Netflix has no shortage of amazing content, but Korean horror movies in the list of must-watch Netflix titles bring an oomph factor to your streaming experience.
Are you fed up with the same repeated concept and predictable scare scenes of English horror movies? Do you want to relish a more realistic and suspenseful film on a quiet Saturday night?
Korean horror movies on Netflix have got you covered. Finely directed and depicting features of great cinematographic expressions- Korean movies are taking over the horror genre on Netflix with unique base stories and unexpected turns of events.
You may not be able to unfold the series of events in the film to figure out the suspenseful aspect of the movie until the screen allows you to know the hidden secrets most of the time.
We have listed the 18 best Korean horror movies on Netflix below to help you avoid the struggle.
1. The Call (2020)
Director: Chung-Hyung Lee
Writers: Sergio Casci, Chung-Hyun Lee
Cast: Park Shin-Hye, Jeon Jong-seo, Sung-ryung Kim
IMDb Rating: 7.1/10
‘The Call’ portrays on screen the story of two women who have their singular tales, but it’s through this one phone call-and the story of how they got there-that they draw close to one another.
The women’s stories begin to intertwine when Young-Sook receives a mysterious call from a woman who claims to have saved her life. What unfolds is a spine-chilling thriller that features friendship, family, love, fame, and betrayal.
2. Metamorphosis (2019)
Directors: Hong-seon Kim
Writers: Kim Hyang-ji
Cast: Sung-Woo Bae, Dong-il Sung, Jang Young-Nam, Hye-jun Kim, Yi-Hyun Cho
IMDb Rating: 5.8/10
Metamorphosis features a family that has stood against an evil spirit that changes faces to infiltrate their own for centuries. However, when the spirit targets Ae-Jin as its next host, his brother vows to save him.
While on the mission, Dong-Chul joins forces with an old friend and a mysterious monk to battle what may be an unbeatable foe.
3. A Tale Of Two Sisters (2003)
Director: Jee-woon Kim
Writers: Jee-won Kim
Cast: Lim Soo-jung, Jung-ah Yum, Kim Kap-su, Moon Geun-young, Gi-hong Woo, Soo-yeon Bae
IMDb Rating: 7.2/10
A tale of two sisters revolves around two sorrowful murders and a broken family. The film begins with two sisters returning to their childhood home after spending considerable time at a mental institution after their father had abandoned them.
After moving in with their father’s new family, they soon realize that his new wife is as cruel to them as their mother was. And to make matters worse, a strange ghost begins haunting them.
4. #Alive (2020)
Director: II Cho
Writers: II Cho
Cast: Yoo Ah-in, Park Shin-Hye, Jeon Bae-soo, Hyun-Wook Lee
IMDb Rating: 6.3/10
All the city residents are unaware of what has taken over the city and has left it in the problematic state of quarantine. With his apartment serving as a refuge and supplies dwindling, a man must find a way to survive until a young woman comes knocking at his door.
With incredibly stunning action-packed visuals, this suspenseful thriller will take you on a terrifying journey of survival with horrors guaranteed!
5. Train To Busan (2016)
Director: Sang-ho Yeon
Writers: Joo-Suk Park, Sang-ho Yeon
Cast: Gong Yoo, Yu-mi Jung, Ma Dong-seok, Su-an Kim, Eui-sung Kim, Woo-sik Choi, Sohee, Soo-jung Ye
IMDb Rating: 7.6/10
No matter what comes towards you, do not stop! You can’t die! You just can’t. Train to Busan is a father-daughter story about how a father helps his daughter survive zombie attacks in a large city hit by a viral outbreak and move on to find her mother.
Train to Busan is a nail-biting thriller filled with plenty of creative, gory zombie action sequences.
6. Peninsula (2020)
Director: Sang-ho Yeon
Writers: Sang-ho Yeon, Ryu Yong-jae
Cast: Dong-won Gang, Lee Jung-hyun, Re Lee, Hae-hyo Kwon, Min-Jae Kim, Do-yoon Kim
IMDb Rating: 5.5/10
The blood-curdling horror thriller ‘Peninsula’ serves as a sequel to the blockbuster movie ‘Train To Busan’ and puts the events on screen four years later.
