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Published Feb 15, 2026, 3:40 PM EST
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With Sinners dominating the Academy Awards and the Twilight saga celebrating the 20th anniversary of the first film, bloodsuckers are thriving again. But before the brooding stares and prestige horror revivals, there was one gloriously chaotic swing at monster-movie supremacy that didn’t quite land. Van Helsing — starring Hugh Jackman — is heading to free streaming on Tubi beginning March 1. And if you’ve never experienced this CGI-heavy fever dream of a blockbuster, now’s your chance. The film also stars Kate Beckinsale as Anna Valerious, Richard Roxburgh as Count Dracula, Shuler Hensley as Frankenstein’s Monster, David Wenham as Carl, and Elena Anaya as Aleera. Here’s the official synopsis:
“Famed monster slayer Gabriel Van Helsing (Hugh Jackman) is dispatched to Transylvania to assist the last of the Valerious bloodline in defeating Count Dracula (Richard Roxburgh). Anna Valerious (Kate Beckinsale) reveals that Dracula has formed an unholy alliance with Dr. Frankenstein's monster (Shuler Hensley) and is hell-bent on exacting a centuries-old curse on her family. Together Anna and Van Helsing set out to destroy their common enemy, but uncover some unsettling secrets along the way.”
How Bad Is 'Van Helsing'?
Image via Universal PicturesUpon release, Van Helsing was hit hard by critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it sits at 24% from critics, with the consensus reading: “A hollow creature feature that suffers from CGI overload.” The audience score, at 54%, is more forgiving — and over the years, the film has quietly developed a cult following.
Collider’s review stated that Van Helsing was the cinematic equivalent of watching someone burn through an absurd budget just to prove they could — loud, bloated, and wildly misguided from start to finish. The film mashed together werewolves, Frankenstein’s Monster, and vampire spawn into one overstuffed gothic spectacle. Unfortunately, spectacle was about all it had.
"Loud, long, and CGI stupid, this film is fascinating to watch as virtually every decision is a mistake, and was done better by other people. There's some Roman Polanski in here, some Sam Raimi, but the film needs to take some Ritalin and figure out what story it wants to tell. Instead it obeys no laws of physics, or pacing, and wears you out by sheer force of will. I admire Richard Roxburg's indecent performance as Count Dracula, because at least it's over the top and stupid. He alone seems to know what he's making. But this is the sort of bloated and bad expensive movie that's almost compulsively watchably terrible. I still can't believe they thought this would be a good idea."
Van Helsing lands on Tubi next month.
Release Date May 3, 2004
Runtime 132 Minutes
English (US) ·