Season 1

6 Episodes2021

No horror icon came out of a filmmaker’s first draft fully formed. There were early drafts, wrong turns, experimentation. Once made flesh (or latex), there’s presentation, impact, audience response and legacy. Each of these steps that nudge a horror creation toward the annals of legend will be explored in Shudder’s BEHIND THE MONSTERS. Each episode examines a horror icon who has broken free of the confines of the film from which it was born and become the stuff of legend.

Episodes (6)

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Ep 1

Michael Myers

★7.0

2021-10-27•N/A

A cheap film shot in 21 days changed the landscape of horror, made several careers, and gave one actress an iconic role that she’s tweaking 42 years later.

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Ep 2

Candyman

★7.0

2021-11-03•N/A

The genre's first black slasher showed up in 1992, rich with subtext about racial tensions in American history. In 2021, he's coming back - and is perhaps the most relevant horror icon imaginable.

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Ep 3

Chucky

★7.0

2021-11-10•N/A

What started as a nasty spin on 80s consumerism flourished over three decades into an unlikely progressive horror property that refuses to get back on the shelf.

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Ep 4

Freddy

★7.0

2021-11-17•N/A

Perhaps the most recognizable horror icon, Freddy Krueger's one-liners and merchandise has proven to be enjoyed by horror and non-horror fans alike.

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Ep 5

Jason Voorhees

★7.0

2021-11-24•N/A

A look at the accidental creation of a machete-wielding avatar of conservative 1980s morality - one that, absent a new entry, a fiercely loyal fan base has taken to resurrecting on their own.

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Ep 6

Pinhead

★5.0

2021-12-01•N/A

Emerging from a low budget independent film, this character who was simply called "Lead Cenobite" would become the undeniable symbol of pleasure and pain and the icon of the "Hellraiser" franchise.