Arachnophobia

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Arachnophobia

PG-13

1990

1h 49m

Mystery & Thriller

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

92%

Tomatometer

48 Reviews

55%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

After a nature photographer (Mark L. Taylor) dies on assignment in Venezuela, a poisonous spider hitches a ride in his coffin to his hometown in rural California, where arachnophobe Dr. Ross Jennings (Jeff Daniels) has just moved in with his wife, Molly (Harley Jane Kozak), and young son. As town residents start turning up dead, Jennings begins to suspect spiders, and must face his fears as he and no-nonsense exterminator Delbert McClintock (John Goodman) fight to stop a deadly infestation.

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Critics Consensus

Arachnophobia may not deliver genuine chills, but it's an affectionate, solidly built tribute to Hollywood's classic creature features.

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Gene Siskel

Chicago Tribune

Mar 7, 2021

3/4

[Goodman] is a quiet hoot, fancying himself as the last samurai in the battle against bugs. His performance takes the edge off the horror and makes ''Arachnophobia'' palatable for people of all ages.

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James Ivory

Sight & Sound

Jan 11, 2020

The dexterity of the spiders as they merrily look for their prey is matched by the dexterity of Frank Marshall's direction in its nimbleness and sense of fun.

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Variety Staff

Variety

Mar 26, 2009

Frank Marshall's sophisticated feature directing debut never indulges in ultimate gross-out effects and carefully chooses both its victims and its means of depicting their dispatch.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

2 days ago

2.5/4

It didn’t take off quite as expected -- I like to think it was primarily because of the studio’s major push to introduce a ridiculous new word ("Thrill-omedy!") to the cinematic language.

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Brian Bisesi

Horror Movie Club Podcast

Jul 8, 2026

5/5

Arachnophobia is a charming film with memorable characters, a few laughs, and some chilling moments for anyone with a healthy fear of spiders. Great performances, a great score, and great cinematography make this an all time classic creature feature.

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Grant Watson

Fiction Machine

Apr 2, 2026

7/10

In the middle of the Venn diagram between PG and horror, there is Frank Marshall’s 1990 film Arachnophobia.

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Matt M

@JokersMind 1 day ago

This movie is an all time classic. A slept on movie. I feel it revists our own arachnophobia and drives out a bit of queeziness in all of us.

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Billy H

@Unqu0tedP0et 2 days ago

Goodman is awesome and the movie is a nice creature feature. Good film.

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Jeff B

@RT14268414 Sep 13, 2026

One of the greatest movies. I’ve watched this movie at least a dozen times and I love it every time. It’s even aged well.

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Schlub Z

@SchlubZero Jul 5, 2026

As charming as it is flawed, Arachnophobia manages to wade waist deep into cheese without drowning in it.

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Fantazynerd 1

@RT48179632 Jul 4, 2026

One time watch for many reasons

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Jake S.

@TheBrewMan Feb 20, 2026

AWESOME MOVIE!!!!!! Watch it asap if you haven’t seen it.

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Frank Marshall

Director

Jeff Daniels

Dr. Ross Jennings

Harley Jane Kozak

Molly Jennings

John Goodman

Delbert McClintock

Julian Sands

Doctor James Atherton

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Synopsis

After a nature photographer (Mark L. Taylor) dies on assignment in Venezuela, a poisonous spider hitches a ride in his coffin to his hometown in rural California, where arachnophobe Dr. Ross Jennings (Jeff Daniels) has just moved in with his wife, Molly (Harley Jane Kozak), and young son. As town residents start turning up dead, Jennings begins to suspect spiders, and must face his fears as he and no-nonsense exterminator Delbert McClintock (John Goodman) fight to stop a deadly infestation.

Director: Frank Marshall
Producer: Kathleen Kennedy, Richard Vane
Screenwriter: Don Jakoby, Al Williams, Wesley Strick
Production Co: Hollywood Pictures, Amblin Entertainment
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 9, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $53.2M
Runtime: 1h 49m
Sound Mix: Surround

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