Television horror shows — as in TV series telling tales of terror, not Young Sheldon — are popular in these parts with the likes of The Haunting of Hill House, Channel Zero, and The Terror all being recent favorites around the FSR office. One that we’ve been excited about ever since it was first announced late last year is the return of Stephen King’s Creepshow, this time to TV via AMC’s Shudder streaming service. Famed makeup f/x artist and The Walking Dead executive producer Greg Nicotero is tackling similar duties here, and new details have just been revealed as the show officially starts production.
The first season (hopefully of many) arrives this fall in the form of six episodes. It’s unclear how many stories will make up each episode, but we know the number is more than one. Per the official press release, the season will feature an as-yet-unannounced story by King — still hoping for “Survivor Type” — alongside others including the following:
- “By the Silvery Waters of Lake Champlain” by Joe Hill (NOS4A2)
- “House of the Head” by Josh Malerman (Bird Box)
- “The Companion” by Joe Lansdale (The Bottoms)
- “The Man in the Suitcase” by Christopher Buehlman (The Lesser Dead)
- “All Hallows Eve” by Bruce Jones (The Hitchhiker)
- “Night of the Paw” by John Esposito (The Walking Dead: Webisodes)
- “Bad Wolf Down” by Rob Schrab (Monster House)
It’s a good mix of heavy hitters like King, Lansdale, and Hill alongside some less recognizable names, and it’s more than enough to get us excited for the fall. It is something of a white wiener festival, though, so we’re hoping some female writers find their way into the next update. The news is slightly better behind the camera as Roxanne Benjamin (XX, 2017; Body at Brighton Rock, 2019) has also been announced as directing one of the tales alongside Nicotero, Schrab, David Bruckner (The Ritual, 2018), and John Harrison (Tales from the Darkside: The Movie, 1990). Again, more names and story details are forthcoming as we get closer to the series premiere later this year and we’re keeping our fingers crossed that more female horror talents will be announced as writers/directors.
The show is clearly in good hands with people who love both the horror genre and the Creepshow aesthetic itself. In addition to King’s obvious involvement with the original film(s), Harrison composed the score for the first movie, Nicotero provided makeup f/x for the sequel, and Hill played the little boy in the original’s wraparound segments. Shudder feels like the ideal home for them all too, and while this will be the service’s first scripted series they’ve already proven themselves adept at creating original content. Their new Horror Noire documentary is essential viewing for genre fans, and Joe Bob Briggs’ marathon hosting sessions have been enough to bring tears of joy to those of us three or four decades deep in our horror movie appreciation.
It’s unclear if the series will stick with comic book panels for the intros as in the first film or if it will feature a live-action “Creep” as witnessed in the sequel, but my money’s on the former. At least I hope that’s the case. Giving voice to him competes too directly (and poorly) with Tales from the Crypt‘s Cryptkeeper and is an unnecessary distraction and delay from the stories themselves. I wouldn’t be against King himself serving as host/narrator though…