30 Disney Halloween Movies That Aren’t Too Scary
Updated: Mar. 23, 2023
Halloween movies with Mickey Mouse, Maleficent, the Hundred Acre Wood squad, and all your favorite Disney characters offer up loads of fun without too much fright.
Disney’s frightfully fun films
It’s time to start singing “this is Halloween, this is Halloween,” that hummable tune from one of the best Disney Halloween movies ever, The Nightmare Before Christmas. Disney’s Halloween fare serves up the spookiness with dollops of charm and playfulness, so it’s not too scary for the little ones in your household—or for you! After all, not everyone wants to be afraid to turn off the lights after watching some seriously scary Halloween movies.
Disney always delivers magic, and of course, magic is an essential component in Halloween. The best Halloween movies for kids usually indulge in age-appropriate, paranormal mayhem, and Disney movies, in particular, also often include catchy songs that your kids will be singing for weeks. Another bonus: You might even get some awesome (and easy!) inspiration for the best Halloween costumes for Disney fans, whether they’re pint-sized or all grown up. So, if you like to keep your darkness delightful, you’re in the right place with this list of kid-friendly Halloween movies on Disney Plus, the Disney Channel, and some that are playing during Freeform’s “31 Nights of Halloween.” And if you’re looking for a more diverse selection of spooky and funny-scary flicks, check out our guides to the best Halloween movies on Netflix and Hulu.
Bedknobs and Broomsticks
Settle in for some retro witchery and whimsy with this 1971 musical that features both animated characters and live-action adventure. Angela Lansbury stars as an apprentice witch who, along with a group of kids, saves the day while adventuring on a magical flying bed. Hey, it’s comfier than a broomstick! For more movie magic (literally speaking), check out our list of the best witch movies.
The Black Cauldron
Get ready for an evil cauldron a-brew with malevolent tendencies in this animated legend first released in 1985. Superb art design buoys this medieval fairy tale about a teenaged farm boy who partners with a princess and a fantastical dog to take on ghoulies and dark forces. If you have very little ones, beware of the PG-rated intensity! Don’t miss these other cartoon movies for family movie night.
The Haunted Mansion
Eddie Murphy serves up good-natured thrills and chills in this comedy based on the ever-popular Disney attraction. Prepare for giggles, ghosts, and kid-level gags. It’s the perfect fare when you like your Disney Halloween movies jam-packed with extreme silliness. If you want to keep it corny, tell your kids these Halloween jokes that are better than candy corn. Actually, we may need to rethink that—nothing’s better than candy corn.
Halloweentown
Debbie Reynolds stars as a sorceress grandma—the good kind—in this late-’90s classic that spawned a franchise. Grandma shows up to train the grandkids in witchery, but Mom’s not having it. Kids will be kids, though, and they follow Gram back to Halloweentown, the otherworldly zone beyond. Like most of the offerings on this list, you’ll find this classic Halloween movie on Disney Plus, along with its sequels. Next, bookmark this list of Halloween party games to keep kids occupied in the mortal world.
Zombies
Teenaged hottie zombies frolic with regular high schoolers in this zippy musical that makes monster life wholesome and happy. These Disney zombies no longer eat brains, so a romance ensues between a cheerleader and a zombiefied footballer that’s perfect for Hallow-tween entertainment. For more holiday silliness, these Halloween memes will make even your cool kids chuckle.
Zombies 2
It’s time for prom—or Prawn, as it’s known in Disney’s teenaged zombie landscape—and werewolves are here to crash the party in this popular sequel. Prepare for dark myths, Wolfen teenyboppers, and sweetheart zombies who burst into song and dance. How smart are you when it comes to Halloween? Here are some Halloween riddles to devour (your brains)!
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The lithe and lanky Pumpkin King, Jack Skellington, accidentally disrupts Christmas while trying to make it better. Stunning stop-motion animation gives this classic Disney musical visual flair and Gothic whimsy. Watch it for decor inspiration, and also check out these DIY Halloween decorations to properly deck your halls.
