As the weather warms and the children are out of school, thoughts and ears turn toward that ubiquitous sound of summer: the ice cream man’s jingle. Even though few professions could be more joyful than bringing cold confections to children, the jingle always feels a bit too loud, the sellers a bit too friendly, the treats a bit too sweet. And so, like the equally innocuous circus clown, the ice cream man has become the subject of many horror stories, including the upcoming movie Ice Cream Man from Eli Roth.The trailer’s juxtaposition of jaunty music, bright colors, and bloody carnage certainly feels in line with the 1995 Clint Howard cult classic Ice Cream Man or the anthology comic book by W. Maxwell Prince and Martin Morazzo. But does the movie have any connection to these properties, or are Roth and co-writer Noah Belson mixing up something new?cnx.cmd.push(function() {cnx({playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530",}).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796");});Eli Roth’s Ice Cream Man Isn’t a Remake of the Comic or MovieBelieve it or not, Ice Cream Man has no connection to the previous movie or the comic. Nor does it have any connection to the Masters of Horror episode, “We All Scream for Ice Cream,” in which William Forsyth plays a ghoul that turns his victims into frozen treats. That last one is pretty obvious, but it’s easy to see why the Roth movie might be connected to the other two properties.Directed by Norman Apstein and written by Sven Davison and David Dobkin (he of Wedding Crashers and Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga), 1995’s Ice Cream Man stars Clint Howard as Gregory Tudor, a madman who terrorizes children with his disgusting concoctions. The malevolent smile that Orphan Black‘s Ari Millen gives as the titular character in the 2026 Ice Cream Man trailer certainly recalls the icky vibes of Howard’s Gregory, but it’s just a coincidence.Even more surprising is the fact that Roth’s movie isn’t related to the series that Image Comics has been publishing since 2018. Each issue of Ice Cream Man brings the reader introduces the reader to a new town, where at least one deeply disturbed oddball lives. At some point, the odd-ball meets Rick, a smiling, affable treat peddler who also might be an eldritch horror toying with the pathetic mortals who surround them.With its bright setting and killer kids, Roth’s Ice Cream Man looks like one of the stories from that series. And given that an adaptation of the comic has long been in the works, first as a Quibi series and currently as a more traditional project produced by Smallville creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, the confusion is understandable.However, Roth said that he’s had the idea for this story for over two decades, making his Ice Cream Man an original work.Eli Roth’s Ice Cream Man TrailerSo what is Roth’s Ice Cream Man all about? The trailer gives us basically everything we need to know.Everything seems peaceful in the town of Bayleen Bay, until the ice cream man arrives. Baseball players and playground kids all rush to his truck to get the treats, and he hands them out with a smile. However, something in those cones makes the children murderous.The trailer only gives us little glimpses at the havoc: a girl stands over her mother with a hacksaw, a child makes snow angels in blood, a kid pops a utility blade while walking from the truck, and a boy brings an axe down on a teen. But given that Roth is hyping the film as his most “insane film to date,” the full scenes are sure to make you feel worse than a lactose-intolerant person with a half-gallon of butter pecan.Eli Roth’s Ice Cream Man Release DateIn addition to Millen, Ice Cream Man stars voice actor Benjamin Byron Davis, Karen Cliche of Flash Gordon and Roth’s Thanksgiving, and experimental filmmaker Sarah Abbott. It will be distributed by Iconic Events Releasing on August 7, 2026.The post Is Eli Roth’s Ice Cream Man Related to the Image Comic or Clint Howard Movie? appeared first on Den of Geek.