Horror movies directed by women are among the most terrifying and genuinely unsettling films in the genre. Directors like Julia Ducournau, Jennifer Kent, and Coralie Fargeat have redefined what modern horror looks like, blending body horror, psychological dread, and social commentary into work that stands among the best the genre has to offer.
This guide is a curated look at the best horror films directed by women, organized by subgenre so you can find exactly the kind of scare you’re after. Every title links directly to our streaming database and authorized platforms, so you can go from reading about a film to actually watching it in a few clicks.
From The Babadook to The Substance: Our Top Picks
These are the horror movies directed by women that critics, horror fans, and our team at StreamSafely return to again and again, spanning psychological horror, body horror, vampire tales, slashers, and a few recent releases worth adding to your list. For a wider selection, you can also browse our full horror movie genre page.
Psychological Horror
The Babadook (2014)
Jennifer Kent wrote and directed this film about a single mother raising a troubled six-year-old son, whose household begins to unravel after a mysterious pop-up book called “Mister Babadook” appears in their home. The story follows her attempts to protect her son as she loses her grip on what’s real.
Streaming now on: AMC+, The Criterion Channel, Kanopy, Netflix, Philo, Plex, Pluto TV, Shudder
Saint Maud (2019)
Rose Glass wrote and directed this feature debut about Maud, a hospice nurse who converts to Catholicism after a traumatic incident and takes on the care of a terminally ill former dancer. Maud becomes convinced she must save her patient’s soul, which drives her toward escalating religious fervor and violence.
Streaming now on: Prime Video, fuboTV, MGM+, Roku
Censor (2021)
Prano Bailey-Bond directed this film about Enid, a British film censor working during the “video nasty” era of the 1980s, who begins investigating a horror film that resembles the unsolved disappearance of her sister. The investigation pulls her deeper into the horror industry itself.
Streaming now on: Amazon Prime Video, Kanopy, Tubi
The Invitation (2016)
Karyn Kusama directed this film about a man who attends a dinner party hosted by his ex-wife and her new husband, where he grows suspicious that the couple and their guests belong to a group planning something for the night’s end.
Streaming now on: Hoopla, Kanopy, Peacock, Tubi, Fandango at Home
Relic (2020)
Natalie Erika James directed this film about three generations of women confronting a grandmother’s advancing dementia after she goes missing and returns home with no memory of where she’d been, with something following her back.
Streaming now on: AMC+, Apple TV, Sundance Now
Watcher (2022)
Chloe Okuno directed this film about an American woman who moves to Bucharest with her husband and becomes convinced a man in the building across the street is watching her, and possibly connected to a string of local murders.
Streaming now on: AMC+, Netflix, Philo
Knocking (2021)
Frida Kempff directed this Swedish film about a woman recently released from a psychiatric hospital who hears a repeated knocking sound in her new apartment building that no neighbor will acknowledge, prompting her to investigate on her own.
Streaming now on: Hoopla, Kanopy, The Roku Channel
She Dies Tomorrow (2020)
Amy Seimetz wrote and directed this film about a woman who becomes convinced she will die the following day, an idea that spreads to everyone she interacts with as each person becomes fixated on their own mortality.
Streaming now on: Kanopy
Body Horror
Raw (2016)
Julia Ducournau wrote and directed this film about a lifelong vegetarian who enrolls in veterinary school and, after being forced to eat raw meat during a hazing ritual, develops an escalating craving for meat, and eventually for human flesh.
Streaming now on: Apple TV
Titane (2021)
Julia Ducournau wrote and directed this film about a woman with a metal plate in her skull from a childhood car accident who commits a series of murders and goes into hiding by posing as the long-lost son of a grieving fire captain.
Streaming now on: Kanopy, Tubi
The Substance (2024)
Coralie Fargeat wrote and directed this film about Elisabeth Sparkle, an aging fitness television star fired for being “too old,” who takes a black-market drug that generates a younger version of herself, with the two required to alternate control of their shared body every seven days.
Streaming now on: HBO Max, MUBI
Revenge (2017)
Coralie Fargeat wrote and directed this film about a woman left for dead in the desert by her lover and his friends after witnessing an assault, who survives and hunts down each of the three men.
