logo
Highway to Halloween: The Lowe's Haunted Haunted Sea Diver Animatronic

Highway to Halloween: The Lowe's Haunted Haunted Sea Diver Animatronic

Geek Dad21-05-2025

We just passed the 'Halfway to Halloween' date, which landed midway between April 30th and May 1st. And so it's about time to start sharing with our readers some of the great ways you'll be able to decorate for spooky season!
You may recall that I reviewed a couple of Lowe's 12-foot animatronics in 2024: the Bone Collector and the Scarecrow. While Lowe's will be releasing a bunch of all-new animatronics later this year (including a 12-foot vampire!), to mark 'Halfway to Halloween,' they re-released a few of their more popular 2024 pieces. One of those is the Haunted Living Haunted Sea Diver, part of their Haunted Harbor collection. What Is the Lowe's Haunted Living Haunted Sea Diver Animatronic?
The Lowe's Haunted Living Haunted Sea Diver Animatronic is a 72″ indoor/covered outdoor prop manufactured by Tekky and distributed exclusively at Lowe's. It retails for $349 and is currently only available at Lowe's website (though it may become available again to purchase at stores this Fall). Here's the overview from Lowe's: IT came from the bottom of the deep dark sea…to terrify the company! Life-size Animated Haunted Deep Sea Diver includes elaborate steampunk diving suit with harpoon gun and seaweed details, LED lights and cinematic sounds.
The Haunted Deep Sea Diver makes the scene this Halloween as a premium animatronic, engineered for maximum fun and fright by Lowe's Haunted Living and Tekky.
Deep Sea terror comes alive to reveal it's gruesome, green glowing skeletal face! Realistic side-to-side movement, scary sounds from the sea, and terrifying LED lighted skull face reveal!
Sound, human, or footpad/button activated (footpad/button sold separately).
Easy to assemble, battery-operated 'fright prop' for convenient display — no wires to trip over (4AA batteries included). Or power your prop with the 6V 2A DC adapter — included — when a standard outlet is available. The shipping package. Image by Paul Benson.
Assembling the Haunted Sea Diver was fairly straightforward. Basically, if you've ever assembled an animatronic, you should be able to put this one together in just a few minutes. And even if you haven't, the included instructions are easy to follow. They even include batteries! Image by Paul Benson.
Several of the components were attached to the cardboard divider with twist ties, so this did slow down the initial assembly. However, the trade off is that the parts were secure during shipping so arrived in perfect shape. All the pieces fastened to the cardboard divider. Image by Paul Benson.
I had a nice surprise while unpacking all the pieces: the base came with an attached sandbag! Many animatronics need to be weighted down to stabilize them, so it made me smile to see a sandbag included in the box. The base (and sandbag) right out of the box. Image by Paul Benson.
Here's a quick look at the assembly:
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
The only slight snag I had was with getting the clothing up over the clear shoulder piece. It did take me a few minutes to accomplish that task, partly due to the thickness of the costume. However, that extra padding really helps to sell the diving suit look (though the costume has a very pronounced crease in the right leg that I'll have to try and iron out).
Once assembled, all you have to do is connect a few wires, and then plug in the control box. The control box seems identical to those used in the other Lowe's/Tekky animatronics that I've reviewed. The Sea Diver can be activated either by the motion sensor on its front, or using a separately available step pad.
Here's a look at the Haunted Sea Diver, all lit up: You don't really see the skull until he turns on. Image by Paul Benson.
I took him outside in the evening to shoot a quick video, where you can see him perform his two phrases: Lowe's Haunted Living Haunted Sea Diver Animatronic – Final Thoughts
I think that the Haunted Sea Diver is one of the best-looking animatronics that Lowe's has sold in recent years. The thick costume really helps give the illusion of a bulky, old-fashioned diving suit, and the molded plastic gloves and boots look great, both in their sculpt and in the paint work. But the best part of the animatronic has to be that seaweed-covered diving helmet, with the glowing skull inside. That really sells the whole 'haunted diver' bit, and creates a wonderfully eerie effect.
This is an animatronic that can certainly be a bit creepy, especially at night. My girlfriend's teenage daughter got a bit of a jumpscare just from walking in and seeing it standing in the living room. But it's also pretty family friendly. There's no gore, and the voice lines are more Pirates of the Caribbean in flavor. And if you're of a certain age, you'll definitely be reminded of Captain Cutler from Scooby Doo . The infamous Captain Cutler. Image by Paul Benson.
There are a lot of things Lowe's and Tekky got right with this animatronic. Besides the great overall look, I loved the inclusion of the sandbag and batteries. I would have preferred to have seen a bit more seaweed on the model, but that's something that can be easily, and inexpensively, added.
If you watched the video I shot, you're sure to notice something that I discovered right away: the motor is very loud. Granted, I can turn up the voice volume on the animatronic, but that doesn't change the volume of the mechanism itself. I also wish that there was a bit more complex movement to the animatronic than simply turning side to side. I would have loved to have at least seen the jaw move as he spoke. However, the simple motion is still fairly effective in bringing the Haunted Sea Diver to life (or undeath). As a friend suggested, it would look great posed with some tentacles, as if the Diver was trying to escape the grasp of the giant octopus that had doomed him.
Overall, the Haunted Living Haunted Sea Diver Animatronic is a great-looking piece, and will fit into your decorations well if you're going for a nautical horror theme for Halloween. Lowe's also has the lighted Kraken lawn decoration and a Steering Captain animatronic from 2024 in their Halfway to Halloween offerings, so you can easily build a horrifying seafaring display that way.
For more information or to purchase the Haunted Living Haunted Sea Diver Animatronic, head over to Lowe's website.
Lowe's provided a Haunted Sea Diver for evaluation, but had no input into this review. Dead me tell no tales…Image by Paul Benson. Liked it? Take a second to support GeekDad and GeekMom on Patreon!

