This weekend, the Jacob Javits Center in New York City played host to the cultural phenomenon known as Toy Fair 2018. For four glorious days, national and international toy producers, re-sellers and developers converged on the West Side of Manhattan to display their current products and provide a glimpse of what the future holds for their catalogs as well.
Horror continues to play an integral part in the toy market, and Horror News Network was there to cover all of the excitement and wonderfully-gory products that both casual and hardcore collectors (and their kids!) can expect throughout 2018 and even into next year. Staff Journalists Larry Dwyer and Sean McLaughlin made the trek ready to report, and thanks to an assist by our friends at Action Figure Collectors (www.actionfigurecollectors.com) we were able to provide thorough coverage of all announcements and news relevant to the horror masses.
As expected, Stranger Things and IT were a huge hit this year with several companies being granted license to produce their toy products. The icons like Freddy, Jason and Michael Myers are of course still huge as many developers continue to invent unique and interesting ways to produce their likenesses in various forms.
Here is the review of what the more horror-friendly companies were displaying in their booths, and what you can expect to start emptying your wallet for in the very near future! Some pictures are courtesy of AFC.
NECA
– As with a few booths, Pennywise is a big new addition to the NECA lineup. Along with statues and figures, the clown/spider can also be seen in both Head Knockers and Body Knockers form.
– Large Alien vs. Predator play-sets are set for a Q4 2018 release, and they are awesome!
– Q2 will see new Ash Vs. Evil Dead AND Evil Dead 2 2-packs.
– Old friends like Jason and Freddy are back in full force, but this Spring/Summer will see exciting new releases like Pan’s Labyrinth and The Devil’s Backbone figures from the Guillermo del Toro Collection.
Funko
– As in past years, the Pop! Vinyl dolls lead the pack at Funko with many new horror-related characters on the horizon.
– Spring 2018 is set to see a flood of Stranger Things items, including action figures, stuffed dolls, pencil toppers and of course, Pop! Vinyls.
– The giant Freddy Fazbear peering out from the far corner of their booth was a big (and creepy) hit.
– As of this moment, Funko has no release information for series 4 of their Horror Mystery minis.
– Perhaps the highlight of the Funko booth for the horror fan was the set of Masters of the Universe-inspired action figures featuring horror-movie icons like Leatherface, Pinhead and Jason Voorhees. Most display models were still in prototype form, so their inclusion was a bit of a surprise. But make no mistake about it….these figures are very cool, and are reminiscent of a few years ago when Playmates mashed up legendary WWE superstars with the TMNT figure line and style.
Dark Horse Comics
– As of now, Dark Horse have no planned Hellboy toy releases to coincide with the new movie.
– Detailed statues (and a flask!) were on display for action game The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt with impressive detail. Most are currently for sale.
Mezco
– This booth was by far the most impressive and substantial in terms of horror-related merchandise. This is the main focus of Mezco, and collectors continue to be grateful.
– As has been the case for a while now, the popular One:12 Collective and Living Dead Dolls lines still rule the land.
– The One:12 Collective pieces begin shipping starting in Summer 2018 with the release of the Ash figure from Evil Dead 2.
– The Living Dead Dolls line is 20 years old! Truly incredible.
– The Puzzle Box, Burst-A-Box and Flatzos lines should all be available by the time the 2018 holiday season rolls around.
– Pennywise and The Nun (from The Conjuring 2) are set for a Summer/Fall release, and represent two of the newest character additions to the Mezco stable.
– An impressive 18-inch King Kong of Skull Island collectable (scheduled for 2019) warns everyone visiting the booth to be on the lookout for big things to come.
Trick Or Treat Studios
– Very detailed collection of horror-themed masks, officially licensed and available to order now.
– Full-sized dolls of Jigsaw and an authentic-looking “Good Guys” Chucky were the non-costume highlights.
Super7
– Lots of Universal Monsters and classic pop culture-related items and titles dominated this booth.
– Super7 took over the ReAction figure line from Funko about a year ago, and are really diversifying the movies, shows, bands, etc. being produced.
– Brand new ReAction lines (Teen Wolf, Planet of the Apes, Breakin’, etc.) are set to be released later this year.
McFarlane Toys
– Two big licensing reveals this weekend from the McFarlane booth: Call of Duty and Hello Neighbor, an online game increasing in popularity and garnering a lot of buzz.
– Popular play-sets for titles like Five Nights At Freddy’s (ahead of production for the feature film) are set to expand in 2018.
– The Stranger Things line will explode in the coming year, with the highlights being a “Ghostbusters” 4-pack scheduled for a Fall release, and an exclusive “Upside Down Will” on a retro card. No word yet on a release date for that or which outlet(s) will offer it.
– The Walking Dead will see several new items hit the market, both in the deluxe 10-inch line as well as the regular action figure realm. The “All Out War” story-line will produce many new figures, with most hitting store shelves by Fall of 2018.
Other Products and Scenes from Toy Fair
Toy Fair New York 2018 was a blast, and we at HNN are already looking forward to what the 2019 edition has in store. Thanks again to AFC for the assistance!