Jung-sok and Seul-hwa meet again while trying to survive on their own. Jung has escaped overseas and is on a mission to return to the peninsula, while Seul-hwa started living in a beach house with her father.
7. The 8th Night (2021)
Director: Kim Tae-hyung
Writers: Kim Tae-hyung
Cast: Lee Sung-min, Kim Yoo-jeong, Park Hae-joon, Choi Jin-ho, Nam Da-reum, Kim Dong-young
IMDb Rating: 5.3/10
The film centers on a Buddhist monk named Sunwoo, who wields his ax and prayer beads while fighting an evil spirit that has transformed into people around him.
He is joined in his mission by An, who can see ghosts and sense their presence, and a police detective named Min, who is rising in ranks at the National Police Agency.
The group must find the human host of the evil spirit named Ad Wolgwang, as only his death can put an end to the damage done.
8. The Host (2006)
Director: Bong Joon Ho
Writers: Bong Joon Ho, Won-jun Ha, Chul-hyun Baek, Bae Doona, Ko Asung, Dong-ho Lee
Cast: Kang-ho Song, Byun Hee-Bong, Park Hae-il
IMDb Rating: 7.1/10
The first monster movie in the history of Korean cinema, “The Host,” is a monster blockbuster hit that combines thrilling action and a human drama.
The film orbits around a mutant monster living in the Han River who gets released into Seoul due to the toxic chemicals constantly being poured into it.
The behemoth captures a family’s youngest daughter and her brother uptakes a journey with his friends to save her from being munched up alive.
9. Phone (2002)
Director: Byeong-ki Ahn
Writers: Byeong-ki Ahn, Yu-jin Lee
Cast: Ha Jin-Won, Kim Yu-Mi, Woo-Jae Choi, Ji-yeon Choi, Seo-woo Eun
IMDb Rating: 6.2/10
In the vein of Fatal Attraction, Phone is a psychological thriller that skillfully builds its tension as it follows a series of mysterious and increasingly threatening phone calls.
The film is a captivating and unapologetic combination of logic and subtle paranoia that keeps the viewer guessing until the chilling end.
10. Hansel And Gretel (2007)
Director: Pil-sung Yim
Writers: Ji-hae Kim, Min-sook Kim, Pil-sung Yim
Cast: Jeong-myeong Cheon, Eun Won-jae, Shim Eun-kyung, Ji-hee Jin, Hee-soon Park
IMDb Rating: 6.7/10
The Korean horror sensation ‘Hansel and Gretel’ is about a young salesman who gets lost in a forest and stumbles upon a mysterious girl. She kidnapped him and locked him in an eerie mansion filled with secret passageways, disturbing puzzles, and nightmarish creatures.
This film will seduce you with its rich visuals and darkly humorous tone as it invites you into the dramatic horrors that unfold in this strange house.
11. The Wrath (2018)
Director: Young-sun Yoo
Writers: Park Jae-Bum
Cast: Choi Hong-il, Kyu-Sung Lee, Yeong-hie Seo, Na-Eun Son
IMDb Rating: 5.3/10
Highlighting the events of a true story from the 1800s, this movie depicts gruesome and shocking events in the household of Lee Gyeong-jin, a high-ranking official of the Joseon Kingdom.
Soon after the mysterious deaths of his three sons, their pregnant mother encounters a vicious curse that she tries to fight with the help of her husband’s subordinate.
Get ready to witness a tragic story beyond the utmost extreme, wrapped in the movie ‘The Wrath.’
12. The Quiet Family (1998)
Director: Jee-woon Kim
Writers: Jee-woon Kim
Cast: In-hwan Park, Moon-hee Na, Kang-ho Song, Choi Min-sik, Ho-kyung Go, Yun-seong Lee
IMDb Rating: 7.0/10
In the hope for some extra money, a family takes in a lodger who commits suicide and is buried by the family without allowing any information of the event to pass out.
But soon after, each of their guests meets a similar fate, and things start getting out of hand, leaving everybody for themselves only.
Go for this pick only if you can put up with terrifying scenes and spine chills, for a tonne of scare jumps come your way through this film.
13. I Saw The Devil (2010)
Director: Jee-won Kim
Writers: Jee-woon Kim, Park Hoon-jung
Cast: Lee Byung-hun, Choi Min-sik, Jeon Gook-hwan, Ho-jin Chun, San-ha Oh
IMDb Rating: 7.8/10
Jung Hae-Min is a police detective and is transferred to the secret service. On the day of his first assignment, he’s attacked by a serial killer that eludes capture.