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Top TikToker Khaby Lame detained by U.S. immigration
Top TikToker Khaby Lame detained by U.S. immigration

CTV News

time13 hours ago

  • CTV News

Top TikToker Khaby Lame detained by U.S. immigration

TikTok star Khaby Lame poses for a photograph after being named UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Friday, Jan. 31, 2025 in Dakar, Senegal. (AP Photo/Sylvain Cherkaoui) U.S. immigration agents detained and later allowed the 'voluntary departure' of the world's most-followed TikToker, Khaby Lame, after he 'overstayed' his visa, authorities said Saturday. 'U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained Seringe Khabane Lame, 25, a citizen of Italy, June 6, at the Harry Reid International Airport, Las Vegas, Nevada for immigration violations,' the agency said in a statement to AFP. Lame entered the United States on April 30 and 'overstayed the terms of his visa,' the statement said of the Friday detention, adding that he was released the same day. The Italian national, who is a UNICEF goodwill ambassador and has a following of more than 162 million on TikTok, 'has since departed the U.S.' Lame had not immediately posted publicly about the incident as of Saturday afternoon. Since taking power in January, U.S. President Donald Trump has delivered on campaign promises to tighten immigration controls and carry out a mass deportation drive -- aspects of which have been challenged in U.S. courts. Lame holds top spot on the wildly popular TikTok social media app, with 162.2 million followers and has risen to fame for his short silent videos mocking the convoluted tutorials and tips that abound on the internet. He punctuates his videos with a trademark gesture -- palms turned towards the sky, accompanied by a knowing smile and wide eyes -- as he offers his own simple remedies. The idea for his content came to him while wandering around the housing project where his family lived in Chivasso, near Turin, after losing his factory mechanic's job in March 2020. His posts took off -- helping him gross an estimated $16.5 million through marketing deals with companies in the period between June 2022 and September 2023, according to Forbes.

2 Reasons AMC Stock Is Soaring in June
2 Reasons AMC Stock Is Soaring in June

Globe and Mail

time21 hours ago

  • Globe and Mail

2 Reasons AMC Stock Is Soaring in June

AMC (NYSE: AMC) is the largest movie theater operator in the world, but being the leader in a troubled industry hasn't done much for the company over the past few years. With the advent of streaming and residual fears from the pandemic, moviegoing just isn't what it once was and AMC continues to struggle. However, Memorial Day weekend was a boon for the company and AMC stock has been climbing. Let's see why and what it means for the future. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue » 1. It's riding on the success of two smash-hit films Streaming from home has taken a toll on the box office, but there is still life left in theaters. Four of the top 10 highest-grossing films ever were released since the pandemic started, including Avatar: The Way of Water in the No. 3 spot and last year's Inside Out 2. People are still going to the movies. That fact was reinforced with a record Memorial Day weekend in May. Disney 's live-action remake of Lilo & Stitch had the highest-ever four-day Memorial Day opening, and it was buttressed by a strong showing for Paramount 's Mission: Impossible -- The Final Reckoning. Altogether, these two topped a blowout weekend with $326.7 million in domestic ticket sales, and Lilo & Stitch is already the second-highest-grossing domestic film of the year. Of course, that success trickled down to generate incredible financial results for AMC. Management said it set an all-time record for admissions revenue, food and beverage revenue, and total revenue for a weekend Memorial Day opening, and that the five-day stretch was the third-highest revenue for any five-day slot in more than 10 years. As for attendance, this was the highest-attended weekend and highest-attended five-day period of the year, both domestically and globally. Management didn't provide specific financial metrics for the weekend, so investors aren't likely to hear the nitty-gritty details until the second-quarter earnings release sometime in July or August. But management's update and optimism are boosting investor confidence. 2. It may have turned a corner It's nice for the company to have a solid, record-breaking opening, but can it last? Management thinks so, and the market may be pricing that in. CEO Adam Aron said that after this weekend, AMC has turned a corner. "With many more potentially huge movies coming in June all the way through the end of 2025, and beyond that deeply into 2026 as well," he said, "we firmly expect to be enjoying a robust theatrical box office as we look ahead." Here's what to be excited about. Disney has a full slate of films coming out over the next few years, including the third film in the Avatar series. The first two are the highest-grossing and third-highest-grossing films ever, and the next film is slated for release this coming December. It also has the next Frozen film and other top franchises coming out soon. Warner Bros. has its own expected hits coming out, including a new Superman, and Comcast 's Universal Studios has the next installment of Wicked and a new Shrek. Sequels to popular franchises can be big business. But the company is still reporting revenue declines and losses as of the 2025 first quarter. It will take some time to see if AMC has indeed turned a corner. The short sellers are out As the price has increased in June, so has the short interest in AMC, hitting almost 15% of all outstanding shares. These investors are betting on this being a short-term boost and that the price will fall from this surge. Even though AMC stock is up 29% over the past month, it's still down 15% year-to-date. Unless the company releases incredibly strong earnings for the second quarter and keeps up its performance, the price jump may not last. Part of what's frustrating about that for investors is that many variables are beyond the company's control. It's up to film producers to create hit movies that bring viewers into theaters and to make the decision to keep them there long enough before they hit streaming services. That can be quite lumpy. You need to have real confidence in the future of the film industry and the resilience of theaters as a beckoning call for die-hard fans to want to invest in AMC's future, and for most investors, that time isn't now. Should you invest $1,000 in AMC Entertainment right now? Before you buy stock in AMC Entertainment, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and AMC Entertainment wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $674,395!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $858,011!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor 's total average return is997% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to172%for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025 Jennifer Saibil has positions in Walt Disney. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Walt Disney. The Motley Fool recommends Comcast. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Our TikTok wedding: Why couples are turning their big day into social media content
Our TikTok wedding: Why couples are turning their big day into social media content

