As a kid, I remember going to the video store and seeing Jack Frost (1997). The cover was one of those old holographic images where, if you leaned one way, the image appeared as a typical Frosty the Snowman. But if you leaned the other way, you saw a Frosty with sharp fangs and evil eyes. When you turned it over, there were images of a deadly Frosty I certainly hadn’t seen before, including one of him in the shower with a naked Shannon Elizabeth.
Obviously, my dad told me that it would not be the Jack Frost movie we were renting. Instead, we got Jack Frost (1998), the melodramatic family film about an absent father (Michael Keaton) who dies in a tragic car accident, but comes back as Frosty the Snowman to finally learn to be the father he never was… before he melts and dies again.
But why was there such confusion about which Jack Frost we’d be renting? Read on to discover everything you need to know about one of the greatest movie mix-ups ever, which even continues happening to this very day. Plus, find out which Jack Frost movie is right for you and where both movies are streaming right now.
The 'Jack Frost' Movie Mix-Up That Plagued The '90s And Beyond
To further examine this little issue of holiday hijinks, let’s dive into the root of the problem. Both movies came out with the same title, just one year apart, and both center around Frosty the Snowman instead of Jack Frost, despite what their titles say. Even more alarming, both have VHS and DVD covers that prominently showcase Frosty, and the Frosty on the cover of Keaton’s family-friendly film actually looks pretty darn sinister, so good luck deciding which one is the evil, murderous Frosty, and which is just the deadbeat dad trying to win back his family.
Both were also panned by critics and found their true success in the video store instead of in theaters. The horror version wasn’t even released in theaters, while the Keaton film bombed hard, earning only $34 million globally.
So, both movies had the same title, similar covers, similar negative reviews, and arrived in video stores around the same time. Is it any wonder that so many parents and kids accidentally found themselves watching the wrong Jack Frost movie? Heck, I even almost rented the wrong one! Though in my case, I was actually enticed by the scary Jack Frost, but my dad, with his morals and his worries of my well-being, squashed my young dreams of watching a maniacally murderous Frosty.
And I’m not the only one who had one of these little whoopsie incidents. There are tons of stories online from people who made the same mistake. Tiffany Taylor, over at Horror Press, was one of those young viewers who, unfortunately, learned she watched the wrong Jack Frost. In the article about her experience, she writes, “Then murder happened, and I realized my mistake far too late.” But now she writes for a horror site, so perhaps it was fate?
Some people have even come forward and admitted they helped fuel the chaos by purposefully switching the VHS tapes between the two movies during their time working at video stores. A 2024 Facebook post from ScreenGeek Horror reads, “Really miss switching these two tapes at the video store,” with an image of the two Jack Frost movies below it. Even more alarming, the post has been liked over 5.5k times, making me wonder what other nefarious tricks video store employees played on customers throughout the decades.
But maybe you’re asking yourself, what’s the big deal? What’s so adults-only about a horror movie starring a snowman? How bad can it be? Well…
The 'Jack Frost' Horror Movie Is Anything But Family Friendly
Trigger Warning: The following section discusses sexual assault. Please read with caution.
The Jack Frost horror movie is a wild piece of cinema history. The low-budget horror comedy features a serial killer who suffers a disastrous accident that melts his body into the snowy ground, and then regenerates him as a giant snowman. Remember, this is a low-budget movie from the ‘90s, so the Frosty costume is an absolute joke. Like one of those plushy mascots that swing around discount signs in front of strip malls, Frosty looks harmless, somewhat pathetic, and even pretty funny. But, despite the hoaky killer, the blood and guts are definitely present and plentiful. From strangulation to decapitation, axes shoved down throats, and more, the movie is a full-blown bloodbath. But the most infamous moment in the film is Shannon Elizabeth’s death scene.
Jack Frost was Elizabeth’s first major role before she earned massive stardom in American Pie a few years later in 1999. In Jack Frost, she plays a teenager who decides to take a bath while waiting for her boyfriend to come in and do horny teenager things with her. Little does she know that he’s been killed, and instead, she’s joined by the murderous snowman. Because Frosty is made of snow, she awkwardly freezes into him halfway, and then he bangs her to death against a wall. And I guess I say that using both of “bangs” meanings?
The film implies that Frosty sexually assaults Elizabeth to death, but because she’s being killed by someone in a giant plushy Frosty costume, it thankfully doesn’t really look like that on-screen. Instead, it looks like they’re flailing around together, bumping into walls, until she dies.
While the filmmakers were unable to capture something that looked like sexual assault on-camera, the intention is still there, which makes the scene awful, especially when viewed through a modern, post-MeToo lens. It’s a shame, too, because if that scene weren’t in the movie, Jack Frost would be a pretty fun, cheesy, lighthearted horror comedy. But now the entire film feels tainted by the fact that its filmmakers, for some reason, wanted to watch a young woman get assaulted to death.
Which 'Jack Frost' Movie Is Right For You?
Since both movies are very different, they also have two distinct audiences. The family-friendly Jack Frost movie is great for anyone with kids who’s looking for a holiday film they probably haven’t seen yet. But be warned, Jack Frost didn’t get very good reviews upon its release, and it bombed pretty hard at the box office, largely because it’s not that good of a movie.
It’s really heavy-handed with its bittersweet story, creating a melodramatic film that’s essentially a family-friendly version of a tearjerker. It’s got all the absent father vibes of Jingle All the Way (1996), but without any of the humor. It feels more like an attempt at being evocative and emotional. Still, if you love sad family movies like My Girl (1991) or All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989), this might be for you.
On the other hand, the horror film Jack Frost is perfect for anyone who loves a good campy, cheap horror comedy. Think of movies like Thankskilling (2008) or The Gingerdead Man (2005). Jack Frost is one of those films that’s a lot of fun in that silly, stupid way. There’s a reason why people are still talking about it almost 30 years later. It set out to be a hilariously bad horror comedy, and that’s exactly what it is.
Honestly, if it weren’t for the horrible legacy the Shannon Elizabeth death scene has created, the movie could almost be looked at as a lighthearted nod to holiday horror movies. There’s also a sequel, Jack Frost 2: Revenge of the Mutant Killer Snowman (2000), which, thankfully, doesn’t feature any sexual assault. So, for any horror fans out there who want to check out this wild entry to the horror genre but don’t want to support a film featuring sexual violence, the sequel could be a good alternative.
