FEARnet has announced that it has secured long-term carriage with Time Warner, Verizon FiOS, and has begun its linear carriage rollout with Comcast. FEARnet is now available on:
- Time Warner Cable and Time Warner’s VOD platform beginning in early May, with New York launching VOD on May 9 and both SD and HD linear on May 11
- Verizon FiOS channel 197 nationwide, as well as on the pre-existing VOD offering
- Comcast Channel 1865 HD, Channel 171 SD in Philadelphia as of April 12, along with VOD to Comcast’s entire footprint under its pre-existing agreement
“Genre fans are the most passionate fans in the entertainment universe, and we are committed to giving them the best programming in the form of distinctive Original Series, new Television and Broadcast Premieres, Classic Films and creative Stunts,” said Peter Block, FEARnet’s President and General Manager. “In a very short window, the FEARnet launch team has secured an outstanding first batch of linear distribution partners, designed a great schedule, and really utilized our outreach into the Hollywood horror community for movies, commentary and on-camera fun. We’re extremely grateful to the genre lovers nationwide who have taken the time to call their local television providers to request FEARnet.”
These carriage agreements mark the first wave of an expansion that is expected to take FEARnet HD above 10 million U.S. homes within the next year, in addition to the existing 26 million VOD households. FEARnet is also working with distributors on TV Everywhere initiatives which include streaming of FEARnet’s linear channel along with hundreds of hours of VOD content to authenticated customers. Building on the foundation of its deep library of movies, FEARnet has begun to establish new genre content franchises online, on VOD and on linear. Moving forward, FEARnet content will be accessible on a combination of the three platforms.
Original Series
- “Twisted Comedy” is FEARnet HD’s brand-new horror-comedy block launching this summer with a distinctive pair of scripted series:
- “Todd and the Book of Pure Evil” (Tuesdays at 10 p.m., starting August 2, 2011) – This supernatural comedy featuring Jason Mewes (“Mallrats,” “Clerks,” “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back”) tells the story of a small-town high school kid trying to save the world. In each episode, Todd and his cohorts are pitted against the dark powers of a mysterious book that grants seemingly innocuous wishes with sinister, unexpected, cataclysmic, and downright satanic side effects. Created by Craig David Wallace, Charles Picco, and Anthony Leo, the series was highly-successful in its Canadian television debut. FEARnet.com will also feature “Todd and the Book of Pure Evil” extras and related editorial content.
- “Psychoville” (Tuesdays at 10:30 p.m., starting August 2, 2011) – This award-winning British black comedy thriller series centers on a group of characters haunted by a mysterious blackmailer. Written by and starring Reece Shearsmith (“The League of Gentlemen,” “Shaun of the Dead”) and Steve Pemberton (“The League of Gentlemen,” “Doctor Who”), “Psychoville” is the only comedy ever to feature a serial-killer obsessed man-child, a one-handed clown, a blind tycoon, and a possibly telekinetic dwarf. “Psychoville” debuted to great fan reception on BBC Two, earning the prestigious British Comedy Award for “Best New TV Comedy.” In addition to the half-hour episodes on FEARnet HD, fans will find bonus show material at FEARnet.com.
- “Girl Number 9,” a six-part thriller created by Dan Turner and James Moran (“Torchwood,” “Doctor Who”), tells the terrifying story of a cop’s race against time to save his own daughter from a serial killer. The series stars Joe Absolom (“Doc Martin,” “Personal Affairs”), Gareth David-Lloyd (“Torchwood”), and Tracy-Ann Oberman (“Doctor Who,” “Eastenders”). Six intriguing five-minute episodes are slated to debut on FEARnet.com and VOD this summer.
- “Post Mortem with Mick Garris” is FEARnet’s signature interview series. It features one-on-one conversations between award-winning filmmaker Garris and the biggest names in genre entertainment. Recent episodes include interviews with William Friedkin and John Carpenter, and Rob Zombie, Guillermo del Toro and Tobe Hooper are slated for later in 2011. The revealing 30-minute episodes run on FEARnet HD and VOD, and are serialized into five-part series for the FEARnet.com audience.
FEARnet Movies
FEARnet has secured movie deals with the major studios including Warner Bros., Paramount, Starz, BBC and E1 Entertainment in addition to the extensive collections from Sony and Lionsgate, to create a new FEARnet HD schedule with exciting blockbuster premieres, innovative treatments of classics and perennial fan favorite titles including “The Blair Witch Project,” which will air exclusively commercial free on FEARnet HD during a Memorial Day (May 30th) marathon.
FEARnet Special Events
Special themed FEARnet events throughout the year will celebrate the breadth and depth of outstanding genre content and creators in the FEARnet repertoire. The linear network will program themed days at least once each month, with cross-platform support from VOD and online. Among the subjects getting the FEARnet themed event treatment in 2011 are:
- Authors Stephen King and Dean Koontz
- Foreign Language Frights
- So Real It’s Scary (Documentaries)
- Iconic franchises “Phantasm” and “Boogeyman”
- Villains and Monsters of Infamy – Godzilla, Vampires, and Zombies
In July, FEARnet will continue its annual coverage of the “dark-side” of Comic-Con. From fan favorites to celebrity interviews, FEARnet renews its commitment to bring audiences anything and everything horror, thriller, dark fantasy, black comedy, and sci-fi from fandom’s ground zero.
Superbowl of FEAR
FEARtober, referred to by civilians and non-believers as “October,” is the culmination of everything that’s great about genre entertainment. Drawing on double movie marathons, outsized sweepstakes and promotions, unexpected guest stars, and more, each year the team at FEARnet strives to outdo the last year’s FEARtober festivities with its widest-ever array of on-air, online and special programming and promotions. The month will conclude with a 24-hour marathon of “Trick ‘r Treat,” that was part of FEARnet HD’s October 31, 2010 launch with the classic “The Exorcist.”
