Revived Are You Afraid of the Dark? series gives us new Midnight Society, terrifying tale

Fans of the Midnight Society can rejoice now that its members...and its new story...have been revealed. After learning in February that Nickelodeon was rebooting Are You Afraid of the Dark?, its beloved horror anthology series from the 1990s, the network has disclosed details surrounding the society of spooky storytellers' new members and new tale.

Deadline is reporting Sam Ashe Arnold (Best.Worst.Weekend.Ever.), Miya Cech (Rim of the World), Tamara Smart (Artemis Fowl, The Worst Witch), Jeremy Taylor (IT, Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween), Lyliana Wray (Top Gun: Maverick, Black-ish), and Rafael Casal (Blindspotting) have been cast in the limited series.

This new iteration of the show will be a three-episode hourlong miniseries written by Ben David Grabinski and directed by Dean Israelite. It will introduce a new Midnight Society that tells a story about the Carnival of Doom, only to have the events of the story come to life. The new members of the Midnight Society are Gavin (Arnold), Akiko (Cech), Louise (Smart), Graham (Taylor) and Rachel (Wray). Casal plays The Carnival of Doom’s ringmaster, Mr. Tophat.

Created by D.J. MacHale and Ned Kandel, Are You Afraid of the Dark? was an anthology show that ran for 91 episodes across seven seasons between 1990 and 2000, including a brief revival at the turn of the millennium. It centered on the Midnight Society, a group of kids that would gather in the woods at night to tell each other terrifying tales — and holy hell, some of their stories were truly unnerving (especially for a kids’ show)! Young actors who appeared on the series included Ryan Gosling, Neve Campbell, Emily VanCamp, Jay Baruchel, and Hayden Christensen when they were all damn near babies.

Nickelodeon announced it was reviving the beloved series earlier this year to coincide with the upcoming Are You Afraid of the Dark? theatrical film from Paramount Pictures. It was originally slated for an October 11 release, but has been delayed due to production issues. 

Issues with the corresponding film aside, the new Are You Afraid of the Dark? miniseries is set to premiere on Nickelodeon in October. Bring it, Nick! You won’t be giving us nightmares this time around! (Okay, you probably will.)

(Via Deadline)