Look, Sheriff Brackett was right when he said everyone’s entitled to one good scare in 1978’s Halloween. What he forgot to mention is that those scares are best enjoyed with everyone. As any fan of the genre can attest to, horror works like a big bowl of Halloween candy: passed around and devoured with no treat left unwrapped. Those are the rules.
That’s also the guiding principle of Halloweenies. Since 2018, the podcast has spent countless nights trick or treating through the genre’s most storied franchises. They carved pumpkins in Haddonfield, Illinois for Halloween, dreamed through Springwood, Ohio for A Nightmare on Elm Street, and spent the pandemic at Camp Crystal Lake for Friday the 13th.
This year, they’re solving crimes in Woodsboro, California in the lead-up to Radio Silence’s highly anticipated fifth sequel to the Scream franchise. In addition to discussing the four entries in Wes Craven’s meta slasher series, they’re also sorting through the countless videotapes recommended by Randy Meeks — from Prom Night to The Howling.
As always, the Halloweenies will parse through every single detail tied to the films — and that’s not hyperbole. These are exhaustive analyses of your favorite films — Hardcore History for horror hounds, if you will — that span hours upon hours. What’s more, there’s always a special guest around the corner to lend a hand; a familiar face to save the day.
Scream 2 (Dimension Films)
To get you acquainted, co-hosts Justin Gerber, Dan Caffrey, McKenzie Gerber, Michael Roffman, and Mike Vanderbilt have gathered around the proverbial campfire to answer your questions. You know, like which classics deserve a legacy sequel, what novelization tie-ins are worth reading, and which films should be taken over by the Muppets.
You can stream that new introductory episode below, in addition to a handful of essential episodes from the show’s back catalogue. A catalogue, mind you, that’s constantly expanding, particularly this month which sees them talking to Joe Bob Briggs and slicing through Scream 2. That’s all without mentioning their exclusive content via Patreon.
Subscribe now via iTunes/Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, RadioPublic, Acast, Google Podcasts, and RSS. You can also become a member of their Patreon for hilarious feature-length commentaries of horror’s greatest hits (e.g. Gremlins, Phantasm) and deep-dives into your favorite rentals of yesteryear (e.g. Sleepaway Camp, Nightbreed).
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Halloween
The one that started it all: Four hours devoted to John Carpenter and Debra Hill’s 1978 slasher masterpiece. It’s an epic series premiere that sets the template for all the episodes that would follow — from the hilarious segments to the recurring bits that have come to define the show.
Tommy Lee Wallace Weighs in on the New Love for Halloween III
The writer and director of the once-maligned sequel joins the show to discuss the newfound appreciation for the Michael Myers-less entry in the Halloween franchise. He also shares what he feels might have happened at the end there for Dr. Dan Challis.
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Confession: When Halloweenies began, none of the co-hosts saw it living beyond David Gordon Green’s reboot. Alas, like so many of the movie maniacs we fear, the show sat up and vanished into the night. Or rather, Springwood, Ohio for a series of nightmares.
A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge
Bloody Disgusting‘s own Horror Queers co-hosts Joe Lipsett and Trace Thurman join the Halloweenies on Elm Street to discuss the most underrated sequel in the franchise, particularly the important stuff like Clu Gulager and Hope Lange’s birthdays.
Heather Langenkamp Returns to Elm Street
The Halloweenies meet the soul behind Nancy Thompson, who regales us with tales of studying at Stanford, cutting her teeth with Francis Ford Coppola, and surviving Wes Craven’s nightmares on Elm Street. She also weighs in on how horror history is often rewritten.
Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter
Last year’s Friday run saw the addition of pop culture writer Mike Vanderbilt and an onslaught of fan-favorite bits ranging from Weekend at Bernie’s to The Irishman. Final Chapter is a pure distillation of this season, and also wound up being their favorite entry.
Tom Savini on Dreams, Quarantine, and Revisiting Camp Crystal Lake
Early on in quarantine, the Halloweenies called up the Godfather of Gore and the Sultan of Splatter for a meditative discussion on how horror is a lifestyle and the ways it brings comfort and happiness. It’s a dreamy chat and a nice reprieve from reality.
Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday
The first of two entries in the show’s New Line November event sees Vanderbilt defend this hellish sequel. The episode had been hyped all season, and was even paired with a Chicago drive-in screening. Psychoanalysis co-host Mike Snoonian guests.
Scream
Season 4 kicked off in Woodsboro, California this past February with Rue Morgue writer and fellow Losers’ Club member Rachel Reeves. Together, they chart how the Wes Craven classic nearly died in development hell, and how it has since shaped the genre altogether.
Randy’s Recs: The Howling
In between each Scream dissection, the Halloweenies will parse through the many films mentioned in the franchise as part of Randy’s Recs. The second entry in this side series is a definitive study on Joe Dante’s The Howling with Windy City Ballyhoo’s Adam Carston.