Bloody Disgusting: from horror blog to streaming-era horror division
Founded in 2001 by Brad Miska and Tom Owen, Bloody Disgusting grew from a horror-news site into a producer (V/H/S), distributor, podcast network, and — since Cinedigm's 2021 buyout — Cineverse's horror division.
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- Established
- 2001
- Location
- Hollywood, California, United States
- Country
- United States
- Website
- bloody-disgusting.com — horror news, reviews, videos, podcasts
- Founded
- 2001, by Brad Miska ("Mr. Disgusting") and Tom Owen
- Tagline
- "Your Number 1 News Source for All Things Horror"
- Ownership
- Independent (2001–2007); The Collective minority stake (2007–2021); Cinedigm/Cineverse (2021–present)
- Current leadership
- Co-managing directors John Squires and Meagan Navarro; co-founder Tom Owen is Cineverse VP, Network Strategies (Miska left in 2025)
- Media brand
- Website, Bloody FM podcast network, Bloody Press publishing, merchandise, and the SCREAMBOX streaming service
Overview
Bloody Disgusting is the horror-media brand founded in 2001 by Brad Miska (“Mr. Disgusting”) and Tom Owen, billing itself “Your Number 1 News Source for All Things Horror” (Cinedigm; Beet.TV). It grew from a Hollywood news site into a producer (the V/H/S franchise), distributor, and podcast network before Cinedigm’s September 2021 buyout (Cinedigm); since 2025 it has been Cineverse’s horror division, run by John Squires and Meagan Navarro (Cineverse).
From bedroom blog to horror conglomerate
Bloody Disgusting’s arc tracks the commercialization of online fandom. Launched in 2001 by Miska and Owen, it had by 2008 become a viable vertical publisher — 250,000 monthly uniques per Compete.com, major studios advertising, OVGuide ranking it among the top Halloween video destinations (Beet.TV). In 2011 it crossed into the business itself: The Collective, AMC Theatres, and the site announced a distribution partnership putting indie horror into 32 AMC markets monthly — starting with Cold Fish, Rammbock, and YellowBrickRoad — with unrated DVDs via Vivendi Universal, while the site’s production arm created the V/H/S found-footage franchise (GeekTyrant; Cinedigm). Cinedigm’s September 2021 buyout reframed the site as an audience engine: the release claimed the Bloody Disgusting media brand reached more than 30 million unique horror fans a year across its website, podcast network, app, and social footprint — which implies the acquisition was priced on streaming-era reach, not pageviews (Cinedigm).
The 360-degree horror brand, and the Bunny Game connection
Today the brand spans the namesake website, Bloody FM (the chart-topping horror arm of the Cineverse podcast network), Bloody Press publishing, merchandise, and SCREAMBOX — the streaming service the BD team was put in charge of after the Cinedigm deal, and the home of the theatrically unrated Terrifier 2 and Terrifier 3 (Cineverse). Editorially, the site still does what built it: it published director Adam Rehmeier’s on-record responses to the BBFC’s refusal to classify The Bunny Game — including his line that the film was “way less disturbing than Pretty Woman” — and covered Autonomy Pictures’ pickup of the film as its first release (Bloody Disgusting). The co-founder split in 2025 — Miska out, Tom Owen continuing as Cineverse VP of Network Strategies with Squires and Navarro running the brand — closed the founder era without closing the site (Cineverse).
The Bloody Disgusting footprint at a glance
| Layer | What it is | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Editorial | bloody-disgusting.com: news, reviews, videos, podcasts | “Your Number 1 News Source for All Things Horror” (Beet.TV, 2008) |
| Audio | Bloody FM, the horror arm of the Cineverse podcast network | Described as “chart-topping” (Cineverse, 2025) |
| Publishing & merch | Bloody Press; branded merchandise | Cineverse horror-division overview (2025) |
| Streaming | SCREAMBOX (SVOD + FAST); Bloody Disgusting TV (2020) | BD team put in charge of Screambox (Cinedigm, 2021) |
| Theatrical | Terrifier 2 and Terrifier 3 distributed unrated | “Central to the company’s theatrical film success” (Cineverse, 2025) |
| Scale claim | 30M+ unique horror fans annually across all properties | Cinedigm acquisition release (Sept 2021) |
Frequently asked questions
Who founded Bloody Disgusting? Brad Miska — who wrote as “Mr. Disgusting” — and Tom Owen founded the site in 2001. Both were quoted as co-founders in Cinedigm’s 2021 acquisition announcement. Miska left the company in 2025; Owen continues as Cineverse’s vice president of network strategies.
