Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween is a supernatural  and paranormal comedy film directed by Ari Sandel and written by Rob Lieber, based on a script by Lieber and Darren Lemke. It is a standalone sequel to Goosebumps, which was released in 2015, and is based on R. L. Stine’s kid’s horror novel series of the same name.

No members of the previous film’s cast returned, with the exception of Jack Black, who played Stine again. Among the new cast members are Wendi McLendon-Covey, Madison Iseman, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Caleel Harris, Chris Parnell, and Ken Jeong.The narrative revolves around two young boys who unintentionally release the Goosebumps franchise’s monsters in their city after opening an unpublished Goosebumps novel titled Haunted Halloween, wreaking havoc on Halloween night.

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The sequel’s development began in September 2015, when Rob Letterman revealed that he would return as director. Jack Black was scheduled to reprise the role of Stine, while Odeya Rush was initially attached to reprise the part of Hannah Stine. 

Despite the fact that the sequel will not feature any of the original cast members, and because Letterman is unable to return due to his work on Pokémon: Detective Pikachu, Ari Sandel has been engaged to direct the film.

Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween was released on October 12, 2018 in the US by Sony Pictures under its Columbia Pictures label. The film received  mixed reviews and earned $93 million worldwide on a budget of $35 million.

Sarah Quinn, an adolescent living in Wardenclyffe, New York three years after the last film, lives with her mother Kathy and younger brother Sonny. Sarah is hoping to gain admission to Columbia University by composing an essay about her fear of heights. Kathy decides to look after Sonny’s buddy Sam Carter while his father is away. Sonny and Sam are hoping to establish a waste removal service when they are asked after school to clean up an abandoned house. Inside, they discover a sealed text and unlock it, revealing Slappy the Dummy. They bring Slappy to life unintentionally by saying magic words discovered in his pocket. Tommy Madigan, a bully, subsequently steals the manuscript.

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Sonny is at home working on his scientific project, a small facsimile of Nikola Tesla’s Wardenclyffe Tower. Slappy then discloses to Sonny and Sam that he is alive and gains their trust by performing the boys’ chores and homework using his magic Sarah goes to a party to meet her boyfriend Tyler Mitchell (Bryce Cass), but she discovers him kissing another girl. Slappy then overhears Sarah and Tyler talking about Tyler and ruin Sonny’s research experiment. Slappy utilises his talents the next day, on Halloween, to assault Tyler, while Sonny accidentally destroys the school scientific lab with his failed experiment. Sonny and Sam are confronted by Sarah about Slappy. Slappy is to fault for everything, the group realises.

Slappy escapes after the kids grab him and attempt to drown him in a lake  That night, they come upon an article about the events in Madison, Delaware, and try to contact R. L. Stine after learning that the book they found was an unpublished Goosebumps manuscript called Haunted Halloween. Stine, who is now living in a hut in the woods, receives their message and travels to Wardenclyffe. Slappy visits a neighbourhood pharmacy shop and uses his magic to transform Goosebumps costumes and Halloween decorations into real life.

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He also transforms an employee called Walter into a hunchbacked monster using a mask. Slappy visits Wardenclyffe Tower and utilises it to strengthen his powers. Sarah, Sonny, and Sam go to Tommy’s house to get  the book, as the city’s Halloween decor come to life. The group discovers that the book has the ability to trap the creatures within. The book, however, is taken, and Kathy is kidnapped by the monsters. Mr. Chu, the kids’ next-door neighbour and a Goosebumps enthusiast, assists them in creating monster disguises to let them explore the town securely.

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While Stine is in town, the kids go to the Wardenclyffe Tower. The kids meet Slappy and Walter in the tower and learn that Slappy has converted Kathy into a living dummy. While Sarah battles Slappy, Sonny and Sam overload the reactor. She beats Slappy by kicking him onto the tower’s electric coil, which sends him into the sky. Sarah opens the book and uses the reactor’s energy to draw all the other monsters into the Haunted Halloween text, while also restoring Kathy and Walter to normal. Stine enters, congratulates the kids on their victory over the monsters, and counsels Sarah on how to write her essay.

Kathy and Walter begin dating later on. Sonny wins the scientific fair, and Sarah receives an email informing her that she has been accepted to Columbia University. Slappy reappears at Stine’s cabin. He confesses that he has survived and that he has created his own novel, in which Stine is the main character. He then opens his manuscript and swallows Stine within.

Kathy and Walter begin dating later on. Sonny wins the scientific fair, and Sarah receives an email informing her that she has been accepted to Columbia University. Slappy reappears at Stine’s cabin. He confesses that he has survived and that he has created his own novel, in which Stine is the main character. He then opens his manuscript and swallows Stine within.

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It’s not as smart or interesting as the first “Goosebumps,” and it pales in comparison to Halloween classics like “Monster House,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” and “ParaNorman.” But, by hitting the appropriate mix of amusing and terrifying, Goosebumps 2 becomes trick-or-treat-worthy, the cinematic equivalent of a fun-size candy bar.