Them will be your next horror obsession, judging by the raving reviews the series garnered after its premiere at SXSW.
Created by Little Marvin, the series follows a Black family moving from North Carolina to a predominantly white neighborhood in 1950s Los Angeles.
The Events Of ‘Them’ Take Place Over A Ten-Day Period
Them is an anthology series counting Emmy-winning writer Lena Waithe among its exec producers.
The first season, known as "Covenant", revolves around the Emory family: engineer Henry (Ashley Thomas), former teacher Lucky (Deborah Ayorinde), and their two children Ruby (Jordan Peele's Us star Shahadi Wright Joseph) and Gracie (Melody Hurd). The Emorys have left North Carolina behind to start a new, better chapter in Los Angeles.
Them sheds some horrific light on the racist suburbia of sunny California. Similarly to last season's hit series Lovecraft Country, Them collates supernatural, creepy elements and a powerful commentary on social injustice and racial inequality. To add to the uneasiness, Them also informs its audience that the events they’re about to see take place over a ten-day period.
‘Relentlessly Intense’: ‘Them’ Premiered At SXSW To Raving Reviews
The series screened its first two episodes at this year’s SXSW, and the first reactions are extremely positive.
“The first two episodes of #Them are relentlessly intense and heavy. My stomach is in knots. What a solid start,” horror movie journalist Meagan Navarro tweeted.
“#THEM feels, so far, like the bridge between contemporary, “elevated” horror and something much more unhinged and p***ed off from another era. Maybe the next era,” Fangoria’s EIC wrote.
“Amazon’s #Them gave me mother f***ing goosebumps,” founder of Bloody Disgusting Brad Minka commented.
"#THEM really feels like it's speaking to a smoldering, primal rage and fear. It's incredible," film journalist Samantha Schorsch wrote.
Them and its protagonists have already been deemed “award worthy”.
“Let me tell u now, what @DeborahAyorinde is doing as Lucky on @ThemOnPrime is a terrifyingly effective mixture of terror/supernatural/femme fatale. She has a few scenes in the first two episodes that, thanks in part to the engrossing directing, I never want to end. AWARD WORTHY,” film journalist Keith Nelson Jr. wrote on Twitter.
All ten episodes of Them will become available to stream on Prime Video on April 9