13 Halloween TV Specials to Get You in the Mood for Spooky Season
One of my favorite things about holiday celebrations in America is the ubiquity of TV specials, especially throughout the Holy Trinity of U.S. Holidays: Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. I’m a classic TV guy myself, so my fam always fires up the Peanuts holiday specials when the leaves start to fall and the cookies begin to bake.
For this Halloween, I asked our staff writers and editors to share their favorite Halloween TV specials, and some of their choices floored me (I didn’t even know about the Grinch Halloween special, LOL). Read on to crank up the cozy, spooky vibes at your home this October with classic TV specials and new ones from popular shows like Family Guy.
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1. It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966)
For over 50 years, this Peanuts special has set the gold standard for Halloween programming. Join Linus as he camps out in the pumpkin patch, forsaking trick-or-treating and Halloween parties in hopes of finally meeting the mythical Great Pumpkin.
Spoiler alert: Charlie Brown gets nothing but rocks in his trick-or-treat bag (“I got a rock”), and Snoopy, as the World War I Flying Ace, battles the Red Baron. It’s a sweet, nostalgic special that perfectly captures the magic and slight melancholy of a childhood Halloween.
Where to Watch It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
2. The Paul Lynde Halloween Special (1976)
This wonderfully strange Halloween special (an exercise in contract-fulfillment for Lynde) features guests like the Wicked Witch of the West (Margaret Hamilton, reprising her role from The Wizard of Oz), legendary rock band Kiss, and the dear, departed Betty White. It also has Mormon luminaries Donny and Marie Osmond dressed in devil costumes!
The loose variety-show narrative has Lynde hating Halloween but agreeing to do some PR work for the Wicked Witch, Witchiepoo (from H.R. Pufnstuf), and White, the good witch.
In between, Lynde (as a trucker) marries Pink Tuscadero from Grease and cracks some very naughty jokes (for the time), Kiss mimes its way through three wildly out-of-place songs, and the cast performs “Disco Baby.”
Unfortunately, the special was nearly lost, and the only surviving copy looks like a potato-quality VHS recording. —Randy Harward, Senior Staff Writer
Where to Watch The Paul Lynde Halloween Special
You can watch The Paul Lynde Halloween Special free on YouTube or rent it from Amazon Prime Video.
3. Halloween Is Grinch Night (1977)
When an eerie wind sweeps through Whoville, it stirs mischievous excitement within the Grinch. He quickly assembles his wagon of tricks and descends from Mount Crumpit with plans to cause chaos. But little does he know, a young Who named Euchariah won’t stand for any trouble.
Sure, the Grinch is most famously associated with Christmas. But he fits perfectly into the Halloween season with this 1977 TV special. Written by Dr. Seuss, Halloween Is Grinch Night blends wacky frights with classic Grinch antics, making it a fun part of the Seuss universe. —Taylor Kujawa, Sports Editor
Where to Watch Halloween Is Grinch Night
You can watch Halloween Is Grinch Night free on YouTube. It’s also available digitally and on DVD and Blu-ray as a special feature when you purchase How the Grinch Stole Christmas: The Ultimate Edition.
Pro tip: Looking for iconic Halloween TV episodes? Our writers and editors weighed in on those, too, in our Best Halloween TV Episodes guide.
4. The Halloween That Almost Wasn’t (1979)
Halloween Disney Channel Original Movies (DCOMs), like Halloweentown, are a sacred tradition. But what did kids watch in ye olden days? Four years before the Disney Channel first graced our screens, ABC aired The Halloween That Almost Wasn’t.
In this Munsters-esque proto-DCOM, Dracula leads a group of famous Halloween monsters in an effort to convince the Witch not to give up on Halloween. Full of ’70s-specific pop culture references, this special will probably go over most kids’ heads but delight their Baby Boomer and Gen X relatives. —Olivia Bono, Staff Writer
Where to Watch The Halloween That Almost Wasn’t
5. Hanna-Barbera’s Pac-Man Halloween Special (1979)
There’s not a lot on the internet these days about the Hanna-Barbera-produced Pac-Man Halloween Special. (The video above gives a nice refresher if you’re curious.) But what would a list of best Halloween specials be without a few hidden gems, ammirte?
For my part, I vividly remember the made-for-TV villain, Mezmaron, an evil wizard who really creeped me out as a kid. If you’re a nostalgia hound, I say the Pac-Man Halloween Special is worth throwing on for a good belly laugh. (The character Count Pacula alone is worth the price of admission.)
Where to Watch Hanna-Barbera’s Pac-Man Halloween Special
6. Garfield’s Halloween Adventure (1985)
Despite growing up with a Garfield-loving mom, I had no idea this special existed until recently. Garfield’s Halloween Adventure is one of twelve Garfield made-for-TV specials produced throughout the ’80s and early ’90s, and it’s one of the best.
It’s definitely kid-friendly, but also comes with some genuine spooks—think haunted house, pirate ghosts, blood oaths (?!), etc. Those scares, combined with some classic Garfield and Odie humor, make it a perfect nostalgia watch.
