‘Fear Street Part One: 1994’. Photo: Netflix.
Preview:
- Three new ‘Fear Street’ movies are in the works.
- Author R.L. Stine, who wrote the books, revealed the news.
- Another, ‘The Prom Queen,’ has already been shot.
Back in 2021, horror fans were delighted to see Netflix release three movies based on ‘Goosebumps’ author R.L. Stine’s teen-targeted ‘Fear Street’ books across three weeks, with linked storylines and characters.
Since then, all we’ve really heard about the franchise is word of a fourth in the works (more on that below), but according to Stine –– who was talking to The Hollywood Reporter about Disney+ series ‘Goosebumps: The Vanishing,’ which arrives this week –– there are three more movies bubbling away too.
Here’s what he confirmed about the new films:
“The writers are working,” Stine shares. “So I’ve got my fingers crossed.”
“Face the evil.”
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1 hr 48 minJul 2nd, 2021
What were the ‘Fear Street’ movies about?
‘Fear Street Part One: 1994’. Photo: Netflix.
‘Fear Street Part One: 1994,’ ‘Fear Street Part Two: 1978’ and ‘Fear Street Part Three: 1666,’ were released across separate Fridays in July 2021.
They were co-written and directed by Leigh Janiak and followed a group of teenagers who discover terrifying events that have haunted their town for generations may all be connected. They’re a mix of the slasher and supernatural genres, and focuses on the fictional town of Shadyside whose young residents encounter malignant and murderous entities and adversaries.
The movies, which boasted some brutal killing scenes despite the source material’s age focus, were generally praised and scored decent viewing figures (at least by the streaming service’s mysterious metrics).
And there was always good reason to think we might have gotten more movies –– after all, Stine’s ‘Fear Street’ book series was first released in 1989 with debut title ‘The New Girl,’ and features 51 books total. That’s alongside more than 100 spinoff entries, which Stine began releasing in 2014. You can’t say the man isn’t prolific…
This is what he’s said about the difference between the book series:
“The thing about ‘Goosebumps’ is that no one ever dies. That’s the difference between ‘Goosebumps’ and ‘Fear Street,’ where we kill off teenagers, right and left. We kill them all. Everyone loves it when you kill teenagers. “There was a death in these first two episodes of the new ‘Goosebumps’ season, but they have it happening 30 years ago. That’s a big difference. So it’s still ‘Goosebumps.’ It’s just been elevated.”
What’s the story of ‘Fear Street: The Prom Queen’?
‘Fear Street: Prom Queen’. Photo: Netflix.
Netflix has yet to reveal details of the next ‘Fear Street’ movie, but we do have a basic synopsis thanks to Stine’s official site…
A spring night… Soft moonlight… Five beautiful Prom Queen candidates… Dancing couples at the Shadyside High prom — these should be the ingredients for romance.
But stir in one brutal murder — then another, and another — and the recipe quickly turns to horror. Lizzie McVay realizes that someone is murdering the five Prom Queen candidates one by one — and that she may be next on the list! Can she stop the murderer before the dance is over — for good?
With Matt Palmer in the director’s chair, the cast for the new movie is a solid one, with Arianna Greenblatt, Katherine Waterston, India Fowler, Chris Klein and Lili Taylor among the ranks.
The movie has wrapped shooting, so now the wait begins to see when it might hit screens. We’re doubting that it’ll score a theatrical release but arriving on Netflix didn’t seem to hurt the original three’s success.
Related Article: ‘Fear Street’ star Gillian Jacobs and director Leigh Janiak join more of the cast to talk about the Netflix trilogy.
What of the new movies?
‘Fear Street Part Two: 1978’. Photo: Netflix.
Thus far, beyond Stine’s announcement, there has been no official confirmation of the new movies from Netflix or anyone else.
Whether they will in some way tie into ‘The Prom Queen’ appears unlikely at this point given how far they are from actually being released.
Prom season at Shadyside High is underway and the school’s wolfpack of It Girls is busy with its usual sweet and vicious campaigns for the crown. But when a gutsy… Read the Plot
Still, it certainly shows a vote of confidence from the company that not one but three new titles are in development, though whether they make it through the thorny wilds of development might depend on ‘Prom Queen’s metrics.
But horror tends to perform well no matter the venue, so fans can probably look forward to new ‘Fear Street’ content in the coming weeks and years.
When will ‘Prom Queen’ or the other movies be on Netflix?
As with the storyline, there are zero release details for the new movies. We do at least know that ‘The Prom Queen’ should be on screen this year.
Who knows? Perhaps the streaming service is planning a surprise and more than we think are ready? It was a great experiencing being able to watch the original trilogy across three weeks, though that might be wishful thinking at this point.
‘Fear Street Part Three: 1666’. Photo: Netflix.
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