TheUniversal Monstershave been having a bit of a modern renaissance with films likeRenfield,The Invisible Man,Lisa Frankenstein, andAbigailbiting their way to theaters over the last half decade. It’s helped remind moviegoers how pop culture relevant these horror icons are. They’ve also been supported by a ton of nostalgic merchandise. Now, adding to the monster mash,Funkohas just unveiled their latest wave of Universal Monster Pops.
The new set includes four monsters,The BridefromThe Bride of Frankenstein,Frankenstein’s Monsterwho debuted in the Universal universe in the classic 1931Frankenstein,Draculafrom his self-titled 1931 classic, and theGill-manfrom the incredibly underratedThe Creature From the Black Lagoon. The set will also featureWolf Manfrom the creature’s self-titled 1941 masterpiece. The best part of this collection is each figure’s unique color scheme adds to its haunting allure. Funko has made many Universal Monster figures in the past, both in black and white and in color, but the heightened palette used here emulates the technicolor re-releases that these legends would see in the 80s VHS era. These monsters also join Funko’s 2024 Halloween line-up, which includesPeanuts,The Addams Family, andPet Sematary.
The Impact of Universal’s Monsters
While horror has seen many reinventions over the last century, there’s something about the original Universal Monster era that horror fans love to keep coming back to. Given that it’s a franchise that started in the early 30s, it was one of the first set of films to take full advantage of the industry’s newest marvel, sound. Performances likeBela Lugosi’s Dracula,Boris Karloff’s Monster, Colin Clive’s Dr. Frankenstein, Lon Chaney Jr.’s Wolf Man, andElsa Lanchester’s Bridedefined this exciting time for the genre. In a time when cinematic universes are the norm, it was one of the first to attempt that ambitious concept. Many modern franchises owe a lot to these colorful creatures of the night. Now, over almost 100 years since both Frankenstein and Dracula’s debut,Universal’s horror universe has lived on with new action figures fromNECA, various apparel collections, and fun collectable figures from Funko. On the film side, Universal has been tapping deep into their history recently. Particularly with Darcula asRenfield,The Voyage of the Last Demeter, andAbigailhave been some of the most refreshing vampire films in years. Universal looks to continue the Monster love with Blumhouse’s remake ofThe Wolf Manin early 2025 from modern horror legendLeigh Whannell(Saw,Insidious: Chapter 3).
Most of the classic films aren’t on a streaming service, butall the major hits are available to rent on VOD platforms like Prime Video. Universal has also been hard at work the last number of years putting films likeDracula,Frankenstein, andThe Wolf Manon4K Blu-rayfor the first time. Before your next Universal Monster binge, you can currently pre-order Funko’s Monster Pops onEntertainment Earth’s website. They’re set to be released in August 2024. That’s just in time for the spooky Halloween season.
Dracula is a 1931 horror film starring Bela Lugosi as the iconic vampire Count Dracula. Based on Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel, the film follows Count Dracula’s move from Transylvania to England, where he preys on humans, including Mina Harker and Lucy Westenra.
