‘The Substance’ is coming to streaming for Halloween

Add the Demi Moore body horror to your spooky season watch list

The Substance, the critically-acclaimed body horror starring Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley, will be available to watch at home just in time for Halloween.

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MUBI, The Substance’s global distributor, announced today that it will be exclusively streaming on their service from October 31.

Written and directed by French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat, it features Demi Moore as Elisabeth Sparkle, a fitness TV show host who is abruptly fired by her boss Harvey (Dennis Quaid) when she turns 50.

She then receives a mysterious offer to take part in using a new drug called ‘The Substance’, which promises to create a younger, better version of herself through a series of injections. Elisabeth must learn to live harmoniously with the new version known as Sue (Margaret Qualley) or suffer dire consequences.

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The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May, where it won the Best Screenplay award, and landed a perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes.

It has received rave reviews from critics and audiences alike since its release on September 20, and has become MUBI’s highest-earning movie at the box office, taking in more than £26million ($34million) worldwide. 

The Substance scored a five-star review from NME, with Nick Levine writing: “With help from some memorably grotesque prosthetics, [Fargeat] offers a hellish vision of what women will do to themselves in pursuit of men’s idea of perfection. Filled with visual nods to iconic movies including Carrie and Showgirls, The Substance is that rare thing: a future cult classic that also packs a real punch now.

“It’s horrifying in the moment and gnawingly haunting when you process it fully: a sickening satire of society’s obsession with youth and beauty.”