Little Shop of Horrors to Stream Free for 40th Anniversary

The musical played at the Orpheum Theatre in New York for more than five years in 1982 before being made into the Hollywood blockbuster directed by Frank Oz. David Geffen, who was one of the original off-Broadway producers, financed the film adaptation which remains faithful to the stage musical. 

Here's how to stream Little Shop of Horrors for free:

The 1986 film adaptation of Little Shop of Horrors is one of the most loved stage-to-film adaptations of all time, earning a high 90% critics approval rate on Rotten Tomatoes and mostly positive reviews upon its release. The film was a modest box office hit, taking in $39 million against a $25 million budget.

The main difference between the theatrical release of the film and the stage play was the musical's finale. With both Frank Oz and Howard Ashman wanting to retain the ending of the musical where Seymour and Audrey die while the plant takes over the world, David Geffen was against it. While the original ending was filmed in full, test audience reacted negatively to the draft and it was decided to re-film a happy ending. 

The 1986 film will be released for free streaming on August 1st, 2022 for a period of 30 days only. A link to the stream has been added to our updating list of free musicals and plays to watch online.

Following the successful Off-Broadway production of the show, the musical received multiple productions around the U.S. and a subsequent Broadway production in 2003. The musical is currently playing Off-Broadway at the Westside Theatre in an intimate 270-seat setting. 

Little Shop of Horrors stars Rick Moranis, Ellen Greene, Vincent Gardenia, Steve Martin, and Levi Stubbs. The film also features special appearances by Jim Belushi, John Candy, Christopher Guest and Bill Murray. The 1986 film was produced by The Geffen Company and released by Warner Bros. on December 19, 1986.