Programming Profile

The scripted and unscripted worlds have embraced paranormal themes in recent years. Neil Batey explores this growing market and how things might look in 2023.

If you’re a producer or distributor of supernatural and paranormal programming, scary season stretches way beyond Halloween – the global TV audience’s appetite for fright is active 365 days a year, whether there’s a full moon or not.

From black-and-white old-school classics like The Twilight Zone and Dark Shadows in the 1960s to modern-day streaming favourites such as Stranger Things and The Addams Family spin-off Wednesday – two of Netflix’s most-watched shows – viewers have always harboured a fascination with the strange, creepy, unexplainable and unutterably horrifying.

Originally considered niche programming and often curated on obscure cable or specialist channels, the undead genre has been resurrected in recent years thanks to the rise of SVoD and AVoD platforms, which all feature libraries packed with blood-curdling content.

The genre owes a debt to the worldwide success of The X-Files, which first aired on Fox in 1993 and ran for 11 seasons spanning 218 episodes and inspiring two spin-off feature films. It starred David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson as FBI agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, who investigated mystifying cases connected to paranormal and extra-terrestrial themes.

American screenwriter and executive producer Frank Spotnitz worked on The X-Files for eight seasons from 1994, directing two episodes and either writing or co-writing more than 40.

“The X-Files was definitely a pop cultural phenomenon, and it was so exciting to be involved in that show,” says Spotnitz. “The tagline was ‘The truth is out there,’ and for the supernatural genre in general, you don’t need to believe in God, ghosts or aliens to appreciate the sense of mystery in the universe. Supernatural storytelling taps into the unknown and that can be either terrifying, moving or exhilarating, depending on how you see the world.

“The X-Files was a once-in-a-lifetime show and a very important piece of television. It certainly led to a revival of interest in the supernatural genre, due to the show’s sophisticated, plausible storytelling and cinematic visual presentation.

“The future is very bright for shows in this space. The audience right now is bigger than it’s ever been and thanks to the huge financial resources of the streaming platforms, the storytelling and CGI visual effects are incredibly accomplished.”

Spotnitz also worked on occult detective series Millennium from 1996 to 1999 for Fox, and ABC’s 2005 drama Night Stalker, about a reporter investigating supernatural happenings. He is now CEO and founder of Big Light Productions, a London- and Paris-based prodco that made dystopian sci-fi series The Man in the High Castle for Amazon Prime and historical drama Medici for Netflix.

For any prodcos looking to develop their own supernatural scripted projects, Spotnitz advises that basing a show on existing intellectual property (IP), while certainly helpful in many ways, is not an essential pre-requisite. “IP can give buyers confidence that this expensive genre is worth mounting,” he says. “Buyers tend to feel safer if the project has already existed in another form and been successful.

“That said, The X-Files was completely original with no underlying IP whatsoever. So my argument is that you don’t need IP, what’s more important is having a strong vision, with creative talent who know what they want to say.”

Another 1990s supernatural series that remains a big influence on the genre is Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003), created by Joss Whedon and starring Sarah Michelle Gellar as a high school demon slayer.

Its DNA can be found all over Astrid & Lilly Save the World, a new comedy-drama starring Jana Morrison and Samantha Aucoin as two teenage misfits who unexpectedly open a portal to another dimension, then must battle monsters to save civilisation.

Made by Canadian prodco Blue Ice Pictures, it airs on cable channel Syfy in the US, CTV Sci-fi channel in Canada and new streamer ITVX in the UK. Hailed by critics as a “funnier, less angsty Buffy,” the youth-skewing series was made by a creative team staffed almost entirely by women and non-binary people.

“Thematically, Astrid & Lilly is very female-driven and also has strong queer elements to the story, so we wanted to make sure those voices were authentically represented,” says Samantha Levine, VP of production at Blue Ice. “There is a feeling of ‘otherness’ and that topic seems more relatable to women and non-binary people. It’s a show made by outsiders about outsiders.

“What makes Astrid & Lilly unique is that our leads are both larger women, they’re bullied and have relationships with both boys and girls. They learn to embrace who they really are, what their bodies look like and not be ashamed of themselves. Our leads don’t look like Buffy, so they’re more relatable to younger viewers. Making misfits the heroes is great; I wish I had a show like this to watch back when I was in high school myself.”

Blue Ice also produce Surreal Estate, a paranormal drama on CTV Sci-fi Channel and Syfy that follows a realtor (played by Tim Rozon) as he brokers properties that are haunted or possessed. A second season is currently being filmed.

