26 Best Psychological Thrillers Streaming on Netflix Right Now

After a traumatic event, Jane grew up in a foster home with no recollection of her childhood. Now as an adult with ongoing memory issues, strange coincidences and an eerily familiar farmhouse prompt her to dig into her past and try to learn the truth. When Jane learns that her entire family was brutally massacred back in 1985, she’s plagued by the horrifying suspicion that she herself might have been responsible.

Related: 10 Domestic Thrillers That Make You Read Between the Lies 

Topher Grace plays Tom, a man who has been released from a mental institution after a 20-year stint. For the next 30 days, he will be placed under house arrest in the mansion he inherited from his father. As he’s trapped indoors with minimal contact from the outside world, disturbing hallucinations have Tom wondering whether he’s relapsing, or if the house is haunted by malevolent forces.

When Matthew Lane (Ryan Reynolds) picks his 9-year-old daughter Cassandra up from figure skating practice, it appears to be a day like any other. However, his world turns upside down when he leaves her alone in his truck for a moment and returns to find the passenger seat empty. A frantic search for the missing girl yields nothing, and eight years pass with no sightings of Cassandra. However, newly unearthed evidence suggests that she was kidnapped by a predator, and may still be alive.

Two detectives hunt down a psychopathic serial killer with the compulsive need to harvest his victims’ fingernails. The pulse-pounding case becomes a lot more personal when one of the investigators reveals that he himself came face-to-face with the killer when he was a child, and now wants to bring the sadist to justice.

Clint Eastwood directed this violent, noirish psychological thriller. Jimmy (Sean Penn), Dave (Tim Robbins), and Sean (Kevin Bacon) grew up together in Boston, where Dave survived a hellish childhood ordeal. Years later, Jimmy’s daughter is murdered, and Dave’s bizarre behavior after the fact puts him high on the list of suspects.

Related: 13 Killer Revenge Movies Best Served Cold 

Adapted from the James Patterson novel of the same name, the second Alex Cross film stars Morgan Freeman in the role of homicide investigator and forensic psychologist. After a brief retirement, Cross is back to investigate the kidnapping and ransom of a senator’s daughter. But the perpetrators of this conspiracy may be closer to home than he realizes.

The first Alex Cross movie opens with the disappearance of Cross’s college-age niece from Durham, North Carolina. He is informed that hers is the latest in a string of kidnappings at the hands of a masked man calling himself "Casanova." When one of the kidnapped women manages to escape, her testimony proves to be the necessary break in the case to start tracking down the unstable abductor.

This historical take on the psychological thriller is loosely based on the Edgar Allan Poe short story, “The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether.” Kate Beckinsdale stars as Eliza Graves, a woman who has been institutionalized at the turn of the twentieth century. When a newly hired doctor falls in love with her and begins to suspect the other staff have ulterior motives, they find themselves in unspeakable danger.

Raúl Arévalo made his directorial debut with this 2016 Spanish thriller flick. After participating in a jewelry store heist, Curro has been imprisoned for eight years. Upon his release, he anticipates reuniting with wife, Ana. But all hell breaks loose when he finds out that another man may have taken his place.

Related: 17 Pulse-Pounding Thrillers Streaming on Amazon Prime You Can Watch Tonight 

This Spanish-language film takes place at a Mexican resort, where two families find that management has accidentally overbooked their stays. Forced to share a room with complete strangers, family man Pedro can’t shake the feeling that there’s something off about this whole situation. His paranoia is only confirmed as the holiday unfolds in an increasingly odd manner.

Matt Damon stars as the titular Ripley in this 1999 film based on the Patricia Highsmith novel. Con artist Tom Ripley befriends a wealthy Princeton dropout named Dickie. Infatuated with his new friend’s lifestyle, Ripley slowly begins to steal aspects of Dickie’s identity, until the situation spins out of his control.

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. 

Related: 19 Classic Film Noir Movies Every Mystery Buff Should Watch 

In this mind-bending German thriller, Erik’s life in the country is rocked by the arrival of a sinister figure named Henry. Henry’s forceful ways push Erik to the limit. Soon, other figures appear, threatening harm. Erik needs to find a way out before it’s too late, but who can be trusted—and just what is real? 

