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The Beatles‘ “Helter Skelter” is a famous song that will never shake its association with Charles Manson. That raises a difficult question — is it tasteful for artists to continue to cover the song? Here’s a look at the song’s history and how other bands chose to reinterpret it.

The twofold historical importance of The Beatles’ ‘Helter Skelter’

The Beatles’ often-covered songs tended to be soft ballads like “Yesterday,” “Michelle,” and “Here Comes the Sun.” One of The Beatles’ rare rockers that became a standard was “Helter Skelter.” There are two reasons why “Helter Skelter” was so famous. Firstly, it’s sometimes cited as the first heavy metal song or as a precursor to punk rock. Secondly, the tune played a pivotal role in the Manson murders.

According to Vox, Manson believed that “Helter Skelter” was about an apocalyptic race war. He ordered his followers to kill to start the war.

In hindsight, 1978's "Halloween" was always destined to have a sequel. Co-writer/director John Carpenter and co-writer/producer Debra Hill even included a particularly prophetic line of dialogue in their tale of a supernaturally-charged maniac, Michael Myers, terrorizing his hometown on Halloween night: "You can't kill the bogeyman." Thanks to the film's massive success critically, commercially, and culturally, "Halloween II" was practically a given.

While "Halloween" concludes with the assertion that Myers has indeed not yet been killed, a trickier question for Carpenter and Hill concerned what to do with the other surviving supporting characters. Dr. Sam Loomis (Donald Pleasance) was established as the Van Helsing to Myers' Dracula, so his return was fairly natural. A bigger issue revolved around bringing back star Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode, the babysitter who unfortunately crosses Myers' path and becomes the focus of his All Hallows' Eve rampage. Not wanting to kill...

One of the few classic rock songs from the 1950s that younger people have heard is Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put a Spell on You.” Paul McCartney wrote a solo track that drew inspiration from that tune. Interestingly, “I Put a Spell on You” had a massive impact on other artists — and some cult classic movies.

‘I Put a Spell on You’ inspired Paul McCartney to sing in-character on 1 solo song

During a 2021 interview with PaulMcCartney.com, the former Beatle said that his song “Monkberry Moon Delight” was his attempt to write a surrealist song. “I haven’t done that recently — maybe it’s time to go back to it?” the “Band on the Run” singer said. “It was just a thing that I liked doing because it was fun and not too serious. If you’re not in the mood for writing a love song, then it’s not...

Not feeling quite festive this holiday season? Could you use a few more scares on a cold winter night? If you have even just a few minutes to spare, we’ve got you covered!

Writer/director Adam Davis recently released his award-winning Christmas short film Orum via CryptTV‘s official YouTube page. With genre staple Kristina Klebe taking the lead, Orum finds a grieving daughter attempting to bring her mother back from beyond the grave–with horrifying consequences. Always game for a memorable genre role, horror icons Barbara Crampton and Bill Moseley are caught up in the holiday horror here as Klebe’s parents, a welcome addition to this brief but satisfying slice of short-form terror. Former WWE wrestler Paul London rounds out the cast.

Following its festival run, Orum was ultimately nominated for Best Horror Short and Best Supporting Performance (Barbara Crampton) at the 2024 Nightmares Film Festival. Sitting at a brief,...

Award winning actress August Kyss (Murdercise) joins Alex Petrovich (Switched At Death), ‘Jackass’ Star Bam Margera, Lynn Lowry (George A. Romero’s The Crazies), Kansas Bowling (Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood) in Noted filmmaker Rob Gabriele (Terrifier 2.) Action Horror feature ”Jesus Cop”. Grammy-Nominated band Green Jelly (Three Little Pigs song) will be doing an original soundtrack for the film.

The synopsis reads: A man learns that his immortality comes with severe mental consequences. He is led reluctantly on the trail of a pair of hitmen-turned-serial killers on a suicide pact murder spree. Assisting in the recovery of his lost memory is Mary, a terminally ill thrill-seeking teenage girl.

“Jesus can touch your heart… or draw your blood. The film tackles serious subjects like trauma, suicide & isolation while the audience is kept at the edge of their seat, maybe laughing, possibly vomiting once or twice.” – Director, Writer...

Earlier this year, we learned that, forty-nine years after playing a major role in the Steven Spielberg classic Jaws (and fourteen years after making an appearance in Alexandre Aja’s Piranha 3D), Richard Dreyfuss had been cast in another film that promises to be packed with aquatic thrills, Vigilante Diaries director Christian Sesma’s Into the Deep. The film is set to receive a digital, On Demand, and limited theatrical release on January 24th – and with that date just one month away, a trailer has arrived online! You can check it out in the embed above.

Scripted by Chad Law and Josh Ridgway – who have previously collaborated on the alligator movie The Flood, the Dolph Lundgren action thriller Section 8 (which was also directed by Sesma), the biker werewolf movie Howlers, and the mystery Miss Willoughby and the Haunted Bookshop – Into the Deep has the following synopsis: A group of divers...

