Channel Zero (TV series)

Channel Zero
Genre Horror
Anthology
Supernatural
Drama
Created by Nick Antosca
Based on Candle Cove by Kris Straub (season 1)
The No-End House by Brian Russell (season 2)
Directed by Craig William Macneill (season 1)
Steven Piet (season 2)
Starring
Composer(s) Jeff Russo
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 1
No. of episodes 6 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)
Producer(s)
  • Jan Peter Meyboom
Location(s) Selkirk, Manitoba
Editor(s) Greg O'Bryant
Camera setup Single-camera
Production company(s)
Release
Original network Syfy
Original release October 11, 2016 (2016-10-11) – present

Channel Zero is an American horror anthology television series created by Nick Antosca. The series was greenlit for two 6-episode, self-contained seasons, slated to air in the fall of 2016 and the fall of 2017 on Syfy.[1] Storylines for the series are based on popular creepypastas.

The first announced installment, based on Kris Straub's Candle Cove, stars Paul Schneider and Fiona Shaw[2] and was directed by Craig William Macneill.[3] The series premiered on October 11, 2016.[4] Channel Zero's second season will be based on Brian Russell's "The No-End House" and will be directed by Steven Piet.[5][6]

Plot

Candle Cove (2016)

A child psychologist (Paul Schneider) returns to his small town home to investigate the mysterious disappearance of his twin brother and a slew of other children in the 1980s, and how it is connected to a bizarre local children's television show that aired at the same time.

The No-End House (2017)

A young woman named Margot Sleator (Amy Forsyth) visits the No-End House, a bizarre house of horrors that consists of a series of increasingly disturbing rooms. When she returns home, Margot realizes everything has changed.

Cast and characters

Candle Cove (2016)

  • Paul Schneider as Mike Painter
    • Luca Villacis as Eddie Painter/Young Mike Painter
  • Fiona Shaw as Marla Painter, Mike's mom
  • Kevin Klassen as Mike and Eddie's father
  • Abigail Pniowsky as Lily Painter, Mike's daughter
  • Natalie Brown as Jessica Yolen, Mike's childhood girlfriend
  • Shaun Benson as Gary Yolen, Jessica's husband
    • Greyden Bohotchuk as Young Gary
  • Katia Raquel Leon as Katie Yolen, Jessica's daughter
  • Liam Marchant as Dane Yolen, Jessica's son
  • Marina Stephenson Kerr as Frances Booth
    • Tara Koehler as Young Mrs. Booth
  • Connor Peterson as Jacob Booth
  • Keenan Lehmann as Alex Fry
  • Rachelle Casseus as Beth Fry
  • Dave Brown as Tim Hazel
  • Mackenzie Wojcik as Gene Hazel
  • Gwendolyn Collins as Daphne Bell
  • Jessica Loeppky as Chloe Benson
  • Darren Felbel as Bob "Fat Bob" Colt
  • Conan Hodgkinson as Carl Cutter
  • Christopher Read as Leslie Grimes
  • Bruce Novakowski as Simon Grove
  • Benjamin James Judson as Tommy Hasbrook
  • Susan Kelso as Mrs. Keller
  • Lauryn Mestito-Dao as Sofia Reyes
  • Luisa D'Oliveira as Amy Welch
  • Annika Irving as Sadie Williams
  • Lorraine James as Child Service Worker
  • James Juce and Meghan Duffy as Hikers
  • Jacqueline Guertin as Nurse
  • Cassandra Consiglio as The Tooth Child
  • Olivier de Sagazan as The Skin-Taker
  • Karen Valleau as Pirate Percy Puppet
  • Fred Stinson as Life Sized Puppet Jawbone and Life Sized Horace Horrible
  • Robert Mills as Life Size Puppet Jawbone and Life Sized Horace Horrible
  • Garth Merkeley and Tristan Carlucci as Jawbone Stunt Costume

The No-End House (2017)

