Movies - TV
12 Family-Friendly Horror Movies To Watch With Your Family This Spooky Season
By BJ COLANGELO
The Addams Family
"The Addams Family," and its sequel are the perfect balance of comedy, sarcasm, and entertaining horror. Through the undying love between Gomez and Morticia Adams, they also showcase one of the healthiest family dynamics in film history, making the films a source of inspiration for kids about behavior they can model in their real lives.
Casper
Filled with plenty of silly, farcical hijinks, and a very tame scare factor, “Casper” is a phenomenal watch for kids, but it’s also a deeply existential film that deals with themes of loss, pain, neglect, and humans’ unwillingness to accept the reality of mortality. There's plenty of fun to be had, but this is also a fantastic film to have serious conversations with little ones.
Wallace & Gromit
"Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit" is a delightful claymation about a cheese-loving inventor and his brilliant dog that can be enjoyed by the young and old alike, thanks to its timeless humor. The film even took home the Academy Award for “Best Animated Film” in 2005, despite the Academy’s reputation for snubbing horror movies
Don't Look Under the Bed
"Don't Look Under the Bed" is an underrated kids' horror movie that has plenty of slapstick comedy but also features some genuinely terrifying imagery in its Boogeyman design. It’s a great film that can inspire conversations about not stifling one's creativity or imagination, and why "Frances Bacon" is a wild choice for a teenage girl’s name.
Gremlins
"Gremlins" is the perfect transitional horror film to bridge the gap between children's horror and hard-R adult scaries. While it has some unexpectedly graphic imagery and genuine scares, Gizmo is just too dang cute not to love, making "Gremlins" a long-time family-friendly mainstay.