It’s October and we all know what that means. If you haven’t said the word “spooktacular” yet, it’s almost a matter of time. Horror movies are riding high since the It remake slaughtered all box office competition last month, and more are on the way. (Hell-o, Happy Death Day.) However, for anyone not seeking out scares during this candy-clotted swath of Autumn, there are plenty of other entertainment emotions to embrace. In order to help you separate the worthwhile from the time-wasters, Fast Company has prepared a ghoulish guide to the most promising movies, shows, albums, and books coming your way this Shocktober. (Actual ghoulishness may vary.) All treats, no tricks, and far fewer Halloween-related puns than this intro would suggest.
MOVIES IN THEATERS
- Blade Runner 2049, opens October 6.
- The Florida Project, opens October 6.
- Goodbye Christoper Robin, opens October 13.
- Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, opens October 13.
- The Foreigner, opens October 13.
- Happy Death Day, opens October 13.
- Human Flow, opens October 13.
- Marshall, opens October 13.
- Boo 2! A Madea Halloween, opens October 20.
- Geostorm, opens October 20.
- Leatherface, opens October 20.
- The Mountain Between Us, opens October 20.
- Same Kind of Different as Me, opens October 20.
- The Snowman, opens October 20.
- Wonderstruck, opens October 20.
- Jigsaw, opens October 27.
- The Square, opens October 27.
- Suburbicon, opens October 27.
- Professor Marston & the Wonder Women, opens October 27.
MOVIES TO WATCH AT HOME
- Better Watch Out, premieres October 6.
- Una, premieres October 6.
- The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected), premieres October 13.
- Patton Oswalt: Annihilation, premieres October 17 on Netflix.
- Wheelman, premieres October 20 on Netflix.
- Too Funny to Fail, premieres October 21 on Hulu
- Creep 2, premieres October 24 on Netflix.
ALBMS YOU SHOULD HEAR
- Cults – Offering, out on October 6.
- Ducktails – Jersey Devil, out on October 6.
- Kele Okereke – Fatherland, out on October 6.
- Kelela – Take Me Apart, out on October 6.
- Liam Gallagher – As You Were, out on October 6.
- Marilyn Manson – Heaven Upside Down, out on October 6.
- Mark Kozelek with Ben Boye and Jim White, out on October 6.
- The Darkness – Pinewood Smile, out on October 6.
- Wolf Parade – Cry Cry Cry, out on October 6.
- Tegan and Sara – The Con X: Covers, out on October 13.
- Beck – Colors, out on October 13.
- King Krule – The Ooz, out on October 13.
- Courtney Barnett & Kurt Vile – Lotta Sea Lice, out on October 13.
- St. Vincent – MASSEDUCATION, out on October 13.
- P!nk – Beautiful Trauma, out on October 13.
- Stars – There’s No Love In Fluorescent Light, out on October 13.
- Darius Rucker – When Was The Last Time, out on October 20.
- Destroyer – ken, out on October 20.
- Europe – Walk The Earth, out on October 20.
- Gwar – The Blood Of Gods, out on October 20.
- Kelly Clarkson – The Meaning of Life, out on October 27.
- Weezer – Pacific Daydream, out on October 27.
THINGS TO WATCH ON YOUR TV OR COMPUTER
- Bob’s Burgers, premieres October 1 on Fox.
- Curb Your Enthusiasm, premieres October 1 on HBO.
- Family Guy, premieres October 1 on
- Ghosted , premieres October 1 on Fox .
- Keeping Up With the Kardashians, premieres October 1 on E!
- The Last Man on Earth, premieres October 1 on Fox.
- Shark Tank, premieres October 1 on ABC.
- The Simpsons, premieres October 1 on Fox.
- 9JKL , premieres October 2 on CBS.
- The Gifted , premieres October 2 on Fox.
- Total Request Live, premieres October 2 on MTV, tbd
- black-ish, premieres October 3 on ABC.
- Fresh Off the Boat, premieres October 3 on ABC.
- Kevin (Probably) Saves the World , premieres October 3 on ABC.
- The Mayor , premieres October 3 on ABC.
- Scandal premieres October 5 on ABC.
- Spielberg , premieres October 7 on HBO. tbd
- Supergirl, premieres October 9 on CW.
- Dynasty , premieres October 11 on CW.
- Mr. Robot, premieres October 11 on USA.
- Riverdale, premieres October 11 on CW.
- I Love You, America, premieres October 12 on Hulu.
- Jane the Virgin, premieres October 12 on CW.
- Mindhunter , premieres October 13 on Netflix.
- White Famous , premieres October 13 on Showtime.
- Martha & Snoop’s Potluck Dinner Party, premieres October 16 on VH1.
- Loudermilk , premieres October 17 on DirecTV/AT&T.
- Freakish, premieres October 18 on Hulu
- Too Funny to Fail , premieres October 21 on Hulu.
- The Walking Dead , premieres October 21 on AMC.
- At Home With Amy Sedaris, premieres October 24 on truTV.
- The Last O.G., premieres October 24 on TBS.
- Drop the Mic, premieres October 26 on TBS.
- Stranger Things premieres October 27 on Netflix.
- Superior Donuts, premieres October 30 on CBS.
BOOKS TO READ
- Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan, out on October 3.
- I’m Fine … And Other Lies by Whitney Cummings, out on October 3.
- Fresh Complaint by Jeffrey Eugenides, out on October 3.
- We Were Eight Years in Power by Ta-Nehisi Coates, out on October 3.
- Here in Berlin by Cristina García, out on October 10.
- Turtles All the Way Down by John Green, out on October 10.
- Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks, out on October 17.
- Vacationland by John Hodgman, out on October 24.
- Unqualified by Anna Faris, out on October 24.
[Photo Mash Up: Maja Saphir for Fast Company; Chavela: Maj Lindström, courtesy of Aubin Pictures; Blade Runner 2049: Stephen Vaughan, courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures; Happy Death Day: Patti Perret, courtesy of Universal Pictures; The Foreigner: Christopher Raphael, courtesy of STX Productions, LLC; Jigsaw: Brooke Palmer, courtesy of Lionsgate Films]