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James Wan's 'terrifying' new horror show is the perfect addition to superb MGM+ chiller

Ahead of Halloween, James Wan arrives with a new sci-fi horror show for Peacock

ATLANTA, GEORGIA: James Wan, the mastermind behind the hit 'The Conjuring' universe, has a brand new horror show just in time for the festive season. Titled 'Teacup', the show premiered with two episodes on Thursday, October 10, which will conclude with Halloween, on October 31.

The highly anticipated show is a treat for horror genre fans, as it's based on Robert McCammon's 1988 novel 'Stinger'. This is the first time one of McCammon's novels has been adapted for the screen, a moment fans have been eagerly awaiting for decades. The show has also generated buzz after receiving a nod from the King of Horror.

Stephen King gives a thumbs up to 'Teacup'

77-year-old Stephan King, known as the 'King of Horror' for his contribution to the genre, has recommended people to watch 'Teacup'. On October 2, a week before the premiere of the series, he took to his official X account, suggesting his 7 million+ audiences watch 'Teacup'.

Drawing comparisons with MGM+'s 'From' and Netflix’s 'Dark', King wrote in his post, "TEACUP: If you like FROM or LOST, I think you'll enjoy this. It's strange, creepy, claustrophobic, and scary. Beware the Gas Mask Man. Short episodes. All killer, no filler."

Both 'Teacup' and 'From' fall within the sci-fi horror genre. The first season of 'From' opened to positive reviews from fans, followed by the release of the second season in April 2023 and Season 3 in September 2024. 'Teacup' serves as just the right replacement to fill the immediate void caused by the conclusion of the MGM+ series.

What is the plot of 'Teacup'?

"Teacup follows a disparate group of people in rural Georgia who must come together in the face of a mysterious threat to survive," reads the official synopsis for 'Teacup'.

The series opened with a scene of a mystery woman wandering in the woods, covered in blood and mumbling a cryptic message. The scene cuts to a ranch where we are introduced to Maggie and Chenoweth living with their children- Arlo and Meryl. One afternoon, Arlo chases a goat into the woods where he comes across the mystery woman. Their interaction is eerie, as the woman transfers a mysterious energy to Arlo. Upon returning home, he begins to repeat her words in a loop.

We are further introduced to an unidentified masked man who draws a blue line around the ranch and warns James to not cross it. Those who do, meet with a tragic end. While the premiere episode didn't disclose any of the mysteries, 'Stinger' suggests the arrival of two aliens from Earth. One is a fugitive, who finds home in a human body (which explains the odd behavior of Arlo) and the other is the bounty hunter (supposedly the masked man).

However, Teacup’s creator and showrunner Ian McCulloch has hinted that the series won't be a faithful adaptation of Robert McCammon’s novel. He noted that it would be "99.8% different from the book," stating, "I didn’t want to do a direct adaptation word for word. It’s not interesting to me," in an interview with Bloody Disgusting.

"If you want the experience of the book, go read the book. This is a very different thing. To everybody’s credit, they let us, me and my writers, go as far as we wanted. I think you’d be hard-pressed to find more than two or three things that have survived from the book. But they are the basic building blocks of the story," he further said.

How to stream 'Teacup'?

'Teacup' features Yvonne Strahovski, Scott Speedman, Chaske Spencer, Kathy Baker, and Boris McGiver in lead roles. The first season of the show premiered at Fantastic Fest on September 22 followed by its premiere with two episodes on Peacock on Thursday, October 10.

From here on, Peacock will drop two new episodes every Thursday until its conclusion on October 31. You can watch the series by purchasing a subscription to Peacock that starts at $7.99/month.

'Teacup' trailer