Episodes

  • A Nightmare on Elm Street vs. The Hmong Sleep Deaths: The True Story Wes Craven Used as Source Material

    A Nightmare on Elm Street vs. The Hmong Sleep Deaths: The True Story Wes Craven Used as Source Material
    Apr 29 2026
    The Fear Archive investigates the Hmong sleep deaths — a series of unexplained nocturnal deaths among Southeast Asian refugees in the early 1980s that Wes Craven has cited as direct source material for A Nightmare on Elm Street. Between 1981 and 1983, healthy young Hmong men living in the United States began dying in their sleep. No warning. No medical explanation. The Los Angeles Times covered the cases. Wes Craven read the coverage and asked: what if the thing killing them was inside their dreams? Tonight Amanda and Mike use the same source material Craven used — the actual 1981 and 1983 articles — to trace the line from real unexplained death to one of the most iconic horror films ever made. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: A Nightmare on Elm Street true story, Hmong sleep deaths, SUNDS, sudden unexplained nocturnal death syndrome, Wes Craven, Freddy Krueger, Hmong refugees, sleep death horror, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, real nightmare deaths Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    59 mins
  • Dead Air | Ep. 02 | Amanda Has A Body In Her Wall

    Dead Air | Ep. 02 | Amanda Has A Body In Her Wall
    Apr 22 2026
    Amanda has a dead rat in her wall and has been marinating in the smell for weeks. Mike has a baby garter snake in his foundation and is convinced mama snake is behind him right now. This is Dead Air — the Fear Archive companion show where nothing stays on topic and everything connects back to true crime anyway. This episode: the rat in the wall becomes a conversation about frogging and things hiding in domestic spaces, which leads to the CERN Large Hadron Collider, Mandela effects, and whether a particle collider in Switzerland is throwing us into new timelines. Then Rex Heuermann pleads guilty to strangling eight women at Gilgo Beach — a case both hosts grew up near on Long Island. Plus The Killing Season documentary, the West Mesa Bone Collector, and Amanda's report from the LA premiere of the new A24 Faces of Death remake. Also: Forbidden Fruits, They Will Kill You, and a very strong pitch for why you should watch Cropsy immediately. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hr and 11 mins
  • Faces of Death (1978) vs. Faces of Death (2026): The True Story Behind the Most Notorious Shock Film Ever Made

    Faces of Death (1978) vs. Faces of Death (2026): The True Story Behind the Most Notorious Shock Film Ever Made
    Apr 15 2026
    The Fear Archive investigates Faces of Death — the 1978 shock documentary that was not quite a documentary, not quite fiction, and was deliberately designed to keep you from knowing the difference — and the 2026 remake that asks the harder question: why are you still watching? Faces of Death was released in 1978, directed by John Alan Schwartz under the pseudonym Conan LeCilaire. It presented itself as a documentary about death across cultures. In reality it was a carefully engineered hybrid: some footage real, some staged, all of it designed to manufacture one question — is this real? As long as you were asking, you kept watching. That was the entire mechanism. The 2026 remake, directed by Daniel Goldhaber and Isam Mazhi and starring Barbie Ferreira and Charli XCX, does not try to shock you with death. It makes you watch yourself watching. Which, as Amanda and Mike argue tonight, is the more disturbing film. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Faces of Death 1978, Faces of Death 2026, John Alan Schwartz, Mondo films, shock cinema, black humor, morbid curiosity, snuff mythology, Barbie Ferreira, Charli XCX, Daniel Goldhaber, LiveLeak, rotten.com, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, why do we look Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hr and 12 mins
  • MK-Ultra vs. Hollywood | The CIA Program That Became a Cinematic Universe

    MK-Ultra vs. Hollywood | The CIA Program That Became a Cinematic Universe
    Apr 8 2026
    What if the CIA didn't just experiment on human minds — what if they also shaped the movies inside them? In this episode, Amanda and Mike break down the real history of Project MK-Ultra — the CIA's declassified program of forced LSD experiments, psychological torture, and memory erasure — and trace its fingerprints across some of Hollywood's most iconic films. From The Manchurian Candidate to Stranger Things. From Operation Midnight Climax to The Parallax View. From declassified documents to your Netflix queue. Did MK-Ultra end in 1973… or did it just go cinematic? 🔍 IN THIS EPISODE: The real history of Project MK-Ultra Sidney Gottlieb and the CIA's obsession with LSD Frank Olson — the man who fell from a window Operation Midnight Climax (yes, it was real) Donald Ewen Cameron and psychic driving The Manchurian Candidate (1962) The Parallax View (1974) Altered States (1980) Stranger Things and the Montauk mythology The CIA's official Hollywood Entertainment Liaison office Confirmed vs. unconfirmed: what MK-Ultra actually proved Did MK-Ultra end — or did it just go cinematic? Content warning: This episode includes discussion of graphic violence, sexual assault, suicide, child abuse, torture, non-consensual drugging, and psychological experimentation. 🎙️ The Fear Archive is part of the Violet Hour Media network — home of Long Night in Egypt, Hollow, The Gloom, and more. 🔔 Subscribe and hit the bell so you never miss an episode. 📲 Listen everywhere: https://linktr.ee/feararchivepod If this episode made you think, subscribe, leave a comment, or share it with the friend who says everything is a conspiracy theory. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada & Michael Ryan Assip Produced by Cassie Jozefov A production of Violet Hour Media / Realm Media Popular Topics Include: MK-Ultra, CIA mind control, Project ARTICHOKE, LSD experiments, human experimentation Cold War, The Manchurian Candidate 1962, The Parallax View 1974, Conspiracy Theory 1997, Altered States 1980, government conspiracy film, Sidney Gottlieb, Frank Olson death, Donald Ewen Cameron, Alan Memorial Institute Montreal, sleeper agents, hypnosis CIA, psy-ops, CIA Hollywood consulting, paranoia cinema, 70s political thrillers, declassified documents, Sirhan Sirhan mind control theory Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    59 mins
  • Dead Air | Ep. 01 | We Need to Talk About the Camel Filler Situation

