1975: A movie bombed. This would not be the first time a film would release into theaters and get destroyed financially upon release and it certainly wouldn’t be the last. However, something odd happened — people who did enjoy it kept coming back to see it. Then they brought friends who also kept coming back. Over time, this film, based on the very successful Richard O’Brien-written, Jim Sharman-directed stage musical The Rocky Horror Show, would become a star of midnight screenings across the U.S., with viewers eventually adding their own dialogue, engaging the film with props, and incorporating shadow casts to act out the film for audiences as the movie played. Thus did The Rocky Horror Picture Show transcend from abject failure to a cult status that has inspired viewers to “don’t dream it, be it” across generations around the globe. In celebration of its 50th anniversary, 20th Century Studios has restored the film in 4K UHD physically and digitally, gathering a small portion of legacy features from across the anniversary editions to go with it.

L-R: Susan Sarandon as Janet Weiss and Barry Bostwick as Brad Majors in THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios.

After getting engaged, Brad Majors and Janet Weiss (Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon, respectively) hit the road to see their instructor, Doctor Scott (Jonathan Adams), whose class they met in when a flat tire leaves them stranded. Looking for help, the pair walk to a castle they passed and discover that its inhabitants are preparing to celebrate a new achievement by Dr. Frank-n-Furter (Tim Curry), the owner of the castle. Before the two realize it, the pair are caught up in a night out (it was a night in!) that will change their lives forever.

The following review is based on a 4K UHD digital edition provided by 20th Century Studios/Walt Disney Home Entertainment, as well as a 4K UHD Blu-ray Steelbook edition purchased personally.

L-R: Barry Bostwick as Brad Majors and Susan Sarandon as Janet Weiss in THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios.

Despite what people may think about film criticism, it’s all about perspective. Just like any other viewer, a critic sees a film through the lens of one’s own experience, processing what’s seen, digesting it, and then, ideally, exploring that with words and/or images. My experience with Rocky Horror is well-documented, including briefly discussing it within the review for Linus O’Brien’s (son of Richard) documentary debut Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror; however, for the purpose of a home release review, know that I have owned the film on VHS and continue to possess the 25th anniversary DVD (which was used for public midnight screenings for four years at the University of North Carolina at Asheville via the school’s entertainment board) and the 35th anniversary Blu-ray. I mention these things to create a clear baseline from which the following exploration of this new edition comes.

L-R: Tim Curry as Dr. Frank-n-Furter, Barry Bostwick as Brad Majors, and Susan Sarandon as Janet Weiss in THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios.

As with all digital edition reviews from Walt Disney, there’s no way to discuss the technical side of the release because there’s no indication of bitrate when streamed either through an Apple TV or a MoviesAnywhere-capable app. Additionally, looking at the official release from Walt Disney, the only information regarding the disc is that the 4K UHD edition is on a 66 GB disc, the Blu-ray is on a 50 GB disc, and the DVD on a 8.5 GB disc. No mention of number of layers per disc (which can inform presentation fidelity), who oversaw the restoration, what materials were used, or any other identifying information regarding the restoration process. This is worth noting because the recent TRON (1982) and TRON: Legacy (2010) restorations included such information with the press materials. This could be a matter of the TRON editions being positioned to play into the release of TRON: Ares (2025) in theaters, but it seems like an important thing to include, especially in a 50^th anniversary, first-time 4K UHD edition.

L-R: Nell “Little Nell” Campbell as Columbia, Patricia Quinn as Columbia, Tim Curry as Dr. Frank-n-Furter, and Richard O’Brien as Riff Raff in THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios.

However, having purchased the 4K UHD steelbook edition, I can confirm that the bitrate in Mbps for the 4K UHD disc rests in the 60 for the majority of the film with dips into the 50s and sometimes up into the 70s/80s. Considering that the max bitrate of a Blu-ray is 40 Mbps, the quality is just slightly higher than the max output of a Blu-ray, which does make it stronger than standard high-definition (SD), but doesn’t dazzle like 4K UHD restorations being put out by The Criterion Collection. When Walt Disney is strictly releasing titles like this at a premium cost with limited physical availability, the least that can be done is rise to the expectation established by premiere boutiques. Checking the disc presentation across the 50^th, 35^th, and 25^th anniversary editions (was curious about something I noticed in the audio that ended up being a result of listening to the soundtrack for years and the performance of “Over at the Frankenstein Place” being slightly different than in the film), the 4K UHD on-disc presentation is improved with reduced grain, sharper images resulting in more noticeable details, and greater color balance. At no point does the 4K UHD edition feel like watching a brand-new film, which, in this case, is important to maintaining the grimy, low-budget feel that is a large portion of the fun with the experience. One surmises that the presentation could be even better if the data wasn’t so heavily compressed, but we’ll never know until Walt Disney decides to either release another version in 10 – 25 years (and you can bet they will) or if a boutique like Criterion, Arrow, or Umbrella gets ahold of the rights somehow and does it themselves.

Peter Hinwood as Rocky in THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios.

