The ‘Lake Placid’ Film Series and the Order It Was Released In
The Lake Placid movies in order cover six films across nearly two decades, starting with a theatrical release and continuing through a run of television sequels. The series was created by David E. Kelley, and every installment centers on giant crocodiles preying on people in the fictional Black Lake, Maine.
This guide goes through the Lake Placid film series in release order, with the key cast, director and premiere details for each entry. Only the first film played in theaters, and the five sequels were all made for television.
‘Lake Placid’
The original was released in the United States on July 16, 1999, written by David E. Kelley and directed by Steve Miner. It stars Bill Pullman, Bridget Fonda, Oliver Platt, Brendan Gleeson, Betty White, Meredith Salenger and Mariska Hargitay.
Pullman plays game warden Jack Wells, who looks into a violent death in a Maine lake alongside Gleeson’s Sheriff Hank Keough and Fonda’s paleontologist Kelly Scott. Their search leads them to a massive reptile hiding in the water.
Critics were generally negative, and the film grossed $56.9 million against a budget of $27 to $35 million. Rotten Tomatoes lists a domestic gross of $31.8 million, so totals differ depending on the source.
‘Lake Placid 2’
‘Lake Placid 2’ premiered on April 28, 2007, directed by David Flores. It follows the first film and again shows crocodiles terrorizing a local community.
IMDb describes two male crocodiles and an aggressive female protecting her nest, with John Schneider, Sarah Lafleur and Sam McMurray in the lead roles. The story leans on the territorial threat of a mother guarding her eggs.
IMDb users give it 3.2 out of 10, and it runs 1 hour and 28 minutes. That makes it a short, direct continuation of the creature premise.
‘Lake Placid 3’
‘Lake Placid 3’ arrived on August 21, 2010, directed by Griff Furst. David Reed wrote it, and it is the third installment in the series.
The story involves killer crocodiles and their offspring menacing residents of a small community, with Colin Ferguson, Yancy Butler and Kirsty Mitchell starring. A group of four teenagers camping on the lake are among the people drawn into the danger.
Reception was not kind. Entertainment Weekly reviewed it under a headline that crowned it a new winner among bad Syfy movies.
‘Lake Placid: The Final Chapter’
‘Lake Placid: The Final Chapter’ premiered on September 29, 2012, directed by Don Michael Paul. It is also known as ‘Lake Placid 4’ and is the fourth installment.
Black Lake has become a crocodile sanctuary surrounded by an electric fence, but when the fence is left open a school bus drives in. Elisabeth Röhm, Yancy Butler and Paul Nicholls star, with Reba and the Sheriff trying to save the kids. Robert Englund appears as Jim Bickerman.
The title suggested a finale, but a crossover followed in 2015, and the film reached DVD on February 19, 2013. Some critics were warmer toward it, and FEARnet’s Scott Weinberg said he had seen far worse movies in the same vein.
‘Lake Placid vs. Anaconda’
‘Lake Placid vs. Anaconda’ is a 2015 comedy horror television film directed by A.B. Stone and written by Berkeley Anderson. It stars Corin Nemec, Yancy Butler and Robert Englund, and it premiered on Syfy on April 25, 2015.
The film crosses over with the ‘Anaconda’ series. Scientists experimenting on a giant anaconda lose control of it, and the snake ends up near the lake. Nemec plays a fish and wildlife officer from Clear Lake who teams up with Butler’s Black Lake sheriff to investigate.
It reached DVD and digital on August 4, 2015. Letterboxd members rate it an average of 1.68 out of 5 across more than 5,000 ratings.
‘Lake Placid: Legacy’
‘Lake Placid: Legacy’ is a 2018 American and South African television horror film directed by Darrell Roodt, starring Katherine Barrell, Tim Rozon, Sai Bennett and Joe Pantoliano. It premiered on Syfy on May 28, 2018, as the sixth and final installment, and is also considered a reboot.
It acts as a direct sequel to the 1999 film and ignores the four sequels in between. The story sends urban explorers to a quiet lake in upstate Maine that hides a deadly secret. It came to DVD and digital on September 4, 2018.
Culture Crypt gave it three stars out of five, noting that only ten people appear in the film and that Pantoliano does not show up until almost an hour in. Since ‘Lake Placid: Legacy’ chose to follow the 1999 original rather than the Syfy sequels, which version of Black Lake do you think the series handled best?
