Haunting Of Hill House: 10 Classic Horror Franchises That Deserve The TV Show Treatment
Not many shows could cement their presence in the horror genre. Netflix's The Haunting Of Hill House, however, changed the game, earning rave reviews and developing a fandom of its own. With a sequel series titled The Haunting Of Bly Manor, the series has turned out to be a successful franchise. The first season, created and directed by horror maestro Mike Flanagan, was a reworking of Shirley Jackson's novel of the same name. The novel had earlier been adapted into a less memorable film in 1999, simply titled The Haunting.
But the Haunting franchise has proven the marketability of horror shows in creating engaging narratives, driven by high-production value. It would interesting to see a few more shows reinterpreting some classic horror franchises, in the same vein as Bates Motel, Hannibal, and The Exorcist.
10 Halloween
John Carpenter's Halloween set a benchmark for the slasher genre. However, its sequels and two reboots couldn't live up to its legacy. A direct 2018 sequel to the original film has finally helped in bringing back the franchise to its former glory, and an added TV series can only make it better.
The chief antagonist in the franchise is the ominous masked killer Michael Myers. Rather than just dwelling on his murders, a series can provide an in-depth analysis of Myers' background and the traumatic past that made him the way he is. Rob Zombie's Halloween reboot attempted to do the same, but a series can help in furthering this backstory.
9 Child's Play
Shows like Ash vs Evil Dead and Santa Clarita Diet prove the likability of gruesome R-rated horror-comedy. The Child's Play series has dwindled in its popularity with its recent installments, but a darkly funny horror show treatment of the films' murderous dolls might find a cult fanbase.
Ideally, each episode in this potential show can be 20 or 30 minutes long, as viewers are still acquainted with the characters (a 2019 reboot film further refreshes the memory). Even if it doesn't turn out to be a product of high artistic value, a TV adaptation of Child's Play can make for stylish and slightly haunting, binge-worthy material.
8 Saw
The first Saw film involved a notorious serial killer trapping two men and compelling them to play a sick, twisted game designed by him. While the film brimmed with gore, there was a nuance to the clever, mind-bending plot. Unfortunately, Saw produced several unnecessary sequels that relied more on the gore rather than story. Most of these sequels ended up recycling the basic plot. However, the upcoming Spiral seems to expand the film's mythos with a related yet different storyline.
A Saw series similarly can build up on the killer Jigsaw's origin or his indirect influence on other gruesome murders in the film's universe.
7 Firefly Trilogy
The Firefly trilogy (House of 1000 Corpses, The Devil's Rejects, 3 From Hell) is arguably Rob Zombie's magnum opus. The films dealt with a cult of crazed murderous maniacs who travel all over Texas, unleashing their reign of terror. Zombie's trilogy has a straightforward story, but it's the disturbingly realistic execution that builds the terror. Some characters like the clown Captain Spaulding, his sadistic daughter Baby Firefly, and the Charles Manson-like killer Otis Driftwood have become modern-day horror icons.
The origins of these characters are still unclear and hence, a horror (with elements of black comedy) series can help in exploring the initiation to their nomadic, blood-lusting lifestyle.
6 Universal's Frankenstein
Mary Shelley's Gothic horror novel Frankenstein has received several on-screen interpretations, but it's the oldest black-and-white series by Universal Pictures that stands the test of time. Featuring Boris Karloff as the scientist Victor Frankenstein's reanimated monster, these films built an engaging mythology out of Shelley's novels, with stunning practical special effects and an empathetic portrayal of the so-called 'monster'.
As a show, Frankenstein's legacy can be carried out, albeit with a more grounded approach. Utilizing vintage make-up and a monochrome color format might make the series stand out stylistically.
5 Final Destination
Final Destination and its sequels practically have the same plot. A tragic accident or a premonition makes Death crawl upon a group of friends, killing each and every one of them through creepily creative methods. Love it or hate it, one can't deny the amusing build-up to each of these deaths. Even though the series has a PG-13 level of violence and gore, the scares can be genuine for the practical nature of its horror.
After all, anyone can succumb to death while slipping on the bathroom floor or getting punctured at the wrong spot in an acupuncture session. That's why a Final Destination series would make sense, just for more creative over-the-top deaths alone.
4 Hellraiser
Directed by Clive Barker and based on his own novella, Hellraiser is a British horror series that explores the difference between pleasure and pain from the perspective of an other-worldly hedonistic cult that doesn't really know this difference. As one man unleashes these demonic 'Cenobites', he's involved in a series of blood sacrifices to free himself from their clutches. Despite its disreputable direct-to-DVD sequels, the first two Hellraiser films are more philosophical and atmospheric than anyone would expect.
With iconic characters like the antagonistic 'Pinhead', a TV show can help revitalize the cult franchise's legacy.
3 REC
The Spanish-language REC series makes for some of the best found-footage horrors in recent times. The films feature a confined, claustrophobic building as the main setting while its inhabitants become victims of a deadly virus. Through the cameras of journalists and special forces, the horrors are revealed, along with plenty of genuine jump scares.
A REC series can follow a similar fast-paced narrative, making the best out of a minimalistic setting rather than relying on any grand 'haunted house' budget level. Further, the oversaturated found footage genre has hardly been experimented with on TV.
2 Scary Movie
It's high time that the Scary Movie series made a comeback. These films were goofy and vulgar but the self-aware humor justifies the existence of these parody movies. Ever since the last Scary Movie released, several new horror stand-alone and franchise films have emerged. It would be funny for the cast and crew of the Scary Movie franchise to give these new horror classics their own twist.
This 'Scary TV Show' can even feature each episode as a parody of a particular film, rather than having a continuous narrative throughout each season.
1 Predator
1987's Predator continues to hold its cult status, while its reboots, sequels, and tie-ins with Alien have mostly been forgotten in pop culture. However, these other films deserve credit for attempting to create uniquely separate stories from the original Arnold Schwarzenegger hit rather than oversaturating the first film's plot.
Similarly, Predator's TV show treatment can explore more scenarios with its extra-terrestrial Predator character hunting down different people in different scenarios. Horror aside, the show can easily incorporate other genres too, like survival and sci-fi.