How to watch I Saw the TV Glow — Is it streaming?

Fans of vintage monster shows will love the new A24 horror movie. Here’s how to watch I Saw the TV Glow, including a breakdown of whether it’s on streaming services and what it’s about.

For those who spent their formative years with their noses pressed against the TV screen watching Buffy, Are You Afraid of the Dark?, or Goosebumps, I Saw the TV Glow will put a haunting and vibe-laden spin on your adolescent viewing experiences.

Switching the usual jump-scares for a more atmospheric sense of mystery, I Saw the TV Glow is one of the most unique horror movie experiences you’ll find this year. It’s both a media-based horror and an exploration of the reclusive nature of fandom, as well as a throwback to the golden days of television where the monster-of-the-week reigned supreme.

So, how can you watch the A24 movie? Here’s what you need to know.

Is I Saw the TV Glow on streaming?

I Saw the TV Glow is currently available to stream on Max.

The movie first premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival in January, where it was met with rave reviews. After that, it got a wider theatrical release in May.

As of September 20, 2024, it’s available to stream on Max. This is because A24 has a multiyear deal currently going with the streaming service.

If you’re not signed up, you can also rent or buy the film on Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+.

What is I Saw the TV Glow about?

I Saw the TV Glow is about Owen, a shy teenager who finds solace in watching the monster-of-the-week TV show The Pink Opaque with his troubled friend Maddy — as their love of the show deepens, the lines between reality and fiction blur.

The official synopsis is as follows: “Teenager Owen is just trying to make it through life in the suburbs when his classmate introduces him to a mysterious late-night TV show — a vision of a supernatural world beneath their own. In the pale glow of the television, Owen’s view of reality begins to crack.”

It stars Justice Smith, Brigette Lundy-Paine, Ian Foreman, Helena Howard, Fred Durst, and Danielle Deadwyler. It’s Jane Schoenbrun’s second feature, produced by Emma Stone and Dave McCary.

But I Saw the TV Glow isn’t your standard tale of forbidden media and longing — it’s also a highly personal project for Schoenbrun, who sees it as a reflection of the queer experience.

“It’s about fandom in a way, but I think it’s about much more about – at least for me – a queer experience of kind of looking for glimmers of a magic that I thought couldn’t exist in real life in art and in entertainment,” Schoenbrun told The Wrap. “And it’s about how that can be a really loving exchange, but also how that can trap you in the ways that we all, I think, culturally dissociate.”

Is I Saw the TV Glow good?

Reviews of I Saw the TV Glow have been very positive, with critics praising the enchanting aesthetic and Schoenbrun’s directorial talent.

At the time of writing, the movie has a Rotten Tomatoes score of 84%.

Richard Brody of the New Yorker wrote: “Schoenbrun’s vision of adolescence is finely detailed, with a clear understanding of the relations of adolescents to their parents and to each other.”

Meanwhile, Alissa Wilkinson from New York Times said: “Schoenbrun’s storytelling… weaves together half-remembered childhood elements in the way they might turn up in a nightmare, weaving in sounds and lights and colors and the gloriously inexplicable.”

“Jane Schoenbrun’s second narrative feature is a gnawing search for belonging in the static spaces between analog pixels,” said Robert Daniels from RogerEbert.com.

For more, check out all the best horror movies on Disney Plus and the best horror movies of all time.