Streaming now on: Apple TV, Shudder, The Roku Channel
Hatching (2022)
Hanna Bergholm directed this Finnish film about a 12-year-old competitive gymnast who finds an egg in the woods and secretly raises it in her bedroom, with the creature that hatches mirroring the pressure placed on her by her mother.
Streaming now on: Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Kanopy, Sundance Now
Huesera: The Bone Woman (2022)
Michelle Garza Cervera directed this Mexican film about a woman who, after becoming pregnant, is haunted by a bone-cracking presence and the memory of a life she gave up, drawing on Mexican folklore around a bone-collecting figure.
Streaming now on: AMC+, Shudder, Sundance Now
American Mary (2012)
Jen and Sylvia Soska wrote and directed this film about Mary Mason, a debt-ridden medical student who begins performing underground body modification surgeries for cash after a violent assault by one of her professors.
Streaming now on: Hoopla, Kanopy, Midnight Pulp
The Ugly Stepsister (2025)
Emilie Blichfeldt wrote and directed this Norwegian retelling of Cinderella from the perspective of a stepsister who undergoes a series of extreme cosmetic procedures to compete for the prince’s attention.
Streaming now on: AMC+, Hulu, Kanopy, Philo, Shudder
Vampire and Supernatural
A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014)
Ana Lily Amirpour wrote and directed this black-and-white film, set in the fictional Iranian town of Bad City, about a chador-wearing vampire who stalks and kills predatory men at night and forms an unlikely bond with a local man.
Streaming now on: AMC+, Kanopy
Near Dark (1987)
Kathryn Bigelow directed this film about a young man in rural Oklahoma who is bitten and taken in by a nomadic group of vampires traveling the highways, and must decide whether to join them permanently.
Streaming now on: Pluto TV
The Love Witch (2016)
Anna Biller wrote, directed, and designed this film about Elaine, a modern witch who brews spells and potions to make men fall in love with her, with her enchanted suitors meeting increasingly bad ends.
Streaming now on: Amazon Prime, Apple TV, The Criterion Channel, Fawsome, Kanopy, Midnight Pulp, Night Flight+
Good Manners (2017)
Juliana Rojas and Marco Dutra co-directed this Brazilian film about a nanny hired to care for the unborn child of a wealthy, mysterious woman, and the werewolf mythology that emerges once the child is born.
Streaming now on: Amazon Prime, Fawesome, Filmzie, Kanopy, OVID
Slasher and Survival
American Psycho (2000)
Mary Harron directed this adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’s novel about Patrick Bateman, a wealthy 1980s investment banker who leads a secret life as a serial killer while obsessing over status, appearance, and consumer brands.
Streaming now on: Prime Video, fuboTV, Hulu, Fandango at Home
Jennifer’s Body (2009)
Karyn Kusama directed this film about Jennifer, a high school cheerleader who becomes possessed by a demon after a botched satanic ritual performed by a local band, and begins killing and feeding on her male classmates.
Streaming now on: Hulu, Pluto TV
The Slumber Party Massacre (1982)
Amy Holden Jones directed this film about a group of teenage girls at a sleepover who are hunted by an escaped killer wielding a power drill.
Streaming now on: AMC+, Amazon Prime, Fawesome, fuboTV, Kanopy, Midnight Pulp, The Roku Channel
Piggy (2022)
Carlota Pereda wrote and directed this Spanish film about Sara, a bullied teenager who witnesses her tormentors being abducted by a stranger and must decide whether to report what she saw.
Streaming now on: Hulu, Kanopy
Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022)
Halina Reijn directed this film about a group of wealthy young friends who gather for a party during a hurricane and start playing a game called “Bodies Bodies Bodies,” which turns deadly as guests begin turning up dead.
Streaming now on: Amazon Prime, Apple TV
Prevenge (2016)
Alice Lowe wrote, directed, and starred in this film, filmed while she was seven months pregnant in real life, about Ruth, a pregnant widow who commits a series of murders she believes are being ordered by her unborn child.
Streaming now on: AMC+, Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Hoopla, Netflix, Shudder, Sundance Now
Candyman (2021)
Nia DaCosta directed this sequel to the original 1992 film, about a visual artist who becomes fixated on the Candyman legend tied to Chicago’s Cabrini-Green neighborhood and begins summoning the figure through his art.
