The Next Step Beyond

Background

John Newland, Collier Young, and Alan J. Factor brought back the paranormal anthology series as The Next Step Beyond, aiming for syndication. Merwin Gerard, who created the first series, returned as story editor. Newland reprised his role as host, now with white hair and large glasses but otherwise unchanged. Worldvision Enterprises, which had distributed the original, handled this version too. This led to several limitations. The show was recorded on videotape, losing the original’s shadowy, film-noir atmosphere. Several episodes were remakes of Gerard’s scripts from the first series. The tight budget prevented period costumes and elaborate sets, which had been a hallmark of One Step Beyond, and also ruled out hiring well-known guest actors. After producing 25 episodes, the series was cancelled. It aired for a few cycles on television before vanishing entirely, with no broadcasts since.