R.L. Stine Reveals His Favorite and Least Favorite Goosebumps Character He’s “Sick of”

R.L. Stine is far from a simple writer. The prolific author behind the popular Goosebumps series has written hundreds of spooky children’s books since 1992, filling his stories with terrifying creatures such as werewolves (in “The Werewolf of Fever Swamp”), mummies (in “Curse of the Mummy’s Tomb”), and vampires (in “Vampire Breath”). His manuscripts also bring to life inanimate objects, from haunted masks (“The Haunted Mask”) and creepy scarecrows (“The Scarecrow Walks at Midnight”) to monstrous slime (“Monster Blood”) and living dummies (the “Night of the Living Dummy” series).

However, it’s Slappy, the animate ventriloquist figure, who has been causing Stine trouble since his debut as a menacing character in the 1995 book “Night of the Living Dummy II“.

Slappy, the living ventriloquist’s puppet, has been a headache for Stine ever since he appeared as an antagonist in the 1995 novel “Night of the Living Dummy II“.

As a die-hard movie enthusiast, let me share my ambivalent feelings about Slappy. On one hand, he’s my most cherished character due to his immense popularity; everyone seems to adore him. During Halloween, it’s a joyful spectacle seeing thousands of kids dressing up as Slappy.

On the other hand, he’s also my least favorite character because I’ve grown tired of him. Writing 15 books about a living puppet has become quite a challenge, and it doesn’t get any easier to concoct fresh Slappy stories. In an attempt to mix things up, I even killed him off in a book titled ‘The Ghost of Slappy’, but alas, I had to resurrect him again.

Stine proudly acknowledged that the puppet had become a beloved symbol for the Goosebumps series, reminiscing about an occasion during Halloween when approximately 40 individuals dressed as Slappy attended his talk. He fondly recalled inviting them all onto the stage, creating a spectacular sight.

As I stared at those people, it dawned on me that I’m not cut out for this line of work. Instead, I should focus on selling colorful red bow ties, I joked.

The initial “Night of the Living Dummy” gave rise to several follow-ups such as “Bride of the Living Dummy” (1998), “Slappy’s Nightmare” (1999), “Revenge of the Living Dummy” (2008), and “Son of Slappy” (2013). In 2017, Scholastic started a series centered around Slappy called “Goosebumps SlappyWorld”, which includes stories like “I Am Slappy’s Evil Twin”, “The Dummy Meets the Mummy!”, “Slappy in Dreamland”, and “Slappy, Beware!”.

Slappy, a character introduced in the ’90s anthology series (with Cal Dodd providing his voice), made an appearance in the 2015 live-action “Goosebumps” movie (Jack Black voicing him and playing Stine), as well as its 2018 sequel (Mick Wingert taking over the voice role). Additionally, Slappy can be heard in the 2023 “Goosebumps” TV series, with Chris Geere providing his voice for Kanduu.

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2025-07-24 04:12