FromDead Boy DetectivestoChucky, thebest horror TV shows of 2024prove that the genre’s most original and compelling efforts aren’t just contained to the big screen. Although well-established heavy-hitters likeThe Last of Ushave yet to return for their latest outings,there’s no shortage of on-TV scares. In fact, 2024 continues a great 2023 trend in that regard. Despite the dual Hollywood strikes of last year, several big-name horror series left quite the mark. Hits like Mike Flanagan’s latest Netflix series,The Fall of the House of Usher, stole the spotlight.
Although 2024 boasts plenty of returning horror favorites, it also proves that terrifyingly original horror concepts are being green-lit left and right. Long-time genre standbys, like theunanswered question-riddledAmerican Horror Story: Delicate, might have missed the mark, but horror connoisseurs have plenty of other options to check out. Best of all,2024’s best horror TV shows run the gamut in terms of sub-genre. While there are plenty of pure horror hits, the year’s best also includes horror romances, mysteries, and comedies. Needless to say, some of 2024’s best series are horror shows.
J.S. Nandhini createdInspector Rishi, a Tamil-language horror crime drama. The Amazon Prime Video TV series centers on Rishi Nandhan (Naveen Chandra), an inspector who loses his eyesight during a shootout. In the aftermath of the life-altering conflict, Rishi is transferred to a remote jungle. There,the titular inspector is tasked with solving cases that seem to tie into popular myths.
For example, the pilot suggests a forest spirit killed a photographer. While not the best thriller or crime caper,Inspector Rishitreats its mythological subject smartly, making for a great 10-episode watch. The cases are far from what a police officer is used to, as he deals with possessions, deadly rituals, mysterious ghosts, supernatural webspinner insects, and more. It received positive reviews as a series unlike anything else in the Tamil horror genre.
Season 1 | July 28, 2025
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live follows Rick Grimes and Michonne as they navigate a transformed world that challenges their relationship. Separated by distance and facing an unstoppable force, they strive to reunite and rediscover their identities in this continuation of the Walking Dead universe.
Created by Scott Gimple and starring Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira,The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Liveis the latest spinoff of AMC’s hugely popular post-apocalyptic horror series. Set afterThe Walking Deadseries finale,The Ones Who Liveis a love story at its core— one between two fan-favorite characters, Rick Grimes (Lincoln) and the katana-wielding Michonne (Gurira).
Across its slim six-episode run, the miniseries delves into the franchise’s past and present, all while being bolstered by the stars' powerhouse performances and a staggering $13.7 million per episode budget. Of all the spinoffs,this was the one fans wanted the most since Rick, the original show’s main star, left that series early. This allows the series to finish Rick’s story and reunite him and Michonne, giving them their happy ending inThe Walking Deaduniverse. The show received positive reviews and will allow upcoming spinoffs to start new tales.
Season 1 | August 12, 2025
Dead Boy Detectives
Based on the DC series, Dead Boy Detectives is a supernatural comedy-mystery series created for Netflix. Two young men from different find one another in death but decide to skip the afterlife and remain among the living with a new purpose - to solve various supernatural mysteries the way only two deceased detectives can.
Netflix’sDead Boy Detectivesis a spinoff of the fan-favoriteSandmanseries, which the streamer also recently adapted. Much likeThe Sandman,Dead Boy Detectivesdoes a wonderful job of bringing the pages of Neil Gaiman’s DC Comics series to life. A supernatural detective series that leans into its horror and mystery elements,the show centers on the ghosts of Charles Rowland (Jayden Revri) and Edwin Payne (George Rexstrew).
Both characters avoid their afterlife journeys, choosing instead to investigate Earth’s many supernatural crimes. Best of all,Dead Boy DetectivesboastsSandmanEaster eggs, which further unify the franchise. Fans and critics lovedDead Boy Detectives, as it has a high 92% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an almost equal 91% from the audience score, but unfortunately, one season is all they’ll get, as Netflix canceled the series in August 2024.
