Penny Dreadful (TV series)
Victorian Gothic horror series drawing on classic literary characters.
Penny Dreadful is a horror drama television series created by John Logan for Showtime and Sky, with Logan and Sam Mendes serving as executive producers. The show was initially pitched to various American and British networks before being picked up by Showtime, with Sky Atlantic co-producing. It debuted at the South by Southwest Film Festival on March 8, 2014, and became available on Showtime on Demand on April 27, 2014. The series aired on Showtime in the United States starting May 11, 2014, and on Sky Atlantic in the United Kingdom from May 19, 2014. Following the third-season finale on June 19, 2016, Logan confirmed the series had concluded because the primary storyline had reached its natural end.
The title references penny dreadfuls, a 19th-century British form of cheap, sensational fiction. The show incorporates numerous public-domain characters from Victorian Gothic literature, including Dorian Gray from Oscar Wilde's *The Picture of Dorian Gray*; Mina Harker, Abraham Van Helsing, John Seward, Renfield, and Count Dracula from Bram Stoker's *Dracula*; Victor Frankenstein and his monster from Mary Shelley's *Frankenstein*; and Henry Jekyll from Robert Louis Stevenson's *Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde*. These figures appear in origin stories woven around an explorer searching for his daughter. Justine from the Marquis de Sade's *Justine, or The Misfortunes of Virtue* also appears. A spin-off, *Penny Dreadful: City of Angels*, aired from April 26 to June 28, 2020.
**Plot** The first season is set in London, 1891. American gunman and roadshow performer Ethan Chandler is hired by explorer Malcolm Murray and the enigmatic Vanessa Ives to rescue Murray's daughter from a mysterious creature. They enlist young doctor Victor Frankenstein, who is soon stalked by an undead being he once reanimated and abandoned. Ives becomes romantically involved with the ageless Dorian Gray but is also haunted by Lucifer, who seeks to make her his bride and queen.
In the second season, Ives is pursued by a coven of witches led by Evelyn Poole, who aims to deliver Ives to Lucifer. Frankenstein is compelled to create a bride for his creature, while an inspector investigates a brutal murder committed by Chandler at a London inn.
The third season finds the main characters scattered globally: Ives remains in London, consulting alienist Florence Seward; Ethan is extradited to
- Creator
- John Logan
- Executive Producers
- John Logan, Sam Mendes
- Network
- Showtime, Sky Atlantic
- Premiere Date
- May 11, 2014 (US)
- Finale Date
- June 19, 2016
- Genre
- Horror drama
- Spin-off
- Penny Dreadful: City of Angels (2020)
Lore & Background
The series title refers to the penny dreadfuls, a type of 19th-century British fiction publication with lurid and sensational subject matter. Penny Dreadful draws upon many public domain characters from 19th-century Victorian Gothic fiction, including Dorian Gray from Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray; Mina Harker, Abraham Van Helsing, John Seward, Renfield, and Count Dracula from Bram Stoker's Dracula; Victor Frankenstein and his monster from Mary Shelley's Frankenstein; and Henry Jekyll from Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, showing their origin stories as an explorer searches for his daughter. Justine from Justine, or The Misfortunes of Virtue by the Marquis de Sade also appears.
The first season begins in London, 1891. Ethan Chandler, an American gunman and roadshow artist, is hired by the adventurer-explorer Malcolm Murray and the mysterious Vanessa Ives to help rescue Murray's daughter from a mysterious creature. They receive help from a young doctor named Victor Frankenstein who soon is stalked by an undead creature he once reanimated and abandoned. Ives becomes romantically involved with the handsome, artistic Dorian Gray but also finds herself haunted by Lucifer, who wishes to make her his bride and queen. In the second season, Ives is hunted by a coven of witches led by the charismatic Evelyn Poole, who wants to deliver Ives to Lucifer. In the third season, the main characters find themselves scattered across the world, and Ives enters a relationship with zoologist Alexander Sweet, the secret identity of Lucifer's brother, Count Dracula.
Reader's Guide
Penny Dreadful is significant for its ambitious weaving of classic Victorian Gothic literary characters into a single narrative, exploring their origin stories within a dark, realistic London setting. The series was created by John Logan, who wrote the majority of episodes, and was produced with a tone described by Showtime president David Nevins as 'very realistic and very grounded, not Bela Lugosi.' The show ran for three seasons, concluding in 2016 when Logan stated the main story had reached its conclusion. A spin-off series, Penny Dreadful: City of Angels, aired in 2020. The series featured a notable cast including Eva Green as Vanessa Ives, Timothy Dalton as Malcolm Murray, and Josh Hartnett as Ethan Chandler, and drew critical attention for its atmospheric horror and character-driven storytelling. Its legacy includes influencing later Gothic horror television and demonstrating the viability of serialized literary adaptation.
Did You Know?
- The series title refers to penny dreadfuls, a type of 19th-century British fiction publication with lurid and sensational subject matter.
- The show was originally pitched to several American and British channels before landing with Showtime and Sky Atlantic.
- Series creator John Logan wrote the project on spec and scripts the majority of episodes.
- A spin-off series, Penny Dreadful: City of Angels, aired from April 26 to June 28, 2020.
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