remakes

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If you’ve read enough Kurt Vonnegut, you’ve probably heard of Kilgore Trout. He’s a (fictional) science fiction author with great skill at coming up with vivid and exciting premises, but almost no ability to actually turn those premises into novels that are worth reading. Most horror remakes have the opposite problem. They take material that is already well-known and well-respected and usually put it in the hands of someone with either equal or lesser skill than the original filmmakers, which is a similarly pointless exercise.

But what about those Kilgore Trout movies? The ones with great premises that suffered either through poor execution or a limited budget? Why not remake those movies, and thus bring audiences more exciting versions of premises that were somewhat wasted? We’d certainly have a more interesting slate of remakes to contend with than most of the IP-driven sludge that dominated the mid to late 2000s, even with the number of entries that turned out to be pretty solid. That’s what drove me to compile this list of movies that really do deserve the handsome, well-mounted remakes that so many minted classics have received in the last twenty years and change.

6 Horror Remakes We Need to See Made

A note: This is a chronological list, in no way meant to indicate the movies’ relative level of quality. Also, each and every one of these movies has its fans (including me, in some cases), so please know that this isn’t intended as an outright dismissal of the original works as a whole. 

I Married a Monster from Outer Space (1958)

It’s a hell of a premise. A woman gets married to a guy played by Tom Tryon. Considering that he’s one of the most handsome men in the world, this seems like a great decision at the time, until she slowly begins to realize that he’s a monster from outer space. The movie was very ahead of its time, presenting a story about a woman who is trapped in a patriarchal structure and recognizes a problem but isn’t able to find anyone willing to believe that it exists. With the right budget and the right (non cis male) director and writer, this could really sing. Hell, Sofia Coppola basically already remade this movie as Priscilla. And Jacob Elordi might just be the modern-day answer to Tom Tryon, so… Let’s make it happen, folks.

Satánico Pandemonium (1975)

I think many would argue, correctly, that this Mexican nunsploitation outing is not a bad movie by any stretch of the imagination. But I think a remake could turn its already overwhelming and propulsive style into something even more lurid and captivating with the right filmmaker on board. Imagine. Luca Guadagnino going ham on the third act like he did with the ending of his Suspiria remake. Or Panos Cosmatos giving it the full Mandy treatment. Or hell, Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez teaming up on this beauty, which they have already referenced by bestowing its title upon Salma Hayek as the name of her character in From Dusk Till Dawn.

Sorority House Massacre (1986)

Sorority House Massacre is a perfectly pleasant slasher movie helmed by Carol Frank, a rare 1980s female horror director, but it’s just so cheap. Considering the fact that it is loosely interrelated with the Slumber Party Massacre franchise, which just got a surprisingly solid remake in 2021, I think it’s time for Sorority House to get its due as well. If the vivid nightmare sequences are fleshed out and the female gaze is turned up to 11, we could have a hell of a good time on our hands.

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Mimic (1997)

This is a remake where you wouldn’t even have to change directors. The original Guillermo del Toro movie, about a species of bug that has evolved to camouflage itself among human beings, was chewed to pieces by the Dimension Films woodchipper. But imagine the man who made The Devil’s Backbone and Blade II and Hellboy and Pan’s Labyrinth and Crimson Peak and The Shape of Water and Pinocchio coming back to remake his first English-language project, applying all the lessons he learned in the meantime. Glorious.

When a Stranger Calls (2006)

“But Brennan,” you’re saying, “this movie is already a remake of that 1979 movie with Carol Kane!” And you would be quite right. But here’s the thing. The 2006 remake makes exactly one good choice (expanding the terrifying “Have you checked the children?” opening sequence into a full feature instead of doing a pointless time jump and watching a cop wander around the city for an hour), and essentially no others. There is a very good full feature buried somewhere in the When a Stranger Calls premise, but nobody has quite been able to find it yet.

Winchester (2018)

Making a movie based on the most historical and aesthetically interesting building in California and giving it a boilerplate Conjuring plot with absolutely no sense of place is a criminal act. (Did I mention it was shot in Australia?) Also, I hardly think a demon twink was the worst of the real Sarah Winchester’s worries, to be completely honest. Let’s try this again. Once more, with feeling!

