Tag: Halloween

JustWatch: Original ‘Halloween,’ ‘House of the Dragon’ Top Weekly Streaming Through Nov. 6

Universal Pictures’ enduring “Halloween” movie franchise continues to have strong legs. The original 1978 Halloween, which introduced moviegoers to teenager Laura Strode and sociopath killer Michael Myers, was the top streamed movie for the week ended Nov. 6, according to new data from JustWatch — the Berlin-based company that tracks the SVOD streaming habits of 20 million users across 59 markets, including the United States.

The movie topped Netflix’s original slasher Barbarian, and Terrifier 2, which is distributed by Cinedigm’s Bloody Disgusting business unit.

The Roku original movie Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, starring Daniel Radcliffe as the eccentric comedian, finished No. 4 in its debut.

Among episodic programming, HBO Max’s “House of the Dragon” and “The White Lotus” topped weekly streaming, followed by Peacock’s “Yellowstone.”

JustWatch: Scary Content Dominated October Movie Streaming

Seven of the top 10 movies streamed in October were related to the horror genre, led by Universal Pictures’ 2018 reboot Halloween and 2022’s Halloween Ends, reportedly the last release featuring Jamie Lee Curtis as Laura Strode, the erstwhile fictional high school good girl targeted by serial killer Michael Myers since 1978.

The Disney+ exclusive release of Hocus Pocus 2, more a spooky family comedy than outright horror, rounded out the podium, according to JustWatch, which tracks the SVOD streaming habits of 20 million users across 59 markets, including the United States.

The non-genre titles in the month’s top 10 included Paramount Pictures’ Top Gun: Maverick, A24’s Everything Everywhere All at Once and Focus Features’ The Northman.

The top three streamed episodic programs included HBO Max’s “House of the Dragon,” Netflix’s “The Watcher” and Peacock reruns of “Yellowstone.”

Xumo Bows Halloween Themed Content, Including AVOD Exclusives

Comcast-owned free ad-supported streaming television platform Xumo Oct. 24 announced the launch of two Halloween-themed channels: “Halloween Horrors” and “Monsters & Nightmares.”

The former features a range of predominantly AVOD-exclusive movies, available through fall 2022, while the latter includes dozens of select titles from Magnolia Pictures’ SVOD service through the end of the month.

Halloween Horrors’ AVOD-exclusives include The Gravedigger, Those Who Walk Away, Hideout, While We Sleep and Homebound. Non-exclusive movies include Don’t Say a Word, Lair and Game of Death.

Magnolia’s SVOD movies coming to Monsters & Nightmares include All Good Things, starring Ryan Gosling and Kirsten Dunst, and The Oxford Murders with Elijah Wood, among others.

“Thriller and horror-themed movies have always been a popular genre on Xumo, and adding to that library with two Halloween-specific channels this month is an important focal point that will draw in an enormous audience with ideally timed content,” Fern Feistel, VP of marketing and content operations at Xumo, said in a statement. “As we continue to bring AVOD-exclusive programming as well as licensed content to viewers, these channels fortify our line-up of premium, themed movies for the season.”

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Apple TV+ Unveils Lineup of Holiday Programming, Including Free Classics

Apple TV+ is unveiling a lineup of new special episodes of Apple Original series and the streaming debut of classic holiday “Peanuts” specials.

New programming from classic series includes the “Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock” Night of the Lights holiday special and “Sago Mini Friends” Thanksgiving special premiering on Nov. 18, and holiday specials from “Interrupting Chicken,” “Pretzel and the Puppies” and “The Snoopy Show,” all debuting on Dec. 2.

Apple TV+ will also provide special free windows for nonsubscribers to stream the iconic holiday specials from Mendelson/Melendez Productions and Peanuts Worldwide. “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” is available Oct. 28-31; “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” is available Nov. 23-27; and “A Charlie Brown Christmas” is available Dec. 22-25. The specials are available to subscribers now and every day.

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Two classic “Peanuts” holiday specials also from Mendelson/Melendez Productions and Peanuts Worldwide, “I Want a Dog for Christmas” and “Charlie Brown’s Christmas Tales,” will be added to the platform for the first time starting Dec. 2.

Additionally, the animated short film “The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse,” based on the beloved award-winning book of the same name by author Charlie Mackesy, will be coming to Apple TV+ on Christmas Day.

Vudu Launches Halloween Store, Gift Cards

Fandango’s transactional VOD service Vudu has launched a Halloween Store and Halloween-themed gift cards for the season.

More than 1,000 scary movies, bundles and TV seasons are available, including this year’s top horror films Nope, Bodies Bodies Bodies, X, Orphan: First Kill, The Invitation and The Black Phone, along with a sale on catalog titles such as The Cabin in the Woods, 28 Days Later, The Omen, The Evil Dead, and the “Halloween,” “Scream” and “Saw” franchises. The Vudu Halloween Store also includes “Essential Kids’ Halloween Movies,” “Best Horror TV Shows,” “Rotten Tomatoes’ Best Horror Movies by Decade,” “Rotten Tomatoes’ Best Spanish Language Horror Movies” and more.

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Vudu is also launching a series of horror movie-themed gift cards, good for any film or TV show on Vudu. For a limited time, consumers can buy $60 of gift cards with a 10% discount using the promo code VUDUOCT22. See here for details.

The Halloween gift cards represent the following horror classics and franchises: 

Halloween
Scream
The Conjuring
Child’s Play (Chucky)
Saw
A Nightmare on Elm Street
The Purge 
Paranormal Activity 
Friday the 13th 
It
Poltergeist
Carrie
The Lost Boys
A Quiet Place
Gremlins

Tubi, Paramount+ Roll Out Halloween-Themed October Content Slates

With October just around the corner, ad-supported streamer Tubi and, separately, Paramount+ are rolling out Halloween-themed content to lure and retain subscribers.

