Peacock is gearing up to give subscribers a real treat this Halloween season. As part of its Halloween programming, Peacock will unleash the new horror series “Hysteria!,” whose new trailer teases some serious satanic panic as a local metal band raises some hell.
Directed by Jonathan Goldstein (Dungeons & Dragons, Game Night), the series sees “a beloved varsity quarterback disappear during the “Satanic Panic” of the late 1980s. “A struggling high school heavy metal band of outcasts realize they can capitalize on the town’s sudden interest in the occult by building a reputation as a Satanic metal band, until a bizarre series of murders, kidnappings, and reported “supernatural activity” triggers a leather-studded witch hunt that leads directly back to them.”
The eight-episode first season of “Hysteria!” features an all-star cast that includes Julie Bowen (Modern Family), Anna Camp (Pitch Perfect), and genre icon Bruce Campbell (The Evil Dead) as the town Sheriff. Emjay Anthony, Chiara Aurelia, Kezii Curtis and Nikki Hahn also star.
Executive producers and writers Mathew Scott Kane and David A. Goodman had this to say about the series:
“What are those kids up to? Whatever it is, it can’t be good.”
That fear haunts every generation. Children of the Atomic Age went on to terrifying their families by turning on, tuning in and dropping out in the sixties. Those same “free spirits” went on to vote for Reagan and called for censorship of the “obscene” and “satanic” heavy metal bands their own kids worshiped. Now, those kids are adults who rail against pronouns, TikTok, and a movie about Barbie. The cycle doesn’t end. And it’s hard to escape the feeling that someone, or something, is sitting by watching it all, and laughing.
Hysteria! is about both sides of that generational fear. It’s about the thrills of being young, rebellious in spirit and aspirational at heart – and the horrors of growing up and realizing that the world you thought you knew has shifted beneath your feet.
Our hope is that parents and children (of the appropriate age, of course) can enjoy the chills, the laughs, the music, and the heart of Hysteria! together. Growing up is scary. So is parenting.
Watch “Hysteria!” on Peacock, USA Network, and SYFY when it premieres on October 18. USA Network will air episodes each Friday.
