The Stephen King-inspired anthology series Creepshow has been granted a second season by horror streamer Shudder. While great to hear, this isn’t too surprising, as the show’s been a solid performer for the network, wrapping its first season on Halloween. Overseen by The Walking Dead‘s Greg Nicotero, Creepshow‘s commitment to old-school special effects have made it a treat for Shudder subscribers, with Deadline reporting that roughly half of the platform’s audience have seen at least one episode.
The original George A. Romero-directed Creepshow movie was a labor of love for Romero and King, and while later sequels offered diminishing returns (Creepshow 3 is particularly worth avoiding), its success set up a wave of horror anthologies in the 1980s and 1990s.
Commenting on the impact Creepshow has had on Shudder, the service’s GM Craig Engler had this to say:
“Creepshow has met every expectation we had for Shudder’s first original scripted series and then some, with record numbers across the board. Greg Nicotero and his team delivered an amazing show that’s unlike anything else on TV and we’re thrilled and delighted to bring it back for another season.”
Over its first season of six episodes, Creepshow has adapted Stephen King short story “Gray Matter,” while also working with the author’s son Joe Hill on several installments. Each episode features two stories, with directors including Tom Savini, John Harrison and Rob Schrab, and appearances from actors such as David Arquette, Jeffrey Combs and Kid Cudi, to name a few. Furthermore, segments from the original movie and the Shudder series were recently made part of Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights theme park event.
A second season of Creepshow adds to the long list of Stephen King projects we can expect in 2020 and beyond, including a new version of The Stand on CBS All Access and remakes of Salem’s Lot and The Tommyknockers. While It: Chapter Two didn’t quite deliver on its hype, the currently on-release Doctor Sleep is getting some positive notices and television series like Castle Rock and Mr. Mercedes are doing excellent work on streaming platforms, with The Outsider coming to HBO next year as the wave of King content keeps coming.