‘The Texas Chain Saw Massacre’ Is Revving Its Way Back to Theaters For Its 50th Anniversary

There are a ton of iconic horror franchises celebrating major anniversaries in 2024. However, none have been as important to the genre than Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. The 1974 grindhouse slasher has spent the last 50 years instilling terror in genre fans everywhere. Leatherface has put some extra energy into his infamous chainsaw dance to mark the blood-soaked occasion too. That included new apparel collections, 4K editions and action figures. Now, in addition, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is coming back to theaters this Halloween thanks to Dark Sky Films.

The 50th anniversary re-release will be in a theater near you throughout the month of October with most regions and participating theaters opening on Tuesday, October 1st. In a reference to Texas Chain Saw’s classic yet haunting opening title crawl, Dark Sky Films previewed the screenings saying:

“50 years ago, five youths on a weekend getaway in the Texas countryside fell prey to a butcher in a mask made of human skin and his cannibalistic family, and horror cinema would never be the same. Violent, confrontational, and shockingly realistic,
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
terrified audiences in a way never thought possible when it was unleashed on a politically and socially tumultuous America in 1974. Facing a storm of controversy, censorship, and outcry throughout its troubled release, this masterpiece of horror has stood the test of time to become a landmark motion picture and cultural milestone.”

Dark Sky has been a major driving force in honoring Hooper’s masterpiece. Last year they released the film on 4K for the first time and since then have released multiple scream-tastic editions of Texas Chain Saw for hardcore horror fans. This included a set that came with Leatherface’s signature chainsaw from the first installment. If that was enough, the company also released a collection of apparel and posters earlier this year.

The Legacy of ‘Texas Chain Saw Massacre’

While Leatherface is a well-known horror icon now, when the original film was released in 1974, moviegoers hadn’t seen anything like it. The rawness of Hooper’s direction paired with cinematographer Daniel Pearl’s funhouse-like atmosphere made this backwoods nightmare hit differently. The real-world grotesqueness that made you feel like this was based on true events set it apart from other horror films of its time and still makes it unique in its genre today. Things like the previously mentioned opening crawl voiced by John Larroquette or the morbid production design were the killer hooks that cemented Texas Chain Saw as an instant classic. Hooper would return to direct The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2 12 years later in 1986, which would officially turn Leatherface into a franchise leading man with an endless number of sequels, reboots, and remakes to follow. However, no film in the series, despite some hidden gems, has quite captured the demented magic of the original Texas Chain Saw. That being said, modern cult hits like Ti West’s X and Strange Darling have kept Leatherface’s brutal aesthetic alive in more ways than one.

Where’s ‘Texas Chain Saw Massacre’ Streaming?

Both The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Part 2 are currently streaming for free on Tubi. However, if you want to see the original in the way our horror gods intended, you can check your local theater and get tickets on Dark Sky films’ website. Their trailer for the re-release can be viewed below.