Cold, Creepy, and Chilling: The Best Winter Horror

Winter is the scariest season. It gets darker earlier — and in some places around the world, the sun doesn’t come back for months. The cold creeps closer, seeping in through the cracks under our doors. Plants die, animals disappear to hibernate, and color drains from the landscape. Animals ourselves, we also tend to withdraw in the winter. After all, who wants to test their luck against icy roads, brutal blizzards, or low visibility? No, it’s much better to stay indoors, isn’t it?

Of course, the horror genre feeds on these fears. Writers twist the rationality of these fears into something far more insidious, inviting terror with every crunch of an unfamiliar footstep in the fallen snow. Well, are you scared yet? Grab a hot cup of cocoa or cozy up by the fireplace. Then, see if you can withstand the chill of these best winter horror films and television series.

• The Thing
• Ravenous
• The Terror
• Game of Thrones
• Krampus
• The Shining
• Misery
• Crimson Peak

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The Thing

Get chills inside and out with this sci-fi classic. Often considered the most gruesome film to ever hit the silver screen, The Thing (1982) transports us to desolate, enigmatic Antarctica. Tensions mount and suspicions skyrocket as an alien entity slowly infiltrates a team of explorers. And there is no escape, especially with the frozen tundra outside threatening frostbite. It’s impossible to watch this film and not feel a profound sense of foreboding. Oh what fun it is to descend into madness and paranoia with your scientist buddies!

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Ravenous

Hunger serves as a delicious and delirious metaphor in Ravenous (1999). Set in historic California, this strange, scrumptious Western film follows a U.S. army captain caught between his moral code and an insatiable appetite for human flesh. He rages and represses against the backdrop of a snowy camp and perilous mountains. He’s surrounded by people who can go from ally to enemy in an instant. Plus, there’s some pretty heavy-handed exchanges of blood and bodily fluids to drive home that “cannibalism as desire” symbolism. And a direct criticism of manifest destiny in all its greedy glory. Um … yum!

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The Terror

Cold weather and dire circumstances really brings out the cannibalism in stranded, desperate men. Based on the real-life disappearance of the Terror and Erebus ship crews, The Terror season 1 (2018) blends magical realism with primary sources to create truly spectacular television. As these men plow ahead and seal their fates under totally avoidable circumstances, there’s a sense of utter grief, righteous anger, and the same fascination that makes us look at car wrecks. Add a killer cast and top-notch acting, and you’ve got the best TV recipe ever.

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Game of Thrones

“Winter is coming” is more than a House slogan — it’s a warning. In Game of Thrones (2011 – 2019), House Stark protect the rest of Westeros from “the true North,” a place full of wild humans and equally wild beasts. But when the wall falls, herds of ice zombies make their way into the unprepared kingdoms. These foes are fast, deadly, and unpredictable. And with all the political turmoil in Westeros, no king or queen can agree on how to stop them. Shared enemy or not, it won’t stop the infighting, bloodshed, and banishments.

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Krampus

Add this to the list of scary things about winter. People can get really, really enthusiastic about the holidays. And if you don’t celebrate, good luck escaping the wreaths and the wrath. Krampus (2015) borrows a character from Austro-Bavarian folklore who punishes children who have lost the Christmas spirit. Monstrous and menacing, the eponymous Krampus is a devilish creature, tormenting one family over the course of the film and sparing not even the baby. Better watch out, indeed…

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The Shining

Brrr … just looking at that photo makes us shiver. Adapted (though changed quite substantially) from Stephen King’s novel, The Shining (1980) isolates a struggling author with his family in an abandoned hotel. Haunted and horrifying, the Overlook creeps into Jack’s mind until he’s all play and no work. From blood floods and ax-wrecked doors to that icy maze, The Shining is a certified winter horror classic.

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Misery

What else makes winter scary? Downed phone and power lines, inaccessible roads, and buried evidence. Misery (1990), also adapted from a Stephen King book, is a slow build of psychological torture for both the protagonist and viewer. Rescued by his “biggest fan,” an author lies ailing at her mercy while she nurses him back to health. But looks and altruistic offers can be deceiving. In his fan’s obsessive and scarily capable hands, this writer discovers the unspeakable lengths she will go to in order to help him produce the best-selling books she craves.

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Crimson Peak

We can argue all day if Crimson Peak (2015) is gothic romance or horror. But with ghosts and gaslighting on glittering, snow-covered castle grounds, we’ll pick horror for the purposes of this article. Guillermo del Toro’s fantastical film features stark red blood on fresh white snow and gowns, emphasizing the desecration of purity and goodness as our heroine suffers at the hands of her new husband and his sister. But, like with any GDT project, feelings soar — and the horror is, always and forever, for love.

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What’s your favorite winter horror? Share your petrifying picks at side.show/geekgroup or in the Sideshow Social Network. And as always, don’t forget to Let Your Geek Sideshow!