Episodes 01
“Shatter”
In the outside world, Tabitha learns that she is in a hospital in Camden, Maine. She sneaks out of the hospital, confused as to how she got there and where to go next. She later finds an address written at the bottom of Victor’s lunchbox and after arriving there she meets Henry, Victor’s father. In the Township, Jim and Kenny search for the lighthouse where Tabitha disappeared. On their way, they find a previously undiscovered settlement and camp there for the night. Donna discovers that all the remaining crops at Colony House have become rotten, leaving the farm animals as their only food source. With dwindling resources, several townspeople including Randall attempt to steal the animals but are talked down by Boyd. Later that night, the creatures release the animals from their pens to lure the residents from their homes. Jade and Victor manage to save many of the smaller animals while Boyd and Tian-Chen escort a cow back to the barn. After Boyd puts up a talisman, several creatures are revealed to have already been hiding inside the barn and handcuff Boyd before forcing him to watch them torture Tian-Chen to death.
Episodes 02
“When We Go”
Jade enters the barn to find the mutilated corpse of Tian-Chen and Boyd mumbling hysterically while handcuffed to a pillar until Jade frees him. Jim and Kenny find fresh-grown vegetables near the settlement and take some back to the Township, only for Kenny to learn of his mother’s death. Kristi and Jade prepare Tian-Chen’s body for a funeral per Kenny’s instructions. Fatima faces complications with her pregnancy and seeks medical help at the clinic. Marielle gives her a check-up and finds that she is severely malnourished. Upon returning to Colony House, unable to stomach normal food, Fatima impulsively eats rotten vegetables that satisfy her hunger. In the outside world, Henry shows Tabitha a series of paintings created by Victor’s mother Miranda that depict the Township. He mentions that Miranda claimed to see hallucinations and that she was chosen to free the “children in the tower”, making Tabitha believe that she was chosen too. After Tian-Chen’s funeral, Boyd asks Ellis to help capture one of the creatures to learn more about them. While at home, Jim hears the phone ringing and the voice on the other end claims to be his dead son, Thomas.
Episodes 03
“Mouse Trap”
Jim communicates with the voice over the phone, which taunts him about the safety of his children, causing Jim to become erratic. Tillie discovers Fatima eating rotten vegetables and tries to comfort her concerns about the baby with a tarot card reading but a crow interrupts them by smashing into a window. Kenny leads a small group consisting of Jade, Kristi, and Dale to the settlement to gather more food. Jade becomes paranoid after experiencing hallucinations and attempts to run back to town, even though he wouldn’t make it before dark. Kristi tries to stop him but her leg becomes caught in a bear trap until Kenny, Jade, and Dale manage to free her. In the outside world, Tabitha attempts to decipher Miranda’s paintings and Henry shows her a replica bottle tree in his backyard, reminiscent of the one found near the Township. Henry reveals that Miranda first started hallucinating at the location of the original bottle tree, but while driving there they are hit by an oncoming vehicle. Tabitha later awakens in the back of an ambulance alongside an unconscious Henry but a fallen tree soon blocks the ambulance’s path.
Episodes 04
“There and Back Again”
In the Township, Ethan communicates with the voice over the phone, who tells him that Tabitha will need to be rescued. Victor reveals to Sara that as a child he collected the belongings of the deceased townspeople and tries using them to remember the past. Camping at the settlement, Kenny, Jade, and Kristi reminisce about Tian-Chen and her effect on their lives. Randall agrees to help Boyd capture one of the creatures and tells him that they usually perform the same routines, but were strangely absent that night. The ambulance soon arrives at the Township where the creatures lay a trap and attack, killing the drivers. Dani Acosta, a police officer assigned to the ambulance, is chased by the creatures to Colony House where she accidentally shoots the resident Nicky. Jim and Tabitha reunite and with Boyd’s help, they get to Colony House with Henry in the ambulance but are forced to leave Randall behind after he becomes surrounded by the creatures. Despite Marielle’s attempts to save her, Nicky succumbs to the gunshot, and Fatima impulsively consumes her blood when alone. After torturing Randall, the creatures leave him alive outside Colony House.
