You know that feeling when you see a trailer and just know the movie is going to be a cult classic? That was the trailer for Little Shop of Horrors back in 1986. It wasn’t just a commercial. It was a weird, neon-soaked invitation into a world where plants eat people and Steve Martin plays a sadistic dentist. Honestly, if you watch it today, it still holds up better than half the CGI-bloated teasers we get now.
The 1980s were a strange time for marketing. Studios were trying to figure out how to sell a "horror-comedy-musical." That’s a tough sell. Frank Oz, the man behind the Muppets and the voice of Yoda, was at the helm. He had this massive task: take a low-budget 1960 Roger Corman flick, blend it with the Off-Broadway hit by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, and make it look like a blockbuster. The trailer had to do a lot of heavy lifting.
What the Original Trailer for Little Shop of Horrors Got Right
Most trailers today give away the entire plot. You see the beginning, the middle, and basically the climax. The original trailer for Little Shop of Horrors was different. It focused on the vibe. It gave us snippets of "Downtown" and "Feed Me (Git It!)" without overstaying its welcome. You saw Rick Moranis as Seymour Krelborn, looking exactly as awkward as you'd expect.
Then there’s Audrey II.
The puppet work is staggering. Even in a grainy YouTube upload of the original trailer, the movement of the Venus flytrap from outer space looks more "real" than modern digital effects. That’s because it was real. It was a massive, heavy hydraulic puppet. When the trailer shows the plant snapping its jaws, you feel the weight of it. It’s tactile. It’s scary. But it’s also kind of funny? That’s the balance they had to strike.
The Dentist Scene: A Masterclass in Teasing
If you ask anyone about this movie, they’ll probably mention Steve Martin. His role as Orin Scrivello, D.D.S., is legendary. The trailer leaned into this heavily. It showed just enough of his leather-clad, nitrous-oxide-huffing persona to make you uncomfortable and curious. It’s a genius bit of marketing. They didn't show his "accident." They just showed the menace.
People forget that Bill Murray is in this movie too. The trailer barely glimpses him, which is a smart move. It keeps the surprises for the theater. You get the sense that Skid Row is a place where anything can happen, but the trailer keeps the leash tight on the actual narrative beats.
The Mystery of the "Lost" Ending in the Previews
Here is where things get really interesting for film nerds. The trailer for Little Shop of Horrors that played in theaters mostly reflected the theatrical cut we all know—the one where Seymour and Audrey live happily ever after in a suburban house with a white picket fence.
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But there’s a whole other side to this story.
The original ending was dark. I mean, really dark. In the initial version, Audrey II eats both Seymour and Audrey. Then, the plants take over the world. They literally destroy New York City in a sequence that cost about $5 million to film. When test audiences saw it, they hated it. They didn't just dislike it; they were traumatized.
Frank Oz had to go back and reshoot the "happy" ending. Consequently, the trailers had to be carefully edited to avoid any of that "apocalypse" footage. If you look closely at some early promotional materials or very early TV spots, you can sometimes catch a frame or two that feels slightly more ominous than the final film. It’s a fascinating look at how marketing pivots when a movie's soul is changed in the editing room.
Why We Are Still Talking About It in 2026
Nostalgia is a hell of a drug. But it’s more than that. The trailer for Little Shop of Horrors represents a peak in practical filmmaking. When we watch it now, we aren't just looking at a movie promo; we’re looking at a lost art form.
Every time a rumor about a remake surfaces—and they always do—the first thing fans do is go back to that 1986 trailer. They compare it. They look at the rumored casting (remember when Taron Egerton and Scarlett Johansson were attached to a remake?) and they wonder if a new trailer could ever capture that same grimy, soulful, Motown-inspired energy.
The 1986 version works because it feels like a stage play that exploded. It’s loud. It’s colorful. It’s unapologetic.
The Musical DNA and the Marketing Strategy
You can't talk about the trailer without talking about the music. Howard Ashman and Alan Menken were a powerhouse duo. This was before they went on to save Disney with The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast.
