By MICHAEL GINGOLD
The show based on the popular found-footage horror podcast has received an eight-episode order from the streaming service.
James Wan and Michael Clear of Atomic Monster are executive producers on the ARCHIVE 81 series, with podcast creators Marc Sollinger and Daniel Powell as co-producers. Rebecca Thomas (STRANGER THINGS) is also an executive producer and will direct half the series, including the premiere episode, from a script written by showrunner Rebecca Sonnenshine (THE BOYS, THE VAMPIRE DIARIES) and developed by Paul Harris Boardman (THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE, DELIVER US FROM EVIL). Mamoudou Athie (WELCOME TO THE BLUMHOUSE: BLACK BOX) and Dina Shihabi star; the synopsis: “When archivist Dan Turner [Athie] takes a mysterious job restoring a collection of damaged videotapes from 1994, he finds himself reconstructing the work of documentary filmmaker Melody Pendras [Shihabi] and her investigation into a dangerous cult. As Dan is drawn into Melody’s story, he becomes convinced he can save her from the terrifying end she met 25 years ago.”
“With ARCHIVE 81,” Sonnenshine says, “we’re hoping to give the supernatural horror genre a new twist–while keeping a dark, deeply emotional romance as its core. Alongside the talented Mamoudou Athie and Dina Shihabi, and visionary partners Atomic Monster and Rebecca Thomas, I’m excited to take Netflix viewers on a terrifying and visually thrilling adventure.”