Globe and Mail

timea day ago

  • Globe and Mail

Our TikTok wedding: Why couples are turning their big day into social media content

In an era when people share everything online, from job updates to baby photos to vacation selfies, it's no surprise that weddings have also said 'I do' to the social-media spotlight. But it's not enough any more to just post candids to the grid. Now, couples, inspired by celebrity weddings, have begun hiring content creators to help them roll out the wedding quickly, in a package designed to be admired on a phone. Readers: Tell us about the best wedding you ever attended According to wedding market research firm Splendid Insights, one in six couples hired a content creator for their wedding last year. A wedding content creator is a professional hired to capture and package the big day specifically for social-media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram. The content creators get the behind-the-scenes moments, produce short-form videos, documentary-style videos and candid photos. The turnaround is fast – couples can share highlight reels as soon as the next morning. 'Everything we shoot is mostly done on a smartphone, and we shoot a lot of content in accordance with how they're seen on social media, so a lot of vertical shots for Instagram and TikTok,' says Felicity d'Eon, a full-time wedding content creator and wedding planner. According to a wedding trend report done by Hitch, there was a 586-per-cent increase in searches for wedding content creators in 2025 alone. 'Today's generation doesn't want to wait a couple months for their photos and videos,' says d'Eon, who started working part-time as a wedding planner and content creator in 2022. 'They want to wake up the next morning and post their big-day photos and videos online as soon as possible.' Increasingly, couples are planning their weddings with content in mind from the very beginning, according to a 2024 report by Zola, which surveyed almost 7,000 couples. That year, there were dramatic increases in searches for terms such as 'documentary wedding photos' and 'editorial wedding photos' on Pinterest, pointing to a preference for a cinematic, stylized approach tailored for social media. And wedding content creators are just a piece of the pie. 'If [couples are] going to be sharing on Instagram and their Facebook, it has to look top-notch. If they have a TikTok account or if they're influencers, absolutely it has to be curated and they're going to be focusing more on the photography, videography and the way it looks and feels,' says Tracey Manailescu, the co-founder of the Wedding Planners Institute of Canada. She also notes that the trend toward hyper-personalized visuals often comes with a high price tag: The starting price varies, but according to the wedding website the Knot, typical content-creation packages start at US$1,000. This is in addition to the US$2,900 average spent on a photographer, based on insights gathered from 17,000 U.S. couples who either got married in 2024 or are planning their 2025 weddings. Manailescu has also seen a growing trend of couples tailoring their special day to reflect their unique personalities. Instead of large crowds, some couples are opting for intimate gatherings that allow them to invest in a visually stunning and elegant experience. Every element is thoughtfully curated to personalize couples' wedding experience. Even things such as customized hashtags allow couples to share and collect wedding memories online. For Quinn Cove, a content creator who got married in 2024, the approach to her own wedding's content creation was more about balance than branding. 'Despite putting significant thought into capturing our wedding, through photography, videography and illustration, my primary intention was actually to reduce the time spent creating content on the day itself,' she stated. She and her husband put an emphasis on candid captures, limiting posed photos to just 30 minutes. Their documentary-style approach highlighted intimate moments: the two cuddling up in a car, or running off together with the bouquet. They also requested videography of the live ballet dancers who performed at their reception. 'We wanted something different,' she said. 'Content that reflected the genuine emotions and spontaneity of the day.' She emphasized the importance of not letting content creation eclipse the reason for the celebration. 'While capturing the day is important, so is living it.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store