Brennan Klein is a millennial who knows way more about 80's slasher movies than he has any right to. He's a former host of the  Attack of the Queerwolf podcast and a current senior movie/TV news writer at Screen Rant. You can also find his full-length movie reviews on Alternate Ending and his personal blog Popcorn Culture. Follow him on Twitter or Letterboxd, if you feel like it.

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The Best Horror You Can Stream on Shudder in November 2025

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Halloween season is over, and many streamers have forgotten about us horror kids. While they take their 11-month hiatus from the genre, we can be grateful that we still have an app that cares. We are so lucky that Shudder remains that girl year-round. Whether you’re finishing their new original show Guts & Glory, catching up on The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula: Titans, or running at some of their deep cuts like I am, Shudder has your best interests at heart. As usual, she has quite a few titles fighting for our attention. Which is why I am here with five titles I think should be at the top of all of our watch lists this November. So, cancel your holiday plans and pick up your remote because we have got horrifying things to watch.

The Best Movies to Stream on Shudder This Month

Habit (1995)

An alcoholic unwittingly enters into a relationship with a succubus in New York City. If you ever wondered what Larry Fessenden was getting up to in his youth, you need to see this ’90s gem. I lucked out and caught it at Brooklyn Horror Film Festival last year, and I lived my best life. While watching it on the small screen will not be the same, I plan to hit play anyway. Mostly because I love to see 1990s succubi leaving their mark on men…and also the horror genre. Shudder is also adding The Last Winter and Depraved, so we can spend a whole day with Uncle Larry’s work.

Sew Torn (2024)

A seamstress happens upon a failed drug deal and steals a briefcase. She soon finds herself caught in a deadly situation where all roads lead to death. I caught Sew Torn at SXSW last year and have been wondering what happened to it. So, I am very happy this odd little bird has found her way to Shudder. I cannot wait to make my friends who are looking for something cute and deadly watch. I knew nothing when I hit play on this, and I encourage you to know as little as possible, too. I fear I have already written too much in this blurb to be completely honest. 

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You can watch Sew Torn on November 1st.

The Retreat (2021)

A couple goes on a pre-wedding retreat and unwittingly becomes targets of a group of serial killers. We have seen too many movies about retreats, and I thought this one would be more of the same. This title does not completely reinvent the wheel, but it does set itself apart within this oversaturated subgenre. The Retreat is a surprisingly fun and tense little thriller that feels made for the winter watches. Come for the lesbian characters leading the film, and stay for the violence. I also encourage you to check it out while it is on Shudder, because it is usually on apps with ads.

You can watch The Retreat on November 1st.

The Creep Tapes (Season 2)

Peachfuzz returns with more tapes, chaos, kills, and WTF moments. Mark Duplass and Patrick Brice have reentered the TV arena and are making things weird again. If award shows were real, this duo would be leading the Emmys charge. I saw the first three episodes, and Josef/Peachfuzz is still the serial killer after our own hearts. Our Wolfie is still cutting up (literally and figuratively) in the most amazing ways. Guest stars in danger this season include David Dastmalchian (Late Night with the Devil), Katie Aselton (The League), and Robert Longstreet (The Haunting of Hill House). 

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You can watch The Creep Tapes (Season 2) on November 14th.

Krampus (2015)

A kid accidentally summons demons during the holidays in this horror comedy. Krampus remains one of the top-tier Christmas horror titles for me. It is also my favorite Michael Dougherty film. Not only because it has the star power of Adam Scott and Toni Collette, either. This movie is wicked, and even the kids are in danger. I do not have many holiday horror movies I revisit every year, but Krampus is one of the very few. It still holds up, and I cannot wait to rewatch it with a festively boozy beverage. 

You can watch Krampus on November 15th.

Those are a few reasons I am grateful for Shudder this holiday season. While the rest of you are fighting with your family and friends, I will be parked in front of my TV. You can have your turkey because I would rather gorge myself on episodes of The Creep Tapes anyway.

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Let me know what Shudder shenanigans you have got your little eye on. I am nosy and want to make sure I am not missing anything on my favorite streamer.

