This Day in Horror History: THE MONSTER SQUAD Opened in 1987

On this day in horror history, Night of the Creeps director Fred Dekker’s horror-comedy classic The Monster Squad was released in 1987.

Co-written by Shane Black (Lethal Weapon), it centers on five youngsters who find themselves up against the combined might of classic Universal Monsters such as Dracula, The Wolf Man, Gill-man, The Mummy, and Frankenstein’s monster – reimagined by the likes of Stan Winston.

While not a major success when it first hit theaters, it’s become a definition of a cult classic since. In fact, at one point in time, Michael Bay’s Platinum Dunes was set to produce a remake with Rob Cohen (The Fast and the Furious) directing from a screenplay written by Mark and Brian Gunn. But in 2014, Platinum Dunes producers Brad Fuller and Andrew Form confirmed the remake was dead. Thank God.

It starred Andre Gower, Robby Kiger, Stephen Macht, Brent Chalem, Ryan Lambert, Ashley Bank, Stan Shaw, and Jack Gwillim as Abraham Van Helsing. They were joined by Duncan Regehr as Count Dracula, Jonathan Gries as The Wolf Man, Tom Woodruff Jr. as Gill-man, Michael MacKay as Mummy, and Tom Noonan as Frankenstein’s monster.

It sports a 64% rating over on Rotten Tomatoes with a Critics Consensus that reads: A fun ’80s adventure with a slightly scary twist, The Monster Squad offers tween-friendly horror with just enough of a kick.

How much do you love The Monster Squad? Hit us up and let us know in the comments below or on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram!

Share: 
Tags:

Categorized:

Sign up for The Harbinger a Dread Central Newsletter