The Funhouse

The Funhouse
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Tobe Hooper
Written by	Larry Block
Produced by	Steven Bernhardt Derek Power Mace Neufeld Mark L. Lester
Starring	Elizabeth Berridge Cooper Huckabee William Finley Kevin Conway
Cinematography	Andrew Laszlo
Edited by	Jack Hofstra
Music by	John Beal
Production companies	Universal Pictures Mace Neufeld Productions
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release date	March 13, 1981 (1981-03-13)
Running time	96 minutes[1][2]
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	~$2 million[3]
Box office	$7.9 million[4]

The Funhouse is a 1981 American slasher film directed by Tobe Hooper, written by Larry Block and starring Elizabeth Berridge, Kevin Conway, William Finley, Cooper Huckabee, Miles Chapin, Largo Woodruff, Wayne Doba, and Sylvia Miles. The film's plot concerns four Midwestern teenagers who become trapped in a dark ride at a traveling carnival and are stalked by a mentally disabled murderous carnie.

A Universal Pictures production, The Funhouse was director Hooper's first major studio film after The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) and Eaten Alive (1976). Its producers were inspired to produce a successful teenage-themed horror film following the major financial success of Paramount's slasher Friday the 13th (1980). Though the film set in Iowa, principal photographer took place on backlots at Norin Studios in Miami, Florida.

Upon its release on March 13, 1981, The Funhouse was a commercial disappointment, but received mixed to positive reviews from critics. Contemporary film scholars and critics have noted that the film continues Hooper's recurring theme of family as seen in his previous films.

A novelization of the film by Dean Koontz was released prior to its release, with Koontz using the pseudonym Owen West.