Jennifer Aniston’s 33-Year-Old Comedy Horror Leprechaun That Kicked Off a Franchise Sets Peacock Release Date

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Forget rainbows and pots of gold – this isn’t a cheerful story. The classic horror film taught us a valuable lesson in the early 90s: upsetting a leprechaun is never a good idea, as Jennifer Aniston’s character unfortunately learned.

Everyone knows Jennifer Aniston, who became famous playing Rachel Green on the hit show Friends. Rachel started as a somewhat spoiled and naive character, but she matured throughout the series, though she never quite accepted that she and Ross were simply “on a break.” Aniston achieved this level of fame just before Friends premiered on NBC in 1994.

The classic horror film is coming to Peacock on March 1st, and it won’t be alone! All seven movies in the Leprechaun franchise, starting with the original starring Jennifer Aniston, will be available to stream throughout March.

You heard me: seven films.

  • Leprechaun
  • Leprechaun II
  • Leprechaun III
  • Leprechaun 4: Lost in Space
  • Leprechaun V: In the Hood
  • Leprechaun VI: Back 2 tha Hood
  • Leprechaun Origins

None of Her ‘Friends’ Could’ve Saved Jennifer Aniston In Leprechaun

The Leprechaun movies weren’t ever meant to compete with the biggest horror franchises of their time.

It doesn’t quite reach the level of classic 90s horror like People Under the Stairs, Candyman, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Child’s Play, I Know What You Did Last Summer, Mimic, Event Horizon, or Species (and there were so many great ones back then!). However, it stands out because of its originality and, like Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992), it didn’t try to be overly serious – it knew it was a scary, fun ride.

Dan O’Grady (Shay Duffin) unknowingly steals gold from a dangerous creature disguised as a leprechaun (Warwick Davis). After realizing he’s being followed, Dan manages to trap it in a crate with a lucky clover. When J.D. Redding (John Sanderford) and Tory (Jennifer Aniston) rent Dan’s property, they accidentally set the creature free. Still seeking its stolen gold, it embarks on a violent quest to reclaim the 100 coins, and won’t stop until it gets them back.

Leprechaun Is Called a Cult Classic, Because It Is

The movie received mostly negative reviews and wasn’t initially popular with audiences, earning only a 34% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. However, it surprisingly did well in theaters. Jennifer Aniston’s first Leprechaun film made over $8 million despite costing only $900,000 to produce. It’s also important to remember that cult classics don’t always have huge fan bases—if they did, they wouldn’t be considered ‘cult’ in the first place.

Let’s be real, Leprechaun is a surprisingly effective horror-comedy franchise. While titles like In the Hood and Back to tha Hood (and yes, that spelling is deliberate!) are a bit over the top, the movies are genuinely fun. Plus, this series played a role in launching Jennifer Aniston’s career, giving her the visibility she needed to get her Friends audition.

She’s admitted she felt embarrassed about her role in Leprechaun, but it’s unclear whether she disliked the movie itself or her own performance, which may have been scarier than the leprechaun she was running from.

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2026-02-24 18:21