All 8 Tremors Movies in Order
The Tremors franchise consists of a series of American monster comedies – horror movies and a spin-off television show. The plot focuses on the attacks of an underground worm-like creature known as the Graboids. It began in 1990 with the release of Tremors, which spawned a series of films direct on video and a TV show. In 2016, the showing of the second television series on Syfy was ordered and the pilot was shot, but the project was eventually canceled.
Will all these materials from the Tremors franchise, it is not always easy to know where to start watching them, and, as usual with the movies, you can start with the order by release date (which we will only mention), or in chronological order, which will be the main focus on our article. So lets dive into our Tremors movies (and TV shows) watch order.
How many Tremors movies are there?
Tremors movie franchise consists of seven movies released between 1990 and 2020, without including one TV show from 2003. The franchise spans incredible 30 years and has produced mostly straight-to-DVD movies. The TV shows Tremors was canceled mid-season after airing 13 episodes.
Tremors movies in order – at a glance
Here is the order of Tremors movies by release date, including the TV show.
- Tremors (1990)
- Tremors 2: Aftershocks (1996)
- Tremors 3: Back to Perfection (2001)
- Tremors (TV Show – 2003)
- Tremors 4: The Legend Begins (2004)
- Tremors 5: Bloodlines (2015)
- Tremors: A Cold Day in Hell (2018)
- Tremors: Shrieker Island (2020)
Here you have the complete order of Tremors movies by release date, it’s important to note that this is not the ideal watch order for Tremors movies.
What is the best way to watch Tremors movies?
The best way to watch Tremors movies is definitely in chronological order if you’re a first-time watcher of the franchise. The movie Tremors 4: The Legend Begins (2004) is definitely the first movie you should watch to avoid confusion in the timeline since it serves as a prequel to the rest of the Tremors series.
Tremors movies in order – chronologically
1. Tremors 4: The Legend Begins (2004)
Tremors 4 directed by S. S. Wilson is the prequel to the franchise. It returns in the 19th century and follows Burt Gummer’s ancestor Hiram (also played by Michael Gross.
The movie goes back to basics, focusing only on Graboids in their infantile stage. In a silver mine, strange things happen while workers disappear without a trace. How the founders of the town defended themselves from monstrous worms – Graboids, find out in The Legend Begins!
2. Tremors (1990)
The first movie in the Tremors franchise, Tremors (1990) directed by Ron Underwood, is actually the second movie in the timeline. The temperamental Valentin McKee (K. Bacon) and his equally irresponsible friend Earl Bassett (F. Ward) are wanderers and hired workers who find themselves one hot summer near the former mining town of Perfection in the Nevada desert.
Perfection is a town with only 14 inhabitants, including student Rhonda LeBeck (F. Carter), well-stocked conservatives Burt (M. Gross) and Heather Gummer (R. McEntire), and the owner of the only store Walter Chang (V. Wong).
After Rhonda notices major seismic changes and unusual ground tremors in the area, Valentin and Earl will realize that they are facing serious trouble. And after two locals grab and drag a giant cannibal worm underground, everyone will be in danger.
3. Tremors 2: Aftershocks (1996)
We continue with our Tremors watch order with Tremors 2: Aftershocks (1996) directed by S.S. Wilson. Six years after what happened in the first part the monster worms have returned and now there are even more of them than there were before.
Earl Bassett, along with new associates, engages to destroy them. Everything seems to be going well until the worms mutate into their smaller versions that lay eggs.
4. Tremors 3: Back to Perfection (2001)
In the third Tremors movie directed by Brent Maddock, we return to a small town in Nevada. Burt Grummer, an adventurer who returns to search for and kill the monsters from the first two sequels of the film, also returns there.
There, he will again face huge worms, but also some other very inconvenient problems.
5. Tremors (TV Show – 2003)
The story for Tremors TV series begins where Tremors 3: Return to Perfection ends. What follows is how Perfection Valley residents try to coexist with albino Graboid (El Blanco) while dealing with problems caused by failed government experiments, crazy scientists, or ruthless real estate developers.
When Syfy aired, the series was shown out of order, and episodes 1 (“Feeding Frenzy”) and 6 (“Ghost Dance”) premiered on the same evening. The second episode named, “Shriek and Destroy,” was the last episode shown. This out-of-order broadcast required re-editing of various episodes.
The changes included a new introductory sequence for episode 5 (“Project 4-12”), which aired as the eighth episode. The character Cletus Poffenberger (played by Christopher Lloyd) is also featured in this episode. The re-edited episode explained Cletus ’performance in the return series, which took place before Episode 6 /“ Ghost Dance, ”which was actually aired as the second in the series.
Even this Tremor series alone was hard to follow and almost needs its own watch order.
6. Tremors 5: Bloodlines (2015)
Following the canceled Tremors TV show is Tremors 5: Bloodlines (2015) directed by Don Michael Paul, which tries to sort out the confusing timeline the TV show left in its wake. Graboids show that they cannot be eliminated just like that and continue to terrorize the inhabitants of a nature reserve in South Africa.
Michael Gross is back again to deal with a new breed of Graboids that emerged in South Africa in the next Tremors movie in order.
7. Tremors: A Cold Day in Hell (2018)
A new batch of Graboids is attacking a remote research station in Canada’s Nunavut Territory, where Burt Gummer is dying from Graboid poison, and his son Travis tries to save him.
With this, we have come to the last Tremors movie in chronological order, so let’s check it out.
8. Tremors: Shrieker Island (2020)
The last entry in the Tremors franchise (so far) is Tremors: Shrieker Island (2020) directed once again by Don Michael Paul. As a dangerous form of trophy hunting, a rich playboy takes Graboids to an island resort, and Burt Gummer steps in to save the day.
Shriekers are back in this movie, the movie is pretty dark and full of new ideas. From different designs to new Shriekers abilities, it definitely brings something new to the Tremors franchise.
If you decide to watch Tremors movies in chronological order, you will definitely have the best time watching them. Still, before we end our article, let’s take a look at some of the burning questions you may have.
Where to watch Tremors movies?
You can watch the Tremors movie series on Amazon Prime. Luckily Amazon Prime has all movies in one place which makes it convenient since there are a lot of sequels. As for the Tremors TV show, it can also be found on Amazon Prime.
Do you need to watch Tremors movies in order?
You need to watch Tremors movies in order, at least in order by release date, even though we would suggest watching them in our, chronological order due to the very confusing timeline which TV show only made worse.
Are Tremors movies connected?
Yes, Tremors movies are connected and Tremors TV show is connected to the movies. They center around the same concept of underground monsters “Graboids” attacking humans. The first movie in chronological order Tremors 4: The Legend Begins (2004) established a timeline that more or less remained consistent with some characters returning for the sequels and new monsters being introduced. The overall themes remained consistent.
Will there be more Tremors movies?
Even though there are currently no official talks about the new Tremors movie, we are pretty certain there will be more of them in the future. Unfortunately, we can’t exactly say when, and whether will they be a continuation of the story or some kind of reboot/remake.
