Peacock is Now Streaming Tons of Classic Universal Monster Movies

By Spencer Perry

Though typically the new batches of content drop on streaming services at the start of the month, NBCUniversal's Peacock has gotten a whole host of new movies smack in the middle of September. The streamer is seemingly setting the stage for October in a big way though as today, Wednesday, September 15 sees the arrival of a ton of classic Universal Monster Movies available to stream on the service. Not every movie from these quintessential franchises is available on Peacock, which is surprising considering the rights shouldn't be that complicated, but we've got the full list below along with some recommendations. Available titles include:

  • Bride of Frankenstein, 1935 
  • Dracula's Daughter, 1931 
  • Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman, 1943 
  • The Invisible Man Returns, 1940 
  • The Invisible Man, 1933 
  • The Invisible Man's Revenge, 1940 
  • The Invisible Woman, 1940 
  • It Came From Outerspace, 1953 
  • The Mummy, 1932 
  • The Mummy's Curse, 1944 
  • The Mummy's Ghost, 1944 
  • The Mummy's Hand, 1940 
  • The Mummy's Tomb, 1942 
  • Night Monster, 1942 
  • Phantom of the Opera, 1943 
  • Phantom of the Opera, 1962 
  • Son of Dracula, 1943 
  • Son of Frankenstein, 1939 
  • Werewolf in London, 1935

For movie fans looking for a place to start you can't do much better than James Whale's Bride of Frankenstein. Though the original Frankenstein is not available, and the pair make for a great double feature, Bride is pretty standalone but is arguably the best of all of the classic monster movies. Following the runaway success of the original Frankenstein in 1931 Universal was eager for a sequel, prompting Whale and screenwriter William Hurlbut to conceive of a meta-take on the material that has stood the test of time as one of the best American made monster movies ever.

Other films on the above list that are good for newcomers to the Universal Monster canon include: The Invisible Man, also by James Whale and featuring Claude Rains as the titular character; The Invisible Man Returns, a standalone sequel that marks one of the first on-screen appearances of Vincent Price (blink and you might miss him since he's invisible this time around); Son of Frankenstein, Rowland V. Lee's follow-up to Bride that directly inspired Young Frankenstein; and Dracula's Daughter, Lambert Hillyer's subtextual vampire tale.

Peacock isn't just getting Universal Classic Monster movies today though as some Hammer Films productions, The Evil of Frankenstein and Curse of the Werewolf, are also now streaming on the service. Released by Universal back in the 1960s, these two are also worth a glance for movie fans eager for some retro-horror. 

Some classic Universal Monster Movies NOT streaming on Peacock are Frankenstein, Dracula, and The Creature from the Black Lagoon. Most of the modern attempts at reviving the Universal Monsters aren't available on Peacock either however with Tom Cruise's failed reboot of The Mummy and the 2020 revival of The Invisible Man not streaming anywhere. 2010's reboot of The Wolfman however can be seen on Peacock, but the 1941 film starring Lon Chaney, Jr. cannot. If you haven't signed up for Peacock yet, you can try it out here. 

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