Given the dedicated fan base that video game series Five Nights at Freddy’s has built up over the past decade or so, it shouldn’t be surprising that the Five Nights at Freddy’s movie has become a hit. Even so, the movie’s popularity both in theaters and streaming on Peacock has been impressive, reaching not only longtime fans but also new viewers curious to check out the horror movie about killer animatronics in an abandoned pizzeria.
Many of those viewers may be young gamers getting their first experience with horror movies, and there’s a whole world of other scary fare to check out. Whether you’re a newfound horror aficionado or a veteran genre fan, here are five more movies that are perfect to watch after seeing Five Nights at Freddy’s.
Willy’s Wonderland
If you like the concept of animatronic animal characters killing people but found Five Nights at Freddy’s a bit too focused on backstory and character development, check out this energetic and more streamlined take on a similar idea. Nicolas Cage doesn’t even speak as he dispatches the possessed, homicidal mascots at the titular location, a derelict family activity center in a backwater town.
Cage’s silent, nameless nomad is hired as an overnight janitor at Willy’s Wonderland, in exchange for repairs to his broken-down car. There he encounters eight decaying animatronic animal figures who come to life and attempt to kill him. Aided by a group of local teens who are trying to break the Willy’s Wonderland curse, the janitor fights back, while efficiently cleaning up the facility and even playing a little pinball. It’s all in a night’s work.
Watch on Hulu
M3GAN
The title character in M3GAN isn’t possessed, but she’s still a cute-looking robot with a murderous streak. Like fellow Blumhouse release Five Nights at Freddy’s, M3GAN delivers a combination of cheeky humor, family tension, and deadly attacks. Both M3GAN the movie and M3GAN the character are snarkier and nastier than Five Nights at Freddy’s, and it’s easy to end up rooting for the killer android as she dances, slashes, and delivers one-liners.
M3GAN is meant to be a high-end toy, developed by engineer Gemma (Allison Williams) for her orphaned niece Cady (Violet McGraw). But M3GAN takes her directives too seriously, going on a rampage against anyone she perceives as a threat to Cady’s happiness. Fortunately, Prime Video offers both rated and unrated versions, so younger viewers can keep things PG-13, while older horror fans get more blood and swearing.
Watch on Prime Video (rated or unrated)
Chopping Mall
Want more robots going berserk in a seemingly safe, family-friendly environment during an overnight shift, but with added nudity, gore, and 1980s fashions? Stream this cult classic from exploitation auteur Jim Wynorski, about high-tech (for 1986) security robots going haywire in a shopping mall after a freak lightning storm.
A group of unlucky horny young people make the mistake of throwing an after-hours party in the mall that night, and find themselves targeted for death by the clunky-looking “protectors.” Wynorski has a sense of humor about the ridiculousness of his premise, but he also delivers on all the brutal kills that horror fans expect. The characters are likable, the stars (including genre favorites Barbara Crampton and Kelli Maroney) are charismatic, and the action is surprisingly suspenseful, given how absurd it is.
Watch on Peacock
Goosebumps
The Five Nights at Freddy’s franchise is often credited as “gateway horror” to eventually lead young fans to more intense and ambitious genre fare, and R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps books served the same function for a previous generation. This feature film based on Stine’s work is equally effective at easing tweens into the world of horror, with a spooky but also cozy adventure incorporating elements from multiple Goosebumps books.
Jack Black stars as a fictionalized version of Stine himself, who is presented as an eccentric recluse with actual supernatural creatures trapped in the pages of his manuscripts. When a trio of teens, including Stine’s daughter, accidentally let the creatures loose, they have to join forces with him to contain the evil. It’s a lively, fun take on various Goosebumps characters, bringing them together to create a satisfying new story.
Watch on Netflix
Werewolves Within
Like Five Nights at Freddy’s, Werewolves Within is adapted from a popular video game, taking place in a single location with a lurking killer. In this case, the characters don’t necessarily know who the killer is, only that someone in the remote small town of Beaverfield may be a werewolf. At first, newly arrived forest ranger Finn Wheeler (Sam Richardson) looks for a more mundane explanation for the mysterious violence and sabotage, but eventually the remaining residents realize that they’re facing a lycanthrope.
Richardson has excellent chemistry with Milana Vayntrub as local mail carrier Cecily Moore, and Werewolves Within is as much a goofy hangout comedy about the town’s quirky inhabitants as it is a horror movie about a deadly monster. Even when the monster attacks escalate, director Josh Ruben maintains an appealingly lighthearted tone.
Watch on Hulu