Episodes 05
“The Light of Day”
Randall is brought inside Colony House and angrily accuses Boyd of leaving him to die. Kenny’s group returns the following morning, and Kristie is taken to the clinic to recover alongside Randall. Victor becomes distressed after Donna tells him about his father and she later takes Henry to see Victor’s room. A town meeting is held at the diner and the majority of townspeople, instigated by Dale, quickly turn against Boyd and demand to be taken to the bottle tree so they can escape as Tabitha did. Acosta later apologizes to Boyd for her actions but he remarks that she only made things worse. Elgin confides in Julie about his visions of the “kimono woman” and they find a polaroid camera. Ellis catches Fatima eating the rotten vegetables and she admits that something is wrong with her baby. Victor and Henry finally see each other and tearfully reunite after forty years apart. Tabitha and Jade discuss their visions of the children at the bottle tree until Dale arrives and goes inside, despite being warned against it. Dale is teleported inside the walls of the Township’s empty pool and dies, causing Boyd to berate the townspeople for turning against him.
Episodes 06
“Scar Tissue”
Jim and Tabitha argue about their decisions since arriving in the Township and Jim leaves to be alone. The ambulance is emptied of medical supplies and brought to the clinic, including a portable ultrasound machine. Marielle changes Randall’s bandages and invites him to stay with her and Kristi so he doesn’t have to live alone. Ellis confides in Boyd his concerns about Fatima who allows Kristi to perform an ultrasound scan but they discover that Fatima isn’t pregnant. Donna mourns Dale while entombing his body in rocks and Kenny asks to move into Colony House. Despite Victor’s insistence to go alone, he and Henry explore the tunnels and find “Jasper”, a ventriloquist doll belonging to former resident Christopher but awaken some creatures and quickly flee. Elgin takes photos of the Colony House residents and has a vision of the “kimono woman” who claims she can help everyone go home. Jade discovers a second bottle tree where he hallucinates Tom and discovers that the bottles from both trees contain the same numbers. Tabitha asks Jade if she and Ethan can help but finds that Jade’s drawings of the settlement are similar to a recurring nightmare she had as a child.
Episodes 07
“These Fragile Lives”
Fatima confesses her cravings to Kristi, who believes she is experiencing a psychosomatic pregnancy. Fatima argues that her pregnancy is real and that her cravings are getting stronger. Worried that Fatima might threaten Colony House, Donna tells Boyd that she must leave. Victor becomes obsessed with getting “Jasper” to talk, concerning Henry, and visits Sara for help. Elgin’s camera produces a polaroid of the cellar, which he investigates and finds a hidden door with a corpse behind it. Acosta questions Kenny about the nature of the Township and expresses her distrust of Boyd. She then breaks into the sheriff’s station to retrieve her gun and argues with Boyd, who gives her gun back unloaded. Jade, Tabitha, and Ethan travel to the settlement where Jim is gathering food. They find the painted rocks from Tabitha’s nightmares and Jade theorizes that she was destined to find the Township. Randall begins teaching Julie to drive until they find the ruins previously discovered by Boyd. Ellis tells Tillie that he is afraid of losing Fatima, and she promises to help. Fatima later experiences intense pain at the greenhouse and is comforted by Tillie but quickly loses control and stabs Tillie, killing her.
Episodes 08
“Thresholds”
Boyd takes Fatima to an empty cabin and feigns his knowledge surrounding Tillie’s death after her body is discovered. While Acosta and Kenny start questioning everyone, Donna and many other residents accuse Sara. While alone, Fatima has a vision of the “kimono woman”. Jim angrily confronts Jade at the bar about bringing Tabitha to the settlement and a hungover Henry uses his past experiences to help Jim calm down. Julie and Ethan explore the ruins where she has a vision of the dungeon where Martin gets her to save Boyd from the mineshaft but experiences a seizure. Sara and Tabitha help Victor, who remembers the day he saw “Jasper” talk, only to realize that Christopher was speaking to the Boy in White who explained the origins of the bottle tree, which inadvertently led to Miranda’s death after Victor told her. Boyd informs Donna that Fatima killed Tillie, who tries to make him and Ellis understand that Fatima has become too dangerous. Elgin follows visual instructions from Polaroids produced by his camera and soon finds the cabin which Boyd and Ellis later find empty. Elgin secretly leads Fatima to the cellar and traps her behind the hidden door.
