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Entertainment • Animation

Hotel Transylvania

Hotel Transylvania is an American animated media franchise created by Todd Durham and owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment.

By Ethan Anderson| Reviewed by Olivia Bennett, Standards & Fact-Checking Lead| Updated July 27, 2026|2 min read| Fact-checked

Hotel Transylvania is an American animated media franchise created by Todd Durham and owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment. It centres on Count Dracula and a monster-friendly resort where supernatural guests can relax away from humans. The franchise includes four feature films, short films, an animated television series, and video games.

Premise

The franchise is set around Hotel Transylvania, a resort created for monsters to отдых away from human society. Its central conflict often involves Dracula trying to protect his daughter Mavis and manage unexpected contact with humans.

Films

The franchise includes four animated feature films: Hotel Transylvania, Hotel Transylvania 2, Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation, and Hotel Transylvania: Transformania. The first three were released in 2012, 2015, and 2018 respectively.

Production and ownership

Todd Durham created the concept, and Sony Pictures Entertainment owns the franchise. The feature films were produced by Sony Pictures Animation.

Reception and commercial performance

The films received mixed reviews from critics but performed strongly at the box office. Combined, the franchise earned more than US$1.3 billion worldwide against a combined production budget of US$245 million.

Key facts

  • The franchise began with the 2012 film Hotel Transylvania, directed by Genndy Tartakovsky.
  • The story follows Dracula, who runs a resort for monsters and tries to keep humans away.
  • The franchise expanded into sequels, short films, a television series, and video games.
  • The films were commercially successful, grossing over US$1.3 billion worldwide combined.
  • The first film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, giving the franchise an early Canadian connection.
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Canadian context

The first Hotel Transylvania film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival before its theatrical release, giving the franchise an early Canadian connection.

Frequently asked questions

What is Hotel Transylvania?
Hotel Transylvania is an American animated media franchise about a monster resort run by Dracula.
Who created Hotel Transylvania?
The franchise was created by Todd Durham.
How many Hotel Transylvania movies are there?
There are four feature films in the franchise.
When was the first Hotel Transylvania film released?
The first film was released in September 2012.
Who owns the franchise?
Sony Pictures Entertainment owns the Hotel Transylvania franchise.
Was Hotel Transylvania successful at the box office?
Yes. The films grossed over US$1.3 billion worldwide combined.

References

  1. Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_Transylvania
    Supports: Franchise overview, creator, ownership, number of films, release years, and box-office total.
  2. Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_Transylvania_(film)
    Supports: Premise of the first film, director, cast, and theatrical release dates.
  3. Common Sense Media — https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/hotel-transylvania
    Supports: Synopsis of the first film, studio, release date, and family-comedy classification.