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The trailer used the title track "Little Shop of Horrors" as a rhythmic backbone. It’s catchy. It’s an earworm. By the time the 90-second clip is over, you’re humming the tune. That’s the "Discover" factor before Google Discover existed. It created a viral sensation through word of mouth and repeated MTV airings of the music videos.
- The trailer highlighted the Greek Chorus (Chiffon, Crystal, and Ronette).
- It emphasized the star power of Rick Moranis post-Ghostbusters.
- It showcased the scale of the Audrey II puppet, which grew to be enormous.
Analyzing the Visual Language
Look at the lighting in the trailer. It’s all purples, greens, and deep shadows. It tells the viewer that this isn't a bright, happy musical like The Sound of Music. It’s a noir musical. The trailer for Little Shop of Horrors used these high-contrast visuals to stand out against other 1986 releases like Top Gun or Ferris Bueller's Day Off.
It looked dangerous.
For a kid in the 80s, seeing that plant grow in the trailer was both terrifying and cool. It tapped into that specific "Amblin-era" feeling where things for children were allowed to be a little bit scary. The marketing didn't talk down to the audience. It invited them into the "Little Shop."
Re-watching the Trailer Today: A Different Perspective
When you watch it now, you notice different things. You notice the incredible set design by Roy Walker. You see the dirt on the streets of Skid Row. You realize that the trailer was selling a version of New York that was already disappearing.
It’s also fun to see the "cameos" highlighted. Jim Belushi, John Candy, Christopher Guest. The trailer makes it look like an ensemble comedy, which helped draw in people who might have been allergic to the "musical" label. It’s a classic bait-and-switch. Come for the comedy legends, stay for the man-eating plant and the heartbreaking songs about poverty and longing.
What a Modern Trailer for Little Shop of Horrors Would Look Like
If they made a trailer for Little Shop of Horrors today, it would probably be very different. It would likely start with a slow, eerie piano version of "Suddenly Seymour." There would be a lot of "bwah" sounds. The plant would probably be hidden in shadows until the very last second.
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Honestly? It would suck compared to the original.
The 1986 trailer had "pizazz." It was theatrical. It understood that the movie was a celebration of artifice. It didn't try to make the plant look like a real biological organism; it made it look like a spectacular creature from a nightmare.
Actionable Steps for Fans and Collectors
If you’re obsessed with this era of film marketing or just love the movie, there are a few things you should actually do to get the full experience.
First, go find the "Director’s Cut" trailer. Since the restoration of the original dark ending a few years ago, there are new promotional packages that include the "Don’t Feed the Plants" finale. It’s a completely different vibe. It turns the movie from a quirky comedy into a cautionary tale about greed and global destruction.
Second, check out the behind-the-scenes footage of the Audrey II operators. The trailer makes it look seamless, but there were dozens of people underneath the stage pulling cables and pumping hydraulics. Seeing the "making of" makes you appreciate the trailer shots ten times more.
Finally, if you’re a physical media collector, look for the 25th Anniversary Blu-ray. It contains the original theatrical trailers in high definition. Seeing them without the "VHS fuzz" of YouTube allows you to see the detail in the puppetry that the studio was so proud of back in '86.
The trailer for Little Shop of Horrors isn't just a piece of old advertising. It’s a blueprint for how to sell a weird idea to a mainstream audience. It’s proof that you don't need a hundred million dollars in CGI to create something that sticks in the public consciousness for forty years. You just need a good song, a great puppet, and a little bit of blood.
How to Experience the Best of Little Shop Today
- Watch the 1986 Theatrical Trailer: Look for the version that features the "coming this Christmas" tag to see the original color grading.
- Compare with the Director's Cut: Watch the "lost ending" on YouTube to see how the marketing could have been radically different if they'd stuck to the original vision.
- Listen to the Soundtrack: Before watching the movie, listen to the 1986 film soundtrack. Notice how the arrangements differ from the stage version; the film is much more "cinematic" and "produced," which is reflected in the trailer's audio mix.
- Identify the Puppetry: Try to spot the moments in the trailer where the plant's movement seems impossible. Those are the shots Frank Oz spent weeks perfecting.