It's the holiday season, which can mean only one thing: it's time to watch Christmas horror movies! Christmas horror is nothing new. In the Victorian era, folks would gather by the fireside around Christmas time to tell each other ghost stories (this is how we got "A Christmas Carol"). Over the years, the horror genre has embraced this idea by unleashing horror films set on or around Christmas. Some of these films are quite bad and seem to recycle the same boring idea ("What if a guy dressed as Santa Claus killed people?!") over and over again. But there are others that make the yuletide bright. Hell, even some of the killer Santa stories work. As the weird year that was 2024 comes to a close, and the horrifying uncertainty of 2025 lurks right around the corner, let's chug some mulled wine, deck the halls, and watch the following Christmas-centric horror movies.

Saban Films has promoted its top executive team and extended their deals through 2026, Variety has exclusively learned.

Bill Bromiley has been promoted to Vice-Chairman, where he will work on advancing key strategic goals, while Shanan Becker and Jonathan Saba will now serve as Co-Presidents. Becker will focus on the company’s financial and operational functions while Saba will shape content, marketing and monetization.

“As we celebrate Saban Films’ remarkable journey over the past decade, we are thrilled to see Bill, Shanan and Jonathan take on these pivotal leadership roles,” Haim Saban, Chairman and CEO of Saban Capital Group said in a statement with Adam Chesnoff, President and COO. “Their vision, dedication, and expertise have been instrumental in establishing Saban Films as a leader in independent film distribution. With this exceptional team at the helm, we are confident the company is poised for continued success.”

Bromiley co-founded the company in 2014 in the role of president.

Draw through the ditches, and cut through the witches, and craft in the back of my coloring book.

Rob Zombie’s official coloring book is available for $19.99 through Neck Bolt Publishing.

From “Dragula” and “Living Dead Girl” to “Meet the Creeper” and beyond, it contains 30+ coloring pages, cut-out crafts, masks, paper dolls, and other spooky swag inspired by the heavy metal icon’s career.

It’s illustrated by Pete Bregman and features cover art by Suspiria Vilchez, who also designed the cover for Trick or Treat Studios‘ House of 1000 Corpses coloring book.

The Official Rob Zombie Coloring Book is currently #1 new release in “Humorous Coloring Books for Grown-Ups” on Amazon.

Rob Zombie has announced two shows for 2025 so far: Sonic Temple Art & Music Festival in Ohio on May 9 and Welcome to Rockville in Florida on May 15.

The post Rob Zombie Releases Official Coloring Book With Cut-Out Crafts and More appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!

Nearly every culture tells similar folk tales about creepy old hags that practice witchcraft and prey on unsuspecting children, with this irrational fear being at the heart of several real-life tragedies that ended with innocent women being put to death. That’s why I find the idea of redemptive witchcraft stories like The Good Witch and even the ultra-successful Wicked adaptation so fascinating, as despite having been commodified as one of the cutesy mascots of the Halloween season, witches are still at the heart of many of our most frightening stories.

Naturally, this also extends to horror movies, with filmmakers depicting terrifying acts of witchcraft on screen since the very dawn of the medium. And with so many creepy broom-riders out there, we’ve decided to come up with a list celebrating six of the scariest witches in film. After all, there’s a lot more to these sinister spellcasters than black cats and candy-houses.

The new Texas Chainsaw Massacre video game from Gun Interactive was just released for PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, and Xbox One last year, and the developers have been keeping a steady flow of updates coming ever since. The next update is coming up on December 12th – and with this one comes the addition of Skeet Ulrich from the Scream franchise as a new victim character named Wyatt and Chainsaw franchise veteran Bill Moseley as a new killer family member called Bones. Moseley is best known for playing the character Chop Top in Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (and he also appeared as Drayton Sawyer in Texas Chainsaw 3D), but since the makers of this video game only have the rights to base the game on the original film, Moseley has been given a brand new character to bring to life. You can see Bones and Wyatt in the trailer embedded above,...

It’s time for another reverse Uno card of a video. When we are looking at something standing the Test of Time, its usually through the lens of “is it still good” or “is it still impactful”? The holy grail or Mount Rushmore of slashers have an easy answer to that. Halloween, Friday the 13th, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and A Nightmare on Elm Street are all unimpeachable in their legacy and entertainment value but what about their sequels and remakes? Weve looked at a few of them either through this show seeing if they are still fun as well as Andrew or Lance defending some of them in our Black Sheep videos. Rob Zombie is pretty divisive in general, but he had the extremely difficult task of making not only the remake of John Carpenter’s Halloween in 2007 but also a sequel to that in 2009. He was told he could...

Decades before shows like "Search Party" took an ever-shifting approach to the comedic TV format, "Laverne & Shirley" was switching things up season after season. The "Happy Days" spinoff started with a pretty consistent premise in its early seasons, focusing on two zany roommates working at a Milwaukee bottling company. By season 5, though, tomboy Laverne (Penny Marshall) and optimist Shirley (Cindy Williams) ended up in the Army Reserves, and season 6 saw them move to Burbank and work as department store gift wrappers. By the final season, Shirley was gone, and Laverne was working in the aerospace industry.