There are a few special features included on the 4K UHD disc — “Trivia Track: 50 Years and Still Kicking!,” “Vintage Callback Track (Unrated),” “Rocky-Oke: Sing It!,” and the commentary track from Richard O’Brien and Patricia Quinn — which one wouldn’t expect to take up a great deal of space, but if they’re more than audio commentary and represent several different ways to view the film, each one is going to require storage space, thereby increasing the compression needs on a 66 GB disc to include each version. This feels a lot like trying to cram in as much as possible for as little as possible, which reduces the shine on the investment. Additionally, of all the ways to watch the movie, be advised that the only version on both the 4K UHD and Blu-ray discs is the U.K. edition that includes “Superheroes” worked in where it is absent in the U.S. theatrical. The previous releases included both versions and the absence of it here, especially in light of the reduced storage space, is quite the bother for longtime fans looking to catalog a favorite film in its best presentation. There’s absolutely something to be said for a film like Rocky Horror maintaining a lower-grade look by screening on VHS, SD, or HD editions, which is partially why I’ve kept my old copies (that and preservation of bonus features that don’t leap from one new format to another), so make sure to hold onto your old copies if having access to the U.S. version is important to you.

The aforementioned features on the 4K UHD edition are included on the Blu-ray and are accompanied by a series of others that have been included in other editions, specifically the 35^th anniversary edition. Make sure to check your discs before you get rid of them, even in the name of minimalization, because not all of the features are jumping from release to release. What is included will provide a great deal of entertainment for those for whom this is their first version between the feature-length trivia track, being able to watch the film with the 35^th anniversary shadow cast, an audience participation audio track, a deleted scene, alternate takes, alternate endings, and more which invite audience members you maybe haven’t been able to brings them to lose their Rocky virginity at a live show yet to see what one is live via two different featurettes (one from the 10^th anniversary).

THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW 4K UHD steelbook packshot. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios.

If steelbooks are your thing or you just want to have physical copies of the films you love, the design here is more showy than the understated previous editions. The front cover has a picture of Frank-n-Furter in profile, his face cut off before the eyes and nose appear, his usual shoulder tattoo replaced by the Rocky lips (Richard’s) adorned with Columbia’s hat. The back design borrows heavily from the ‘70s sci-fi aesthetic of the film with a lone gold lightning bolt crossing from top to bottom, the characters in various states from the film represented within the body of the bolt. The inside of the steelbook has an incomplete close-up of Frank-n-Furter on the left side (those with the 25^th anniversary DVD will recognize it immediately) and nothing on the right under the discs. The 4K UHD disc art mimics that of the steelbook cover while the Blu-ray appears to use the same disc art as the prior released 45^th anniversary Blu-ray release. I can’t inform whether or not the on-disc presentation of the included Blu-ray is the same as the 45^th anniversary, but I can confirm that the menus between the 50^th anniversary 4K UHD and 50^th anniversary Blu-ray are the same. As such, it’s likely that the disc art is the only identical item.

L-R: EoM Founder Douglas Davidson and EoM Head Editor Crystal Davidson circa 2022 on stage at Ashevile Brewing Company. Photo Credit: Unknown. Photo courtesy of personal archives.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show is an important part of who I am and is directly connected to several of the most important relationships in my life, including the one with my wife (EoM Editor Crystal Davidson) and those with at least two individuals I consider family and who stood with us at our wedding. It was there for me on a solitary Halloween night when I discovered it and it’s helped me forge bonds while in strange lands (camps and school). It helped me find my people and has helped me to acknowledge within myself the parts that aren’t shameful. Like the dot that appears when The Narrator (Charles Gray) leaves his office, I believe this to be the point of the film. This is why we tracked down a copy of the 4K UHD edition to ensure that, if it did prove to be worth the investment, we would have a copy of a film we love in its best possible presentation. If all of that doesn’t matter to you, you live a minimalist lifestyle, or digital is the only option available, then I feel like I can recommend the digital edition to interested parties. Even with the compression from your internet provider and streaming service, it can’t possibly be any worse than the on-disc presentation, which is to say that the 4K UHD presentation could be demonstrably better and that the digital edition might actually be on-par with it for once. Given the cost of the steelbook, the comic book-esque design (in contrast to the photo stills on the prior editions), and the quality of the on-disc presentation, I don’t recommend anyone break the bank to get a copy.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show 4K UHD Digital Special Features:

• Rocky-oke: Sing It! with the Movie
• Trivia Track: 50 Years and Still Kicking!
• Vintage Callback Track (Unrated)
• Commentary by Richard O’Brien and Patricia Quinn
• Alternative Version with Black and White Opening
• Deleted Song: Once in a While
• Eleven (11) Outtakes
• Alternate Credit Editing
• Misprint Ending
• Two-Part: The Midnight Experience with the 35^th Anniversary Shadowcast
• Search for the 35^th Anniversary Shadowcast
• Rocky Horror Double Feature Video Show (1995)
• The Time Warp Music Video (15^th Anniversary VHS Release)
• Beacon Theater, New York City (10^th Anniversary)
• Two (2) Theatrical Trailers
• Rocky-oke: Sing It! without the Vocals
• Rocky-oke: Sing It! With the Vocals

Available on 4K UHD Blu-ray Steelbook and digital October 7^th, 2025.

For more information, head to the official 20^th Century Studios The Rocky Horror Picture Show webpage.

Categories: Home Release, Recommendation

Tags: 20th Century Fox, 20th Century Studios, 4K UHD, Barry Bostwick, Charles Gray, comedy, fantasy, Hilary Farr, home release, home video, horror, Jeremy Newson, Jim Sharman, Jonathan Adams, Meat Loaf, Michael White Productions, musical, Nell Campbell, Patricia Quinn, Peter Hinwood, restoration, Richard O'Brien, science fiction, steelbook, streaming, Susan Sarandon, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Tim Curry