The Hulu streaming library is losing one major title this week, for better or for worse. Troll 2, the 1990 Claudio Fragasso-directed comedy horror film that is widely regarded as the worst movie ever made, is set to leave the streamer’s content catalog on Tuesday, Nov. 30, meaning Hulu subscribers now have only hours left to press play on the poorly received film that now has a cult following. The film’s departure comes just a month after it was added to Hulu, which you can subscribe to here, on Nov. 1.
Released in October 1990 and marketed as a sequel to the 1986 horror film Troll, Troll 2 follows the Waits family as they vacation to a small town called Nilbog. Young Joshua, however, protests against the trip after he is warned by the spirit of his deceased grandfather that goblins populate the town. When his parents, Michael and Diana, ignore his pleas, the Waits family find themselves fighting off the evil goblins with the help of Joshua’s grandfather’s ghost when the warning turns out to be true. The film stars Michael Stephenson, George Hardy, Margo Prey, Connie McFarland, Deborah Reed, and Jason Wright.
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The movie, however, was far from a success and has been considered one the worst movies ever made. On Rotten Tomatoes, Troll 2 has just a 5% approval rating from critics, with the consensus simply reading, “Oh my god.” J.R. Jones wrote for the Chicago Reader that “Troll 2 is bad. Very, very bad. The script is stupid, the acting is wooden, the special effects are laughable, the vintage-80s synthesizer score is cheesy.” Q Network Film Desk‘s James Kendrick wrote in his review that “no description of it can quite contain its misguided ludicrousness or the way its infinite and varied sins against the traits of good cinema combine to produce one of the most uproarious unintentional comedies ever made.”
In fact, the film was so bad, which likewise led to something akin to a cult following, that some 20 years later, Stephenson, the child star of Troll 2, directed Best Worst Movie. The 2009 documentary reviews the making of the 1990 film from Stephenson’s perspective and the subsequent cult phenomenon that arose around the B-horror film. While Troll 2 was met with little fanfare, Best Worst Movie fared much better, winning Best Documentary at Fantasia International Film Festival, New Visions Award for Non Fiction Motion Picture Diploma at Sitges Film Festival, and Silver Telly – TV Programs, Segments, or Promotional Pieces – Sound/Sound Design at the Telly Awards. That success was reflected in critic ratings, with the documentary having a 94% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, where the consensus reads, “Good-natured and mirthful, Best Worst Movie is a sweet deconstruction of how a cinematic folly can become a triumph.”
While fans may be sad, or maybe even happy, to see Troll 2 leaving the streamer, the film’s exit is for a good cause. As Troll 2 leaves, Hulu will be preparing to make dozens of new additions to the library on Wednesday. Dec. 1. Among those upcoming additions are titles like Ace Ventura, Cujo, Four Weddings and a Funeral, The Princess Bride, and She’s Out of My League. Dec. 1 will also see the addition of 1986’s Troll.
