Near-Perfect R.L. Stine Horror Movie Is Officially Returning For a 2026 Sequel

Janet Mayer/startraksphoto.com

Published Mar 20, 2026, 2:28 PM EDT

A cinematic obsessive with the filmic palate of a starving raccoon, Rob London will watch pretty much anything once. With a mind like a steel trap, he's an endless fount of movie and TV trivia, borne from a misspent youth of watching monster movies on TV, perusing the sun-faded goods at the local video rental shop, and staining his fingers with ink from the Video Movie Guide. Areas of interest include science fiction, film noir, horror flicks, '70s disaster pictures, Bond movies, '90s action, giant robots, dinosaurs, super heroes, and the exuberantly schlocky output of Cannon Films. He also enjoys both Star Trek and Star Wars when they're good, and maybe even more when they're bad. As a Canadian, he also has a vested interest in Canadian movies and TV shows, especially the cheesier ones dubbed "Canuxploitation."

An expert on Marvel Comics, he has also written for the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, and is a member of the Marvel Research Team. He can frequently be found pontificating on comic-book continuity or bemoaning the misfortunes of the Toronto Maple Leafs on his Twitter account.

Tubi has another Halloween treat in store for you this October. R.L. Stine's Pumpkinhead was a runaway hit for the free, ad-supported streamer last spooky season; it was part of its month-long "Terror on Tubi" slate of programming, and helped drive a 51% increase in viewing hours from the year before. Now, there's a sequel in the works, and it'll be here sooner than you think.

The sequel will take viewers back to the cursed agricultural community of Redhaven. This time, the film will center around Evan, a bullied youngster who finds an ancient spellbook. He accidentally unleashes an ancient evil that threatens to turn the town's annual Harvest Festival into a nightmare, as gourd-headed ghouls rise from the grave. The town's only hope may be another outcast: a misunderstood witch. Says YA horror-maestro R.L. Stine, "Halloween wouldn’t be Halloween without a good story about kids being trapped inside a pumpkin. I’m so happy that we are going to have another pumpkin head adventure on Tubi."

What Is 'R.L. Stine's Pumpkinhead' About?

Set in the town of Redhaven (the place where "the harvest never ends"), Pumpkinhead (which should not be confused with the 1988 Stan Winston film of the same name) centers around Sam and Finn, two brothers who've just moved to town with their widowed mother. They're having some trouble fitting in with the locals, thanks to the town's relentlessly creepy folk horror vibes. Thw two have a nasty encounter with a local farmer who's unhealthily attached to his prize pumpkins, and Sam steals one of them. Finn decides to return it...but never returns home; in fact, it seems as if he never existed at all. It's up to Sam, his new friend Becka, and town weirdo Rusty to find out what happened to him before the town's terrifying curse comes for them, too. The film stars Kevin McNulty (Schmigadoon!), Bob Frazer (Falling Skies), Matty Finochio (Riverdale), Seth Isaac Johnson (My Old Ass), and newcomers Bean Reid and Adeline Lo as Sam and Becka.

Like the original film, Pumpkinhead 2 will be written and directed by Jem Garrard, who directed the drag queen horror film Slay. The original film was adapted from a Stine story first published in the 1999 horror anthology Nightmare Hour; it was previously filmed as an episode of The Haunting Hour starring Kacey Rohl. Pumpkinhead 2 will be executive produced by Garrard, James Mattagne, Joan Waricha, Harvey Kahn, Yvonne Bernard, Dan Bernard, Allen Lewis, and Rama Diallo.