Episodes

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateU.S. viewers
(millions)
11"You Have to Go Inside"Craig William MacneillNick AntoscaOctober 11, 2016 (2016-10-11)0.761[7]
Child psychologist Mike Painter returns to his home town of Iron Hill, Ohio nearly 30 years after a series of unsolved murders claimed the lives of 5 local children including his own twin brother whose body was never found. His mother, Marla, is the only family remaining in the area. He reconnects with friends Jessica and Gary (who is now the town's sheriff), and meets their daughter, Katie. Over dinner, Mike disucsses Candle Cove, a television show they watched as children around the time of the murders before it mysteriously stopped airing. Katie tells Mike that she's seen the show recently - a bizarre show involving nightmarish puppets acting as pirates. The next day Katie goes missing and Mike is under suspicion. Marla tells Mike that when he and his brother were watching Candle Cove as children, they were actually watching static on the television. Through Katie's brother, Dave, Mike realizes where he can find Katie. After following a skeleton-costumed character similar to one in Candle Cove, Mike discoverers Katie alive in the woods where the murders took place. Mike carries Katie back to her family, unaware she has left two of her teeth behind to be claimed by an eerie creature whose skin is entirely made up of teeth.
22"I'll Hold Your Hand"Craig William MacneillDon Mancini & Nick AntoscaOctober 18, 2016 (2016-10-18)0.626[8]
Gary and Jessica are awoken by their son's screams after Katie stabs him with a hook. Although Gary doesn't completely trust Mike, he allows him to talk to Katie at the hospital alone in order to discover what happened. Meanwhile, Marla visits a television station to ask about Candle Cove. The technician remembers the program and shows Marla a fan-made recreation, but tells her no tapes of the original show exist as it was impossible to record. Mike finds more links to the Candle Cove imagery in Katie's drawing, and uses it as a clue to visit an abandoned cement factory with his mother. Mike follows a mysterious figure into the factory alone, and discovers the decomposed remains of his brother, Eddie. That night Mike confesses to Marla that he killed Eddie as a child and buried his body, but it had been moved before the police dug up the grave site. Upset, Marla stabs Mike in the arm. The next day Gary comes to the house and asks Mike to come with him to the police station for questioning. However, along the way Mike realizes that Gary is taking him somewhere else.
33"Want to See Something Cool?"Craig William MacneillHarley PeytonOctober 25, 2016 (2016-10-25)0.552[9]
Gary takes Mike to an empty house he had wanted to buy, and handcuffs him in a chair. Tim and Daphne arrive at the house, where they all interrogate Mike about the murders of their family members, believing him responsible. Flashbacks reveal that Candle Cove inspired Eddie to kill Tim's bully brother, Gene, using psychic mind-control to make him walk off the edge of a cliff. Eddie continued vengefully killing other children in a similar way before Mike stopped him by stabbing him with a hook. In present day, the others doubt Mike's story, and Tim shoots him in the shoulder in a struggle for the truth. Marla, Jessica, and deputy Amy arrive at the house as Tim and Daphne run away. Seeing Mike's condition, Amy takes Gary into custody. A group of kids end up killing Tim as he walks home. Later, Daphne visits Ms. Booth, her former teacher who also lost a son in the murders. After explaining what happened with Mike at the house Booth suddenly slices Daphne's throat, and returns to host a group of children watching Candle Cove on her television. Mike's daughter, Lily, inexplicably arrives alone at Marla's house, even though she lives miles away.
44"A Strange Vessel"Craig William MacneillErica Saleh & Nick AntoscaNovember 1, 2016 (2016-11-01)0.465[10]
Lily reveals herself to be a manifestation of Eddie, and promises to send Mike "where he belongs". Fulfilling Eddie's wish, Mike breaks into the morgue with the help of Jessica and burns Eddie's skeletal remains. Jessica and Mike are shown to be childhood sweethearts when they were young. Acting-Sheriff Amy investigates the strange behavior of some kids and after a confusing encounter with Ms. Booth at school, she finds the children playing pirate in the gymnasium. Acting on a hunch, she searches Booth's home and finds Candle Cove props in her basement, eventually coming across Daphne's body. Meanwhile, Jessica returns home to discover several children masked in Candle Cove costumes who suddenly start stabbing her. She collapses, bleeding as Booth stands in the background. Lily regains consciousness as herself.
55"Guest of Honor"Craig William MacneillKatie Gruel & Mallory WestfallNovember 8, 2016 (2016-11-08)0.435[11]
Mike discovers an extra tooth breaking through his gum, a trait that only Eddie had as a child. Amy tells Mike about Jessica's murder, and she agrees to let Gary out of custody to help him search Ms. Booth's property. Gary discovers some teeth left on a fence post outside, and Mike realizes the Candle Cove props were fake. He receives a phone call from Booth instructing him to meet her alone at an abandoned diner. He goes there and witnesses Booth in the skeleton costume, controlling children into helping her commit murder. Later she goes to Marla's house, and she tells Mike and Marla how Eddie used his powers to control her seizures. It was also Eddie who created Candle Cove - not her. Booth killed her own son as a sacrifice for Eddie to maintain his power, and welcomes Eddie's return through Mike. That night at a motel, the tooth creature lures Lily away. As Mike attempts to extract his extra tooth, Candle Cove begins playing on the television, featuring a frightened Lily.
66"Welcome Home"Craig William MacneillNick Antosca & Harley Peyton and Don ManciniNovember 15, 2016 (2016-11-15)0.421[12]
Amy and Gary search for the children suspects, and Gary is able to reclaim his own children from Candle Cove's control. Mike's wife, Erica, demands to know where Lily is but he insists that he's the only one who can save her. He takes Erica to the site of the murders and loses consciousness, entering Eddie's parallel world filled with strange rooms and freakish monsters. When he finally comes face to face with Eddie, he allows Lily to leave if Mike will stay forever. Lily returns to reality by crawling through a TV, and is greeted by her mother. Marla goes to the woods where she is attacked by Ms. Booth. Marla is rescued at the last minute by Amy, who shoots Booth before Marla finally stabs her skull with the hook. Mike convinces Eddie to stay for one more card game they played as kids, delaying him long enough for Marla to return to the woods and suffocate Mike's body before Eddie can possess it. Unable to break free of his world, Eddie is forced to remain with Mike.

