# Fear Itself (2008)

> A one-season horror anthology in which separate standalone tales of dread are each directed by a different horror filmmaker.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/6648

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 13
- Episode runtime: 42 min
- Status: Canceled
- Genres: horror, drama
- Created by: Mick Garris
- Network: NBC
- Cast: Paula Jai Parker, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Victoria Pratt, John Pyper-Ferguson, Briana Evigan, Terence Kelly, Stephen Lee, Brooklyn Sudano
- TMDB rating: 6.9/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1112285/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: simple
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: unsettling, suspenseful, eerie, grim

## What critics say

Critics found the single season of standalone horror tales uneven, with ambitious premises and a few strong episodes undercut by inconsistent execution.

## Synopsis

Fear Itself is a Canadian-American horror anthology created by Mick Garris for NBC, running a single season of self-contained stories. Each hour stands alone with a fresh cast and no carried-over characters, so viewers never need to follow a continuing plot. The engine of every episode is an ordinary person pulled into an unsettling situation that slides steadily into dread. Episodes were directed by working horror filmmakers, giving the tales cinematic polish, strong mood and an emphasis on atmosphere over explanation. The tone is unsettling, suspenseful and grim, with graphic violence and disturbing imagery aimed at adult viewers who want a compact dose of standalone scares. Twists land hard, and the frame matters less than the individual nightmare inside each story. Fans of Masters of Horror and Tales from the Crypt will recognise the appetite for grisly, shadowy, self-contained fright. The series was canceled after its first run, leaving one complete season that works as a sampler of genre storytelling in which every installment is its own small, unforgiving nightmare with no sequel to wait for.

## Shows like Fear Itself

- [The Outer Limits (1995)](https://ember.film/tv/19862)
- [R. L. Stine's The Haunting Hour (2010)](https://ember.film/tv/31153)
- [Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities (2022)](https://ember.film/tv/71344)
- [FROM (2022)](https://ember.film/tv/103271)
- [Darknet (2013)](https://ember.film/tv/55952)
- [50 States of Fright (2020)](https://ember.film/tv/79680)
- [Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King (2006)](https://ember.film/tv/4125)
- [Hammer House of Horror (1980)](https://ember.film/tv/39530)
- [Channel Zero (2016)](https://ember.film/tv/59552)
- [Them (2021)](https://ember.film/tv/100070)

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