Ice Cream Man

In the 1960s, the local ice cream man Butch Brickle, known as the Ice Cream King, is shot in a drive-by and dies, shattering the community. A young Gregory Tudor learns of the crime and its chilling implications for his future. The incident establishes the mystique and danger surrounding the Ice Cream King's business.

In the early 1970s, Gregory takes over the Ice Cream King's business, adopting the moniker The Ice Cream Prince. He begins using the former king's truck and parlor as his base of operation. The public sees no overt danger, even as Gregory's rule grows more secretive.

The parlor is repurposed into a secret laboratory where Gregory crafts his grotesque mixtures. He blends insects and dismembered human pieces into his ice cream-like concoctions. The laboratory activities are hidden from customers and neighbors.

Gregory kills a dog belonging to Nurse Wharton, his landlord and caregiver who treated him for childhood trauma. The same night, Roger, a neighborhood boy, disappears without a trace. The events link Gregory to the escalating danger in the area.

The neighbors suspect Gregory of kidnapping Roger, but the police and Nurse Wharton are unconvinced. The tension between the children's suspicions and official skepticism grows.

Three kids—Johnny, Heather, and Tuna—team up to look for Roger, driven by fear and curiosity. They start collecting clues and questioning adults, hoping to prove Gregory's involvement.

Soon after, another boy, Small Paul, vanishes, widening the fear and urgency among the children. The cases seemingly connect to Gregory's behavior.

Gregory experiences recurring flashbacks of abusive treatment at the Wishing Well Sanatorium, hinting at the deep wounds behind his cruelty. The memory explains his unsettling fixation and capacity for violence.

The kids discover that Roger and Small Paul are imprisoned in a cage inside the parlor, confirming Gregory's kidnapping. They realize the danger is real and close to home.

Small Paul shows a macabre interest in the experiments, and Gregory takes him under his wing, blurring lines between victim and apprentice. The dynamic explains the boy's suspicious calm around the cruelty.

Two detectives investigate the chaotic Wishing Well Sanatorium, where unregulated care and dangerous patients run free, challenging the police to take action. Their investigation shifts the narrative toward the kids’ claims.

Gregory abducts Tuna, and Johnny’s older brother Jacob joins the case to help, only to be killed along with his girlfriend by Gregory’s hand. The murders escalate the stakes for the children and the town.

Small Paul uses a photo of the Ice Cream King to bait Gregory into the main mixer, where Gregory is dismembered in a brutal turn of events. The plan brings justice for the missing children, at least momentarily.

Roger and Tuna reunite with their friends, and Small Paul is said to be sent to therapy, leaving the others to cope with the horrors uncovered. The final shot shows Small Paul alone in a dark room, churning an ice cream bucket with a chilling, evil leer.