Where to Watch Garfield’s Halloween Adventure
You can watch this Emmy-winning special free on YouTube.
7. Elvira’s Halloween Special (1986)
Here at CableTV.com, we love us some Mistress of the Night. Filled with campy sketches, man-on-the-street interviews, vintage horror clips, and a healthy dose of “Halloween carols,” and set in Salem, MA, Elvira’s Halloween Special from 1986 is a Gen X all-timer.
Seeing as I was terrified of all things horror as an elementary-school kid in the ’80s, it’s fun to rewatch Elvira and see just how funny and wholesome her whole schtick actually was. Sure, some of the outfits are a little risque for younger children, but it’s well worth returning to this MTV special year after year, guys and ghouls.
Where to Watch Elvira’s Halloween Special
8. The Last Halloween (1991)
This Hanna-Barbera special was a fixture of my childhood Halloweens, and it remains a wonderfully weird gem. For me, it’s in the ballpark of E.T. and Flight of the Navigator, but with a stronger Halloween twist. A group of kids befriends some candy-obsessed aliens who’ve crash-landed on Earth. Together, they have to save their small town’s candy factory from going out of business and ruining Halloween for good.
What makes it so memorable is its quirky and surprisingly sentimental story, all told through a unique blend of live-action and Emmy Award-winning visual effects. (Hey, it was the early ’90s.) But let’s be honest, the real stars are the villains. As a kid, Rhea Perlman and Richard Moll absolutely freaked me out. —Taylor Kujawa, Sports Editor
Where to Watch The Last Halloween
You can watch The Last Halloween free on YouTube.
9. Toy Story of TERROR! (2013)
Pixar brings heart and humor as Woody, Buzz, and the gang’s road trip turns suspenseful at a creepy motel.
Mr. Potato Head vanishes, and the toys are picked off in a playful nod to classic horror tropes. It’s a thrilling, funny, and brilliantly animated Halloween adventure. —Sophie Hastings, Contributing Writer
Where to Watch Toy Story of TERROR!
10. WNUF Halloween Special (2013)
On Halloween night in 1987, a news team from WNUF TV28 tried contacting the spirit world from a murder house. And, uh-oh, someone picked up the phone. This found-footage movie is (of course) the only record of the ensuing carnage.
Spoiler: The WNUF Halloween Special isn’t really from ’87, but it looks the part. That’s thanks to a 4:3 aspect ratio, low-res footage, perms, and fake commercials for pizza joints, arcades, and 900-number hotlines. In the main program, the usual unsettling found-footage stuff happens, culminating in a twist ending. —Randy Harward, Senior Staff Writer
Where to Watch WNUF Halloween Special
11. Muppets Haunted Mansion (2021)
If you’ve ever taken a ride on Disney’s Haunted Mansion, you’ve probably wanted to see more of its iconic characters and their lore. Hollywood thought the same thing, and that’s how we got two live-action adaptations (once in 2003 and again in 2023).
But the Muppets have their own version of the Mansion’s lore. In this star-studded Disney+ special, Gonzo the Great and Pepé the King Prawn accept a challenge to spend one night in the Haunted Mansion. Gonzo thinks he can face his fears, but can he survive everything the ghosts (and the Ghost Host) have in store for him? Will he even make it past the “Grim Grinning Ghosts” reprise? —Olivia Bono, Staff Writer
Where to Watch Muppets Haunted Mansion
12. Mickey and Friends Trick or Treats (2023)
Leave it to Donald Duck to convince his pals to visit the scariest mansion on the block during their trick-or-treating. Once inside, they’re transformed into their costumes, fulfilling that classic Halloween TV trope. What I love about this TV special is that every character is a detailed stop-motion puppet. Plus, it’s packed with various Disney easter eggs.
For me, the real treat is seeing Witch Hazel return from Disney’s 1952 short, Trick or Treat. That makes this the perfect Disney Halloween special for anyone who loves the classics and the modern Mickey Mouse Clubhouse adventures. —Taylor Kujawa, Sports Editor
Where to Watch Mickey and Friends Trick or Treats
13. The Hulu Family Guy Halloween specials (2024–present)
“Peter, Peter, Pumpkin Cheater,” the first of the Family Guy Halloween specials, exclusively streaming on Hulu, was an instant hit with fans in 2024. Desperate to win the Quahog Annual Giant Pumpkin Contest, Peter uses an experimental growth formula he steals from Stewie’s lab.
The good news: He grows a massive, prize-winning pumpkin. The bad news: It becomes a sentient, flesh-eating gourd with a taste for revenge against its creator, forcing Peter and the guys to go on a monster hunt through the streets of Quahog.
Where to Watch the Family Guy Halloween specials
The newest Family Guy Halloween special, “A Little Fright Music,” promises to be even zanier and gloriously gauche. It drops on Hulu on Monday, October 6, 2025.
