Food Network’s two fan-favorite Halloween competitions are back for 2026, and they premiered on back-to-back nights. Halloween Wars opened its 16th season on Sunday, September 13 at 9|8c, and Halloween Baking Championship followed with its 12th season on Monday, September 14 at 9|8c. Both shows opened with two-hour premieres, and new episodes stream the next day on HBO Max.
Halloween Wars Season 16: “Back from the Dead”
Halloween Wars kicks off a “Back from the Dead” season, bringing back all-star pumpkin carvers, cake artists, and sugar masters, some defending former titles and others hunting for redemption. Jonathan Bennett returns as host, joined by judges Shinmin Li and Andrew Fuller, who award $30,000 to the winning team.
The two-hour premiere ran two rounds. It opened with head-to-head battles that Food Network said could put even the strongest teams of former champions in jeopardy, then dropped the losing teams into a “Do or Die” showdown where one team was eliminated. On social, host Jonathan will take on mini-Halloween challenges while Shinmin and Andrew share home-baking tips, all under #HalloweenWars.
The eight teams competing on Halloween Wars
Season 16 fields eight all-star teams, each pairing a cake artist, a sugar artist, and a professional pumpkin carver. Food Network’s gallery blurb says seven, but its own roster and the HBO Max and Prime Video listings all count eight.
- Poisonous Perfection: the reigning Season 15 champions, Jamie Louks (Seattle), Karine Turgeon (Quebec), and Paulina Stovall (San Jose, CA).
- The Skeletons: Kristina Patenaude (Temple, TX), Susana Mijares (San Antonio, TX), and Lily Halabi (Harker Heights, TX).
- Boo Crew: Nils Rowland (St. Augustine, FL), Mark Lie (Chicago), and David Smith (Columbus, OH).
- Blood Suckers: Cesar Barachina (Coppell, TX), Sabrina Jurado (Los Angeles), and Anthony Pater (Edinboro, PA).
- Team Ghoul’d: Christophe Rull (San Marcos, CA), Liz Marek (Portland, OR), and Mike Brown (Springfield, MO).
- Fright Squad: Jonathan Elias (Troy, MI), Elizabeth Rowe (Dallas), and Rebecca DeGroot (Spring, TX).
- The Creepers: Marianne Daquino (San Diego), William Wilson (Cincinnati), and Tenisha Billington (Passaic, NJ).
- The Howlers: Tator Edwards (Columbus, OH), Reva Alexander-Hawk (Atlanta), and Kristen Eagles (Woodstock, Ontario).
The haunt world on the carving table
The pumpkin-carving side of Halloween Wars is where the show crosses into our world. Paulina Stovall, who took the Season 15 title with Poisonous Perfection, runs CarvedFX, a San Jose company that stages live carving and immersive displays for events and haunt-style installations. David “Pablo” Smith, on Boo Crew, is a world-champion ice sculptor who won the 2017 spinoff Halloween Wars: Hayride of Horror. Brian “Tator” Edwards captains The Howlers out of central Ohio. The show has reached for horror names before, too: Elvira has judged, and Zak Bagans hosted in 2021 and 2022.
For 2026, the winning team’s prize rose to $30,000 from $25,000 a year ago, and Andrew Fuller joined Shinmin Li on the judging panel in place of Aarti Sequeira, who moved over to Halloween Baking Championship.
Halloween Baking Championship Season 12: The Museum of Unnatural History
The following night, Halloween Baking Championship returned with 10 bakers competing for the title and a $25,000 prize. Host John Henson plays curator of this year’s setting, the grand foyer of the Museum of Unnatural History, where exhibits like Possessed Pests, Demon Masks, and a Vault of Bones inspire the challenges. Judges Stephanie Boswell, Aarti Sequeira, and Zac Young decide who survives to bake another day.
The two-hour premiere opened with a Haunted Heat built around each baker’s “Best Halloween Ever,” with the winner taking $1,000 and the top three staying safe. The rest faced a “Bake for Your Life” round, creating “Hideous Mask Desserts” inspired by the museum’s Hall of Humanity, and the least successful baker went home. Follow along on social with #HalloweenBakingChampionship.
The 10 bakers competing on Halloween Baking Championship
Ten bakers are competing for the $25,000 title:
- Baindu Squire: New Orleans, cake artist.
- Caleb King: Seattle, pastry sous chef.
- Ciarra Roberts: Denver, pastry sous chef.
- Elizabeth Suwanski: Chicago area, project manager and home baker.
- Justin Giordano: New York City, cake artist and a returning Season 11 competitor.
- Katie Shegda: Greenville, SC, pastry chef.
- Kyle Caulkins: Charleston, SC, pastry chef.
- Kyle Olson: Columbus, OH, executive pastry chef.
- Lisa Pak: New York City, home bakery owner.
- Marian Mulero: Miami, owner of Chef Marian Cakes.
Per TV Insider, Marian Mulero won the premiere’s first Haunted Heat with a mousse skull, and Katie Shegda was the first baker sent home. Judge Aarti Sequeira is new to the Baking Championship panel this season, replacing Carla Hall, and the show traded last year’s haunted mansion setting for the Museum of Unnatural History.
How to Watch
Halloween Wars Season 16 premiered Sunday, September 13, and Halloween Baking Championship Season 12 premiered Monday, September 14, both at 9|8c on Food Network. Episodes of both series stream the next day on HBO Max. Food Network has announced premiere dates but has not published a full episode schedule or finale date for either show. For more of what to watch this season, see our Halloween TV specials 2026 guide.
