The Stepfather is now free on Tubi: a Stephen King favorite

The Stepfather just landed on Tubi, which gives viewers an easy way to catch the 1987 horror thriller Stephen King has named as one of his favorite horror movies.

Joseph Ruben directed it, Donald E. Westlake wrote it, and Terry O’Quinn stars as Jerry Blake, an ideal suburban husband and father whose obsession with building the “perfect” family turns deadly.

Loosely inspired by John List, The Stepfather starts with a slasher premise and then goes somewhere darker, digging into Reagan-era family myths, patriarchy, suburban male violence, and the women and younger characters trying to survive Jerry Blake as he unravels.

If you know The Stepfather by title but never actually got around to watching it, this is a good time to do that.

It made only about $2.5 million domestically, but critics were largely on its side. The Stepfather went on to build a cult following, spawn sequels in 1989 and 1992, get a poorly received 2009 remake, and now it even has a Tubi reimagining planned for 2026 with Taye Diggs attached. Still, the main reason the original holds up is Terry O’Quinn’s calm, methodical performance.

You can stream The Stepfather free on Tubi now.