Trailers from Hell
Web video series

Trailers from Hell (branded as Trailers from Hell!) is a web series in which filmmakers discuss and promote individual movies through commenting on their trailers. While the series emphasizes horror, science fiction, fantasy, cult, and exploitation cinema, films from a wide variety of genres have been covered.
Trailers from Hell later launched as a website in October 2007, as a collaborative project by film director Joe Dante, new media entrepreneur Jonas Hudson, graphic artist Charlie Largent, web developer Tom Edgar, and producer Elizabeth Stanley. It also premiered at SXSW in 2009. Kris Millsap, who joined the site in 2012 and later became a partner, oversees its digital direction and produces the companion podcast The Movies That Made Me.
Commentary
Each trailer features commentary on the art, craft, and history of filmmaking, regarding both the trailer itself and the film it represents. Regular Trailers from Hell commentators, referred to as "gurus" on the series website, include (in addition to Joe Dante) John Landis, Guillermo del Toro, Roger Corman, and Eli Roth. Film editor and critic Glenn Erickson writes, "The host commentaries provide the real added value, cramming a wealth of information, humor and insights into the two- to four- minute trailer running times."
Some of the trailers he cut early in his career for low-budget filmmaker Roger Corman's New World Pictures have been called the "best trailers for less-than stellar movies you've ever seen". Dante was also able to augment his collection with many additional previews for classic and "not so classic" horror films during his time at Corman's studio.
The previously mentioned Erickson has referred to Trailers from Hell as "one of the brightest web destinations for fantastic film fans...." while the horror and suspense genre journal Cinefantastique called it "fabulous".
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Trailers from Hell” as web video series. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as web video series. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 22, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7832811. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 2 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2007, 2009 and 2012.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Trailers from Hell”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Trailers from Hell primary sources, Trailers from Hell archive and Trailers research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Trailers from Hell”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Trailers from Hell” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.