FreakyLinks

FreakyLinks is an American science fiction series that combined elements of horror, mystery, and comedy. It was created by Gregg Hale and David S. Goyer (under the pseudonym Ricardo Festiva), and aired on Fox from October 6, 2000 until June 22, 2001, for a total run of 13 episodes. The feel of the show closely modeled that of The X-Files and other supernatural-themed shows that were popular at the time.

FreakyLinks
GenreHorror
Mystery
Comedy
Science fiction
Created byGregg Hale
Ricardo Festiva
StarringEthan Embry
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes13
Production
Running time60 minutes
Production companiesHaxan Films
Regency Television
20th Century Fox Television
Release
Original networkFox
Original releaseOctober 6, 2000 (2000-10-06) –
June 22, 2001 (2001-06-22)

Setting and plot

FreakyLinks centered on Derek Barnes (played by Ethan Embry), who, assisted by his friends Chloe (Lisa Sheridan) and Jason (Karim Prince), ran a website called "FreakyLinks.com" that sought out the dark and forbidden truths behind paranormal phenomena and urban legends.

Derek took over the site after his twin brother, Adam, died under mysterious circumstances. The show's episodes revolved around Derek and his friends investigating supernatural claims for the website and uncovering clues that might reveal the truth of his brother's fate.

Cast

Production and marketing

FreakyLinks, originally titled Fearsum until a few months before airing, was developed by Haxan, the creators of the film The Blair Witch Project.

Haxan decided to follow a marketing strategy similar to Blair Witch's and created a website, long before the show was set to air, called "Freakylinks.com," which was cleverly designed to look like an amateurish, home-brew website made by real-life paranormal enthusiasts.[1]

The website was fairly successful and seemed to create some amount of "buzz," but this did not translate into high ratings when the show finally aired. The show went on hiatus for a few months before returning to the air to finish out the season, but it was not renewed for the next fall television season.

An online petition was created to ask the Fox Network to bring the show back for another season, however this was unsuccessful.

Legacy

In 2006, Lisa Sheridan reflected on the show:

“That was a blast. Probably the most fun thing about the show was that as part of the storyline, all our characters carried around video cameras wherever they went. There were portions of each script that our characters shot on video, and the show’s producers realized pretty quickly that it was far too time-consuming to have a cameraman dress up as one of us and shoot those sequences as opposed to us doing it ourselves. So little by little my fellow actors, Ethan Embry, Karim Prince, Lizette Carrion, and I wound up shooting a chunk of each episode. Funnily enough, there was a lot of improv on the show because of that. We’d be playing around with different shots and the editors would like what they saw and keep it in the show.”[2]

Ethan Embry was also very enthusiastic about the show and said “people like it“: “I had a lot of fun making it. It was the Blair Witch guys that created that show. And when we did the pilot, it was a lot darker tone-wise. It was more about suicide and the devil and the Antichrist, but when they picked it up, a new showrunner came on and they scrapped the whole devil idea and made it a little more like popcorn fare. I think that decision was fine, but they were consistently trying to figure that show out the entire time we were working on it.“[3]

Episodes
No.Title [4][5]Directed by [5]Written by [5]Original air dateProd.
code [5]
1"Subject: Fearsum"
"Pilot"		Todd HollandGregg Hale & Ricardo FestivaOctober 6, 2000 (2000-10-06)1AEF79
2"Subject: Threethirteen"Stephen CraggMichael R. PerryOctober 13, 2000 (2000-10-13)1AEF02
3"Subject: Edith Keeler Must Die"David StraitonJuan Carlos CotoOctober 20, 2000 (2000-10-20)1AEF03
4"Subject: Coelacanth This!"Jef LevyRussel Friend & Garrett LernerOctober 27, 2000 (2000-10-27)1AEF01
5"Subject: Desert Squid! Myth or Legend?"Scott LautanenRussel Friend & Garrett LernerNovember 3, 2000 (2000-11-03)1AEF04
6"Subject: The Harbingers"Jay TobiasJuan Carlos CotoJanuary 5, 2001 (2001-01-05)1AEF05
7"Subject: Still I Rise"Joe NapolitanoAdisa IwaJanuary 12, 2001 (2001-01-12)1AEF06
8"Subject: Me and My Shadow"Thomas WrightMark VerheidenJanuary 19, 2001 (2001-01-19)1AEF07
9"Subject: The Stone Room"David GrossmanJuan Carlos CotoJanuary 26, 2001 (2001-01-26)1AEF08
10"Subject: Live Fast, Die Young"David BarrettMichael R. PerryJune 1, 2001 (2001-06-01)1AEF10
11"Subject: Police Siren"Randy MillerAdisa IwaJune 8, 2001 (2001-06-08)1AEF11
12"Subject: Sunrise at Sunset Streams"Bill NortonRussel Friend & Garrett LernerJune 15, 2001 (2001-06-15)1AEF09
13"Subject: The Final Word"David StraitonMark VerheidenJune 22, 2001 (2001-06-22)1AEF12

References
  1. Higley, Sarah; Weinstock, Jeffrey (2004). Nothing that is: Millennial Cinema and the Blair Witch Controversies. p. 78. ISBN 0814330649.
  2. "Sci-Fi Blast from the Past - Lisa Sheridan (Invasion)".
  3. "Interview: Ethan Embry on THE DEVil's CANDY, His Time on THE WALKING DEAD, and FREAKYLINKS". 14 March 2017.
  4. From the Writers Guild of America, West catalog: "Signatory Project Confirmation [search: "FreakyLinks"]". Writers Guild of America, West. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
  5. From the United States Copyright Office catalog: "Public Catalog - Copyright Catalog (1978 to present) - Basic Search [search: "FreakyLinks"]". United States Copyright Office. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
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