Frankenweenie
Double creature-feature time! First, watch Tim Burton’s 1984 live-action short about a kid who “frankensteins” his pet pooch back to life. Then, check out the feature-length animated remake released in 2012. Both versions of Frankenweenie feature stunning expressionistic visuals in gorgeous, moody black and white. Have you read the classic novel this story is based on? It was written by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley back in 1816, and it’s one of the greatest books you should have read by now.
Toy Story of Terror!
This is one of those Disney Halloween movies that’s short in length (just 21 terror-filled minutes of charm), but big on vocal star power. Carl Weathers, Kate McKinnon, Timothy Dalton, and others join Tom Hanks and Tim Allen as the voices of toys who are in for some horror-inspired high jinks set at an eerie roadside motel. To infinity and beyond the veil! See if you can create your own Halloween puns with these other Disney movie quotes.
Pooh’s Heffalump Halloween Movie
Heffalumps and Woozles are very confusels, and also very cute, so you’ll definitely want to choosel Disney Halloween movies with Pooh, Tigger, and the whole Hundred Acre Wood gang. In this one, they’re dealing with the “Gobloon” and facing their fears around trick-or-treating. If you’re in the mood for a little sweetness, you’ll love Winnie the Pooh’s best quotes, like, “A hug is always the right size.” Awwwww.
Fantasia
The best Disney Halloween movies capture the spooky magic of the scary season, and two segments in the animated masterpiece Fantasia fit the bill. In “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice,” you’ll find lovable Mickey in an expressionistic fantasia of magic gone awry. Nest, settle in for the final sequence “Night on Bald Mountain” for gloriously ghoulish visuals of shadows and darkness as the dead rise. Bonus: Both feature some seriously stunning classical music, so your little ones will be exposed to tons of culture in the process.
The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad
The first animated adventure in this classic double feature follows road-rager Mr. Toad, but the second short is set on the eve of the annual Halloween frolic. The story adapts Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and features none other than the (eek!) Headless Horseman. Who is this crazed cowboy gone bad, anyway? Don’t miss the origins of the spookiest Halloween monsters, including this headless rider.
Descendants
Add some pop Gothic villainy to Halloween with this tween-dream musical about bad apple kiddos. What are you like as a teenager when your mom is an evil queen? This flick has the answer. Let out your little one’s dark side as Mal on the big day, or try another one of these easy DIY Halloween costumes for kids.
Hocus Pocus
Bette Midler shines as the lead witch in this cult hit from 1993 (and its impending sequel, Hocus Pocus 2) that audiences continue to adore. Spike the popcorn bowl with candy and settle in for family-friendly, over-the-top, silly-spooky fun and frolic. This movie could provide some inspiration if you’re looking for family Halloween costumes.
Coco
Dazzling animation brings the Land of the Dead to life with color, depth, and vision in this Disney Pixar delight about a child’s dreams of becoming a musician. Screen it for kids during Halloween season for skeleton aesthetics that make the macabre enchanting and emotionally rich.
Girl vs. Monster
One haunted mansion. Three brainy, bubbly teens. Pop songs. Halloween season. Oh, and monsters. It’s the perfect recipe for Disney Halloween movies filled with watchable bops and fun. Kids face fears, save parents, and learn about true friends.
Return to Oz
A young Fairuza Balk plays Dorothy in this strange redux of the familiar Wizard of Oz story. This version adds more Halloween flair with the charming Jack Pumpkinhead character as one of Dorothy’s sidekicks who’s in for some spooky mishaps. Surreal visuals and dreamscape set pieces offer truly striking visuals that were nominated for an Academy Award.
Invisible Sister
Cleo feels invisible, totally overshadowed by her perfect older sister, Molly. When Cleo accidentally makes Molly invisible (science homework gone awry!), she takes her place at school since Molly absolutely can’t miss. How does the duo pull this off? Well, it’s Halloween, so with Cleo in costume, no one can tell the difference between the two sisters. Wholesome high jinks ensue. Here are more funny family movies you and your kids can enjoy all year round.