Episodes 09
“Revelations: Chapter One”
Boyd and Ellis start searching for Fatima until Boyd has a freezing episode and is forced to stop. Elgin feeds Fatima his blood which she hungrily accepts, causing her pregnancy to progress rapidly. Blaming himself for getting his mother killed, Victor goes to chop down the bottle tree but the Boy in White stops him. Sara hallucinates the voices and explains to Boyd that the voices claim that Fatima has little time left. Knowing how much she means to the residents of the Township, Donna calls a town meeting at the newly reopened diner and everyone splits off into pairs to find Fatima. Boyd tells Kenny that his Parkinson’s has progressed and that Kenny needs to be ready to take over leadership. Elgin tries to convince Ellis that Fatima’s disappearance is a good thing, making Ellis suspicious of him. Still trapped, Fatima finds a hidden hatch on the floor but the “kimono woman” appears and holds Fatima down to keep her quiet. Tabitha has a vision of one of the children who she and Julie follow to the cellar. They find Victor inside and Tabitha has a vision of Miranda’s death and becomes distressed.
Episodes 10
“Revelations: Chapter Two”
Ellis deduces that Elgin knows Fatima’s location, so Boyd confines him to Colony House and they interrogate him. Elgin confesses to talking with the “kimono woman” and that Fatima’s baby will free them. Victor takes Henry to Miranda’s gravesite and confesses that he is responsible for her death. Boyd confronts Elgin alone and tortures him by smashing his right hand with a hammer. Sara later tortures Elgin by removing his left eye with a screwdriver, and he reveals Fatima’s location. The “kimono woman” helps Fatima give birth before disappearing down the hatch with the amniotic sac just as Boyd and Ellis arrive. Fatima reveals that the creatures gained immortality by sacrificing their children. Boyd heads down the hatch alone and witnesses the “smiley creature” being reborn. Jim, Tabitha, and Jade discover that the numbers from the bottle tree refer to musical notes. They play the music at the bottle tree which summons the children who help Tabitha and Jade remember their past lives, that Tabitha was Miranda and Jade was Christopher who both died trying to save the children. Jim runs into a distressed Julie before the mysterious “Man in the Yellow Suit” confronts them and rips out Jim’s throat.
Development
On June 7, 2018, YouTube Red announced the development of the John Griffin–created series as part of an overall deal between production companies Midnight Radio and the Russo brothers’ AGBO. By April 2021, the series was transferred to Epix after YouTube Red, now YouTube Premium, moved into unscripted programming. The project received an order of ten episodes, with Jack Bender to direct the first four. In May 2021, Harold Perrineau, Eion Bailey and Catalina Sandino Moreno were cast in lead roles. In July, Shaun Majumder, Elizabeth Saunders, Avery Konrad, Hannah Cheramy, Ricky He, Simon Webster, Chloe Van Landschoot and Pegah Gahfoori joined the cast. The opening theme song, “Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)” (1956), was performed as a cover by American alt-rock band the Pixies; the music score was composed by Chris Tilton.
First season filming began the last week of May 2021 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, with principal photography around Beaver Bank and Sackville River, in the suburban community of Lower Sackville.
On April 24, 2022, Epix ordered a second season, which premiered on April 23, 2023.
On June 29, 2023, MGM+ ordered a third season, which premiered on September 22, 2024.
On November 21, 2024, MGM+ ordered a fourth season.
- E01 – “Shatter”
- E02 – “When We Go”
- E03 – “Mouse Trap”
- E04 – “There and Back Again”
- E05 – “The Light of Day”
- E06 – “Scar Tissue”
- E07 – “These Fragile Lives”
- E08 – “Thresholds”
- E09 – “Revelations: Chapter One”
- E10 – “Revelations: Chapter Two”