As wild as the twists and turns of "Laverne & Shirley" were, the show had some constants across its eight seasons, including the presence of neighbors Lenny (Michael McKean) and Squiggy (David Lander), Laverne's dad Frank (Phil Foster), and Shirley's fame-hungry ex, Carmine (Eddie Mekka). Most of the actors who made "Laverne & Shirley...

The all-horror streaming service Shudder has announced its full December 2024 lineup this week, with new originals, exclusives and catalogue titles headed our way next month.

Get ready to spend the ho-ho-horror days with new holiday special “Job Bob’s Christmas Carnage” and “The Haunted Season” from renowned author, producer, and filmmaker Kier-La Janisse. Read on for the full December 2024 lineup from Shudder…

Last Straw

Shudder Exclusive Film

Directed by Alan Scott Neal

Streaming On Shudder December 20

Available in US, CA

Synopsis

A rural roadside diner becomes the host of a maniacal killing spree – leaving a young waitress to clean up the mess. After hard-headed Nancy fires the staff at her dad’s diner, she decides to cover the last shift of the night by herself. Little does she know she is far from alone. The day is coming back to haunt her and when things begin to spiral out of control,...

AMC Networks’ Shudder has announced the titles that will be available on the streaming service next month. The Shudder December 2024 slate includes horror, thriller, and supernatural titles.

The December schedule includes the films A Creature Was Stirring and Last Straw, the series The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula Season 6, The Creep Tapes, The Haunted Season: To Fire You Come at Last, and Horror’s Greatest Season 2, and specials Joe Bob’s Christmas Carnage and Just Joe Bob.

Shudder’s expanding library of films, TV series, and original content is available on most streaming devices in the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand.

Last Straw Shudder December 2024 Highlights

Coming Home in the Dark – Streaming on December 1

A schoolteacher is forced to confront a brutal act from his past when a pair of ruthless drifters take his family and him on a nightmare road trip. Directed by James Ashcroft.

A Creature Was Stirring...

The full lineup has been unveiled for the 2025 Welcome to Rockville festival. The headliners for the four-day fest in Daytona Beach, Florida include Linkin Park, Green Day, Korn, and Shinedown.

Welcome to Rockville festival will take place May 15th-18th at the Daytona International Speedway. Among the other acts on the bill are Bad Omens, Incubus, Rob Zombie, Alice in Chains, Good Charlotte, Pierce the Veil, Sublime, Marilyn Manson, Knocked Loose, Three Days Grace, Halestorm, Mudvayne, I Prevail, 3 Doors Down, Jimmy Eat World, Body Count, Chevelle, Mastodon, Insane Clown Posse, and more.

Four-day passes and single-day tickets are available via the official Welcome to Rockville website.

Leading up to the full lineup announcement, promoter Danny Wimmer Presents had been unveiling the Stage 4 and Stage 5 lineups, including bands such as Power Trip, Dillinger Escape Plan, Whitechapel, Killswitch Engage, Underoath, Health, Quicksand, Deafheaven, and more.

Alice in Chains are playing Welcome to...

The recently resurrected Anchor Bay Entertainment will release a trio of new indie horror films on Blu-ray and DVD on December 10: Crust, Cursed in Baja, and Abruptio.

Character actor Sean Whalen (The People Under the Stairs) makes his feature directorial debut on Crust, an offbeat horror-comedy about a sock monster that he co-wrote with Jim Wald.

Whalen stars with Daniel Roebuck (Terrifier 3), Alan Ruck (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off), Felissa Rose (Sleepaway Camp), and Ricky Dean Logan (Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare).

In Crust, “Vegas Winters is a former child star who owns a laundromat. One of the benefits of running the place is finding all the leftover socks from his customers, which Vegas uses in creative ways. After Vegas becomes the victim of bullying, he seeks refuge from the attack in the pile of socks. His pain somehow creates a monster willing to seek vengeance for Vegas.”

Cursed in Baja...

Now available on VOD, and heading to Blu-ray and DVD on December 10th, Cursed in Baja is written and directed by Jeff Daniel Phillips, who tells us all about his latest project in our Q&a. From casting to locations, and the challenges of indie filmmaking, Jeff Daniel Philips shares his experience and gives his advice to those looking to make their own film:

Cursed in Baja is a fantastic example of true indie filmmaking. What inspired you to tell this particular story as your latest directorial effort?

I just returned from a horror convention in which I spoke to a group of young filmmakers on how to make low-budget films. Sharing my experiences, I explained the importance of making a list of what you as the filmmaker have access to: locations, props, vehicles, cast and crew. When I returned to LA, I told my producer friend, Kent Isaacs, about...

The concept of the movie cameo no longer means what it used to. Nowadays, we have entire feature films serving as a cameo delivery system, where "cameos" aren't brief appearances by very recognizable figures, but are actually entire supporting roles. Thanks to the comic book movie and the output of Marvel Studios in particular, the cameo has since become far more than the Easter egg it used to be. In a cinematic landscape where what we now call cameos can range from teaser appearances of characters to be seen in a future film to big-name actors who were merely kept out of the marketing materials, is there any room for the classic-style cameo anymore?

