Everything to Know About SYFY's Original, Early-2000s Scare Tactics Prank Series

Before he morphed into a master of horror, Oscar winner Jordan Peele was known far and wide as a master of comedy. Splitting the funny business with costar Keegan-Michael Key, the eventual Nope and Get Out director cut his early comedic chops on the stand-up stage, on Mad TV, and as one-half of the iconic 2010s silly series Key & Peele.

Having both horror and comedy in his genre wheelhouse makes Peele the perfect match for USA’s upcoming reboot of Scare Tactics, the hidden-camera horror prank show that previously enjoyed a scattered, decade-long run (from 2003-2013) on SYFY. Peele and his Monkeypaw Productions banner are behind the series revival on USA, and he's surely going to put his own fresh auteur’s tweak on the original series’ spooky formula.

It’s been a full 10 years, though, since Scare Tactics last lit up unsuspecting comedy victims on SYFY, which might lead present-day viewers to ask a fair question: Just what was Scare Tactics all about, anyway? That’s the scary question we’re here to answer now — so keep scrolling to learn what made SYFY’s original creepy prank show such a horror-comedy hit in the first place.

What to know about SYFY’s original Scare Tactics

Running for 114 episodes though its five-season run from 2003 to 2013, Scare Tactics veered toward the elaborate side of voyeuristic prank shows. Every installment in the series featured multiple prank segments, each a carefully-orchestrated set piece that targeted a single unsuspecting victim who seemingly would step straight into a scene from their worst horror nightmares.

A ton of preparation and care went into capturing the fateful moment when Scare Tactics’ litany of poor terror-stricken souls would reach the absolute height of frightened panic. Costumes, prosthetics, and haunted atmospherics all layered on the tension before the host would finally step in, letting the (hugely relieved) victims know that they were actually part of a hilariously scary setup.

Coupled with the series’ smart cinematic production — which borrowed liberally from the horror film genre to give each episode a suitably eerie look and feel — Scare Tactics carved out an awesome spot in the reality prank-show space that gonzo forebears like Jackass had made popular. In the process, the show earned oodles of ardent followers, all eager to see what wickedly wild scenarios its producers (Kevin Healey, Scott Hallock, and Jesse Fawcett) might be hiding up their seemingly-endless creepy sleeves.

Shannen Doherty appears on Scare Tactics. Photo: SCI-FI / Courtesy: Everett Collection

Part of Scare Tactics’ appeal was the way it tapped the genuine enthusiasm of its celebrity hosts, who (of course) were in on every twisted joke. The late Shannen Doherty — no stranger to freaky supernatural deeds thanks to her witchy stint as Prue Halliwell on Charmed — served as the series’ host for Season 1, followed midway into Season 2 by The Usual Suspects acting alum Stephen Baldwin.

From Season 3 onward, NBC comedy stalwart Tracy Morgan (Saturday Night Live, 30 Rock) took the hosting reins at Scare Tactics, energizing the series to new heights as the emcee for insane sketches that terrorized unsuspecting targets with alien invasions, walls that bled, loads of creepy critters, undead shamblers, and even a scream skit lifted right from the satanic storyline of Rosemary’s Baby.

Which celebrity guests did the original Scare Tactics feature?

Nabbing the occasional celebrity guest is a theme we totally expect USA’s fresh Scare Tactics reboot to continue. The original SYFY show’s famous hosts weren’t the only celebs who made each episode of Scare Tactics a potential must-watch horror event — because, after all, there’s just something downright buzz-worthy about springing a surprise on people as they watch dead bodies come back to life or stare down a snake-filled sink drain.

Through the course of its 10-year run, Scare Tactics on SYFY fielded a string of celebrity guests familiar to fans plugged into the early-2010s screen zeitgeist. Among others, the list included wrestling superstar Matt Hardy, Modern Family star Eric Stonestreet, deadpan 30 Rock funnyman Judah Friedlander, Superstore sitcom mainstay Lauren Ash, Parks and Recreation star Marc Evan Jackson, and even tough-as-nails singer/wrestling scion Brooke Hogan.

How to watch Jordan Peele’s new Scare Tactics series

Scare Tactics - Coming This Fall to USA Network

We’re only weeks away from the series launch of Jordan Peele’s Scare Tactics reboot on USA, which already has teased freaky celebrity guest appearances from WWE Superstars The New Day (who’re apparently set to get the paranormal surprise of their lives thanks to fellow Superstar Cody Rhodes).

You can catch the Scare Tactics series premiere on USA Network on Friday, October 4 at 10 p.m. ET. The debut episode will also air simultaneously across Bravo, SYFY and E!. Each new episode of Scare Tactics also will land on Peacock a week after first airing on USA.