Crypt Keeper to Lead Overlook Film Festival Parade as 2026 Line-Up Expands

The Overlook Film Festival has revealed its latest round of programming for the 2026 edition, and the most mischievous announcement of all comes with a familiar cackle. When the four day celebration of horror returns to New Orleans from 9 to 12 April, its Opening Night Second Line Parade, presented by Shudder, will be led by the Crypt Keeper himself. The beloved host of Tales from the Crypt, voiced by John Kassir, will act as grand marshal, taking the festival’s already spirited street procession to ghoulish new heights. Organisers have promised a full supply of tomb?ready wordplay as the skeletal showman greets the crowds.

The appearance marks a welcome homecoming of sorts. The festival first welcomed the Crypt Keeper via a screening of Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight, yet this year’s inclusion brings the iconic character into the city’s thrumming French Quarter in suitably undead fashion. Kassir will also take part in a newly announced panel, Tales from Tales from the Crypt, where he will be joined by surprise guests to reflect on the show’s legacy and its place in horror history. Moderators Perri Nemiroff of Collider and Matt Donato of Daily Dead will guide the discussion.

The festival itself has become a landmark in genre culture. Since its founding, the Overlook has been held in New Orleans, long celebrated as America’s most haunted city and steeped in tales of spirits, voodoo traditions and vampire folklore. Produced in partnership with The Prytania Theatres, it has carved out a reputation for blending cutting edge independent horror cinema with immersive live events and interactive experiences. MovieMaker Magazine has listed it among the world’s Best Genre Festivals every year of its existence, while FANGORIA has called it one of the world’s best festivals. Its prestige has attracted guests ranging from Nicolas Cage and Jim Jarmusch to Taika Waititi, Ana Lily Amirpour, Eli Roth and Jason Blum.

Two new screenings join this year’s slate. Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick will appear in person with Family Movie, which follows a struggling filmmaking family who discover a real corpse on the set of their low budget slasher. Meanwhile, Museum of Home Video returns with The Dr. Loomis Tapes, a chaotic remix of the Halloween franchise told entirely through Donald Pleasance’s increasingly unstable psychiatrist. Additional vintage footage and a surprise CGI creation round out the programme.

Pass holders will once again enjoy Lagniappe screenings after the festival proper from 13 to 16 April, with titles including Sinners, Never After Dark, Parasomnia, Exorcist II: The Heretic, American Dollhouse, Invasion of the Body Snatchers and Donnie Darko. Capturing Bigfoot has been withdrawn due to external circumstances, and organisers note that Bigfoot remains at large!!

Tickets for all newly announced events and full festival programming are on sale from the official Overlook site: overlookfilmfest.com/tickets-passes/

. Horror fans eager to join the mayhem can secure their place now and prepare to come play with the Overlook this April.