Fox Entertainment’s streaming platform Tubi announced “Terror on Tubi,” a month-long campaign streaming 13,000 horror, thriller, slasher-themed titles, including six Tubi originals: Alone in the Dark (Oct. 7); Battle of the Beasts: Bigfoot vs. Yeti (Oct. 12); The Final Rose (Oct. 14); a remake of Terror Train (Oct. 21); Lights, Camera, Murder: Scream (Oct. 26), and A Party to Die For (Oct. 28). 

Tubi will also stream 27,000 hours of Halloween content, including horror films such as Stephen King’s It, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Hellraiser and Twilight Zone: The Movie, as well as thrillers such as Interview With the Vampire, Silence of the Lambs and Predators, among others. 

“We continue to super-serve viewers with streaming’s biggest free collection of Halloween titles, making Tubi an essential destination for genre fans,” Adam Lewinson, chief content officer, said in a statement. 

Separately, the Paramount+ Peak Screaming Collection returns to the service Sept. 22 with expanded Halloween content. The slate features more than double the programming from last year, including new originals, horror movies and classic TV episodes.

This year includes the debut of Monster High: The Movie (Oct. 6), a live-action musical from Nickelodeon; new thriller Significant Other (Oct. 7); the release of a new Halloween episode of “Ghosts” (Oct. 27). More Halloween-themed content on Paramount+ can be found here.

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Universal Pictures Sets Home Release Dates for ‘Halloween Kills’

Halloween Kills, the big theatrical horror hit of this year’s Halloween season, will be released through digital retailers on Dec. 14, and on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray Disc and DVD a month later, on Jan. 11, 2022.

The Universal Pictures film, the 12th installment in the “Halloween” franchise, earned a domestic gross of nearly $92 million. 

The Universal Pictures Home Entertainment release of Halloween Kills features the original theatrical release, an extended cut with an alternate ending, and exclusive bonus content that includes extended and deleted scenes, a behind-the-scenes look at creating the film, a gag reel and several short documentaries.

These include “Haddonfield’s Open Wounds,” which takes a look at some of the returning characters and why their past traumatic encounters made them natural candidates to defend their town against Michael; “Strode Family Values,” in which filmmakers discuss the three generations of Strode women who have been terrorized by The Shape; and “1978 Transformations,” about how the filmmakers shot new footage that matches the iconic 1978 original.
 

JustWatch: ‘Halloween,’ ‘Squid Game’ Top October Streamed Movie, TV Show

Universal Pictures’ 2018 Halloween reboot and Netflix’s South Korean hit “Squid Game” were the most-streamed movie and TV show in October, according to new data from JustWatch.

The company’s international streaming guide tracks more than 20 million users per month across 54 countries.

The movie data is noteworthy considering Halloween is a catalog title, yet still bested new releases Dune (Warner Bros.) and 20th Century Studios’ Free Guy. Both movies generated significant box office during their theatrical runs, including topping their respective North American weekend debuts.

As expected, “Squid Game” has been on a ratings rocket ride since launching on Netflix in mid-September. After a slow start, the series about cash-strapped game show contestants subjected to fatalistic consequences, skyrocketed in buzz and popularity.

Netflix said more than 142 million subscriber homes watched the show in its first 28 days of release. The series even made news during the NBA pre-season when Los Angeles Lakers’ stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis got into a conversation about the series’ ending — at a press event.

 

JustWatch: ‘Halloween,’ ‘Squid Game’ Top Movie, TV Show Streamed Through Oct. 17

With Halloween Kills dominating the domestic weekend box office, new data from JustWatch finds that Universal Pictures’ 2018 prequel Halloween, along with Netflix’s South Korean horror series, “Squid Game,” spearheaded consumer streaming through Oct. 17. The company’s international streaming guide tracks more than 20 million users per month across 54 countries.

Other top-streamed movies included 20th Century Studios’ Free Guy and 1996’s Scream, starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette and Skeet Ulrich. Both topped Halloween Kills, which was available free to Peacock subscribers.

Top TV shows included Hulu’s “Only Murders in the Building” and “Ghosts” on CBS (Paramount+).

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‘Halloween Kills’ Domestic Box Office With $50.4 Million Debut

Universal Pictures’ sequel Halloween Kills didn’t disappoint, generating an estimated $50.4 million in opening weekend box office revenue across more than 3,700 North American screens.

The sequel to the 2018 reboot from Blumhouse, with Jamie Lee Curtis again reprising her original teen (now grandmother) role as Laurie Strode, intent on ending the murderous reign of Michael Myers, is the highest-grossing theatrical bow for a movie concurrently available on streaming at no extra cost to Peacock subscribers.

Halloween Kills‘ opening did not match the $76 million opening for 2018’s Halloween, which heavily marketed the return of Curtis to the role that launched her career. Kills is expected to resonate strongly at the box office through Oct. 31, before it will be made available on premium VOD.

Jamie Lee Curtis as grandmother Laurie Strode in Halloween Kills

MGM/United Artists Releasing’s James Bond title No Time to Die was the week’s runner-up with more than $24.3 million, reaching nearly $100 million at North American screens ($447 million globally) in Daniel Craig’s last run as Agent 007.

Another hyped new release, Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel (20th Century Studios), failed to match its $7 million to $10 million box office estimates, with less than $5 million in ticket sales. The result is disappointing for a film that reportedly cost $100 million to make — and features Matt Damon, Adam Driver and Jodie Comer.

Finally, Sony Pictures’ Venom: Let There Be Carnage saw $16.5 million in ticket sales to bring its three-week total to $169.1 million, while MGM/United Releasing’s The Addams Family 2 realized $7.2 million in ticket sales ($42.3 million overall).