Fortunately for us horror nerds, along comes "Terrifier 3" to answer that question with a resounding "Yes." The latest installment in the Art the Clown saga includes all manner of cameo appearances, ranging from some actors...

The original Pinocchio story is a lot darker than you might think if you've only seen the classic Disney animated movie, but the next instalment in the Twisted Childhood Universe (Aka the "Poohniverse") will take things to a whole new level.

A first official look at Pinocchio: Unstrung has been revealed via some promo stills and a behind-the-scenes video showcasing an impressive practical Pinocchio puppet, which was created by Todd Masters, the Emmy-winning VFX artist known for Tales From the Crypt: Demon Knight and Child’s Play.

Helmed by Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey director Rhys Frake-Waterfield and produced by Scott Jeffrey under their Jagged Edge Productions banner, Pinocchio: Unstrung follows "young James as he learns of his grandfather Geppetto’s deadly secret: Pinocchio."

Variety reports that the project has added a true horror icon, with Freddy Krueger himself, A Nightmare on Elm Street's Robert Englund, set to star in an undisclosed role.

Made on a budget of less than $100,000, director Rhys Frake-Waterfield’s movie Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey (watch it Here) earned more than $6 million during its global release in early 2023, so not only did the sequel Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 2 have a substantially higher budget, that success opened the door to an entire cinematic universe that will consist of at least one more Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey sequel and other horror movies inspired by children’s stories, like Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare, Bambi: The Reckoning, and Pinocchio: Unstrung. Now, Variety reports that a pair of genre icons have just joined the cast of Pinocchio: Unstrung, as the film is set to star A Nightmare on Elm Street‘s Robert Englund and Rob Zombie regular Richard Brake! Details on Englund’s role have not been revealed, but Brake will be playing Geppetto.

As we’ve previously heard,...

Freddy Krueger has joined the cast of the next IP-smashing slasher from the makers of microbudget hit “Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey.”

Well, almost. Robert Englund, who famously played the murderous horror icon across the “Nightmare on Elm Street” films, will star in “Pinocchio: Unstrung,” the latest standalone feature to join the so-called low-budget Twisted Childhood Universe. Richard Brake, a regular collaborator with Rob Zombie and whose horror credits also include the likes of “Barbarian” and “Mandy,” has also joined the film in the key role of Geppetto.

Meanwhile, Variety is able to reveal a first-look of the actual — and fully practical — Pinocchio doll, created by Todd Masters, the Emmy-winning special effects artist known for “Tales From the Crypt: Demon Knight” and “Child’s Play” (he also worked on “Dune: Part Two”).

‘Pinocchio: Unstrung’

“Pinocchio: Unstrung” is being directed by Rhys Frake-Waterfield and produced by Scott Jeffrey, the duo behind “Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey...

The spooky season may be over but we still love us some Jamie Lee Curtis, forever the most iconic scream queen to emerge from ‘70s horror. Sure, she’s gone on to Oscar glory but we’ll always love her as Laurie Strode, even if she has hung it up on the character…or has she?

In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, Jamie Lee Curtis seemed to assure us that Laurie Strode is no more, saying, “I have hung up my bell-bottoms and my pale blue button-down shirt, and I have relinquished [Laurie] to the ages with a warm, ‘aloha,’ and a thanks for all the years and memories.” Then she added a quick, cryptid farewell: “And yet, if I’ve learned anything in my 65 years on the planet, it’s never say never. Goodbye.”

Ok, so it’s highly doubtful that Jamie Lee Curtis would actually play Laurie Strode ever again,...

“You know who I am, Angel. Now, repeat after me: I love you, Mommy.”

In all of horror, few characters remain so beloved as Laurie Strode. Originated by Jamie Lee Curtis in John Carpenter’s Halloween, this intrepid babysitter anchors one of the genre’s greatest films while helping to create an iconic trope that has changed the way we view women in film. Laurie becomes a final girl when she survives Michael Myers (Nick Castle) and a horrific Halloween night, but she’s cursed to carry the weight of this trauma alone. Out of all the sequels, remakes, timelines, and lore, no one explores the legacy of pain left in Michael’s wake like Rob Zombie. His Halloween II is an angry film that rubs our noses in the sorrow, guilt, shame, and pain still guiding Laurie’s shattered life. This polarizing sequel takes a wild swing at Michael...

Seventeen years ago, writer/director Rob Zombie took on the challenge of remaking John Carpenter’s 1978 classic Halloween – and to do so, he had to find an actress who could fill Jamie Lee Curtis’s shoes and become the new Laurie Strode. Zombie’s choice was Scout Taylor-Compton, and he put her version of Laurie through the wringer. Although she starts out a nice, normal high school student like Curtis’s Laurie, her experience with Michael Myers leaves her an emotional mess, with Zombie and Taylor-Compton exploring Laurie’s trauma in the 2009 sequel Halloween II. That one had an ambiguous ending. Did Taylor-Compton’s Laurie die, or did she survive? During an interview with Fangoria, Taylor-Compton said she thinks her Laurie may be dead, but she’s still holding on to hope that she’ll get to play the character again someday.