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil
When Maleficent is on screen, whether animated with Gothic wonder or glaring with actress Angelina Jolie’s epic bone structure, the villainous sorceress is a sight to behold. She’s quintessentially witchy, watchable, and Halloween-y. Watch this shadow-filled sequel for full-on Halloween-mood indulgence.
Sleeping Beauty
An animated Maleficent steals all her scenes in this classic fairy tale that makes evil things pretty magnificent. Forest utopias give way to darkness and dragons, and it’s one of the charming Disney Halloween movies that offers a safe way to indulge everyone’s dark side.
Spooky Buddies
Your littlest trick-or-treaters will adore these live-action talking pooches. The puppy gang is back for haunted-house adventures that get a little ghostly just in time for Howl-o-ween. Finish the night with a bedtime story from one of these spooky silly books for kids.
Mom’s Got a Date with a Vampire
If your kids are on the hunt for wholesome and hokey vampire hunters, Disney Channel’s Van Helsing story from 2000 does the trick. Mom’s out on a date with a sus Dracula type, and her grounded kids break protocol to try and save her.
The Scream Team
This 2002 Disney Channel movie features an “afterlife weigh station” and a small-town Halloween fest. The cast includes Kathy Najimy, Eric Idle, and Kat Dennings as a ghost-friendly teen with a kid brother in tow for otherworldly adventure.
Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge
Debbie Reynolds is back again as Grandma Aggie, a good witch who needs the grandkids to come back to Halloweentown to fight evil. The grandkids accidentally leave open the portal between the two worlds and Halloweentown turns gray and dull while the mortal zone gets monstrous. Can they fix their mistake and save both worlds? Since this is a Disney movie, you can guess the answer, but you’ll love watching how it all plays out.
Halloweentown High
The third installment in the franchise offers even more witchy adventure when Halloweentown inhabitants arrive for school with regular humans. The magical citizens look like normal teens to blend in, but when their true identities get revealed, the portals between the two worlds might close forever. As with the other movies in this popular series, this one mixes magic with lessons around acceptance—something that parents will particularly love.
Twitches
Tia and Tamera Mowry of Sister Sister sitcom fame star as twin sister witches, or twitches, in this Disney Channel original movie. Separated at birth for their own safety, the duo rediscover each other right before their Halloween birthday, unleashing their true heritage of power and magic. As October 31 inches closer, your kids might have an extra interest in all things supernatural, but these creepy Ouija board stories might convince you to keep them away from that particular parlor trick.
Twitches Too
The twin witches return in this sequel and are tasked again with using their powers to vanquish evil. Tia and Tamera bring their usual spark and charisma to this comedy that intermixes a magical dimension with regular life on Earth as the twitches fulfill their mystical destiny.
Mr. Boogedy
Give kids a taste of what made the 1980s rad with this haunted-house story starring Kristy Swanson as a big sister facing off with the titular hooded meanie. Watch for totally tubular special effects! Make it a double feature of ’80s cheese with the sequel, Bride of Boogedy, with Eugene Levy as the boogedy villain. While these flicks might not quite rank among the funniest comedies of all time, your kids will definitely love them.
Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie
The popular Disney Channel series gets the full movie treatment, which makes for a great Disney Halloween movie to gratify every kid’s secret (or not-so-secret) desire for magical powers. In this story, Alex (Selena Gomez) gets mad that her parents grounded her off magic and wishes they never met. The spell works! The only problem is that now, she might get erased from existence.
Return to Halloweentown
Audiences learned about the magical Halloweentown in the popular Debbie Reynolds original that spawned a franchise. In this fourth entry, the young Marnie heads to Witch University, a college filled with creature coeds. Marnie is not allowed to hone her magic and embarks on an adventure in which she learns to wield her power responsibly. For more family-friendly fun, check out these easy Halloween crafts your kids will love to make.
Originally Published: August 06, 2021