Related: 10 Mo Hayder Books That Will Get Under Your Skin 

This cyber hostage thriller from India follows a man who soon finds himself lost in the darkest corners of the web. Aravind (Jayaprakash Radhakrishnan) is addicted to webcam voyeurism, an obsession that’s eroding his relationship with his wife. But his newest online connection has a chilling plan: the stranger intends to force Aravind to witness a live suicide.  

Jeremy Saulnier’s dark crime drama packs the bloody punch of a revenge thriller with the emotional twists and turns of a tightly-constructed psychological tale. It stars Macon Blair, who plays Dwight Evans, a drifter who receives troubling news about his past. Determined, Dwight heads back to his hometown in search of resolution—and revenge.  

Related: 8 Must-Read Crime Thriller Books 

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, in the hope that it will help heal her professional and personal life. As it turns out, however, Alex possesses his own troubling history. 

This fresh 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.   

The Gift operates on a tried-and-true psychological thriller premise–past wounds are reopened when a creepy figure from one's past appears. In this case, the target is Simon Callem (Jason Bateman) and his wife Robyn (Rebecca Hall), and the menacing figure is Gordon "Gordo" Moseley (Joel Edgerton) who starts dropping by the house. He always shows up with gifts, but his true nature begins to reveal itself as the strange “friendship” sours. 

Related: 24 Best Thriller Movies You Can (and Should) Stream Right Now 

City of Tiny Lights stars Riz Ahmed as a private detective. Our protagonist is, of course, drawn into a mystery that is much more complex than it first appears. There’s a lot going on here, including everything from terrorism to secretive government operations. Naturally, not everyone is telling the whole truth.

It’s a bit shocking that Toby Jones hasn’t been in more psychological thrillers. Something about his presence transmits the perfect mix of pathos and psychosis. This film, written and directed by his brother, nails the growing sense of unease so necessary for a potent psychological thriller. Although it’s flown a bit under the radar, Kaleidoscope is one of the best psychological thrillers on Netflix.

Related: 8 Psychological Thriller Books That Will Torment You For Days 

Hungry for a second 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. 

This Spanish psychological thriller is one of Netflix’s best offerings in the genre. A moody thriller with a flair for the dramatic, it takes itself seriously enough to get the viewer wrapped up and then follows through with a thrilling, satisfying ending that ties up every twisted thread. 

The Interview focuses on a police interview that pits a detective against a man with nothing left to lose. Viewers are initially left in the dark as to the nature of the crime, and the claustrophobic movie contains its action almost entirely within the small interrogation room. Through dialogue and flashbacks, a clever and unexpected plot soon emerges.

Related: 15 Killer Mystery Movies Streaming on Netflix Right Now 

Stephen Graham stars in this creepy psychological thriller about the power of secrets. The troubling plot kicks off when a novelist and TV host, Sandy Duffy, is caught shoplifting by a security guard. Shoplifting is a habit for Duffy, but the security guard is willing to keep what he saw to himself in exchange for “friendship.” The thrills arrive soon after, as Duffy’s new “friend” turns out to be a pretty demanding and creepy guy to pal around with.

Related: The Most Exhilarating Thrillers of the Last Decade 

Denis Villenueve (director of Arrival and Blade Runner 2049) brings us this film about a mysterious doppelganger. Jake Gyllenhaal stars as Adam, a man who meets his double. The two men discover they’re physically identical in every way, even down to a unique scar. Gyllenhaal becomes increasingly paranoid as their lives intersect, and we’re led to wonder whether his double exists at all or is a figment of his imagination. Rife with metaphors and evocative visuals, this hair-raising movie will keep you thinking long after it ends.

A man attends a dinner party hosted by his ex-wife and her new husband. That situation is stressful enough without injecting cults and paranoia into the mix. Will learns his ex has joined a lifestyle fad with cultish overtones to help her deal with the grief of losing their son, and he becomes increasingly fearful of the sinister vibes he gets from the new couple and their friends. The tension in this movie is a slow simmer, and the suspense will keep you on the edge of your seat.