Season 2 | June 23, 2025
Them
The new story centers on LAPD Homicide Detective Dawn Reeve, who is assigned to a new case: the gruesome murder of a foster home mother that has left even the most hardened detectives shaken. Navigating a tumultuous time in Los Angeles, with a city on the razor’s edge of chaos, Dawn is determined to stop the killer. But as she draws closer to the truth, something ominous and malevolent grips her and her family…
WhileTHEM: Covenantmade waves back in 2021, the second installment in the horror anthology series,THEM: The Scare, is a huge improvement. There’s no denying that the original outing boasted incredible performances and a haunting visual style, but, unfortunately, it suffered from its blunt, hyper-violent approach that served to undermine the otherwise sharp social commentary.
With a 100% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes,THEM: The Scareprovides a discerning look at generational trauma, using horror tropes to augment its point. With memorable performances from Deborah Ayorinde and Pam Grier,The Scareis one of 2024’s best. The second season in 2024 sees an LAPD detective who is assigned a new case and realizes that it might, in some way, connect to her own past. The series was very scary, and since it was a little more nuanced than season 1, it worked that much better.
Season 4 | June 05, 2025
Evil
Evil is a psychological mystery series that follows a skeptical forensic psychologist, Kristen Bouchard, who teams up with a Catholic priest-in-training and a tech expert to investigate purportedly supernatural incidents. The series delves into complex themes of religion, science, and the nature of evil through its deeply layered narrative and character development. The show stars Katja Herbers, Mike Colter, and Aasif Mandvi.
The fan-favorite supernatural dramaEvilfirst premiered on CBS in 2019 before jumping to Paramount+ for subsequent outings. In 2024, with its fourth season,Evilstill uses itsX-Files-like formula well, pairing skeptical forensic psychologist Dr. Kristen Bouchard (Katja Herbers) with Catholic priest David Acosta (Mike Colter) and equally skeptical tech contractor Ben Shakir (Aasif Mandvi). Paramount+ announced that this season would be the final one for the series.
The final season plays with a ticking clock. David has a vision that the world will end in 38 days, a potentially world-destroying accelerator goes online in 38 days, and Kristen is due to deliver her baby in 38 days. With a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes,Evilseason 4 returnsto end the beloved series on a high note. Withdelightfully twisted episodic mysteries and a larger narrative that builds thoughtfully, the series reached a perfect conclusion. However, it left enough open-ended storylines to continue if another network picks it up in the future.
Season 3, Part 2 | June 23, 2025
Chucky
A blend of horror and thriller, this series follows the aftermath of a vintage Chucky doll surfacing at a suburban yard sale. As a series of gruesome events unravel, secrets from the community and Chucky’s past emerge, intertwining to reveal sinister realities and chaotic consequences.
Created by Don Mancini, theChuckyTV show is the eighth main installment in the cult classicChucky-starringChild’s Playfranchise. A sequel to 2017’sCult of Chucky, the show chronicles Chucky’s latest murderous exploits — this time occurring in the town of Hackensack, New Jersey. Although the three-season series might play best with long-time fans of the franchise, there’s no denying thatChuckyboasts some of TV’s best dark humor — even if it is often blood-soakedand completely oddball in its approach.
The second part ofChucky’s third season and final season continues the show’s best impulses, taking the horror comedy to the White House and involving the country’s leaders, but it smartly kept the action mostly focused on the teenagers. The final season, like the previous two, received overwhelmingly positive reviews, sitting at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, and it concluded with an open-ended finale that allowed Chucky and Tiffany to live and provided a cliffhanger with Jake and his friends.
Season 1 | June 03, 2025
Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams
Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams is an anthology series that explores psychological horror and supernatural phenomena through various standalone episodes. Directed by Joko Anwar, the show features diverse narratives that delve into the human psyche’s darker aspects, including fear, guilt, and the unknown. Each episode presents unique storylines and characters, offering a compelling exploration of terror and wonder within everyday settings.
A supernatural horror-meets-sci-fi series by the titular writer-director,Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreamsis a mind-bending anthology series that perfectly fills theBlack Mirrorvoid, especially for horror fans. Featuring a massive ensemble cast,Nightmares and Daydreams' stories are linked by similar themes and narrative formulas.More often than not, the characters are desperate to protect their lives and loved ones from otherworldly phenomena.