Streaming now on: Amazon Prime
Pet Sematary (1989)
Mary Lambert directed this adaptation of Stephen King’s novel about a family that moves next to an ancient burial ground capable of resurrecting the dead, and a father’s decision to use it after tragedy strikes his household.
Streaming now on: Paramount+, PlutoTV, The Roku Channel
Recent Releases Worth Watching
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (2026)
Nia DaCosta directed this installment in the 28 Years Later series, continuing the story of survivors navigating a Britain devastated by the rage virus outbreak.
Streaming now on: Netflix
The First Omen (2024)
Arkasha Stevenson directed this prequel to The Omen, about a young American woman sent to work at a Catholic orphanage in Rome who uncovers a conspiracy to bring about the birth of the Antichrist.
Streaming now on: Amazon Prime, Apple TV
The Devil’s Bath (2024)
Veronika Franz co-directed this film with Severin Fiala, set in 18th-century Austria and based on real historical church records, about a young woman whose despair leads her toward an act she believes will secure her a path to God through execution.
Streaming now on: AMC+, Philo, The Roku Channel, Shudder
Dead Lover (2025)
Grace Glowicki wrote, directed, and starred in this film about a lonely gravedigger who falls for a sailor who drowns, and reanimates his corpse using a spell in an attempt to keep him.
Streaming now on: Apple TV, MUBI, Plex
Female Horror Directors To Know
Beyond individual titles, a handful of female directors have consistently shaped where horror is headed, and their names are worth following closely. Each has built a distinct body of work that sets her apart from the rest of the genre.
Julia Ducournau
Julia Ducournau writes and directs her own films, using visceral physical transformation as her primary storytelling device in both “Raw” (2016) and “Titane” (2021). Her characters undergo literal bodily change as a way of working through questions of appetite, identity, and belonging.
Karyn Kusama
Karyn Kusama has directed horror at very different scales, from the possessed-cheerleader premise of “Jennifer’s Body” (2009) to the cult-driven dinner party of “The Invitation” (2016). Both films center women whose circumstances force them into violence.
Coralie Fargeat
Coralie Fargeat writes and directs her own scripts, building titles like “Revenge” (2017) and “The Substance” (2024) around women who are discarded or diminished by the men and industries around them, then reclaim control through extreme physical means.
Jennifer Kent
Jennifer Kent wrote and directed “The Babadook” (2014), building the film’s horror around a single mother’s grief and exhaustion rather than a purely supernatural threat. Her approach ties the monster directly to what her main character is going through emotionally.
Nia DaCosta
Nia DaCosta directed “Candyman” (2021), continuing the original franchise’s mythology through a gentrification lens in Chicago, then moved into larger-scale filmmaking with “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple” (2026). Her work spans both intimate horror and studio franchise projects.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Shudder worth subscribing to just for horror?
Shudder is one of the few streaming services built specifically around horror, psychological thriller, and genre film content, which makes it a strong option for fans looking to go deep on the category. Whether it’s worth it depends on how much of your list overlaps with its catalog, so it’s best to check for the specific titles you’re looking for before committing to a subscription.
Can I watch horror movies legally for free without a subscription?
Yes, there are several legal, free streaming options for watching movies without paying for a dedicated subscription. A library card can unlock free streaming through Kanopy, Hoopla, and Pluto TV, giving you access to a rotating catalog of films at no additional cost.
What should I do if a horror film I want to watch isn’t available on any legal platform?
If a title isn’t currently streaming anywhere legally, the safest move is to wait for it to become available rather than turning to an unauthorized source. Unlicensed sites carry real security risks, and it helps to know how to recognize illegal streaming websites before you click anything unfamiliar.
Streaming from an unlicensed site can also carry legal consequences. These same risks and legal concerns extend beyond movies, too, including illegal sports streams, which rely on many of the same unsafe hosting practices.
Find Out How To Stream Your Favorite Horror Films With StreamSafely
Women-directed horror movies have produced some of the genre’s most memorable and chilling films of the last two decades, and every title on this list is legally streamable when you know where to look. StreamSafely’s online movie database makes that part simple, so you can spend more time watching and less time worrying about where a stream actually came from.
Whether you’re drawn to psychological horror, slashers, or body horror, StreamSafely is here to help you find every title you love through legal streaming destinations. Stay safe, and happy streaming!