Jung Hae-Min relocates and becomes a taxi driver, ensuring a series of captures and releases. The movie delivers on action, suspense, and the dark, twisted nature of revenge, making it one of the best Korean horror movies on Netflix.
14. Thirst (2009)
Director: Park Chan-wook
Writers: Emile Zola, Park Chan-wook, Seo-kyeong Jeong
Cast: Kang-ho Song, Kim Ok-bin, Hee-jin Choi, Seo Dng-soo, Hwa-ryong Lee, Mi-ran Ra
IMDb Rating: 7.1/10
Twisted, dark, and disturbing, ‘Thirst’ is a movie that will keep you on the edge of your seats. A priest with a terminal illness volunteers to test a new vaccine to cure all diseases. However, he gets bitten by a vampire during his vaccine testing and becomes a crazy vampire himself.
He must now control his hunger for blood before it gets him killed and is forced to move on to another city to continue life as an immortal being.
15. Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum (2018)
Director: Beom-sik Jeong
Writers: Beom-sik Jeong, Sang-min Park
Cast: Sung-Hoon Park, Wi Ha-Joon, Ye-Won Mun, Yoo Je-Yoon, Ah-yeon Oh
IMDb Rating: 6.4/10
Explore a remote and terrifying location in Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum, a horror movie that will leave you biting your nails.
When a horror web series crew visits an abandoned asylum for the sake of recording a live broadcast, things go wrong, and they find themselves locked inside with ghosts from the past.
What secrets does the old building hold? Stream to discover dark mysteries that make it one of the best Korean horror movies on Netflix.
16. The Wailing (2016)
Director: Na Hong-jin
Writers: Na Hong-jin
Cast: Jun Kuniura, Jung-min Hwang, Kwak Do-won, Woo-hee Chun, Hwan-hee Kim
IMDb Rating: 7.5/10
A policeman’s daughter is diagnosed with an incurable disease, and soon after, a stranger arrives in the town. The policeman is drawn into the incident to save his daughter.
‘The Wailing’ is a powerful action film about thrilling fight scenes and emotional excitement. The Wailing is a haunting, gripping tribute to the horror genre.
It’s also a daring game that lays bare some of South Korea’s most disturbing social issues. The plot is superbly crafted and leaves you guessing until the end, making it one of the best Korean horror movies on Netflix.
17. Seoul Station (2016)
Director: Sang-ho Yeon
Writers: Sang-ho Yeon
Cast: Seung-ryeong Ryu, Shim Eun-kyung, Joon Lee, Sang-hee Lee
IMDb Rating: 6.2/10
Seoul Station revolves around people, a mainstream zombie thriller and South Korea’s first of its kind. The plot that makes it interesting is the new epidemic where zombies destroy everything. The survivors are trying to survive this zombie apocalypse.
Soon along with the military, they attempt to rid the undead city but are shocked when it becomes apparent that one of their kind is behind it all.
18. Svaha: The Sixth Finger
Director: Jae-hyun Jang
Writers: Kang Full, Jae-hyun Jang
Cast: Lee Jung-jae, Yoo Ji-Tae, Jeong Min Park
IMDb Rating: 6.3/10
In this unique Korean action-thriller, Pastor Park asks the police to help him save members of a cult from their leader and prophet, “The Sixth Finger.”
As the investigation takes them from one clue to another buried within all sorts of religious groups, they become involved in searching for a hidden box that belonged to Jeong Hee, an insane killer.
If you opt to play this movie on a free night, you will surely enjoy the ending out of the entire film, which makes it one of the best Korean horror movies on Netflix.
Wrapping Up!
Though you can watch anything and everything on Netflix, including comedy, thriller, horror shows, Halloween movies, suspense, horror movies, classic, cartoon, action, romance, cooking shows, sci-fi, reality, kid movies, emotional drama, Marvel shows, and documentaries – it is time to enjoy the best Korean horror movies on Netflix.
Each of the above-mentioned Korean horror movies opens up a new tale of suspense and thrills in front of you. It is guaranteed that all these movies will not fail to impress you unless you are not a subtitles person.
Enjoy!