If you’re in the mood for something scary (that isn’t related to the news), AMC is serving up freaky fun with Creepshow. Following its premiere on Shudder last year, the series is making its debut tonight on AMC, which will air back-to-back episodes every Monday night through May 18.
Produced by The Walking Dead Executive Producer Greg Nicotero, Creepshow is based on the horror anthology movies, the first of which was written by Stephen King, who also starred in one of its five vignettes. That connection remains, with the episode “Gray Matter” spun-off from a King story. The show’s style is also heavily indebted to Tales from the Crypt, which similarly featured pulpy, short-form horror tales ripped from the pages of comic books (the first season of Creepshow is based on short fiction by writers like Bruce Jones, Joe Lansdale, and Joe Hill, King's son).
Tonight's episodes feature a pair of stories that feel true to the spirit of the original Creepshow. The first is the aforementioned “Gray Matter,” which splits the difference between King — in its depiction of an alcoholic, abusive father — and the gross body horror of its source film. The second — “The House of the Head,” which was written by Bird Box author Josh Malerman — leans a little more into the absurd humor that spiced up George A. Romero’s first two Creepshow films.
That sense of humor crops up again in the subsequent episodes, which are about Nazi-fighting Werewolves and a finger that grows into an alien. It’s a smart move that places Creepshow squarely into the “fun”, rather than “messed up”, category of horror. And featuring actors like Giancarlo Esposito (Breaking Bad/ Better Call Saul), David Arquette (Scream), DJ Qualls (Supernatural), Kid Cudi, and Tricia Helfer (Battlestar Galactica), the show is well-executed.
So even though Halloween may be a long way off, Creepshow is here with a long, skeletal finger to scratch your horror itch. It might be slightly less scary than the daily news, but it certainly is more fun.
Creepshow premieres Monday, May 4 at 10pm ET on AMC. Back-to-back episodes will air each Monday night through May 18.