When asked what she thinks happened to Laurie,...

We have been getting a lot of prequels in recent years. Some have turned out well, like Furiosa, Orphan: First Kill, Prey, and Pearl. Sometimes they don’t turn out very well, like Leatherface, and sometimes they can be quite divisive, like Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. Good or bad, prequels are here to stay, so we have put together a list of Horror Prequels We Want to See.

Alien Lv-426

Set between the events of Alien and Aliens, this film would explore the lives of the colonists sent to terraform Lv-426. The movie could showcase their daily lives, paying homage to the brief glimpse of their existence seen in Aliens. Then Weyland-Yutani makes the call with the order to investigate the co-ordinates provided by Ripley, the location of the derelict Engineer spacecraft. As we know from Aliens, the investigation goes terribly wrong – and this movie could show exactly how things...

Two years have passed since the release of musician / filmmaker Rob Zombie’s latest film, his update of the classic sitcom The Munsters, and we still don’t know what he’s going to make next (although we do have a wish list of movies we’d like to see him make). While we anxiously wait to hear what Zombie’s going to do next, we have decided to take a look back at all of the movies he has made, from House of 1000 Corpses to The Munsters, to put together a list of some of the Best Scenes from Rob Zombie movies to date.

House Of 1000 Corpses (2003): Home Visit

The feature directorial debut from Rob Zombie (who was born Robert Bartleh Cummings), the horror film House of 1000 Corpses had to overcome production issues, distribution problems, and lost footage on the way to reaching theatres two years later than expected,...

If you’re staying in on Halloween, cable television has plenty of tricks and treats in store. The TV listings for Thursday, October 31, include lineups devoted to Stephen King, M. Night Shyamalan, and Rob Zombie; marathons of reality shows and competitions; and The Simpsons’ first 33 “Treehouse of Horror” episodes. From hardcore horror to family fun, there’s something for everyone on Thursday night. Check out some highlights below, and be advised that all times listen are Eastern. Animal Planet: Mysterious Creatures marathon From 5 p.m. to 3 a.m., Animal Planet is on a Mysterious Creatures With Forrest Galante kick, with the TV host investigating a myths of lake monster, reports of a wolf-like creature, legend of a 60-foot snake, and more. BBC America: Stephen King adaptations Starting at 8:15 a.m., BBC America is devoting itself to adaptations of Stephen King stories. Think The Dark Tower, Christine, The Shining,...

What is the legacy of David Gordon Green's "Halloween" reboot trilogy? When the first film, "Halloween," arrived in 2018, fans and even critics were impressed — a dormant franchise was alive again! But then Green would go on to make two more movies, both of which were met with a much more lukewarm reception. The sequel "Halloween Kills" had plenty of gore, but it was also a bit of a mess and not nearly as praised as the 2018 movie. Then came "Halloween Ends." Marketed as the definitive conclusion to the story of Michael Myers and Laurie Strode, "Halloween Ends" was drubbed by both critics and loyal fans. As a result, the general consensus surrounding Green's trilogy these days seems to be negative. But what if I told you that "Halloween Ends" is ... good, actually? In fact, it might even be great. And you don't have to take my word for it! Stephen King,...

Alice Cooper has announced a run of Winter 2025 US tour dates. The brief eight-date jaunt covers the southern East Coast, with half the shows in Florida.

The outing marks a new leg of the legendary shock rocker’s ongoing “Too Close for Comfort” tour. The newly announced dates kick off January 31st in Augusta, Georgia, and run through a February 11th show in St. Augustine, Florida.

Get Alice Cooper Tickets Here

An artist pre-sale starts Tuesday (October 29th) at 10 a.m. local time via Ticketmaster using the code Sickthings, with a a general on-sale starting Thursday (October 31st) at 10 a.m. local time.

Cooper is set to turn 77 years old on February 4th (right in the midst of the upcoming winter tour), but shows no signs of slowing down. The rock icon continues to tour relentlessly, having recently completed a co-headlining US summer trek with Rob Zombie, followed by a...

Halloween: Resurrection in 2002 seemed to close the door on the original film’s run. It had run out of gas and failed both critically, with a 10% score on Rotten Tomatoes, as well as commercially, with it only bringing in 37 million on its 15-million-dollar budget. The next year would see Freddy and Jason clash with each other and Leatherface get the remake treatment from studio Platinum Dunes. While Freddy and Jason would get their own remakes in 2009 and 2010 respectively, you know you can’t keep a good masked villain down for long. So, before his two main slasher rivals got their day in the sun, Michael Myers would receive his own remake that came out in 2007. With a drastically different take and a new producer behind the wheel, Halloween would get a chance to do something drastically different than anything we had seen before. Everyone will be entitled to one good...

