Disney-owned Freeform’s 31 Nights of Halloween was 13 Nights of Halloween until 2018, back when the channel was ABC Family. Here’s its history, the most-aired movies and the Oct. 31 lineup.
31 Nights of Halloween didn’t always take up all of October.
For years, Freeform’s Halloween block was “13 Nights of Halloween,” a two-week run leading up to Oct. 31. Freeform stretched it to the whole month in 2018, TV Guide reported at the time, “because two weeks wasn’t enough.”
This year, Freeform is airing 191 movies and episodes across the 31 nights, by our count of its official schedule. “Hocus Pocus” leads the pack.
When did 13 Nights of Halloween start?
Before the channel was even called ABC Family, going by the network’s own count.
ABC Family called its 2015 edition the 17th year of 13 Nights of Halloween, in an announcement Laughing Place published. That would put the start in the late 1990s, before Disney owned the channel.
Disney bought the channel’s parent company, Fox Family Worldwide, in October 2001 for $5.2 billion, including about $2.3 billion in Fox Family obligations it took on. The channel became ABC Family, according to Disney’s announcements. ABC Family became Freeform in January 2016.
When did Freeform change it to 31 Nights of Halloween?
In 2018.
Freeform announced the switch at its May 2018 upfront presentation for advertisers, Laughing Place reported. TV Guide’s 2018 schedule story said Freeform was “expanding its traditional 13 Nights of Halloween programming to all 31 nights of October.”
That first 31-night lineup leaned on family Halloween movies like “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” “The Addams Family,” “The Haunted Mansion” and “Monsters, Inc.,” TV Guide noted.
What movies air the most on 31 Nights of Halloween 2026?
We counted every listing on Freeform’s official 2026 schedule. The most-aired titles:
“Hocus Pocus”: 20 airings
“Casper” (1995): 16
“The Addams Family” (1991): 10
“Addams Family Values”: 10
“Beetlejuice”: 8
“Edward Scissorhands” and “Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas”: 7 each
“Hocus Pocus 2” and “The Haunted Mansion” (2003) get six airings apiece.
Twenty “Hocus Pocus” airings sounds like a lot, but it’s fewer than in 2019, when Freeform scheduled the movie 27 times, Inside the Magic reported.
Here’s Freeform’s official teaser for this year’s 31 Nights:
What’s new on 31 Nights of Halloween 2026?
Freeform’s big new piece this year is “Coven Academy,” a series about teenage witches at a magic school from creator Tim Federle. It premiered Oct. 1, and its season finale airs Thursday, Oct. 15, at 9 p.m., according to Freeform.
The show is set at a witch school in New Orleans. Tiffani Thiessen plays Miss Graves, the head of the school, and Devon Sawa guest stars as a warlock professor, Disney said in its announcement. Sawa, fittingly, played the human Casper in 1995’s “Casper,” which Freeform is airing 16 times this month.
The full season streams on Disney+, Hulu and Freeform on Demand, Freeform said.
“Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” also made its Freeform premiere on Oct. 8.
Does 31 Nights of Halloween get good ratings?
Freeform says it does.
The 2024 edition’s first week was Freeform’s most-watched week of that year, according to Nielsen data, Deadline reported. “Hocus Pocus 2,” which made its TV premiere that week, was cable’s top movie of the week among adults ages 18 to 49.
Freeform hasn’t shared numbers for this year’s run yet, as far as we could find.
What’s left on 31 Nights of Halloween this month?
A few big nights still ahead, from Freeform’s schedule:
Thursday, Oct. 15: “Coven Academy” season finale, 9 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 16: A Tim Burton marathon with “Edward Scissorhands,” “Sleepy Hollow,” “Sweeney Todd,” “Dark Shadows” and “The Nightmare Before Christmas”
Sunday, Oct. 25: “Spooky Buddies,” 7 a.m., its last airing of the month
Saturday, Oct. 31: The Halloween lineup, below
All times are Eastern and Pacific, and Freeform says programming is subject to change.
What’s on Freeform on Halloween?
Here’s the Oct. 31 lineup, according to Freeform:
8:30 a.m.: “Casper” (1995)
11 a.m.: “The Haunted Mansion” (2003)
1 p.m.: “Hocus Pocus”
3:10 p.m.: “Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas”
4:50 p.m.: “Casper” (1995)
7:20 p.m.: “Hocus Pocus”
9:30 p.m.: “Hocus Pocus 2”
Midnight: “Frankenweenie” (2012)
Where can you watch 31 Nights of Halloween?
On the Freeform channel, which also streams live on Freeform’s website.
Many of the Disney movies on the list, including both “Hocus Pocus” movies, also stream on Disney+, according to JustWatch.
What comes after 31 Nights of Halloween?
Christmas, pretty much. Freeform’s other big seasonal block is “25 Days of Christmas.” Last year’s ran Dec. 1 through Christmas Day, and the schedule was out by early November, Mickey Visit reported.
Does Disney+ have its own Halloween lineup?
Yes. Disney+ is using the Huluween name again in 2026, with its own collection of Huluween movies and shows, its website shows. Disney+ used “Huluween on Disney+” last year, too, borrowing Hulu’s long-running Huluween brand, according to Disney+ press releases.
Disney Channel has its own October tradition, too. It’s called Monstober, and Disney’s press releases show it going back to at least 2012, when “Girl vs. Monster” premiered during it.
Where can you read more about these movies?
The full night-by-night list is in our 31 Nights of Halloween 2026 schedule story.
We’ve also been digging into the movies themselves. Start with our look at both Haunted Mansion movies and Frankenweenie’s backstory.
Thirteen nights used to be plenty. Now “Hocus Pocus” alone airs 20 times.
Article compiled and written by Kambrea Pratt (editor-in-chief), Derek Gibbs (beat editor) and the Pirates & Princesses newsroom. Pirates & Princesses is part of WebReef Media.
Pirates and Princesses is your destination for Disney news, theme park updates, and the pop culture you love. From Disney cruises and travel tips to Disney fashion, food, collectibles, and movie news, PNP covers it all. Visit us at piratesandprincesses.net for daily coverage. Follow PNP on Facebook and Instagram, and listen to the Pirates & Princesses podcast on Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
Hat Tips:
Freeform, Sept. 16, 2026: Freeform’s 31 Nights of Halloween Schedule 2026 (our count of all 191 listings)
TV Guide, 2018: Freeform’s 31 Nights of Halloween schedule
Laughing Place, May 15, 2018: Freeform upfront announcements; and 2015: ABC Family announces 2015 edition of 13 Nights of Halloween
The Walt Disney Company, Oct. 24, 2001: Disney completes acquisition of Fox Family Worldwide (SEC filing); Dec. 10, 2015: ABC Family to become Freeform
JustWatch: U.S. listings, checked Oct. 11, 2026
Freeform on YouTube: 31 Nights of Halloween official teaser
Inside the Magic, Aug. 2019: Freeform to set record with number of times it will air Hocus Pocus
Disney+ press, Aug. 13, 2026: First look at Coven Academy, premiering Oct. 1 on Freeform
Syfy Wire: Remembering Devon Sawa in Casper
Deadline, Oct. 2024: Freeform 31 Nights of Halloween ratings and Hocus Pocus 2 TV premiere
Mickey Visit, Nov. 6, 2025: Freeform announces 25 Days of Christmas 2025 movie schedule
Disney+: Huluween 2026 movies and shows page, checked Oct. 11, 2026; Disney+ press, 2025: Huluween on Disney+
Disney Channel via The Futon Critic, Sept. 5, 2012: Girl vs. Monster premieres during the Monstober programming event
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