Adam Sandler’s recent Netflix movie Hubie Halloween sees the actor dip his toe into the territory of horror-comedy for the first time, but what famous classics of the horror genre does this hit reference? Despite lukewarm critical reception, Hubie Halloween has proven a huge hit for streaming service Netflix and its star Adam Sandler, becoming the platform's biggest movie of 2020. The tale of the perpetually scared title character who is stuck in his hometown of Salem and a state of arrested development, Hubie Halloween is a rare foray into horror-comedy for Sandler who until now hasn’t ventured into the sub-genre outside of the animated family comedy series Hotel Transylvania.
Hubie Halloween may be viewed by many reviewers as another bad movie from Sandler, whose standing with critics has been falling since the mid-2000s outside of some indie performances such as Uncut Gems. But the movie’s financial success proves that the actor’s reliable comedy formula still has its sizeable legion of fans, and Hubie Halloween's genuine love for the horror genre proves that the movie has its bright spots, despite its flaws.
Filled with easter eggs and horror references both subtle and obvious, Hubie Halloween owes a surprising debt to the long history of cinematic horror. The movie's plot features (spoiler alert) witches and an escaped maniac, meaning there are obvious riffs on John Carpenter’s Halloween and the earlier family-friendly horror-comedy Hocus Pocus, but there are also a lot of more subtle references that evidence a love of horror on the part of the filmmakers. Hubie Halloween may be an excuse for Sandler to indulge in his reliable "silly voices and cast of real-life friends" formula, but there’s no denying that the movie manages to cram plenty of horror easter eggs into its short runtime and has plenty to offer fans of the genre.
Frankenstein/ Bride of Frankenstein
Probably the most obvious references in Hubie Halloween go to some of the most famous—and earliest—horror movies ever made. Adapted from Mary Shelley’s iconic text, 1931’s Frankenstein and its 1935 sequel Bride of Frankenstein both earn a shout out from this Sandler vehicle. First, a partygoer dresses as the famous titular monster, then minor character Megan refers to another character as the “Bride of Skankenstein,” and later on Ms. Hennessy wears the iconic white striped wig of Frankenstein’s reanimated love interest.
Creature From the Black Lagoon
Another vintage reference for fans of the genre, Danielle watches the 50s horror classic The Creature From the Black Lagoon during the action of Hubie Halloween. However, this one isn’t just a reference to the famous monster movie, it’s also an oblique nod to many more classic horrors as footage from The Creature From the Black Lagoon appears in many earlier movies. The classic creature feature has been watched by many horror protagonists over the years, with clips from the film cropping up everywhere from Happy Death Day 2 U, to Hellboy 2, all the way back to 1980’s slasher Fade to Black (where it's cross-cut with a date, bizarrely). It’s a deep cut and a cute meta-textual reference to countless horror classics, further evidencing the fact that Hubie Halloween's creators did their homework.
Halloween
John Carpenter’s iconic 1978 slasher Halloween is far from the only film to feature an escaped lunatic threatening the lives of a small town’s residents (although it's definitely the best movie with this familiar premise). However, the franchise-spawning Halloween is by far the most iconic movie to feature this exact plot playing out across Halloween night. As such, most of Hubie Halloween’s plot acts as a comedic recreation of Laurie Strode’s infamous ordeal the night HE came home, although credit to the filmmakers, they don’t rely on too many easy parodies of the famous source material despite recreating the movie’s plot.
The Twilight Zone/ The Munsters
Admittedly, the two classic television series The Twilight Zone and The Munsters may not be horror movies, but both have movie adaptations and more importantly, both have a pretty big influence on Hubie Halloween. Rod Serling’s classic, often-revived (but never bettered) sixties anthology series The Twilight Zone often told tales of small-town conformity and put-upon outcasts that mirror Hubie’s life in Salem, although the show was a lot less kind to the small-minded locals of its stories than the forgiving Hubie. The Munsters meanwhile offered an Addams Family-esque brood of loveable monsters living in sitcom-style harmony, which fits Hubie Halloween’s marriage of scares and laughs perfectly. Both are referenced in the movie when the local marching band plays their iconic theme songs at different points (yes, eagle-eyed viewers, that’s the same marching band who provide the tuba thrown at Hubie later in the movie.)
Scooby-Doo
Viewers who didn’t this one coming from the movie’s title alone obviously aren’t familiar with many Sandler films, but a character inevitably refers to the titular Hubie as "Scooby Dooby" when mocking his fear of Halloween and dismissing his (actually pretty grounded) fears about an escaped mental patient.
Ghostbusters
One of the biggest tonal influences on Hubie Halloween’s mixture of supernatural scares and lighthearted family-friendly character comedy, the 80s classic (and soon-to-be-rebooted) Ghostbusters was always going to earn a shout out in the Sandler movie. It’s one of the movie’s more meta-textual nods to its obvious influences, as Hubie himself requests the theme song of the 1984 horror-comedy on the radio, proving he truly is as big a fan of Halloween as he claims (despite being afraid of almost everything).
Hocus Pocus
Much like High School Musical director Kenny Ortega’s Halloween family classic Hocus Pocus, Hubie Halloween is set in the small town of Salem Massachusetts, home to real-life “witch” trials in the 1600s. Any further discussion would get into spoiler territory, but those who have seen Sandler’s movie will know that the final twist regarding Hubie’s mom is also a pretty clear reference to Hocus Pocus.
Scream
The kids who follow Hubie via bike are all wearing the iconic mask made famous by the killer in A Nightmare on Elm Street director Wes Craven’s famous 1996 meta slasher Scream and its sequels. Notably, it is the original mask they’re all adorned with, not the divisive redesign featured in the short-lived MTV television adaptation of Scream.
Stephen King’s IT
A partygoer near the end of Hubie Halloween references the recent horror phenomenon IT as they are dressed as the movie’s villain, the killer clown/amorphous embodiment of generational evil Pennywise. In another strange connection, Hubie Halloween also stars Stranger Things’ Noah Schapp, whose Netflix show not only stars IT standout Finn Wolfhard but also featured another IT reference in the form of season 3's Stephen King-inspired villain Billy.