“We’re seeing shows of this genre appearing on a much greater breadth of platforms, particularly streamers,” says Daniel Iron, VP at Blue Ice. “It’s opened second windows, which helps us with financing projects as we can now bring a combination of partners to the table.

“Supernatural shows are now exposed to much bigger audiences and there’s a lot of interest from broadcasters and streamers to commission them. At Blue Ice, we see this space as a great field to work within, which is why we have other projects in various stages of development right now.”

Much more sombre in tone, though no less compelling, is Sky’s German original Souls. Produced by Geibendorfer Pictures, the eight-part series tells the story of three women whose lives are turned upside down after one of the trio’s son is involved in a serious car accident, after which he remembers his previous life as the pilot of a lost passenger jet.

“The premise is, do you believe in reincarnation or that a soul can travel?” says Frank Jastfelder, director of original scripted production at Sky Deutschland. “It’s supernatural in the sense that you can’t get hold of it rationally, so it’s complex, emotional and very ambitious.”

In that sense, Souls is comparable to more thought-provoking and existential examples of the supernatural genre, such as 2012’s Les Revenants (The Returned), which won an Emmy for Best Drama Series and was later adapted in an English-language version for A&E in the US.

However, Jastfelder admits that there are inherent risks in producing supernatural content that is perhaps less accessible to mainstream audiences.

“When we received the pitch for Souls, I was initially reluctant because at first look it seemed very esoteric, spiritual and maybe not quite grippy enough,” he says. “In 2020, we produced another Sky Original drama called Hausen, which was a haunted house story and, unfortunately, not successful because it was probably a bit too dark and moody.

“As producers, you must cater to your viewers and here at Sky our audience is very male-driven and love action, horror and fantasy, but probably in a broader and more commercial vein. I would be interested in making more supernatural programming if the right idea came along, but it probably needs to be more ‘popcorn entertainment’ – like Stranger Things, for example.”

Aside from scripted, paranormal television is also a genre of reality TV that sees investigators detail alleged ‘real-life’ hauntings. Recent years have seen the burgeoning sub-genre grow to become a staple for channels and platforms such as A+E Networks’ History Channel and Warner Bros Discovery-owned Travel Channel, both in the US.

In the UK, meanwhile, the so-called ‘first lady of the paranormal’ Yvette Fielding has presented numerous seasons of reality shows like Most Haunted and Ghosthunting with… on channels ITV2, Living TV and Really.

Toronto-headquartered Cream Productions is a specialist in this field, producing an extensive range of paranormal content such as The Haunted Museum and A Ghost Ruined My Life for Discovery+ and Paranormal Emergency for Travel Channel.

“There are definitely more buyers for paranormal than ever before,” says Kate Harrison, president of Cream. “The stories our shows tell are centred on human experience and authenticity.

“Whether you are a believer in ghosts or not, these hauntings have affected people’s lives in immeasurable ways. As documentary makers, we don’t get to have an opinion – it’s about giving people an open-minded, sensitive and respectful platform to tell audiences about their often-terrifying experiences.”

Cream also produced 2×60’ documentary special Bathsheba: Search for Evil on Canadian network T&E, which was distributed around the world by Blue Ant International.

“Our channel audiences are hungry for paranormal content,” says Sam Linton, head of original content for Blue Ant Media’s Canadian channels. “They love to be scared by a good ghost story. We want any ideas that tell paranormal stories in a fresh way.”

Warner Bros Discovery (WBD), too, is seeking more paranormal content, specifically hosted by fresh young talent for its linear channel Really and Discovery+ in the UK. WBD executives at C21’s recent Content London event told delegates at a Factual & Formats panel discussion that programming featuring ghosthunters is still much in demand.

“Our audience are believers, so we are believers,” delegates were told by Clare Laycock, senior VP and head of content, networks and streaming at WBD in the UK. “For us, paranormal isn’t talking to dead relatives, it’s all about ghost investigations and ghost hunting. We really want to find cool, young, diverse talent in the paranormal space.”

Indeed, with economists predicting a likely global recession in 2023 and TV commissioners tightening their purse strings accordingly, non-scripted paranormal programming could become a potentially lucrative space to exploit next year.

“The unscripted community has always benefitted from the hard times,” says Harrison. “It’s generally cheaper to make than scripted and it’s becoming more obvious to a lot of buyers that unscripted attracts as many eyeballs as big drama series.

“Looking to the future, I believe that networks and streamers will be looking to commission more unscripted in general. Paranormal will have a big part to play in that, because this is a genre with a very loyal built-in audience – especially in Canada, the US, UK and South America, where the afterlife and spirits are part of their cultural history.”