Poltergeist (1982)

Poltergeist is the original film in the trilogy, directed by Tobe Hooper, co-written by Steven Spielberg and released on June 4, 1982. The story focuses on the Freeling family, which consists of parents Steve (Craig T. Nelson) and Diane (JoBeth Williams); teenage daughter Dana (Dominique Dunne); eight-year-old Robbie (Oliver Robins); and five-year-old Carol Anne (Heather O'Rourke), who live in Cuesta Verde, a California housing development which comes to be haunted by ghosts. The apparitions, under the control of a demon known as the "Beast", communicate through the family's television set and can only be heard by Carol Anne. Attracted to her life force and believing she will help lead them into the "Light", the specters abduct Carol Anne through her bedroom closet, which acts as a portal to their dimension. Much of the film involves the family's efforts to rescue their daughter, aided by a group of parapsychologists (Beatrice Straight, Martin Casella, Richard Lawson) and spiritual medium Tangina Barrons (Zelda Rubinstein). Carol Anne is eventually rescued from the other side and, following a second attack by the Beast that reveals the ghosts had originated from an improperly relocated cemetery beneath the neighborhood, the Freelings flee Cuesta Verde just before the house implodes and disappears into another dimension.^[3]

Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986)

The first sequel, Poltergeist II: The Other Side, directed by Brian Gibson and released on May 23, 1986, takes place one year after the events in Poltergeist and offers an alternate explanation of the ghosts' origin. The film also develops the identity and backstory of the Beast, who lived during the 19th century as a religious zealot named Reverend Henry Kane (Julian Beck). Kane was the leader of a utopian cult, who in anticipation of the end of the world, sealed themselves in a cavern located directly below what later became the Freeling property. Kane is anxious to possess Carol Anne to continue manipulating his followers after death. The ghosts follow and attack the Freelings at their current household. Aided by an American Indian shaman named Taylor (Will Sampson), the Freelings manage to escape from Kane and his followers a second time.^[3][4]

Poltergeist III (1988)

The final film in the original trilogy, Poltergeist III, directed and co-written by Gary Sherman, was released on June 10, 1988. To protect Carol Anne, the Freelings have sent her to live temporarily in a Chicago skyscraper with skeptical relatives Pat and Bruce Gardner (Nancy Allen and Tom Skerritt) and their daughter Donna (Lara Flynn Boyle). However, during psychiatric sessions, Carol Anne's recollection of her experiences enables Kane and his followers to locate her and make contact through the building's ubiquitous mirrors.^[3][5] The ghosts abduct Carol Anne and then Donna, prompting Pat, Bruce, and Donna's boyfriend Scott (Kipley Wentz) to enlist the help of Tangina, who eventually escorts Kane into the spectral Light, thereby sacrificing herself to save the family.

Poltergeist (2015)

A reboot of the original film, Poltergeist was directed by Gil Kenan and released on May 22, 2015. It centers on a family struggling to make ends meet who relocate to a suburban home. As in the original, the youngest daughter is kidnapped by spirits that inhabit the house. Sam Rockwell and Rosemarie DeWitt star as the married couple, Kennedi Clements plays the daughter, and Jared Harris plays the host of a paranormal-themed TV show who comes to the aid of the family.

Future

In October 2023, Variety reported that a television series was is in early development by Amazon MGM Studios. It is set to be executive produced by Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey of Amblin Television.^[6]

Poltergeist: The Legacy (1996–1999)

A spin-off television series, Poltergeist: The Legacy, ran from 1996 to 1999, though it does not have any connection to the films other than the title.^[7]

Cast

The following table shows the cast members who played the primary characters in the film series.

Crew

Box office performance

Critical and public response

Poltergeist curse

The "Poltergeist curse" is a rumored curse attached to the Poltergeist trilogy and its crew, derived from the deaths of two young cast members in the six years between the releases of the first and third films.^[3][20] The rumor and the surrounding deaths were explored in a 2002 episode of E! True Hollywood Story titled "Curse of Poltergeist".^[21]

• Dominique Dunne, who played eldest daughter Dana in the first film, died on November 4, 1982, at age 22 after being strangled by her ex-boyfriend John Thomas Sweeney.^[22] He was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and sentenced to six years in prison, but was paroled after serving three and a half years.^[20] She also appeared in the 1982 movie Shadow Riders.

• Heather O'Rourke, who played Carol Anne in all three Poltergeist films, died on February 1, 1988, at the age of 12 due to complications from an acute bowel obstruction.^[23][24][25]