Production

In 2015, Syfy announced that they had greenlit Channel Zero for twelve episodes, which would air as two six episode seasons.[13] The first season would center upon the popular creepypasta Candle Cove and would be based on a script written by Antosca. The second season would focus on a new story, also based on a creepypasta or urban legend story.[14][15] Universal Cable Production would serve as the production company for the series, with Landis and Antosca both serving as the series' executive producers.[16]

Craig William Macneill was chosen to direct the first season of Channel Zero in February 2016.[17] Paul Schneider and Fiona Shaw were confirmed as starring in Channel Zero's first season in June 2016.[2] Schneider is set to portray Mike Painter, a child psychologist whose twin brother went missing years before and whose mother, portrayed by Shaw, is reluctant to indulge his desire to investigate.[2] Natalie Brown and Shaun Benson were also named as starring in the series. Filming began in Selkirk during May 2016 and wrapped on July 28, after 46 days of shooting.[18][19][20]

Season 2 will be called The No-End House.[5] Filming was set to start September 13, 2016 in Oakbank Manitoba, Canada.[6]

Reception

The first season of Channel Zero received generally favorable reviews from critics, with a Metacritic rating of 75 out of 100 based on 5 reviews.[21] On Rotten Tomatoes, it has a 91% approval rating based on 11 reviews, with an average rating of 6.8/10. The site's critics' consensus reads: "Creepy, unsettling, and refreshingly unique, Channel Zero: Candle Cove draws on easily relatable childhood fears while peeling back layers of spine-tingling mystery."[22]

Ratings

No. Title Air date Rating/share
(18–49)		 Viewers
(millions)		 DVR
(18–49)		 DVR viewers
(millions)		 Total
(18–49)		 Total viewers
(millions)
1 "You Have to Go Inside" October 11, 2016 0.2 0.76[7] 0.2 N/A 0.4[23] N/A
2 "I'll Hold Your Hand" October 18, 2016 0.2 0.63[8] 0.2 N/A 0.4[24] N/A
3 "Want to See Something Cool?" October 25, 2016 0.2 0.55[9] 0.2 N/A 0.4[25] N/A
4 "A Strange Vessel" November 1, 2016 0.2 0.47[10] N/A N/A N/A N/A
5 "Guest of Honor" November 8, 2016 0.1 0.44[11] N/A N/A N/A N/A
6 "Welcome Home" November 15, 2016 0.1 0.42[12] 0.2 N/A 0.3[26] N/A

