R.L. Stine’s Afraid of Clowns Shows First Clip — Plus The Babysitter Movie Announced at NYCC
Official still. © Tubi
The Calliope Stops. You Look Up.
You hear the calliope before you see the big top. The midway is empty, the lights are too bright, and a ringmaster steps out of the dark with a grin that stays on your eyelids long after you blink. That’s the feeling R.L. Stine’s been weaponizing since Goosebumps first hit the book fairs — and today at New York Comic Con, he loaded the cannon again.
Kill the clown music. Actually — keep it. This one’s better with the soundtrack.
The Facts
Tubi hosted the “R.L. Stine on Tubi” panel at NYCC 2026 today, moderated by ‘Happy Sad Confused’ host Josh Horowitz, with Stine, writer-director Jem Garrard, Jimbo, and Tubi chief content officer Adam Lewinson. Cassandra Peterson — Elvira herself — opened the panel with a video greeting. Two big reveals: an exclusive first clip of ‘R.L. Stine’s Afraid of Clowns,’ premiering on Tubi next year, and the surprise announcement of a film adaptation of Stine’s iconic novel ‘R.L. Stine’s The Babysitter,’ in development at Tubi and directed by Trevor Calverley. (Source: Film Factual, reporting from Tubi’s NYCC panel.)
Quick Specs
- ‘R.L. Stine’s Afraid of Clowns’: premieres on Tubi in 2027; written/directed by Jem Garrard; Jimbo stars as Ringmaster Rollo
- ‘R.L. Stine’s The Babysitter’: in development at Tubi; directed by Trevor Calverley; based on Stine’s novel — 16-year-old Jenny takes a babysitting job while a prowler terrorizes girls across town, threatening calls begin, and she stops trusting anyone
- Panel: “R.L. Stine on Tubi,” NYCC 2026, Javits Center
Full disclosure, up front: the Afraid of Clowns clip played only to the NYCC room, so Harper’s going on the panel’s own description — Ringmaster Rollo, played by Jimbo, scaring a lost child with a troupe of scary clowns. Stine and Garrard already teamed on R.L. Stine’s Pumpkinhead 2 (which the panel also previewed), so this Tubi partnership is officially a whole pipeline now. And The Babysitter is one of Stine’s most movie-ready stories that somehow took this long to get a proper film — a prowler, threatening phone calls, a babysitter who can’t trust anyone. That’s a recipe that wrote itself.
Trivia & Facts
- Jem Garrard wrote and directed both R.L. Stine’s Pumpkinhead 2 and Afraid of Clowns
- Cassandra Peterson (Elvira) appears in Pumpkinhead 2 — she opened this panel with a video message
- Jimbo steps from the stage to the big top as Ringmaster Rollo
- The Babysitter’s Jenny-vs-the-prowler setup is pure late-night-territory Stine
- Tubi is quietly becoming one of horror’s most active pipelines — free, and furious
Harper’s Extras
- Watch R.L. Stine’s Pumpkinhead 2, now on Tubi — the same team’s warm-up act
- Revisit the Goosebumps well: the 2015 film or the newer TV series for the full Stine flavor
- Keep Tubi’s horror hub on your radar — this panel proved it’s where the drops are happening
Where to Watch
Afraid of Clowns premieres on Tubi in 2027 (free, as always). The Babysitter is in development — no date yet.
FAQ
Q: When does R.L. Stine’s Afraid of Clowns come out?
A: 2027, premiering on Tubi. Exact date TBA.
Q: Is The Babysitter movie a remake of the 1995 film?
A: No — this is a brand-new Tubi adaptation of Stine’s novel, directed by Trevor Calverley, currently in development.
Q: Who stars in Afraid of Clowns?
A: Jimbo plays Ringmaster Rollo; Jem Garrard writes and directs.
Q: Where can I watch it?
A: On Tubi, free, when it premieres.
Until the next nightmare, fiends.