Who owns Bloody Disgusting now? Cinedigm — now renamed Cineverse — acquired Bloody Disgusting in September 2021. It operates as Cineverse’s horror division, spanning the website, the Bloody FM podcast network, Bloody Press publishing, merchandise, and the SCREAMBOX streaming service. Since 2025 the brand has been run by co-managing directors John Squires and Meagan Navarro.
What was Bloody Disgusting Selects? A 2011 distribution partnership among The Collective, AMC Theatres, and BloodyDisgusting.com to acquire and market indie horror and thriller titles from festivals, screened monthly in 32 AMC markets and released on unrated DVD. Its first slate was Cold Fish, Rammbock, and YellowBrickRoad — and the same year’s production push created the V/H/S anthology franchise.
What did Bloody Disgusting publish about The Bunny Game? The site published director Adam Rehmeier’s direct, on-record responses to the BBFC’s refusal to classify the film — including his argument that it was “way less disturbing than Pretty Woman” and “a modern cautionary tale grounded in reality” — and covered Autonomy Pictures’ acquisition of the film as the new distributor’s first release.
Timeline
- 2001 — Brad Miska and Tom Owen launch Bloody Disgusting (Cinedigm release).
- 2007 — The Collective buys a minority stake (per THR-adapted account; see openItems).
- 2008 — ~250,000 monthly unique visitors (Compete.com); FOX advertising; OVGuide top Halloween video destination (Beet.TV).
- 2011 — The Collective + AMC + BD distribution partnership (Cold Fish, Rammbock, YellowBrickRoad); production arm creates V/H/S.
- 2020 — Bloody Disgusting TV launches with Cinedigm as a Roku-exclusive FAST channel.
- 2021-09-21 — Cinedigm acquires Bloody Disgusting; 30M+ unique horror fans a year claimed across the brand.
- 2025 — Miska departs; John Squires and Meagan Navarro become co-managing directors (Cineverse release).
What this profile does not claim
- It does not assert the 2007 traffic figures (1.5M uniques / 20M pageviews per month) found in tertiary sources.
- It does not assert the terms or price of the 2021 Cinedigm acquisition, which were not disclosed in the read sources.
- It treats “No. 1” and “number one entertainment source for horror” as the brand’s and its partners’ own billing, not independent rankings.
- It does not cover the V/H/S franchise’s film-by-film history — only the site’s role in creating it.
What we could not verify
- The precise 2007 audience scale and the exact scope of The Collective’s minority stake, beyond the THR-adapted account.
- Whether any consideration beyond the acquisition itself passed to the founders in 2021.
- Current (2026) traffic figures; the 30-million figure is Cinedigm’s 2021 company claim, quoted with attribution.
Sources
- Cinedigm Corp. — Cinedigm Slashes Its Way to the Forefront of Horror Streaming With Latest Acquisition: Bloody Disgusting (first-party; the 2021 acquisition and brand scale)
- Cineverse Corp. — Cineverse Promotes John Squires and Meagan Navarro to Co-Managing Directors of Leading Horror Brand, Bloody Disgusting (first-party; 2025 leadership and division structure)
- Bloody Disgusting — Autonomy Pictures Comes Out Playing ‘The Bunny Game’ (first-party; Rehmeier’s BBFC responses)
- Beet.TV — Horror News Site “Bloody Disgusting” Has its Cult and Viable Business Model (tier2; 2008 audience and business profile)
- Notisia 365 (adapting The Hollywood Reporter) — Horror Shake-Up: Website Dread Central Gets a New Owner in Bloody Disgusting Co-Founder Brad Miska (Exclusive) (tier3; supporting detail)
- GeekTyrant — AMC Theaters Teams up with Bloody-Disgusting to find and Distribute indie Horror Films (tier3; the 2011 partnership release)
Timeline
- 2001
- Brad Miska and Tom Owen launch Bloody Disgusting as a horror-news site.
- 2007
- The Collective, a Beverly Hills entertainment management firm, buys a minority stake; the site later branches into film distribution and production.
- 2008
- The Hollywood-based site draws about 250,000 monthly unique visitors (Compete.com), with major studios such as FOX advertising; OVGuide names it a top Halloween video destination.