The Halloween franchise has been terrifying audiences since Michael Myers’ masked menace was brought to the big screen in John Carpenter’s 1978 classic. Four decades, 13 films, and a laundry list of rehashings, reboots, and remakes later, the franchise has become a slasher staple.

David Gordon Green’s reboots the Halloween franchise | Credits: Universal Pictures, TIFF

In the spirit of Spooktober – here’s a definitive ranking of all thirteen Halloween movies — from grisly goofs to the horrifying. Let’s slice through the clutter and get to the bloody best.

13. Halloween: Resurrection (2002)

Yeah, this is the lowest point without contention. Halloween: Resurrection sees Michael Myers in a reality TV setting, featuring Busta Rhymes’ kung-fu moves. This installment, directed by Rick Rosenthal (also responsible for Halloween II), attempts a “reality-tv-gone-wrong” trope that falls short on both scares and coherence. Even fans who appreciate so-bad-it’s-good films will not find something worthy of their time.

Metallica and Linkin Park, with new co-vocalist Emily Armstrong, are set to headline the 2025 Sonic Temple Art & Music Festival, taking place May 8 through 11 at Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.

The massive four-day event will feature over 100 bands, with Metallica — as previously announced — headlining the May 9 and 11 shows, and promising to play two distinct sets with no repeats. Korn, meanwhile, will headline night one on May 8, while Linkin Park will headline night three on May 10.

The Sonic Temple lineup also features big names like Alice Cooper, Rob Zombie, Incubus, Alice In Chains,...

The Sonic Temple Art + Music Festival has unveiled its full 2025 lineup, headlined by Metallica (on two nights), Linkin Park, and Korn.

The annual hard rock and metal gathering is set for May 8th through the 11th at the Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. As previously reported, fest organizers unveiled Metallica, Rob Zombie, and Alice in Chains as Sonic Temple’s initial acts back in September, eventually revealing 41 artists in total via daily social media posts. Now, all the bands have been announced for the four-day fest, taking the lineup to more than 100 acts.

Get Artist Tickets Here

The opening Thursday of the fest (May 8th) will be headlined by Korn, with performances by Bad Omens, Three Days Grace (with original vocalist Adam Gontier), Killswitch Engage, Jinjer, and Ministry, and more also taking place that day.

Friday night (May 9th) will see the first of two Metallica headlining slots, as...

This past Sunday night brought two new episodes from Screambox’s Original Series “Tales From the Void,” an anthology series that adapts six tales of terror from the extremely popular r/NoSleep by series creator Francesco Loschiavo.

Director Maritte Lee Go’s “Carry“ and Loschiavo’s “Starlight” unleash more r/NoSleep-inspired nightmares, now streaming on Screambox. The episodes will also be available to buy or rent via electronic sell-through platforms beginning on Tuesday.

“Starlight“ marks the second of three episodes helmed by the series creator, but expect a vastly different flavor of horror this week. Loschiavo’s latest episode continues the series’ moral conundrums while venturing into bloodier Giallo territory.

“Starlight” turns r/NoSleep tale “The Million Dollar Question“ by Joao Andre Narigueta Ribeiro into a Giallo episode. Loschiavo says of his latest episode, “I started reading r/No Sleep probably back in 2012 or 2013, a little bit after it was...

The “Halloween” movie series has had quite a journey, spanning over four decades and presenting multiple timelines that can leave even the most devoted fans scratching their heads. With the release of each film, Michael Myers has become a horror icon, and Jamie Lee Curtis’ portrayal of Laurie Strode has cemented her as a symbol of survival and strength. Whether you’re new to the series or a long-time fan, knowing the correct order to watch them is essential to fully appreciate the intricate (and sometimes confusing) narrative threads. Here’s a guide on how to watch all the “Halloween” movies in both chronological and release order.

Halloween Movies in Release Date Order

If you prefer to watch the “Halloween” films based on when they were released, here’s how they line up:

Halloween (1978) Halloween II (1981) Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982) – (Unrelated to Michael Myers) Halloween 4: The Return...

In the upcoming episode of “Vinyl Obsession,” titled “The One With John 5 and Mike Dirnt,” host Eric Young welcomes two music legends to explore the world of vinyl records. This episode, airing on Sunday, October 27, 2024, at 10:30 Pm on Axs TV, promises to be a treat for music lovers and vinyl enthusiasts alike.

Eric takes John 5, known for his work with Rob Zombie and various other artists, and Mike Dirnt, the bassist from Green Day, on a journey through Nashville’s Grimey’s New & Preloved Music and LA’s The Record Parlour. Together, they will sift through a treasure trove of records, each sharing their personal favorites and the stories behind them. The chemistry between the host and the guests is sure to bring laughter and insight as they discuss what makes each vinyl special.

Viewers can expect a blend of nostalgia and discovery as John 5 and Mike Dirnt reveal their top five picks.

