What’s Airing on TV on Halloween? Stephen King, M. Night Shyamalan, ‘Addams Family,’ ‘Alien’ & More

If you’re staying in on Halloween, cable television has plenty of tricks and treats in store. The TV listings for Thursday, October 31, include lineups devoted to Stephen King, M. Night Shyamalan, and Rob Zombie; marathons of reality shows and competitions; and The Simpsons’ first 33 “Treehouse of Horror” episodes.

From hardcore horror to family fun, there’s something for everyone on Thursday night. Check out some highlights below, and be advised that all times listen are Eastern.

Animal Planet: Mysterious Creatures marathon

From 5 p.m. to 3 a.m., Animal Planet is on a Mysterious Creatures With Forrest Galante kick, with the TV host investigating a myths of lake monster, reports of a wolf-like creature, legend of a 60-foot snake, and more.

BBC America: Stephen King adaptations

Starting at 8:15 a.m., BBC America is devoting itself to adaptations of Stephen King stories. Think The Dark Tower, Christine, The Shining, Misery, Graveyard Shift, and Thinner.

Warner Brothers/Everett Collection

CMT: Minding the Monsters marathon

CMT is showing of the comedy special Jeff Dunham: Minding the Monsters four times, starting at 7 p.m. “A grumpy old man, a lively puppet, and a skeletal figure bring laughter and surprises,” the logline teases.

Food Network: Creepy cooking competitions

Starting at 7 a.m., Food Network will air five episodes of Halloween Baking Championship. Then come two installments of Last Bite Hotel, starting at 1 p.m. And then it’s nonstop Halloween Wars from 4 p.m. to 3 a.m. that night.

Food Network

Freeform: Hocus Pocus movies

Capping off a day of frightful family fare, Freeform will air the bewitching 1993 comedy film Hocus Pocus at 5:20 p.m., followed by the 2022 sequel Hocus Pocus 2 at 7:30 p.m.

FX: M. Night Shyamalan movies

Do you love M. Night Shyamalan’s twisty, turn-y tales? Then you’ll love FX’s marathon of his work. Starting at 9 a.m., the network is airing Glass, The Happening, The Village, Signs, and The Sixth Sense.

FX Movie Channel: Alien movies

They may not be the highlights of the Alien franchise, but FXM is showing Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem at 5:50 p.m., Aliens 3 at 7:45 p.m., and Alien: Resurrection at 10:05 p.m.

FXX: “Treehouse of Horrors” marathon

Starting at 6:30 a.m., FXX is showing almost every installment of The Simpsons’ annual “Treehouse of Horror” episodes in order, from “Treehouse of Horror I” all the way to “Treehouse of Horror XXXIII.”

Fox

Investigation Discovery: Cabin in the Woods marathon

If crime documentaries are your jam, ID is showing eight Cabin in the Woods episodes, starting at 7 p.m. One episode description: “A young woman cozies up with her new boyfriend at his remote cabin but has no idea who he really is or what he’s done.”

IFC: Rob Zombie’s Firefly movies

From 3:30 to 10:30 p.m., IFC is playing the Firefly trilogy from rocker-turned-filmmaker Rob Zombie: 2003’s House of 1000 Corpses, which was Zombie’s directorial debut, followed by 2005’s The Devil’s Rejects and 2019’s 3 From Hell.

National Geographic Channel: Mysterious Islands and Ancient Bodies

Nat Geo is spending Halloween Day airing Uncovering Herod’s Lost Tomb, Kingdom of the Mummies, and Witches: Truth Behind the Trials before sharing new episodes of Mysterious Islands(8 p.m.) and Ancient Bodies: Secrets Revealed (8:56 p.m.),

Paramount Network: Addams Family marathon

They’re creepy, and they’re kooky! At 7 p.m. and again at 11:05 p.m., Paramount Network is broadcasting the 1991 horror comedy The Addams Family and the 1993 sequel Addams Family Values.

Jean Pagliuso/Paramount Pictures/Courtesy: Everett Collection

Science Channel: Mysteries of the Abandoned marathon

If you’re hooked on haunted houses (and other eerie locations), check out Science Channel’s marathon of Mysteries of the Abandoned, airing from 3 p.m. to 5 a.m. Example episode titles: “Nightmare on Blood Mountain,” “The Town That Disappeared,” and “Hell on Blood Island.”

Syfy: Halloween movies

Michael Myers will see you now. Syfy will air Rob Zombie’s Halloween at 2:45 p.m. and his Halloween II at 5:15 p.m., followed by two airings of Halloween Kills starting at 7:30 p.m.

Ryan Green/Universal Pictures/Courtesy: Everett Collection

Turner Classic Movies: Classic horror movies

TCM lives up to its name with airings 1930s and 1940s horror movies during the day, followed by 1972’s The Other at 7 p.m., 1971’s Willard at 9 p.m., and 1968’s Night of the Living Dead at 11 p.m.

Travel Channel: Ghost Adventures marathon

From 11 a.m. Halloween morning to 9 p.m. that night, Travel Channel is all Ghost Adventures all the time, including new installments of the paranormal reality show at 5 p.m. (“Curse of the Harrisville Farmhouse” and 7 p.m. (“Lake of Death”).

VH1: Scary Movie marathons

VH1 is showing the lighter side of horror on Halloween, airing two marathons of Scary Movie, Scary Movie 2, and Scary Movie 4 from 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. (Scary Movie 3 must have missed the memo.)