Picking a Halloween movie for a toddler is a balancing act: you want pumpkins, costumes, and silly monsters, but nothing that will cause bad dreams. The good news is that Disney+ has a solid bench of gentle options that lean into the fun side of the season. The trick is to stick with G-rated titles, short runtimes, and stories where the monsters are friendly — or at least funny.

For the youngest viewers, Monsters, Inc. is the gold standard. The whole premise — that monsters are more scared of kids than kids are of them — is basically toddler logic, and the bright colors and buddy comedy keep things light. At under 90 minutes for the short specials and with plenty of silly moments in the feature film, it holds a preschooler's attention without a single real scare.

The Toy Story of Terror! Halloween special is another perfect fit. It runs just over 20 minutes, features characters your child probably already loves, and the "horror" is firmly in the silly-spooky register. Disney Channel originals like Halloweentown, Under Wraps, and Twitches are slightly better for the 4-to-5 crowd, since they are live-action and a little longer, but they remain friendly, costume-filled adventures.

A word of caution for parents: Disney+ and Hulu content now lives side by side in some regions, and the Halloween collection can include titles that look family-friendly but are not. Before starting any movie night, check the age rating on the title page. And even with the gentle picks above, every child is different — a quick preview of the first ten minutes tells you more than any rating ever will.

If your little one graduates past the toddler list and wants something with a bit more story, Disney+ has family favorites waiting, like Disney's latest live-action hit arriving this month. The jump from spooky-but-silly to full family adventure is a short one on this service.

For a slightly older sibling in the room, Pixar's reigning champion Toy Story 5, one of Disney's biggest streaming hits of the year, makes a great follow-up pick once Halloween is over. Keep the lights on, keep the snacks coming, and let the toddlers enjoy their gentle introduction to spooky season.