Rotten Tomatoes Confirms It, Netflix’s 6-Hour Thriller Is The Greatest Horror TV Show Of The 21st Century

Published Oct 17, 2026, 11:00 AM EDT

Liz Hersey is an Editor and Critic for ScreenRant's TV team, editing, reviewing, writing, and creating content about the iconic shows you love to watch. She began her editing career at ScreenRant in 2019, shortly after joining the site as a Writer that same year.

With a passion for all things books, Liz frequently attends Toronto literary events and conferences, and loves interacting with her book lover community. In addition to being an avid reader of the romance and thriller genres, Liz is a writer of several short stories, and is currently at work on a young adult witch novel.

When she's not working, reading, or writing, Liz can be found seeing movies at her local cinema, attending live jazz events, or curling up on the couch to binge her favorite TV shows.

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With spooky season in full swing, there are a ton of horror TV options to choose from this October, whether it's a new streaming hit or a recent masterpiece. American Horror Story season 13 is airing, Mike Flanagan's Carrie is already cementing itself as a modern classic, and Hudson Williams' highly anticipated Yaga will make its AMC+ debut on October 23.

For those who want the absolute cream of the crop, the best horror TV shows of the 21st century offer something for every type of genre fan. Prior to adapting Stephen King's debut novel for Prime Video, Flanagan developed several top-tier horror series for Netflix, including The Haunting of Hill House and Midnight Mass, while those who like a genre blend can enjoy the streaming platform's dystopian anthology series Black Mirror or Apple TV's Emmy-winning horror-comedy Widow's Bay. However, as great as these shows are, none hold a candle to Netflix's Marianne.

Premiering in 2019, Marianne is a French series about a horror author named Emma Larsimon (Victoria Du Bois), who learns that the malevolent witch she writes about in her books has manifested itself into real life and has begun preying on Emma's loved ones in increasingly horrific ways. It's a simple premise, but Marianne maximizes the terror without ever committing the mistakes of its genre contemporaries. Marianne is essentially a perfect show — and the critics agree.

Netflix’s Marianne Tops Every Other Horror Series This Century

Image via MovieStillsDB

Once considered the lowest-culture genre, horror has become taken more seriously thanks to the works of talented auteurs like Mike Flanagan, even leading to the term "elevated horror". However, the problem with this term is that it implies something is missing from horror, and that the best titles in the genre are those that have somehow been "elevated" by using horror as a metaphor for grief, childhood trauma, etc.

That's not to say that these elevated horror movies and shows aren't excellent, but Marianne excels because it doesn't need to elevate in any way to succeed. It's just plain scary; no metaphors needed. Emma's gloomy, coastal hometown of Elden, where she returns to confront the witch, is atmospheric and spooky, serving as a character in and of itself rather than simply providing vibes and aesthetics.

Meanwhile, Mireille Herbstmeyer is sheer perfection as Madame Daugeron, the local woman whom the titular witch takes possession of. Rather than play her as a horrifying, supernatural creature, Herbstmeyer is so terrifying precisely because Madame Daugeron is a human. Her grotesque smiles and unblinking stares create an unsettling uncanny valley much more frightening than anything seen in American Horror Story or the Flanaverse.

While Marianne was canceled after one season, the silver lining is that the series never became bloated. So many horror shows start with premises so scary they become instant watercooler hits, only to dilute the show's initial terror with more episodes and storylines. Marianne is so relentless that eight episodes are the absolute perfect length.

The Critics All Agree That Marianne Is A Masterpiece

Image via of Everett Collection

Marianne achieved a hugely impressive critical feat, having earned a perfect 100% Fresh score from Rotten Tomatoes. This is an achievement not even most award-winning, prestige dramas can claim, let alone a series in a genre as looked down upon as horror.

That said, Marianne's perfect score should be taken with a grain of salt, as it's only made up of 16 reviews, compared to more mainstream shows like Mike Flanagan's Carrie, which has an 85% score taken from 122 reviews. However, it's also been over seven years since Marianne premiered, a time frame in which acclaimed shows are often reevaluated in terms of critical and cultural impact.

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The fact that Marianne is still considered one of horror TV's greatest hidden gems speaks volumes. Even the King of Horror himself has spoken highly of the Netflix show, with Stephen King recommending Marianne to the "sickos--like me--who enjoys being scared." It's hard to find a higher mark of supreme horror quality than that.