Growing up in the late ‘90s and early ‘00s, there was no shortage of horror geared toward kids. Shows like Are You Afraid of the Dark? (1991-1996), So Weird (1999-2001), Eerie, Indiana (1991-1992), and Goosebumps (1995-1998) all attempted to distill horror themes and tropes and present them in a way that was accessible to younger audiences. With the popularity of horror for kids, it is unsurprising that when Disney launched its rebranded original live-action movies, now called Disney Channel Original Movies (DCOMs), many were horror-themed. These horror DCOMs usually premiered in or around October. Among those horror DCOMs, Under Wraps (1997), Mom’s Got a Date with a Vampire (2000), and Phantom of the Megaplex (2000) stand out as movies that introduced specific classic horror themes and monsters to modern audiences.
Under Wraps follows best friends Marshall (Mario Yedidia), Amy (Clara Bryant), and Gilbert (Adam Wylie) as they discover, reanimate, befriend, and ultimately save a mummy that they name Harold (Bill Fagerbakke). While Marshall is the only one of the group who is a true horror fanatic, they are all able to look past Harold’s outwardly frightening appearance and befriend him, especially once they realize he is as scared of them as they initially are of him. When Harold first wakes up, he presents like a stereotypical mummy. He moans loudly and lumbers stiffly after the kids. But as the movie moves forward, it is clear Harold was just stiff after sleeping for thousands of years. Marshall puts on clips of his favorite classic mummy movies, and as Harold watches the clips, he seems confused as to why a mummy would act that way and even imitates what he sees on screen, amusing the kids. Although he cannot talk, he is able to communicate with the kids by acting out what he wants and moaning and grunting in different ways. Instead of being scary, Harold is funny and clumsy and sweet. As the movie progresses, Harold stands in contrast to those mummy stereotypes and becomes a character with real personality and emotion. Harold reveals that he has a love who was buried with him. His ultimate goal is to return to his eternal sleep with her. But when the people who initially stole Harold’s mummy return for him, he readily protects the kids and willingly sacrifices himself to keep them safe even if that means he will never see his love again. Young viewers not only learn about how a mummy is classically portrayed, but they also develop a fondness for Harold that will keep them coming back to check out more spooky DCOMs in the future.
Mom’s Got a Date with a Vampire features another horror-loving protagonist. We are introduced to Adam (Matt O’Leary) as he watches a movie that is clearly a play on Dracula. His horror obsession annoys his older sister Chelsea (Laura Vandervoot) and frightens his younger brother Taylor (Myles Jeffrey). When their mom (Caroline Rhea) goes on a date with a mysterious man named Dmitri (Charles Shaughnessy), Taylor, with vampires still on his mind, is convinced that Dmitri is a vampire. Adam teaches Taylor some of the classic ways to spot a vampire, including an aversion to garlic and silver, not having a reflection in a mirror, and the ability to transfix people with their gaze. When Taylor sneaks out of the house to follow their mom on her date, Dmitri makes up a “spoon test” to prove to Taylor that he isn’t a vampire. He says that vampires cannot hang a spoon from their nose. Dmitri passes this test and Taylor is satisfied. But as the kids leave the restaurant, Adam sees that Dmitri has no reflection and is now convinced that Dmitri is a vampire. When Taylor overhears Adam telling Chelsea that the spoon test was fake, he decides to take matters into his own hands and looks in the phone book for a vampire hunter. He comes across an ad for Malachi Van Helsing (Robert Carradine) and immediately calls him and hires him to go after Dmitri. Although it is not explored more deeply in the movie, Malachi’s surname is clearly a reference to the famed vampire hunter in Dracula. Once the kids have used Dmitri’s lack of reflection to identify him as a vampire, they use garlic to ward him off and, after the final battle, secure Dmitri in his coffin with silver-plated nails. Their knowledge of traditional vampire lore, along with the help of a Van Helsing, allows them to defeat Dmitri. Countless kids would have been introduced to these ideas for the first time in Mom’s Got a Date with a Vampire and then recognized them as they broadened their horror horizons.
Premiering less than a month after Mom’s Got a Date with a Vampire, Phantom of the Megaplex continued the DCOM foray into building a classic movie monster foundation for kids. The movie opens with shots from the original The Phantom of the Opera (1925). Pete (Taylor Handley), the movie’s protagonist, narrates about classic movies and his love for theaters. The entire plot of Phantom of the Megaplex mirrors the plot of The Phantom of the Opera, and horror is referenced throughout. The theater where Pete is an assistant manager is hosting the world premiere of a new monster movie, and his younger sister Karen (Caitlin Wachs) is determined to see a college-set slasher movie that her mom doesn’t approve of. As Pete struggles to keep things under control for the important premiere, a mysterious phantom plays pranks and terrorizes the staff and patrons of the theater. A masked, caped figure is seen fleeing the scenes of these pranks, and his maniacal laughter echoes through the theater to punctuate these moments of mayhem. Pete’s younger siblings Karen and Brian (Jacob Smith) make their way into the basement of the theater to search for the phantom’s lair, mirroring the search for the phantom underneath the theater in The Phantom of the Opera. By updating the setting to a movie theater and putting kids as the protagonists, Disney introduces the themes and characters in a way that is accessible for kids.
During the height of the Disney Channel Original Movie programming feature, movies were premiering on Disney Channel monthly. While a horror title was released at least every October, these three movies stand out. They weren’t just setting out to scare their young audiences like Don’t Look Under the Bed or establish fun, family-friendly franchises like Halloweentown. They were striving to stand as educational movies bridging the past of classic horror with a new, modern audience. Kid-oriented horror is something that is often integral in many horror fans’ journeys. There are nostalgic favorites that help turn people on to the genre and inspire them to explore everything that it has to offer. These movies are important because they not only function as horror for kids that can ignite a love for the genre, but they also serve as direct gateways to films, characters, and ideas from classic horror. They provide points of reference that budding horror fans can specifically seek out and recognize because they have seen these movies.
