The Terror is an anthology series produced by AMC in collaboration with Scott Free Productions, EMJAG Productions, Entertainment 360, and AMC Studios.
The series is composed of three seasons: the first, The Terror: The Franklin Expedition, is inspired by the real lost Franklin expedition; the second, The Terror: Infamy, is set in the United States during the Second World War and follows the Japanese-American community after the attack on Pearl Harbor; the third, The Terror: Devil in Silver, takes place in a contemporary psychiatric hospital, the New Hyde Psychiatric Hospital.
The series revolves around a very precise central idea: horror does not arise only from the supernatural, but above all from the conditions that push human beings beyond their limits.
Each season places its characters in situations of extreme isolation, both physical and social, turning survival into a slow process of psychological deterioration.
The Terror: The Franklin Expedition
The first season, released in 2018, is an adaptation of Dan Simmons’ novel The Terror and tells the story of Sir John Franklin’s expedition (1845–1848), which set sail with the British ships HMS Erebus and HMS Terror.
This historical core is enriched with elements drawn from ship logs and accounts of Victorian-era Arctic expeditions, which recreate the real conditions of life aboard ships trapped in the ice, marked by military discipline, extreme hardship, and growing psychological isolation.
On a narrative and symbolic level, the series also incorporates elements of Inuit folklore, particularly the figure of the Tuunbaq, a primordial force tied to the Arctic wilderness and the relationship between humans and an hostile environment. This element does not belong to the historical record but is used as a metaphor for the unknown and primal fear.
The Terror: Infamy
The second season, released in 2019, is not based on a novel, but on real historical events and Japanese folklore traditions.
The story begins with one of the most significant events in American history: the internment of Japanese-Americans after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.
The series draws on historical testimonies, government documents, and family memories of those involved in the internment camps, depicting a reality marked by loss of freedom, suspended identity, and deep racial discrimination. This historical context forms the realistic foundation of the narrative.
Through the use of elements from Japanese folklore, such as legends of vengeful spirits (yūrei) and demonic entities (bakemono), the second season incorporates recurring motifs from Japanese popular culture, often used to represent guilt, trauma, and collective fears.
In this way, Infamy builds its horror by blending documented history with folkloric imagination, transforming a period of real injustice into a narrative in which the supernatural becomes a metaphor for trauma and repressed memory.
The Influence of Ridley Scott’s Cinema
The first two seasons of The Terror build a coherent narrative path despite completely changing settings and characters.
In both, horror is never only a supernatural element, but the result of extreme conditions that gradually lead human beings to lose their sense of reference.
This is also where the influence of Ridley Scott becomes evident, not so much in his direct involvement as a director, but in the aesthetic and narrative approach of the series, particularly in the construction of the endings and the sense of closure in each season.
The most recognizable trait is his idea of environmental and psychological horror, where the threat is never purely external but arises from the relationship between humans and the environment they inhabit.
In the endings of both seasons, this influence becomes clear: there is never a true victory over the monster, but rather an ambiguous and disillusioned conclusion in which physical survival does not correspond to psychological or moral survival.
The Terror: Devil in Silver at the Italian Global Series Festival
The third season of the series, The Terror: Devil in Silver, will be presented at the Italian Global Series Festival on July 7, 2026, in a special midnight screening attended by producer David W. Zucker and actresses Judith Light and CCH Pounder.
The event offers an opportunity to rediscover the origins of the AMC anthology series. Before delving into the new chapter, set in a contemporary psychiatric hospital, it is worth reflecting on the first two seasons, which built the identity of The Terror through an effective blend of historical events, folklore, and psychological horror.
