There’s nothing wrong with action-packed flicks. But when it comes to bringing home the thrills, the movies that work best are those that mess with your head: the psychological thrillers that make you feel the unease right along with the characters and linger in your mind long after the credits roll. That’s why we rounded up the best psychological thrillers on Netflix you can stream tonight.
Right now, Netflix boasts a number of suspenseful flicks for your viewing pleasure, from underrated gems to mind-bending imports that you need to see. So sit back, dim the lights, and queue up one of the psychological thrillers below.
Intrusion
After moving to the small town of Corrales, New Mexico with her husband Henry (Logan Marshall-Green), Meera (Freida Pinto) is unsettled when their new home was burgled while they were away. But when she awakens a few nights later to strange happenings, it becomes clear that the intruders have returned to finish what they were after. But as the terror unfolds, the mystery runs deeper than Meera could have ever imagined.
Sightless
After a brutal attack leaves violinist Ellen Ashland (Madelaine Petsch) blind, caretaker Clayton (Alexander Koch) is brought in to help her adjust. But with such a drastic change in her life, Ellen spirals into paranoia. She believes that her attacker has returned for her, lurking in plain sight—but no one will believe her.
Calibre
This tense British thriller is set against the dark and moody backdrop of the Scottish Highlands. Two buddies in Edinburgh head out to the country for a weekend hunting trip. But when an explosive act in the woods turns their getaway into a bloody nightmare, the pair must suppress their panic and keep their mouths shut if they hope to escape.
Clinical
This psychological horror thriller follows Dr. Jane Mathis (Vinessa Shaw), a psychiatrist struggling to put her life back together after being violently attacked by a patient. She reluctantly takes on a new patient named Alex, hoping that this step forward will help heal her professional and personal life. As it turns out, however, Alex possesses his own troubling history.
Hold the Dark
This 2018 Netflix release is the latest menacing thriller from Jeremy Saulnier, the filmmaker behind Green Room and Blue Ruin. Hold the Dark swaps out the humidity and claustrophobia of Saulnier's previous flicks for the frigid expanse of the Alaskan wilderness. In the remote village of Keelut, a six-year-old boy has vanished, the third child to go missing. Wolves are suspected, and the mother of the missing boy summons naturalist Russell Core (Jeffrey Wright) to hunt down the predators. Core accepts, only to find himself tracking a mystery far darker than he could have imagined.
Gerald's Game
Hungry for a dose of scares? This dark psychological thriller based on a book by Stephen King is sure to do the trick. Jessie and Gerald head out to an isolated lake house in hopes of spicing up their love life. But when Gerald's sex game goes terribly wrong, Jessie is left handcuffed to the bed. Soon she begins seeing warped visions, and must confront the ghosts of the past if she hopes to survive.
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The Woman in the Window
In this film based on the 2018 novel of the same name, an agoraphobic psychologist consumes a large amount of medication and alcohol, and spies on her neighbors regularly. After witnessing her new neighbor's murder from her window, Anna (Amy Adams) becomes obsessed with proving that what she saw really happened.
Related: 10 Domestic Thrillers That Make You Read Between the Lies
Circle
50 people awaken in a dark room. Any time someone tries to move from their platform or touch another, an alarm sounds. They learn that someone dies every two minutes, or every time they try to leave. Realizing that they're in control of who lives and who dies, those that remain must decide who among them will survive.
Deadly Illusions
Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction—but it becomes stranger still when someone loses the ability to distinguish between fiction and reality. A successful thriller writer, Mary Morrison (Kristen Davis) has hit a severe case of writer’s block as she works on her next book. A friend suggests that she hire someone to look after the kids, and Mary finds inspiration with the new nanny, Grace (Greer Grammer). However, this blossoming friendship soon sprouts fantasies and questions that Mary struggles to answer.
The Call
Two people are connected by a phone in the same home but at different times. Oh Young-sook (Jeon Jong-seo) lives in the past, and Kim Seo-yeon (Park Shin-hye) lives in the present. The information that they exchange affects their fate—with deadly consequences.