References

  1. ↑ "The First "Channel Zero" Will Tell the Tale of 'Candle Cove'". Bloody Disgusting!. 2016-02-18. Retrieved 2016-08-10.
  2. 1 2 3 Prudom, Laura. "Syfy's 'Channel Zero' to Star Paul Schneider and Fiona Shaw (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety.com. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
  3. ↑ Petski, Denise. "Craig William Macneill To Direct 'Channel Zero: Candle Cove' On Syfy". Deadline.com. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
  4. ↑ Abrams, Natalie (August 3, 2016). "Syfy sets premiere dates for 'Incorporated,' 'Van Helsing,' more". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2016-08-10.
  5. 1 2 "Amy Forsyth Stirs Up Creepypasta in Channel Zero: The No-End House". Dread Central. 2016-08-17. Retrieved 2016-08-20.
  6. 1 2 "ACTRA Manitoba – What's Shooting". ACTRA Manitoba (archived). Archived from the original on 2016-06-19. Retrieved 2016-08-20.
  7. 1 2 Metcalf, Mitch (October 12, 2016). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 10.11.2016". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved October 12, 2016.
  8. 1 2 Metcalf, Mitch (October 19, 2016). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 10.18.2016". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved October 19, 2016.
  9. 1 2 Metcalf, Mitch (October 26, 2016). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 10.25.2016". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved October 26, 2016.
  10. 1 2 Metcalf, Mitch (November 2, 2016). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 11.1.2016". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved November 2, 2016.
  11. 1 2 Metcalf, Mitch (November 9, 2016). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 11.8.2016". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
  12. 1 2 Metcalf, Mitch (November 16, 2016). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 11.15.2016". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved November 16, 2016.
  13. ↑ Hipes, Patrick. "'Channel Zero' Anthology Series Gets Greenlight From Syfy For 2-Season Run". Deadline.com. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
  14. ↑ Fischer, Russ (2015-07-01). "Channel Zero Will Be a Creepypasta TV Series". Slash Film. Retrieved 2016-08-10.
  15. ↑ "Syfy Sheds Light on Creepypasta-Based Series Channel Zero: Candle Cove". Dread Central. 2016-08-04. Retrieved 2016-08-10.
  16. ↑ Goldberg, Leslie (June 30, 2015). "Syfy Prepping Anthology Based on Web Horror Phenomenon 'Creepypasta'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2016-08-10.
  17. ↑ http://deadline.com/2016/02/craig-william-macneill-direct-channel-zero-candle-cove-syfy-1201704934/
  18. ↑ King, Randall (April 8, 2016). "Horror TV series to be shot in Winnipeg seeks child actors, extras". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved 2016-08-10.
  19. ↑ Antosca, Nick (May 27, 2016). "First week of shooting CHANNEL ZERO in Manitoba. Killer cast. Killer crew. Can't believe we get to do this.". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-08-10.
  20. ↑ Macneil, Craig (July 28, 2016). "That's a wrap! Day 46! #candlecove #channelzero". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-08-10.
  21. ↑ "Channel Zero: Season 1". Metacritic. Retrieved October 12, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Channel Zero: Candle Cove". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved November 6, 2016.
  23. ↑ Porter, Rick (October 27, 2016). "'AHS: Roanoke' is the runaway leader in cable Live +7 ratings for Oct. 10-16". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved October 27, 2016.
  24. ↑ Porter, Rick (November 4, 2016). "'Walking Dead' premiere, 'AHS: Roanoke' dominate cable Live +7 ratings for Oct. 17-23". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
  25. ↑ Porter, Rick (November 10, 2016). "'Walking Dead,' 'Atlanta,' 'AHS' cable Live +7 ratings for Oct. 24-30". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  26. ↑ Porter, Rick (December 1, 2016). "'The Walking Dead's' DVR numbers are down too: Cable Live +7 ratings for Nov. 14-20". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
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