Coming to VOD
Prime Video, Apple TV, and Fandango at Home
Release Date: June 2
It’s astounding that after more than a year of building strong buzz on the festival circuit and through special art house screenings, Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror is finding a home across various North American streaming platforms. Magenta Light Studios has the rights to handle this documentary about the enduring legacy of The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Directed by his son, Linus O’Brien, the film approaches Rocky Horror as more than a movie. When life is fleeting, what’s presented is a living commentary about how the fandom evolved. After nearly five decades of midnight screenings, cosplay, music, and queer celebration, the appreciation has only gotten stronger. All anyone has to do is look at the “new” material coming out, like the crowdfunding effort to craft a sequel, namely Bride of Rocky Horror (editorial link here).
Madness doesn’t have to take its toll for those who got a chance to witness this work when it premiered at the SXSW Film Festival in 2025. It tracks the story from Rocky Horror’s humble origins as a London fringe theatre play, through its meteoric rise, commercial stumble, and resurrection as the biggest cult film of all time. First unveiled to mystified audiences in 1975, the film version tanked at the box office before finding new life through the shadowcast phenomenon, where audience participation turned midnight screenings into something closer to ritual than a movie night.
When the son knows his father well, Richard O’Brien is very hands-on here, and even offers unplugged takes of the songs that define the experience. And to be fair, what’s explored feels genuine. Viewers listening closely will learn about the man before he ever got the idea to pen Rocky Horror. With the producing team behind HBO and The Ringer’s Music Box films Woodstock 99 and Yacht Rock also behind this work, those who caught it early are still doing the Time Warp!
And not a moment too soon. Before mainstream media embraced LGBTQ+ stories, the film created a safe space for self-expression, gender fluidity, and sexual freedom. As Susan Sarandon reflects in the film, “When you’re trying to figure things out, you can go somewhere where there are a lot of people trying to figure things out. You can be there and be accepted just as you are.”
Even though just who manages this property now can seem muddled, anyone who can say, “I’ve got to keep control,” can spark a public outcry from fans. Ultimately, it’s Richard O’Brien and Lou Adler who have the final say here.
Fans can read our review here.
The Strange Journey The Story of Rocky Horror Trailer
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