Whether it’s Psycho, The Exorcist, The Omen, The Evil Dead, or Rosemary’s Baby, some of the best horror movies ever made have eventually been turned into TV shows. Indeed, scary stories will always translate across the big and small screen, allowing writers and directors to mine the depths of the characters, settings and scares in the most thorough way possible.
Of course, with streaming services and cable TV shows continuing to proliferate, horror fans can expect to see even more beloved movies receive their own TV spinoff show. The question is, which ones really deserve them?
The Thing (1982)
John Carpenter’s The Thing is a masterwork in tension, paranoia, mistrust, FX-driven spectacle, and claustrophobic dread. The story finds a collection of scientific researchers in Antarctica, where a shapeshifting alien menace begins murdering the crew, assuming their bodily form, and morphing into grotesquely deformed monsters. The great debate at the end of the film is whether or not Childs (Keith David) or MacReady (Kurt Russell) has been infected.
As such, a TV spinoff could easily answer that longheld question, finally giving fans a satisfying clue about which, if either of them, were housing the alien menace. Aside from the frigid Arctic, new settings could be introduced that would reinforce the in-house unease, mistrust, and harrowing suspense level.
Poltergeist (1982)
While a TV show called Poltergeist: The Legacy was produced in 1996, the only connection it has to the original horror film trilogy is The Legacy itself, which helped the Freelings retrieve Carol Ann in the first movie. Otherwise, they’re completely unrelated, and why a legitimate Poltergeist spinoff would make great television. As one of the all-time scariest tales of sinister suburban dread, it’s surprising a spinoff hasn’t been made already.
Since most haunted house TV shows tend to be period pieces, a modern-day Poltergeist iteration would be refreshing if nothing else. Storylines could either explore Tangina the medium’s role or focus on how the Freeling grandchildren have been accursed by The Other Side 40 years later.
A Quiet Place (2018)
Given the riveting episodic nature of A Quiet Place forcing the main characters to remain on the move and traverse the countryside as silently as possible, a serialized version makes infinite sense. The children Reagan and Marcus are extremely compelling and easy to root for, the monsters are mortifying as can be, and the old-school show-don’t-tell style of storytelling is as pure as it gets.
With A Quiet Place III and the Day One spinoff movie already in the works, there is clearly still a lot of backstory and room to advance the mythology of the franchise forward. Moreover, the brilliant use of sound and silence would surely lead to some of the most effective at-home jump-scares on record.
Invasion Of The Body Snatchers (1978)
Adapted four times as a feature film, the grand allegory behind Invasion of the Body Snatchers seems ideal for a contemporary TV spinoff. Whether a rebuke of communism, conformity, or today’s cancel-culture, the themes of deep-seated fear, paranoia, and the takeover of individualism would come as a truly unsettling modern makeover.
At its core, the story concerns alien seed pods that invade Earth, replicate human bodies one at a time, and turn the entire population into mindless obedient drones without a soul. It’s a terrifying prospect for any time period, and with updates in 1956, 1978, 1993, and 2007, it’s high time a TV version hit the masses.
The Birds (1963)
Considering how well the small-screen adaptation of Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho turned out in Bates Motel, why not this? The terrifying creature feature The Birds has a timeless story that holds up today with characters to genuinely care for and relate to, and given the major advancements in CGI, the frightening realism of the bird attacks could be improved upon a great deal if made in the 21st century.
Story-wise, a TV spinoff could easily entertain what transpired with young Cathy Brenner after she retrieved her lovebirds and fled Bodega Bay with Mitch and Melanie. Each season could even feature a new town and cast of characters combating the baleful birds.
The Lost Boys (1987)
While a big-screen remake of the beloved 80s vampire classic The Lost Boys is in development, it would be much cooler to see the story translated to television. Whether the story continues the amusing exploits of characters like the Frog Brothers or explores what became of little Laddie, the options are endless. Moreover, the beach boardwalk amusement park setting could be used to much greater effect if given enough episodes.
The Lost Boys follows a clan of biker vampires who torment two new kids in town, while the head vamp seduces the boys’ unwitting mother. Few 80s horror movies mix pure fun with punishing ferocity like The Lost Boys, and with the built-in fanbase, a TV spinoff would be a surefire hit.
An American Werewolf In London (1981)
TV werewolves are always a safe bet to scare up high viewership ratings, yet only a few lycanthropic spinoffs have really made a dent over the years. With due respect to Teen Wolf, John Landis’ classic horror-comedy An American Werewolf In London would make for an awesome small-screen spinoff.
Given the fish-out-of-water premise of the story, London could easily be swapped for Europe writ large, allowing for new cities and characters for the wicked werewolves to terrorize over the course of each season. A spinoff could easily involve the patrons of The Slaughtered Lamb pub and how they’ve dealt with their accursed town for the past 40-odd years as well.
Candyman (1992)
Considering the salient social commentary included in the recent remake, Candyman as a TV series could add a lot more to the conversation about the link between city violence and gentrification. More to the point, the hook-handed homicidal boogeyman who appears after uttering his name thrice in a mirror has the mythological half-life to be explored at great length in a potential TV spinoff.
If a Candyman series were made, it would only make sense to bring back Tony Todd, the actor who made the role so iconic in the original and several tepid sequels. Candyman without Tony Todd is akin to Freddy Krueger without Robert Englund, and restoring him to the title role to continue his legacy would absolutely enthrall the fanbase.
Pet Sematary (1989)
Stephen King novels are eminently filmable as movies and TV shows, but there’s something extra intriguing about turning Pet Sematary into a small-screen spinoff. Firstly, each episode could feature a different pet animal brought back to life, providing endless content built around the simple yet sinister premise.
Secondly, storylines could easily entertain what happened to Gage’s sister Ellie or perhaps revolve around what Jud Crandall’s relatives are up to nowadays. Or even more unsettling, Rachel’s sister Zelda could play a key role in a potential spinoff, rekindling a 30-year-nightmare that fans have dealt with since watching the original movie.
Friday The 13th (1980)
While there was a TV show called Friday The 13th: The Series in 1987, it had nothing to do with Jason Voorhees’ violent reign of terror around the iconic Camp Crystal Lake. And while 12 feature films would suggest Voorhees has nowhere left to slowly amble after his prey, a real Friday The 13th TV show would be a bona fide coup for all hardcore slasher fans.
Whether a potential story explores the early years of Pamela Voorhees and her relationship with her ill-fated son, or even more intriguing, one that tells the story through the eyes of Voorhees himself, the simple stalk-and-slash premise would tickle the fanbase to no end.
