A new month brings a fresh wave of buzzy titles to the world's best streaming services, and Hulu is no exception: October 2026 sees an influx of high-profile movies and television shows joining its already extensive platform, especially in the horror genre. (It is the start of spooky season, after all.)
That means you won't have to struggle to find something thrilling and chilling to watch during the first weekend of the month. If you're a fan of Florence Pugh — and already watched the Oscar-nominated star take on Cathy Ames in Netflix's "East of Eden" — you can revisit one of the actress's acclaimed early roles in the 2019 folk-horror film "Midsommar."
Keeping the creepy vibe going, "The Substance" — Coralie Fargeat's jaw-dropping body-horror saga that earned an Academy Award nomination for lead Demi Moore — also arrives on the streamer this weekend. And if you really want to give yourself nightmares, you can also click "Play" on "Barbarian," the haunting horror thriller and solo directorial debut of Zack Cregger, who went on to direct recent scary standouts "Weapons" and "Resident Evil."
That should be more than enough to hold you over until Monday rolls around again. But if you need even more streaming inspiration, you can browse the rest in our roundup of everything new to Hulu and Disney+ this month.
'Barbarian' (2022)
Genre: Horror/mystery
What's it about? Before he became a horror heavyweight with the Oscar-nominated success of this year’s “Weapons,” Zach Cregger wrote and directed this 2022 spine-chiller, starring Georgina Campbell as Tess Marshall, a young woman traveling to Detroit for a job interview who discovers that the rental home she was meant to stay in is double-booked and is occupied by a strange man named Keith (Bill Skarsgård). Against her better judgment, she agrees to split the house for the night with the male guest, only to discover that even scarier secrets lurk inside the Airbnb.
Why you need to watch it: Tom's Guide's own Alyse Stanley called Cregger's film "one of the most captivating horror movies I've seen in years" and "the perfect lead-up to Halloween." And it seems other critics are in hearty agreement: "Barbarian" has a stellar 92% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes: "Smart, darkly humorous, and above all scary, Barbarian offers a chilling and consistently unpredictable thrill ride for horror fans," reads the site's critical consensus.
Watch "Barbarian" on Hulu starting October 1
'The Substance' (2024)
Genre: Horror/sci-fi
What's it about? Demi Moore had a deserved career resurgence for her fierce and fearless lead performance in "The Substance," earning a Best Actress nod for playing fading, fifty-something Hollywood star Elisabeth Sparkle, who, after being fired by her producer (Dennis Quaid) due to her age, uses a black-market drug that creates a younger version of herself (Margaret Qualley) with unexpected side effects.
Why you should watch it: A stomach-churning and seriously effective satire on how society and the entertainment industry devalue women as they age, Coralie Fargeat's "The Substance" is the rare body-horror title to strike big with major awards committees like the Oscars, where the film earned five nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director.
Watch "The Substance" on Hulu starting October 2
'Midsommar' (2019)
Genre: Horror/Mystery
What's it about? In an already busy 2019 ("Fighting with My Family" and "Little Women"), Florence Pugh managed to fit in this Swedish-set folk-horror film, directed by "Hereditary" filmmaker Ari Aster (who knows a thing or two about freaking us out). Pugh stars opposite Jack Raynor as one-half of a young American couple who travels to the remote, fictional commune of Hårga to attend Sweden's midsummer festival. That festive trip, however, soon descends into psychological terror as the duo is drawn into a violent cult.
Why you need to watch it: A deliciously disturbing watch that subverts traditional horror expectations, Aster's "Midsommar" finds plenty of freaky inspiration in everyday emotions, from personal grief to toxic romances. It certainly polarized audiences when it came out nearly a decade ago, but was otherwise a hit with critics, who called it "ambitious, impressively crafted, and above all unsettling," per Rotten Tomatoes.
Watch "Midsommar" on Hulu starting October 3
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