These 12 Thanksgiving Horror Movies Include Killer Turkeys and Alien Abductions

Thanksgiving horror movies may be few and far between, but the ones that are out there are truly something. It makes sense that Thanksgiving would be an oft-forgotten holiday in the horror world — it’s a strictly American holiday that’s supposed to be about giving thanks, which doesn’t necessarily lend itself to ghosts and gore. That hasn’t stopped some filmmakers from using this food-filled holiday as the centerpiece for their thrillers, though.

The Thanksgiving horror films here mostly just use the November holiday as the backdrop for the story rather than as a central piece of the film, but a few of them take the holiday head on. Take “Black Friday,” for example, a zombie film that came out in November 2021. The whole premise is about the biggest shopping day of the year — the day after Thanksgiving. It’s already a scary day for store employees dealing with tons of avid shoppers, which makes it the perfect storyline for a horror movie. Then there’s “Into the Dark: Pilgrim,” which follows a Thanksgiving-themed historical reenactment that goes very, very wrong.

Most of these films are lesser-known indie movies or ones that are a few decades old, giving them even creepier vibes thanks to their low budgets and vintage filming techniques — after all, nothing says scary quite like a lack of CGI and prop blood. Some of them can be found in full on YouTube, but others can be viewed on a variety of streaming services. While these Thanksgiving horror movies may not be optimal viewing with the family on Turkey Day, they could perhaps be a bit of fun on a cozy night in during Thanksgiving week to cut through any meal-prep stress. We know how much work goes into putting together a Thanksgiving meal to feed the family, and a movie might be just what you need as a distraction before the big day. Tuck in, because these are the 13 Thanksgiving horror movies you need to watch right now.