There’s nothing better than finding horror in unexpected places—like late-night Reddit threads that leave you clutching your phone, haunted by stories that might be fiction… but feel all too real. Now, Tales From The Void, a new horror anthology series premiering on Screambox Oct 13, is bringing these online nightmares to life, adapting fan-favorite tales from Reddit’s notorious NoSleep subreddit into bite-sized, scream-inducing episodes.
For those unfamiliar, r/NoSleep is a community where users post fictional horror stories, written as though they’re real-life experiences. The vibe? Think campfire ghost stories for the internet age, where the scariest part is how often you find yourself checking behind your shoulder.
But Tales From The Void isn’t just another anthology cashing in on spooky internet stories. The series, created by Francesco Loschiavo (who also served as co-showrunner with John Thomas Kelley), dives deep into the eerie possibilities of NoSleep, curating six distinct episodes based on these bone-chilling user submissions. “I used to read r/NoSleep stories at night before I would go to bed,” Loschiavo recalled in our interview back at Panic Fest earlier this year. “My wife would give me shit and say, like, ‘You gotta stop reading these things because you’re not sleeping!’” But instead of putting the phone down, Loschiavo’s obsession with r/NoSleep inspired something bigger—a dark, twisted, and ambitious anthology series years in the making.
“f*cked up [stories], but short enough that you can watch it before bed.”
Loschiavo’s love for horror anthologies goes way back. Growing up, he devoured shows like Goosebumps and Freaky Stories. However, as he explained, he wanted something more for adult audiences. “There’s no adult version of that,” he said, which inspired Tales From The Void. Each episode is designed to feel like a mini horror movie—dark, creepy, and as Loschiavo puts it, “fucked up, but short enough that you can watch it before bed.”
The idea of turning NoSleep stories into visual horror was a challenge Loschiavo and Kelley took head-on. “The whole premise of NoSleep is it’s all first-person stories, like you’re almost the character,” Kelley explained. “So we had to ask, ‘How do we make this person somebody who ties into the theme?’”
Themes play a crucial role in each episode, something Loschiavo and Kelley made sure to weave in seamlessly. “We tried to put a theme into every episode,” Loschiavo said. “If you’re paying attention, there’s subtext there. But if you don’t notice it, it still stands on its own.”
“We wanted to bring in horror directors we respect and give them the freedom to play”
The diversity of horror in Tales From The Void is impressive, covering everything from creepy dolls to scientific anomalies. Joe Lynch (Mayhem, Suitable Flesh), who directed the first episode, shared his excitement about tackling NoSleep stories. His episode, Into the Unknown, is based on the viral story The Black Square—about a strange black pixel that appears in the center of an apartment complex. Lynch explained the concept, saying, “It’s about how the people react to it. You’ve got one character approaching it from a scientific perspective, others seeing it as an immediate threat, and all these buried feelings between neighbors come bubbling up because of this anomaly.”
Lynch, known for his ability to mix horror with humor, admitted that Tales From The Void pushed him out of his comfort zone. “Here, there was no tongue-in-cheekness, no cheek sticking out of anything,” he said. “It was a very serious affair.” Lynch brought a cinematic touch to his episode, infusing influences from Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey (naturally) and Jonathan Glazer’s Under the Skin.
But don’t let Lynch’s episode lull you into a false sense of safety—the show doesn’t shy away from more visceral horror either. In fact, Tales From The Void has a surprising number of-uh- dead babies. “We killed three babies in the show,” Loschiavo quipped, drawing laughs from the team. Kelley’s wife even jokingly asked while he was explaining a new episode they had been working on, “Do kids die in this one too?”
The restraint and balance between terror and subtext is a key element of the show. As Loschiavo put it, “When we’re graphic, we’re graphic, but sometimes the restraint helps the tone of the show.”
“When we’re graphic, we’re graphic but sometimes the restraint helps the tone of the show.”
Loschiavo carefully selected the six stories for the first season. While some of the episodes feature work from well-known writers like Rebecca Klingel (The Haunting of Hill House), he also drew inspiration from r/NoSleep contributors who had no formal writing experience. “One of the writers, Travis, wrote a couple stories in his basement, posted them online, and they blew up,” Loschiavo said. “Good stories [can] come from anywhere.”
The creative team behind the anthology is stacked with genre talent. In addition to Lynch, the series features episodes directed by John Adams and Toby Poser (Hellbender), Maritte Lee Go (Black As Night), and Loschiavo himself. The team aimed to give each director the freedom to bring their own voice to their episodes. “We wanted to bring in horror directors we respect and give them the freedom to play,” Loschiavo explained.
r/NoSleep fans will also appreciate how closely the series stays true to its roots. “We tried to be as authentic as possible to the NoSleep community,” Loschiavo said. To make sure the writers felt represented, they even got NoSleep Podcast creator David Cummings involved, interviewing the original authors after each episode to share insights on their terrifying tales.
“These are beautiful bite-sized pieces of horror and sci-fi […] the perfect thing to fuck with your sleep at night.“
Tales From The Void premieres just in time for Halloween, with two episodes dropping every Sunday starting October 13 on Screambox in the U.S. Canadian viewers can catch it on Super Channel, with episodes available to rent or buy on digital platforms the following Tuesday.
With its blend of spine-chilling stories, talented directors, and a deep respect for the NoSleep community, Tales From The Void promises to bring fresh, nightmare-fueled horror to screens everywhere. As Lynch so perfectly put it, “These are beautiful bite-sized pieces of horror and sci-fi […] the perfect thing to fuck with your sleep at night.”
Tales From The Void premieres on Screambox/Super Channel October 13, just in time for Halloween. Share your thoughts on the series, and tell us all about your sleepless nights reading r/NoSleep over in the official Nightmare on Film Street Discord!