It’s a bit of whiplash to go from covering Psycho (listen), Alfred Hitchcock’s seminal 1960 classic, to Rob Zombie’s Southern-fried feature debut, House of 1000 Corpses, but that’s what Jenn and I are doing as we continue our month-long exploration of Ed Gein. If you haven’t listened to the primer (here), that’s the best place to begin.

In Zombie’s first film, four College kids – Jerry (Chris Hardwick), Bill (Rainn Wilson), Mary (Jennifer Jostyn), and Denise (Erin Daniels) – run afoul of the Firefly clan and fight to survive the night. Of course, the demented family is more fun to watch, especially sexually aggressive Baby (Sheri Moon Zombie) and knife-happy Otis (Bill Moseley).

What’s fascinating about Zombie’s film, apart from how overwhelming his visuals are, is how many horror and true crime homages he packs in. This includes the trio of historical killers in...

When we talk about movies being hard to categorize or even succinctly summarize, this movie is the poster child for that statement. Almost 50 years on and that still holds true but how about is it good? Does a movie need to be put in a specific area or even be able to be explained to still be good? The Rocky Horror Picture Show is in a category all by itself and yet has had spinoffs of sorts and on-stage revivals since its inception and shows no signs of slowing down. I’m not even sure how the introduction to such a movie should be fleshed out so take a jump to the left, a step to the right, put your hands on your hips and bring your knees in tight. We are about to take a time warp and see if The Rocky Horror Picture Show still stands the Test of Time.

When John Carpenter made the original “Halloween” in 1978, it was just another horror movie in a long line of horror movies. But the blockbuster success of this low-budget movie, about a masked killer murdering babysitters, made “Halloween” a cultural institution. The film spawned legions of imitators and codified the slasher genre as we still know it. And yet the official “Halloween” franchise has often struggled to meet the standard of the movie that inspired the craze. Let’s look back at all of these classic (and not so classic) horror movies, and see how they stack up.

Behold, all the “Halloween” movies ranked from worst to best.

Photo credit: Dimension Films

14. “Halloween: Resurrection” (2002)

The worst “Halloween” movie commits two cardinal sins. First, it nullifies the intense and satisfying finale of “Halloween H20” by striking Laurie Strode’s personal victory from the record; now, not only did she kill an innocent man instead of Michael Myers,...

Horror movies are closely associated with rapid succession sequels than they are legacy sequels. (How many years did we have a new “Saw” and/or “Paranormal Activity” sequel to look forward to?) But there are still a fair amount of legacy horror sequels – follow-ups that take much longer to marinate than the traditional sequel – and these are the ones that were definitely worth the wait.

Universal “Psycho II” (1983)

The first true legacy horror sequel was a follow-up to perhaps the most celebrated horror movie ever, Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 shocker “Psycho.” “Psycho II” was directed by Australian filmmaker Richard Franklin, whose previous movie “Road Games” is one of the greatest Australian thrillers ever, and was written by Tom Holland, who would go on to direct future classics “Fright Night” and “Child’s Play.”

The sequel sees Norman Bates (once again played by Anthony Perkins) finally released from prison and attempting to enjoy a normal life,...

Ministry frontman Al Jourgensen has been working on the legendary industrial act’s final album with returning classic member Paul Barker. Now, the band has inked a deal with Cleopatra Records for the upcoming release.

“Looking forward to how this new and Final Ministry record comes out,” stated Jourgensen. “Turns out working with Paul is like riding a bike; you never forget how. Buckle up, this is going to be a good one. It seems that everything has come full circle, with the re-inclusion of Paul for the Final record, it’s like wrapping a bow on a 40-plus-year career.”

Barker was a key and consistent member of Ministry from 1986 through 2003, playing bass, handling production and programming, and co-writing most songs on such classic albums as The Land of Rape and Honey, The Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste, and Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs,...

High school sitcoms have always been a mixed bag, largely because the issues kids are dealing with at that age beg for a more nuanced take than the half-hour format can provide. Godawful shows like "Saved by the Bell," "Head of the Class" and "Hangin' with Mr. Cooper" are the low standard a high school sitcom has to clear nowadays, so we need to count our blessings when something as wonderful as Mike O'Brien's "A.P. Bio" and the currently airing Brian Jordan Alvarez's "English Teacher" arrives.

Before those two sitcoms, the bar was set reasonably high by Gabe Kaplan's "Welcome Back, Kotter." Based in part on Kaplan's sitcom act, the comedian stars as Gabe Kotter, a former underachiever who returns to his old Bensonhurst Brooklyn neighborhood to teach at the high school that used to seem like a prison to him. He's now in charge of a new batch of knuckleheads,...

October is here, and that means the return of pumpkin spice, haunted hayrides, and our favorite pastime: scaring ourselves silly from the safety of our couches. With streaming costs creeping up, there’s nothing better than Tubi – a totally free, ad-supported service that just so happens to be a horror lover’s dream.

For this spooky season, I’m giving you the ultimate guide to what to watch on Tubi, whether you’re in the UK and Ireland or the US. Get ready for two spine-chilling top 10 lists, and a few extra picks to fill out your ghostly watchlist.

