For more than 40 years, Cassandra Peterson has been intrinsically linked with her Elvira character, and for good reason. The horror host had humble origins, as she introduced schlocky sci-fi and horror movies in Elvira’s Movie Macabre, only for the character’s fame to transcend the horror world and become a full-blown pop-culture icon. Peterson’s talents extend beyond that character, though, as proven in the new Tubi original R.L. Stine’s Pumpkinhead 2. Conveniently, the actor takes on the role of the supernatural “Cassandra,” who possesses magical abilities.
“I got the offer to play a redhead, who can be older, could be any age, and is named Cassandra, and it was like, ‘Okay, yes, I’ll do that.’ I mean, why not?” Peterson shared with Bloody Disgusting in support of the new film. “I could wear comfortable clothes. I don’t know if shooting was so comfortable, night shoots out in the forest, but the rain.”
She added, “I get offered a lot of horror movies — I gotta tell you guys, a lot. And none of the roles that I play really make me feel like they’re a continuation of Elvira … a strong, feminist, powerful woman, and this was like right up that alley.”
Inspired by R.L. Stine’s beloved The Haunting Hour, R.L. Stine’s Pumpkinhead 2 follows Sam (Bean Reid) and Becka (Adeline Lo) as they race to stop a new Pumpkinhead curse from claiming the entire town of Redhaven.
Jem Garrard returns to direct the sequel, who spoke about the process of offering up a dark story while still ensuring it was accessible to younger audiences.
“That’s the thing with kids horror, is that you don’t really have to dumb it down for them, and that’s what Stine does so well in his work, as well. What I wanted to bring to these movies, it was [to make] a film that families can enjoy, so there’s genuine scares, as well, for adults,” they explained. “You really don’t have to pull anything back. You can have the jumps and the tension, the suspense; you’re really pulling back the gore, when I compare it to my other horrors. I wanted it to be a film that families can enjoy and everyone would find it creepy.”
The first Pumpkinhead was released on Tubi last year, with it being a quick turnaround for this follow-up. Garrard is confirmed to be returning for next year’s R.L. Stine’s Afraid of Clowns, which is just the next chapter in an expanding world of stories.
Of this franchise, Garrard teased, “We’re definitely excited about building out the world of Redhaven. There’s so many stories in the Stine universe to explore that we would want to bring into this. R.L. Stine and I are chatting at the New York Comic-Con next week and we’ll be chatting more about the slate of movies coming up, but yeah, there’s definitely plans to expand the mythology in the world.”
While seeing Peterson in any role at all is exciting for Elvira fans, we still can’t help but wonder what might be next for the Mistress of the Dark. In regards to updates on a long-awaited animated Elvira project, Peterson confessed, “Unfortunately, no. It’s just something I’ve wanted to do since, oh, 1981, and I just go along with that.”
She added, “I’m working on another book project, my fourth. I’m working on a couple of films, but they’re not animated. I’ve been working on those projects for more than a year now … As far as animated Elvira, my comic books are really the only thing that are going on. And I do have a graphic novel coming out soon that I’m really excited about featuring Elvira.”
R.L. Stine’s Pumpkinhead lands on Tubi on October 9.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
