midnight movie

noun

A B-movie, often in camp style and with a retro theme.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounmidnight movie (plural midnight movies)

plural midnight movies

  1. broadcastingA B-movie, often in camp style and with a retro theme.
  2. A low-budget film which has become a cult classic, referring in this sense to original tradition of showing such films at night.
  3. datedA low-budget film shown on television after midnight, particularly but not exclusively in the US.

Origin

Originating in 1950s American television, the term has undergone several changes over time (see Wikipedia article).

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

midnight movie. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/midnight%20movie

MLA

“midnight movie.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/midnight%20movie. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “midnight movie,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/midnight%20movie.

Source: midnight movie on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.