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The Best Horror You Can Stream on Netflix in November 2025

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The year is winding down, and I don’t know about you, but I am trying to pack in as many 2025 horror movies as I can. Is this because I love making end-of-the-year lists? Yes. Is it because I am an unhealed overachiever? Also, yes. So, I am assuming some of you are also cruising the streamers to see what you may have missed. While Netflix has had my favorite new slasher Heart Eyes for a bit, and I have mentioned that in previous streaming guides, they also have other new horror titles to show you.

I do not talk about them as much because I did not have a good time with them. However, that does not mean you won’t enjoy some of these titles. That’s why I am taking the high road and finding something to be grateful for about each of them. That way, you will know there is a silver lining if you do watch them. Allow me to help you figure out what to prioritize this month and what to skip. Check out this chaotic Netflix hitlist below! 

The Best Movies to Stream on Netflix This Month

28 Years Later (2025)

A group of survivors on a small island has built a fortress to protect them from the rage virus. However, a young boy discovers what is really outside the walls of their community and sets off to find a cure for his sick mother. We all loved 28 Days Later, and some of us liked 28 Weeks Later. So, 28 Years Later was never going to live up to the hype with almost thirty years of anticipation. While I didn’t love it, I did enjoy seeing Danny Boyle helm another zombie installment. What he does in the subgenre is top-tier, and we are welcome (even if the script left me wanting more). That might have gotten buried in all the talk about the dicks seen in the movie, though.

Fear Street: Prom Queen (2025)

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A group of girls competing for prom queen starts disappearing, leaving the underdog to figure out what is happening to her competition. I had a lot of thoughts about this lackluster installment in Netflix’s Fear Street adaptations. As someone who grew up reading Fear Street books and wanting to adapt them myself, I do not understand how this movie came out so badly. Which made it hard to find something nice to say about this title. However, the soundtrack slaps, and it is not the soundtrack’s fault that it was wasted on a low-energy bottom-tier slasher. So, if you hit play on this, you can at least look forward to hearing some retro bangers selected by music supervisor Nora Felder. If you are familiar with her work on Yellowjackets and Stranger Things, you know Felder does not miss.

Maa (2025)

To battle a demon’s curse, a mother transforms into the legendary goddess Kali. As usual, Netflix did not advertise an international horror movie that seemed to have some potential. If they had told us Maa was an Indian Hindi-language mythological horror movie, most people who yell for intersectionality and originality would have run at it. Instead, we had to find out about it months later while looking for something we hadn’t already seen on the app. This movie is too long, and I cannot say it is good by any stretch of the imagination. However, it also made me realize how little I know about the goddess of destruction. If you are a nerd like me, this might lead you down a cool rabbit hole. You can also say you gave a view to a horror movie starring Brown people. Who knows, maybe you could be one of the few who enjoy this chaotic film.

Until Dawn (2025)

A group of friends find themselves trapped in a time loop where they keep getting killed in gruesome ways. I love the video game and was so bummed this adaptation was so bad. However, the practical effects are very cool and should be celebrated more. I think the stuff that the SFX team pulled off might be the only reason to watch the movie personally. I’m happy the actors whose work I enjoy got paid, and that’s another positive thing I can say. However, if we want to see young people in deadly time loops, we have so many movies that do it better. Excuse me as I look right at Happy Death Day and all of the movies that have tried to copy her.

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Ziam (2025)

A Muay Thai fighter battles through a zombie apocalypse to save the woman he loves. Netflix fumbled the advertising for this one too, because who doesn’t want to see a Thai zombie film? So, I was excited to watch it, but then sad I did not like it. However, I think this one is on me. It is an action-horror with a lot of heartfelt moments, and that’s not my bag. I wanted more violence and zombie action because I am a broken and heartless ghoul. So, Ziam might be the only movie on this list that does not deserve my bombastic side eye. I am waiting for other people to watch it and let me know if they have a better time with it, though. 

While I was not the audience for these movies, I am assuming some of you will dig them. Worst-case scenario, you cross off a few more 2025 horror movies and have something to talk about at Friendsgiving. Happy Horrordays! I will see myself out now…

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