Psycho is an American horror-thriller
media franchise consisting of six films loosely based on the
Psycho novels by
Robert Bloch, namely
Psycho,
Psycho II,
Psycho III,
Bates Motel,
Psycho IV: The Beginning, the
1998 remake of the original film, and additional merchandise spanning various media. The first film,
Psycho, was directed by filmmaker
Alfred Hitchcock. Subsequently, another film related to the series was made: an
Alfred Hitchcock biopic. Also, an independent documentary called
The Psycho Legacy was released on October 19, 2010. It mostly focused on
Psycho II,
Psycho III and
Psycho IV: The Beginning, but did cover the impact and legacy of the original film. A TV series,
Bates Motel, premiered on A&E on March 18, 2013, being a prequel to the first film but in a modern-day setting. It stars
Freddie Highmore as a teenaged Norman Bates and
Vera Farmiga as his mother Norma Bates.