Elvira: Mistress of the Dark(1988)

Independent

PG-13
1h 36m
- Comedy
- Horror

Release Date: Sep 30, 1988 | Moderate

6.6

Upon arriving in a small town where Elvira has inherited a rundown mansion, the famous horror host must battle an evil uncle and townspeople who want her burned at the stake.

Note: Distributed by New World Pictures

Releases

Original Release | Sep 30, 1988

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Box Office Results

Updated as of Jul 27, 2026 08:17 PM ET

Results

Opening Weekend US & Canada:
$1,660,041
Total US & Canada:
$5,596,267
Total Worldwide:
$5,596,267

Current Showtimes

orround

Sun Aug 23
Mon Aug 24
Tue Aug 25
Wed Aug 26
Thu Aug 27
Fri Aug 28
Sat Aug 29

Director & Top Cast

James Signorelli
Director

Cassandra Peterson
Elvira

Phil Rubenstein
Director

Larry Flash Jenkins
Technical Director

Damita Jo Freeman
Associate Producer

Tress MacNeille
Anchorwoman

Edwina Moore

Hairdresser

Mario Celario

Rudy

Lee McLaughlin

Earl Hooter

Bill Swearingen

Cameraman

Charles Woolf

Manny

Bill Dance

Messenger

William Cort

Lawyer, Game Show Host

Sharon Hays

Game Show Girl

Bill Cable

Cop

John Paragon

Gas Station Attendant

Joey Arias

Hitchhiker

Edie McClurg

Chastity Pariah

Technical Specifications

Sound Mix: Dolby Stereo

Aspect Ratio: 1.85 : 1

Other Details

Country of Origin: United States

Language: English

Summaries

Plot Summary

Los Angeles horror hostess Elvira, Mistress of the Dark quits her job after the station's new owner sexually harasses her. She plans to open her act in Las Vegas, but needs $50,000 for the project. Upon learning she is a beneficiary of her deceased great-aunt Morgana Talbot, she travels to Fallwell, Massachusetts, to claim the inheritance, which includes an archaic mansion and Morgana's pet poodle, Algonquin.In Fallwell, Elvira's worldly attitude and revealing clothes leads the conservative town council against her. However, theater operator Bob Redding befriends her. The town's teenagers quickly accept her, much to the chagrin of their close-minded parents, who consider her a bad influence. Bowling alley owner Patty Kellermann is interested in Bob, and succeeds in humiliating Elvira at her late-night gory film festival she was presenting at Bob's theater. Elvira struggles to sell the house, so she can depart for Las Vegas. Meanwhile, she is unaware that her harsh but seemingly harmless uncle Vincent Talbot is actually a warlock and is obsessed with obtaining Morgana's spellbook; he plans to kill Elvira and conquer the world, and has been fueling the townspeople's hostility.Meanwhile, Elvira tries to impress Bob with a home-cooked dinner, but uses the spellbook as a cookbook by mistake and summons a sinister creature that attacks them. Elvira learns that the book was her mother Divana's spellbook, and that Morgana was hiding her to protect her from Vincent. When Elvira tries to unleash the creature against the Morality Club at their picnic, she prepares the brew incorrectly and has an aphrodisiac result; the adults remove each other's clothing without discrimination and are arrested for indecent exposure. When Patty confronts Elvira, the resulting fistfight ends up humiliating Patty by revealing that her brassiere is stuffed.Afterwards, Vincent leads the townspeople in arresting Elvira for witchcraft, which is still illegal in the state. They decide to burn her at the stake. The town's teenagers attempt to free her from jail, but fall and lock themselves into another cell by chance. Bob tries to recover the spellbook from the mansion, but is tied by Vincent, who takes the book. Algonquin transforms into a mouse and unties Bob. Meanwhile, Elvira is tied to the stake and the fire lights up, but she uses Morgana's ring to summon rain that quenches the fire; she escapes with Bob. At the mansion, Elvira and Vincent engage in a magical battle that sets fire to the house. Elvira banishes Vincent to the underworld, while the house and most of the magical artifacts are destroyed.The next day, Elvira prepares to leave town. The townspeople apologize for their behavior, and everyone asks Elvira to stay. She kisses Bob but, as she is homeless, she insists that she must leave. Elvira has inherited Vincent's estate, which included enough money to open her show in Las Vegas. At a Las Vegas hotel, Elvira performs a lavishly produced musical number.

Storyline

When a chauvinist millionaire buys the television network where the sexy Elvira is the horror hostess of a late show, she quits her job with the intention of producing her own show in Las Vegas. However, the producers demand 50 thousand dollars from her and Elvira does not have the money. Out of the blue, she receives a telegram informing that her great-aunt Morgana died and she has an inheritance to receive. Elvira drives to the uptight town of Fallwell, Massachusetts, where her convertible breaks down. While repairing her convertible, Elvira inherits an archaic mansion, a recipe book and a poodle. Her great-uncle Vincent Talbot proposes to buy her book, but the poodle hides it in the sofa. Meanwhile, the conservative council of Fallwell feels uncomfortable with Elvira's clothes and behavior and does not let her find a job. But cinema owner Bob Redding and the local teenagers help Elvira. When she decides to cook a dinner to impress Bob, she uses Morgana's recipe and finds that it is indeed a spell book that belonged to her mother Divana. Further, Morgana has protected her from the warlock Vincent that wants the book to take over the world and destroy Elvira, who is a powerful witch. When Elvira refuses to sell the spell book to Vincent, he convinces the council that she is a witch that must be burned at the stake. How will Elvira stop the evil warlock Vincent? — Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Elvira, a witty Los Angeles TV horror hostess dreaming of headlining the Flamingo Las Vegas, receives news that the mysterious Morgana Talbot, the great-aunt she never knew she had, has left her an inheritance. So, without delay, Elvira travels to the conservative New England town of Fallwell in her spooky 1959 Ford Thunderbird hardtop, brimming with excitement. But there, a disappointing bequest awaits her: a rundown house, a poodle with a strange name, and a handwritten leather cookbook. As the uptight townspeople reject her unconventional personality, Uncle Vincent Talbot steps in, showing keen interest in the worn-out book. Now, questions emerge. Will Elvira uncover the sinister evil lurking in the town? Above all else, will the sexy mistress of the dark manage to keep her deep-plunge maxi dress up? — Nick Riganas

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