Nightbooks

Play trailer

2:23

Nightbooks

2021

Fantasy

Horror

Kids & Family

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

90%

Tomatometer

31 Reviews

60%

Popcornmeter

100+ Ratings

Alex (Winslow Fegley) is a creative boy with a strong passion for writing scary stories. But when he's labeled weird and rejected for what he likes, he swears he'll never write again. That's when an evil witch (Krysten Ritter), captures him in her magical apartment in New York City and demands that he tell her a new tale every night if he wants to stay alive. Trapped inside with Lenore, the witch's spiteful cat watching his every move, Alex meets Yasmin (Lidya Jewett), another young prisoner who has learned how to survive the witch's wicked whims. With Yasmin's help, Alex must learn to embrace what makes him unique -- his love for scary stories -- and rewrite his own destiny to break them free.

Critics Consensus

Its contents may be a bit busy and overly familiar, but Nightbooks offers a fun -- and actually fairly scary -- gateway to horror for younger viewers.

Read Critics Reviews

Meagan Navarro

Bloody Disgusting

Nightbooks takes a while to warm up, but the back half brings the gateway horror fun. It's for the young and the young at heart, wrapping a very familiar tale in creative horror-fantasy packaging.

Rated: 3/5

Sep 16, 2021

Full Review

Natalia Winkelman

New York Times

Yarovesky has a knack for tricks of light - shadows, neon night vision and motion cast in silhouette - and the movie is at its most deliciously chilling when it favors visual flair over jump scares.

Sep 16, 2021

Full Review

Scott Tobias

Variety

Its whimsical touches, along with a reverence for creative young minds, gives the film a warmth that counterbalances its shocks.

Sep 15, 2021

Full Review

Shannon Connellan

Mashable

'Nightbooks', being a film about writing scary stories, pays notable respect to their long history and the core of what makes a good one.

Jul 28, 2023

Full Review

Zach Pope

Zach Pope Reviews

Didn’t know what I’d get from this one but I got a delightful, horror filled, family movie that reminded me of Goosebumps & Are you afraid of the dark.

Jul 26, 2023

Full Review

Joe Lipsett

Hazel & Katniss & Harry & Starr Podcast

Krysten Ritter is perfectly cast (and outfitted by costume designer Peter P. Nicolakakos) in this fun and entertaining gateway horror film. While the book may be better, I'd happily watch a sequel in a heartbeat

Oct 29, 2021

Full Review

Read all reviews

Carlos M

Es de las mejores peliculas de fantasia-suspenso que he visto sinceramente no hagan caso a las malas reseñas denle una oportunidad

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

08/12/25

Full Review

Amber B

Perfect if you like fun, dark fantasy. Loved seeing Ritter in this role! This movie lived up to what I wanted it to be.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

05/10/25

Full Review

Rayan K

Masterpiece that everyone should watch

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/20/25

Full Review

Brooke T

This is now on my favourite movies of all time list. Such a whimsical and spooky kid friendly movie. The actors were all perfect. I was engaged the entire time and wasn’t bored once. This film also has a very unique concept and the costuming for Natacha was divine as well as the set design. Perfect for a cozy, moody, spooky movie night!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/27/24

Full Review

Joshua S

Great family movie, finally a scary kids movie that is scary. Hoping for a sequel.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/27/24

Full Review

Logan D

A boy who loves writing horror stories decides to quit after having his hobby disparaged by his peers. After being captured by a witch, however, he is forced to tell more stories for her. Backed by strong performances, especially from Ritter, this is an imaginative film that respects both fairy tales and horror. It does skew to a younger audience. I loved the set design.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/16/24

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

David Yarovesky

Director

Winslow Fegley

Alex

Lidya Jewett

Yasmin

Krysten Ritter

Natacha

Mikki Daughtry

Screenwriter

Tobias Iaconis

Screenwriter

The Clear

%

%

The Clear

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Clear

The New Mutants

37%

55%

The New Mutants

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The New Mutants

Slumberland

40%

85%

Slumberland

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Slumberland

Gretel & Hansel

63%

23%

Gretel & Hansel

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Gretel & Hansel

Cram

100%

%

Cram

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Halloween TV Calendar 2021

The Eyes of Tammy Faye Is Unfocused, but Jessica Chastain Is Riveting

Nightbooks: Trailer 1

2:23

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

Alex (Winslow Fegley) is a creative boy with a strong passion for writing scary stories. But when he's labeled weird and rejected for what he likes, he swears he'll never write again. That's when an evil witch (Krysten Ritter), captures him in her magical apartment in New York City and demands that he tell her a new tale every night if he wants to stay alive. Trapped inside with Lenore, the witch's spiteful cat watching his every move, Alex meets Yasmin (Lidya Jewett), another young prisoner who has learned how to survive the witch's wicked whims. With Yasmin's help, Alex must learn to embrace what makes him unique -- his love for scary stories -- and rewrite his own destiny to break them free.

Director: David Yarovesky
Producer: Sam Raimi, Romel Adam, Mason Novick, Michelle Knudsen
Screenwriter: Mikki Daughtry, Tobias Iaconis
Genre: Fantasy, Horror, Kids & Family
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 15, 2021