Summary
- Fear Street 4’s announcement spells trouble for Goosebumps, as the two projects will inevitably be pitted against each other due to their similar content.
- Fear Street is currently more popular and better received than Goosebumps, with higher Rotten Tomatoes scores and a larger following due to its three films compared to Goosebumps’ one season.
- The scarier and more exciting nature of Fear Street appeals more to older audiences, while Goosebumps has a nostalgic value and is more childlike. Fear Street 4 is generating more hype than Goosebumps season 2.
Now that Netflix has announced another installment in the Fear Street franchise, Fear Street 4, there is no hope for Disney’s Goosebumps adaptation. Both Fear Street and Goosebumps are book series written by the author R.L. Stine. Fear Street follows a group of teenagers that uncover a horrific, generations-long secret in their home town, meanwhile Goosebumps is a long-running series of children’s horror stories. Netflix first adapted Fear Street in 2021, and Disney’s Goosebumps aired its first season in 2023, with no news of a season 2 just yet.
Though Fear Street and Goosebumps come from the same author, and arguably, are not better or worse than each other, this latest Fear Street 4 news isn’t good for Goosebumps. Because of their close release dates and similar content, the two projects are inevitably going to be pitted against each other. Rather than being a reflection of R.L. Stine though, this will be a battle between Netflix and Disney. Unfortunately, even though Fear Street 4 is nothing more than an announcement at the moment, it is clear who will win the fight between Fear Street and Goosebumps.
Netflix’s Fear Street Movies Are The RL Stine Revival That Disney’s Goosebumps Wants To Be
Ultimately, Fear Street is the R.L. Stine adaptation that is more popular at the moment, and therefore Goosebumps will not be able to catch up. At face value, Fear Street has been better received than Goosebumps. All three Fear Street movies have a Rotten Tomatoes score that is in the high 80s, meanwhile Goosebumps earned a 75%. While this isn’t bad by any means, it does show that Fear Street is more liked at this moment. The fact that Fear Street’s timeline includes three films whereas Goosebumps only has one season is a major factor. Fear Street has simply had more time to garner a following than Goosebumps has.
In the end, it comes down to the differences in audiences. Though both are Stine’s work, Fear Street is much scarier than Goosebumps, and as such, is designed for an older audience. In this way, Fear Street is a bit more exciting than Goosebumps, which has a nostalgic value, but is ultimately much more tame. When it comes to adolescent viewers, it seems likely that they would prefer the scarier Fear Street over the more childlike Goosebumps. In this way, Fear Street 4 is much more hyped than Goosebumps season 2 will be.
Fear Street 4 Will Hurt Goosebumps Rather Than Help It
Although having two R.L. Stine adaptations released close together could potentially help both properties, in this case, it seems more likely that Fear Street will hurt Goosebumps rather than help it. Fear Street 4 is more likely to overshadow Goosebumps rather than inspire audiences to watch both. Once again, this is because the projects are quite different from each other in terms of horror, leaving them with vastly different audiences. In the end, Fear Street and Goosebumps simply don’t share much of an audience, and therefore, viewers will have to choose.