One of the strategies streaming services have at their disposal to try and entice viewers into paying a monthly fee for them is the promise of exclusive originals. They want to have the big things, the new hits and the legacy franchises no one else has and that you can only get by buying into their platform. Horror streamer Shudder has invested heavily on this front, and with movies such as Stopmotion, Exhuma, When Evil Lurks, and Huesera, it’s managed to claim and continuously retain the top spot in this field.
But what happens when those streaming services close? Or when they decide to remove content at will and without notice? The answer to these questions is actually rather simple: go for physical.
In a pleasantly surprising announcement, Shudder and IFC have revealed they’re partnering with physical media label Severin to release Blu-rays of some the most popular movies in their catalogue.
As per Variety, Severin will be releasing “eleven Special Edition physical discs of the most popular Originals and licensed features from horror subscription streamer Shudder and IFC Films.”
Among those on the list are: Baskin, The Autopsy of Jane Doe, Satan’s Slaves, Maniac (the 2012 remake), Antiviral, and Sisters. The rest will be revealed at a later date.
Severin is a Los Angeles-based company and it has a proven track record of rescuing obscure, controversial, and nearly forgotten movies that range from Video Nasties to erotic Nunsploitation cult classics. It’s a particular favorite among horror fans thanks to their deep selection of European horror works from the Seventies and the Eighties. Movies like Javier Elorrieta’s La Noche de la Ira (Spain, 1986) and Joe D’Amato’s Antropophagus (Italia, 1980) are currently available on the Severin online shop, ready for new audiences looking for some old-school splatter.
The partnership seems to understand a simple truth about horror fans: they like to own their favorite horror movies. The genre thrives in repeat viewing. Watching key films, for instance, stands as a kind of rite of passage for many. You never forget the first time you watch The Texas Chainsaw Massacre or Night of the Living Dead, or Suspiria for that matter. Fans want to own these films not just to reexperience the terror, but also to make everyone they know watch them as well. They love creating new fans, new converts that’ll then go on to refine their tastes and build their own collections through stores such as Severin.
In an age in which streaming is mudding the waters when it comes to ownership of digital content and future access to it, this partnership feels like a statement. Horror films find ways to dig themselves up from the grave whenever they’re close to being completely lost to time. Shudder, IFC, and Severin are letting fans know they’re doing their part to preserve our favorite scary movies.
Stay tuned for announcements on the remaining titles in this first run of Blu-rays.