Why Tubi?

Tubi isn’t just any streaming service; it’s the horror buff’s secret weapon. It’s totally free (that means you save your money for candy corn and Halloween décor), and its catalog is stacked with both well-loved horror classics and offbeat oddities. Whether you’re craving supernatural terror,...

Pumpkin spice is flowing, autumn leaves are turning and it’s time to start watching some of your seasonal favorites. But Fall’s arrival also brings a new challenge every year — figuring out where all the best Halloween movies are streaming right now.

If you’re looking for family-friendly Halloween movies, Peacock has a handful of the essentials, most notably the “Harry Potter” films, as well as “Casper,” “Blippi Celebrates Dia De Los Muertos” and “Scared Shrekless.”

With 150+ new Halloween titles in September and October, Peacock also has the “Leprechaun,” “I Know What You Did Last Summer” and “The Purge” franchises, along with plenty of great standalone horror movies for the Halloween season, from teen screams like “The Craft” and “Jennifer’s Body” to classics like “The Fly” and “Christine.”

Want some underrated horror movies you might not have seen to celebrate this Halloween? No worries, they’ve got that too,...

A clown, a drunk, and Santa Claus walk into a bar.

Sounds like the setup for an off-color joke, but that’s the scene I witnessed upon visiting the set of Damien Leone’s Terrifier 3 earlier this year. As you might expect, the punchline is a bloody one.

“I’ve been really looking forward to this scene,” Art the Clown actor David Howard Thornton tells me. “It’s like the costume shop scene [in Terrifier 2] or the pizzeria scene [in Terrifier]. It’s such a fun scene, and then it gets serious. I think it has one of the more creative kills in the movie.”

Thornton shares the scene with Daniel Roebuck as jolly old Saint Nicholas and Clint Howard as a barfly named Smokey.

“I’m able to do comedy with character actors I’ve respected my entire life,” Thornton beams. “I’m able to share my craft with these...

If you’re looking for someone to curate programming at your horror streaming service, hire the guy with the trio of “Halloween 3: Season of the Witch” (1982) masks tatted on his forearm. Sam Zimmerman was built — or at least inked — for the Shudder job.

This is Zimmerman’s time of year — and it’s extra special in 2024. September and December both have Friday the 13th dates, perfect bookends for Shudder’s supersized Season of Screams. During the same window, Zimmerman is moving his young family onto what he described as the Halloween block in his new (and quaint) town. Quite the Halloween for this guy, both professionally and personally.

With all due respect to AMC+, Shudder is the standout AMC Networks streaming service (of the many we don’t feel like counting right now), and the Season of Screams will pack the app with film releases, series, specials, and live watch parties.

The Beatles are one of the most essential classic rock bands, but they rarely made hard rock songs. This raises an interesting question: is “Helter Skelter” the heaviest Beatles song? There are a few other candidates.

The Beatles’ ‘Helter Skelter’ is 1 of several hard rock songs on ‘The White Album’

The Beatles went through eras where their dominant sound was bubblegum music, folk, psychedelia, and blues rock. However, they never opted to make an entire hard-rock record. Some of their heavier songs include “Revolution,” “Yer Blues,” and “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” all of which came from The White Album. “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” even featured contributions from Eric Clapton, one of the most iconic guitar heroes of all time.

However, one song from The White Album remains one of the most innovative songs in the band’s catalog: “Helter Skelter.” While “Revolution,” “Yer Blues,” and “While My Guitar...

Director Cosmos Kiindarius made his feature directorial debut with the 2016 thriller Stand, which was about American brothers who head out into the Vietnam jungle and get trapped in a mine field that was left over from the war. Now he’s about to head into production on his second film, a psychological horror tale called Dirt, and he has gotten some genre icons to join the cast. Dirt will feature Malcolm McDowell of A Clockwork Orange (and the Rob Zombie Halloween movies), A Nightmare on Elm Street heroine Heather Langenkamp, and Courtney Gains from the Stephen King adaptation Children of the Corn. Also in the cast are James Paxton, who recently appeared in Twisters and happens to be the son of Bill Paxton, Emily Tosta (Mayans Mc), and Owen Vaccaro (The House with a Clock in Its Walls). Filming is set to begin in New Mexico this November.

Dirt is...

Monsters as metaphors are nothing new to the world of fiction, allowing creators to find novel ways to explore the unknown through horror tropes. The genre has seen a surplus of films using this device in the 10 years since Jennifer Kent’s The Babadook was released to critical and commercial success, and we can now add Spider One‘s Little Bites to the list. It’s a well-intentioned film, with the musician-turned-filmmaker delivering a visually striking parental horror film that boasts a strong lead performance, but it suffers from a transparent script and some severe pacing issues.

Widowed mother Mindy is in the middle of a depressive episode. She sends her daughter Alice (Elizabeth Phoenix Caro) to stay with her mother while attending to a hideous creature (Jon Sklaroff) that lives in her basement closet. “Attending,” in this case, means allowing the creature to bite Mindy all over her body...