Eli Roth's ice cream man horror is getting a SteelBook you can scratch and sniff

Right, so Ice Cream Man – that controversial horror-comedy from Eli Roth – is finally getting a proper home release, and there are a few things here worth unpacking. Digital comes first, then stacks of physical copies (including a SteelBook for the collector crowd), and honestly, the extras are almost as weird as the film itself.

Ice Cream Man will hit digital platforms to rent or buy on 22 September 2026, with Blu-ray and DVD following 20 October and a SteelBook Collector’s Edition on 17 November.

The Film: Chaos and Carnage (With Sprinkles)

So, Eli Roth is directing himself again, and this time he’s serving up very questionable ice cream in the fictional seaside dump called Bayleen Bay. Ari Millen leads as the most unsettling vendor you can imagine, whose desserts send kids proper doolally. The film’s just under an hour and a half – 86 minutes from start to finish – and kicks off as summer descends into carnage. Basically, most kids in town go bananas on blood-sugar, while a handful somehow keep their heads enough to start playing detective.

• Ari Millen – the man in the van, passing out not-so-sweet treats
• Rest of the cast: Benjamin Byron Davis, Eli Roth, Karen Cliche, Dylan Hawco, Sarah Abbott, Shiloh O’Reilly, Kiori Mirza Waldman, Charlie Zeltzer, and Charlie Storey

How and When You Can Watch

Paramount’s handling the distribution, and they’re dropping digital first: you can buy or rent it online from 22 September. If you still bother with discs, Blu-ray and DVD are due out on 20 October. The real treat is the 4K UHD & Blu-ray SteelBook Collector’s Edition, which lands on 17 November – and yes, it’s probably going to sell out, even with the scratch-and-sniff stickers (no word on whether they actually smell like vanilla or nightmares).

Bonus Features: More Than Just Sprinkles

Physical media is worth it if you care about extras. Here’s what you’re getting:

• Three featurettes: one on the film’s background and horror inspirations, one focusing on the demented ice cream truck, and one showing off all the sticky practical effects ('Kidpocalypse', which says it all).
• Exclusive interviews with both Roth and Millen.
• SteelBook fans get extra bonuses: slipcover, art cards, and those completely unnecessary but somehow brilliant scratch-and-sniff stickers.
• 4K UHD/Blu-ray SteelBook comes with Roth and Noah Belson’s commentary, more cast/crew interviews, behind-the-scenes stuff, a gallery of Eli Roth’s short films, and every possible trailer.

Roth co-wrote the thing with Noah Belson, and produced alongside Kate Harrison Karman, Christopher Woodrow, and Raj B. Singh. Watch out: it’s officially unrated and definitely not aimed at kids (despite what the title might have you believe).