For those who love a shared universe, the standalone episodes boast plenty of connections, making the horror aspects all the more haunting. There are seven episodes in the Indonesian horror series, each focusing on normal people encountering supernatural and horrific phenomena. While it is an anthology series, the stories remain connected to deliver an overall impactful message at the end of the season. Critics and fans loved the series, with it sitting at 88% (critics) and 81% (audience) on Rotten Tomatoes.
Season 1 | July 24, 2025
Parasyte: The Grey
“Parasyte: The Grey” imagines a world where alien parasites begin taking over human hosts, blending horror with psychological drama. The story follows a young man who forms a symbiotic relationship with his alien parasite, leading to a morally complex journey as they confront other parasites threatening humanity. This adaptation adds a unique twist, focusing on the grey areas of survival, identity, and the essence of being human.
The best example of body-snatcher horror on TV in 2024, the Korean-language seriesParasyte: The Greyis a great way to fill aLast of Us-shaped void. An adaptation and spinoff of Hitoshi Iwaaki’s manga series,Parasytesees parasitic creatures invading and feeding on humans. The extraterrestrial parasites are especially terrifying because they can transform their hosts' heads into all sorts of terrifying things.
A huge global hit for Netflix,Parasyte: The Greymay be derivative at times, but it boasts enough scares, excitement, and fun visuals to set itself apartin an overcrowded zombie field. There were only six episodes in the first season of the series, but it was a monumental success, with critics giving it a perfect 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It was also widely watched, with 31.5 million minutes watched in its first week on Netflix and 49 million after two.
Season 4 | August 21, 2025
True Detective
True Detective is an anthology series exploring intricate criminal investigations through multiple timelines. Each season examines dark personal and professional secrets revealed during the course of solving complex cases, highlighting the impact of crime on individuals both within and outside the law enforcement community.
WhileTrue Detectivehad horrifying moments, it was always a crime drama series. However, things changed with the fourth season of the long-running HBO anthology series.True Detective: Night Countryis the first to be helmed by writer and showrunner Issa López, who boldly leans into the franchise’s more supernatural elements. While mileage may vary for viewers who prefer the non-supernatural nature of previousTrue Detectiveoutings,Night Countryexcels at creating a truly haunting and distinct atmosphere.
Jodie Foster won an Emmy for her performance as Chief Liz Danvers inTrue Detective Night Country.
Bolstered by incredible performances by leads Jodie Foster and Kali Reis,Night Countryis a must-watch television show and the perfect brand of horror for fans of shows likeTwin Peaks. The fans were split, and creator Nic Pizzolatto criticized the season, but that didn’t stop it from delivering some of the best horror television of 2024. It picked up 19 Primetime Emmy Award nominations, the most of any season in the series. Foster went on to win for Outstanding Lead Actress for her performance.
Season 2 | June 04, 2025
Interview with the Vampire
Based on Anne Rice’s novel series that began in 1976, Interview with the Vampire is a gothic horror fantasy series that explores the life of Louis de Pointe du Lac through an interview with a journalist. Told through flashbacks of Louis' life during the interview, the series examines Louis' relationship with the vampire that turned him, Lestat de Lioncourt, and a teenage girl named Claudia, whom he turns. The series is the first of Anne Rice’s Immortal Universe media franchise.
Based on Anne Rice’s bestselling novel seriesThe Vampire Chronicles,Interview with the Vampiregrafts the classic Gothic romance onto contemporary times. Much like the 1994 film of the same name, the series follows vampires Louis de Pointe du Lac (Jacob Anderson) and Lestat de Lioncourt (Sam Reid), but, refreshingly, the show embraces the source material’s queer characters and storylines.
Following in season 1’s footsteps,Interview with the Vampire’s second outing boasts a near-perfect rating on Rotten Tomatoes,excelling thanks to its beautiful production design and vividly drawn characters. The Anne Rice universe on AMC includes this series as well asThe Mayfair Witches, and the success of the franchise will lead to a third season ofInterview with the Vampire, which will cover the second novel,The Vampire Lestat. If the viewership numbers remain high, the quality is great enough to allow this to possibly rivalThe Walking Dead’s longevity for the network.