Fatal Affair
Ellie Warren (Nia Long) moves to San Francisco with her husband, Marcus (Stephen Bishop). Their marriage is strained, as Marcus is recovering from an accident. Ellie strays from her marriage with her firm’s tech consultant, David (Omar Eppes). Realizing that she made a horrible mistake, Ellie tries to rekindle her marriage but finds that she’s plunged herself and Marcus into a dark and dangerous situation.
Oxygen
Liz Hansen (Mélanie Laurent) wakes up in a cryogenic chamber with no recollection of how she got there. She’s trapped, and her oxygen levels are falling sharply. Liz must fight to recover her memories in order to escape. She’s assisted by an advanced A.I. named M.I.L.O., but it won’t open the cryogenic unit without the administrator code.
Rebecca
Based on Daphne du Maurier’s classic novel, a young woman (Lily James) becomes acquainted with Maxim de Winter (Armie Hammer), an elusive widower. They have a brief courtship before marrying and moving to his English mansion. Once they arrive, however, the new Mrs. de Winter finds herself entrapped in the shadow of the previous Mrs. de Winter. This take is no Hitchcockian masterpiece—but it is deeply beautiful to look at.
Related: Daphne du Maurier's Best Mysteries, from the Psychological to the Supernatural
Rebirth
A suburban father, Kyle (Fran Kraz) is surprised by an old college buddy, Zack (Adam Goldberg). Zack claims to have just finished a self-actualization program called Rebirth and convinces Kyle to go on a weekend-long Rebirth retreat. When he arrives, Kyle is forced to pass over his wallet, phone, and keys. These bizarre rules are the beginning of a sharp descent into delirium.
Red Dot
David (Anastasios Soulis) and Nadja (Nanna Blondell) try to spice up their marriage before the birth of their child by planning a vacation. They take a ski trip to a remote area in the north of Sweden. But it doesn't take long for this romantic getaway to turn into a nightmare. In the middle of the night, a red dot appears in their tent. They find themselves stalked by killers, a red dot trained on them as they race to escape.
Secret Obsession
Jennifer (Brenda Song) wakes up in the hospital with severe injuries and amnesia. A man named Russell Williams (Mike Vogel) is at her bedside, claiming to be her husband. Jennifer begins to put the pieces of her life back together with Russell. But as she begins to regain her memories, Jennifer comes to realize that she’s still in danger.
Related: Intimate Illusions: Mysteries and Thrillers About Marriages Gone Wrong
Velvet Buzzsaw
Set in the contemporary art scene in Los Angeles, this film follows the discovery of a dead artist’s paintings. The woman who discovers them, Josephina, steals several to show off to friends of hers who own an art gallery. The paintings are considered exceptional; Josephina's friends quickly become fascinated with the work. However, they soon realize that the pieces have an eerie aura—and bring calamitous consequences to anyone in possession of them.
The Forest of Love
Inspired by true events that took place in Japan, this film revolves around a student film crew and two young women who find themselves entranced and manipulated by an older man. They do as the older man tells them, even if the ramifications are deadly.
The Most Assassinated Woman in the World
Set in Paris in the 1930s, Paula Maxa (Anna Moulgalis) is one of the leading actresses at the Grand Guignol Theatre. She’s well known for being violently murdered on stage over 10,000 times. Things begin to grow increasingly sinister when connections are drawn between Paula’s stage deaths and violent crimes taking place in real life.
The Occupant
Javier Muñoz (Javier Gutiérrez) was previously a successful advertising executive. He chooses to move himself and his family out of their home once they're unable to afford it anymore. Javier begins to stalk the new tenants and slowly becomes obsessed with them.
Related: 10 Psychological Suspense Books That'll Keep You Up All Night
The Paramedic
A paramedic with an unsympathetic view of his patients, Angel Hernandez (Mario Casas) steals and sells their possessions. While working one day, the ambulance is in an accident that leaves Angel paralyzed from the waist down. This new condition puts a strain on his relationship, and when his girlfriend leaves him, Angel becomes obsessed with ruining her life.
Fractured
When their six-year-old daughter suffers a fracture, Ray (Sam Worthington) and Joanne Monroe (Lily Rabe) take her to the E.R. Shortly after their arrival, however, Joanne and their daughter disappear. When Sam begins to frantically search for his wife and daughter, he learns that the hospital has no record of them ever being there. Sam begins to search for answers, concerned that the hospital is hiding something.