    Dead Air | Ep. 01 | We Need to Talk About the Camel Filler Situation
    Apr 1 2026
    Dead Air is the show between the shows. No scripts. No research. Just Amanda Kagiwada and Mike Assip talking about whatever broke their brains this week — and somehow ending up in weirder places than the Fear Archive ever goes. Episode 1: A potentially cursed Pakistani coin appears on Mike's dresser and nearly ends his marriage. Amanda joins the moon community and cannot explain what she saw. A doctor allegedly brought a syringe full of mystery drugs on a hike in Hawaii. Twenty camels were disqualified from a beauty pageant for filler injections. Mike was an extra in The Dark Knight Rises. And somehow it all connects back to simulation theory. 00:00 No Signal — the cursed necklace story 12:45 The Watch Log — Elizabeth Smart doc, Network, Project Hail Mary22:13 The Current — Hawaii hiking murder trial 39:48 The Spiral — Cheshire Cat moon, Mandela effect, Killing for Culture 1:04:45 Rent Free — camel beauty pageant fillers & King Tuff Dead Air drops on the off weeks between Fear Archive episodes. New episodes of The Fear Archive every other Wednesday. Subscribe to The Fear Archive: https://linktr.ee/feararchivepod Dead Air is part of The Fear Archive universe — a Violet Hour Media production Popular Topics Include: Fear Archive podcast, horror podcast, true crime podcast, podcast discussion, Amanda Kagiwada, Michael Ryan Assip, horror film recommendations, true crime recommendations, horror community, podcast behind the scenes, horror culture, true crime culture Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hr and 17 mins
  • An American Haunting vs. The Bell Witch: The Legend That May Have Killed a Man

    An American Haunting vs. The Bell Witch: The Legend That May Have Killed a Man
    Mar 25 2026
    The Fear Archive investigates the Bell Witch — the oldest and most entrenched paranormal legend in American history — and the 2005 film that claimed this was the only haunting in the United States ever documented to result in a death. Between 1817 and 1821, the Bell family of Robertson County, Tennessee, reported escalating paranormal disturbances. The entity pulled hair from sleeping family members, spoke in full sentences, named the sins of neighbors, and announced it would kill John Bell. John Bell died in 1820. His son later described finding a vial of unusual liquid near the body. Two hundred years later, the legend is still unresolved. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine what it takes to invent something that lasts that long — and whether invention is even the right word. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Bell Witch haunting, Bell Witch legend, John Bell, Robertson County Tennessee, An American Haunting 2005, American ghost story, paranormal history, Southern gothic horror, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, haunting that killed Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    45 mins
  • Fire in the Sky vs. Travis Walton: Alien Abduction or Something Else?

    Fire in the Sky vs. Travis Walton: Alien Abduction or Something Else?
    Mar 11 2026
    The Fear Archive investigates the Travis Walton abduction — one of the most famous and most contested UFO encounters in American history — and the 1993 film that tried to put the experience on screen. On November 5, 1975, Travis Walton disappeared into the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest near Snowflake, Arizona, in front of six witnesses. He was gone for five days. When he returned — confused, dehydrated, and claiming he had been taken aboard a spacecraft — the investigation that followed subjected every witness to polygraph examination. They passed. Walton passed. The case was never conclusively resolved. Fire in the Sky is the film version. Tonight Amanda and Mike examine what the film gets right, what it invents, and why the question at the center of this case — was he abducted or was he not — is more uncomfortable than either answer. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Travis Walton abduction, Fire in the Sky 1993, Snowflake Arizona UFO, alien abduction true story, UFO encounters 1975, polygraph alien abduction, alien abduction film, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, Violet Hour Media, UFO history Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    55 mins
  • Black Christmas vs. Danny LaPlante: When the Killer Is Already Inside

    Black Christmas vs. Danny LaPlante: When the Killer Is Already Inside
    Dec 17 2025
    Black Christmas vs. Danny LaPlante is the episode that asks the question horror fans have never dared to ask out loud: did the film create the killer? In 1974, Black Christmas changed horror forever — not with gore or monsters, but with a single chilling idea: the killer is already inside the house. Watching. Listening. Waiting. In this episode of The Fear Archive, Amanda and Mike examine the real-life crimes of Danny LaPlante, a teenager who hid inside family homes for days at a time — rearranging objects, watching people sleep, and conducting what can only be described as psychological warfare. They break down LaPlante's crimes, the investigation that stopped him, and the deeply unsettling question of whether a 17-year-old boy ever watched Black Christmas and took notes. There is no proof. But the parallels are impossible to ignore. Hosted by Amanda Kagiwada and Michael Ryan Assip. Executive produced by Cassie Jozefov. A Violet Hour Media production. LISTENER WARNING: This program includes discussion of real-world violence and other subject matter that may be upsetting for some listeners. Please proceed with caution. Popular Topics Include: Black Christmas 1974, Black Christmas true story, Danny LaPlante, killer in the walls, home invasion horror, frogging true crime, horror film true story, Bob Clark, slasher film history, true crime horror podcast, Fear Archive, horror podcast, real stories behind horror movies, Amanda Kagiwada, Michael Ryan Assip, Violet Hour Media, was Danny LaPlante inspired by Black Christmas Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hr and 1 min