- 2011
- The Collective, AMC Theatres, and Bloody Disgusting announce a distribution partnership for indie horror (Cold Fish, Rammbock, YellowBrickRoad), screened monthly in 32 AMC markets; the site's production arm creates the V/H/S anthology franchise.
- 2020
- Cinedigm partners with the company to launch Bloody Disgusting TV, a free ad-supported streaming channel, as a Roku exclusive.
- 2021-09-21
- Cinedigm (NASDAQ: CIDM) acquires Bloody Disgusting, calling it "one of the internet's premiere horror destinations"; the brand is said to reach more than 30 million unique horror fans annually across its website, podcast network, app, and social footprint.
- 2025
- Co-founder Brad Miska leaves; longtime contributors John Squires and Meagan Navarro are promoted to co-managing directors of Cineverse's horror division.
What we could not verify
These claims came up in research and could not be confirmed. They are recorded here rather than published as fact or quietly dropped. If you hold a source that settles one, please tell us.
- The 2007 audience figures (1.5 million unique visitors and 20 million page views per month) appear only in tertiary sources and are not asserted; the 2008 Compete.com figure (250,000 monthly uniques) comes from the fully-read Beet.TV profile.
- The exact terms of Cinedigm's 2021 acquisition (price, structure) were not disclosed in the read sources and are not asserted.
- Miska's 2021 sale is described by the THR-adapted account; Cinedigm's own release confirms the acquisition on September 21, 2021, but does not name the seller's consideration.
- "Your Number 1 News Source for All Things Horror" is the site's own billing, reported by Beet.TV in 2008; it is a marketing claim, not an independent ranking.
Sources
6 sources (1 tier 2, 2 tier 3, 3 first-party), each opened and read against the claim it supports. Statements the subject makes about itself are marked as such and are not treated as independent evidence. See the source policy.
Built from six sources read in full: one tier2 (Beet.TV's 2008 business profile), two tier3 (a THR adaptation and a press-release reprint, both used for supporting detail only), and three first-party pages (Cinedigm's 2021 acquisition release, Cineverse's 2025 leadership release, and Bloody Disgusting's own Bunny Game coverage) used for uncontested facts with explicit attribution. The 2021 and 2025 releases corroborate each other's account of the company's trajectory. Wikipedia was used only as a lead index and is not cited.
- Supports: The 'Your Number 1 News Source for All Things Horror' tagline; ~250,000 monthly unique visitors per Compete.com; major studios like FOX advertising; OVGuide naming it a top Halloween online video destination; the Hollywood base Open original source
- Supports: Supporting detail only: Miska's 2021 sale of BD; The Collective's 2007 minority stake; BD's move into movie distribution; the V/H/S anthology series and Kids vs. Aliens producing credits. Not load-bearing — used only where it corroborates the independent record Open original source
- Supports: The 2011 distribution partnership among The Collective, AMC Theatres, and BloodyDisgusting.com: monthly screenings in 32 key AMC markets, unrated DVDs via Vivendi Universal, first titles Cold Fish, Rammbock, and YellowBrickRoad; BD described in the release as 'the world's number one entertainment source for horror'; Miska quoted as 'Bloody Disgusting co-head'. Supporting only — the partnership is corroborated by Cinedigm's account of the 2011 production push Open original source
- Cinedigm Slashes Its Way to the Forefront of Horror Streaming With Latest Acquisition: Bloody Disgusting First-partySupports: Cinedigm's September 2021 acquisition; launched 2001; 'synonymous with the horror genre itself'; 30M+ unique horror fans annually across website, podcast network, BD app, and social; branched into production in 2011 creating V/H/S; Bloody Disgusting TV launched 2020 as a Roku exclusive; the BD team to manage Screambox; on-record quotes from co-founders Brad Miska and Tom Owen. Not load-bearing alone — corroborated by the 2025 Cineverse release and trade coverage Open original source
- Supports: Miska's 2025 departure; Squires and Navarro as co-managing directors; Tom Owen as co-founder and Cineverse VP, Network Strategies; BD as Cineverse's horror division ('the No. 1 entertainment destination for horror'): website, Bloody FM, Bloody Press, merchandise, and SCREAMBOX; the Terrifier 2/3 theatrical role Open original source
- Supports: Director Adam Rehmeier's on-record responses to the BBFC decision given directly to Bloody Disgusting (the 'less disturbing than Pretty Woman' quote); the site's coverage of Autonomy Pictures' acquisition as its first release, per Screen Daily. Used only to document the site's own reporting Open original source
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