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Sitting in the Dark

Sitting in the Dark

By: TruStory FM
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 Sitting in the Dark is a podcast about horror, but not the kind that hides in a single shadow. Each month, hosts Tommy Metz III, Kynan Dias, Chelsea Stardust, and Pete Wright pick a theme — an idea, a trope, a nightmare that keeps winding back — and explore it through three films that share its DNA. Sometimes the connections are obvious, sometimes they’re unexpected, and sometimes they lead you deeper into the maze than you expected to go.

One month might bring The Drac Pack, three wildly different takes on cinema’s most famous vampire. Another, a journey through The Bride, the Boy, and the Firetruck, unpacking coded queer horror across decades. We’ve explored maternal terror in Mommy Acts This Way Because She Loves You, broken into the home-invasion subgenre, tiptoed through haunted houses, and stared down both classic monsters and blockbuster franchises.

What ties it all together is a love of horror as a labyrinth — a twisting path where every turn reveals something new about our fears, desires, and cultural obsessions. With smart conversation, dark humor, and a willingness to look behind the curtain (or under the bed), Sitting in the Dark invites you to settle in, turn down the lights, and find out what connects the nightmares.© TruStory FM Art
Episodes
  • Night of the...

    Night of the...
    Nov 28 2025
    The 1980s were a golden age of VHS horror excess — when night was the time to party, die, or both. This month, Chelsea Stardust takes the hosting reins and brings us a triple feature of midnight mayhem: Night of the Comet (1984), Night of the Creeps (1986), and Night of the Demons (1988). What begins with a Christmas-morning apocalypse of Valley Girls and zombies spirals into brain-slug infestations and ends in a demon-filled funeral-parlor rave that only the most caffeinated teenagers could survive.Pete, Kynan, Tommy, and Chelsea pull each film apart like a possessed VCR — celebrating Comet’s pastel apocalypse and genuinely progressive sister-heroes, Creeps’ mix of alien parasites and B-movie heart, and Demons’ glorious, unhinged chaos. Expect debates over whether these movies actually knew they were camp, why 1980s “fun horror” felt lighter even when dripping in blood, and how mall culture, frat parties, and Halloween nights all became stages for teenage empowerment and bad decisions.They also crown the best survivor of the trilogy (spoiler: justice for Roger!), nominate the worst audio mix in horror history, and reveal which lipstick trick broke Pete’s brain. Plus, Tommy announces next month’s pick — the Smile franchise, beginning with the short Laura Hasn’t Slept — proving that even in 2025, we’re still chasing trauma through the dark with a flashlight and a laugh.🎬 Featured Films🍿 Tonight's Triple Feature:Night of the Comet - Apple TV | Amazon | LetterboxdNight of the Creeps - Apple TV | Amazon | LetterboxdNight of the Demons - Apple TV | Amazon | Letterboxd📋 View Our List on Letterboxd(00:00) - Welcome to Sitting in the Dark(00:43) - Night of the 80s(03:05) - Night of the Comet(24:19) - Night of the Creeps(39:45) - Night of the Demons(01:00:58) - Coming AttractionsSupport The Next Reel Family of Film Podcasts:Become a member for just $5/month or $55/yearJoin our Discord community of movie loversThe Next Reel Family of Film Podcasts:Cinema Scope: Bridging Genres, Subgenres, and MovementsThe Film BoardMovies We LikeThe Next Reel Film PodcastSitting in the DarkConnect With Us:Main Site: WebMovie Platforms: Letterboxd | FlickchartSocial Media: Facebook | Instagram | Threads | Bluesky | YouTube | PinterestYour Hosts: Kyle | Kynan | Pete | TommyShop & Stream:Merch Store: Apparel, stickers, mugs & moreWatch Page: Buy/rent films we've discussedOriginals: Source material from our episodesSpecial offers: Letterboxd Pro/Patron discount | Audible
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    1 hr and 5 mins
  • Sitting in the Dark... Literally

    Sitting in the Dark... Literally
    Oct 31 2025
    In the beginning, God said, “Let there be light.” But then, apparently, He got bored and switched it off just to see what would happen. Welcome to Sitting in the Dark, where this month Kynan, Chelsea, Tommy, and Pete explore what happens when filmmakers yank away humanity’s favorite nightlight. Their lineup: Wait Until Dark (1967), Don’t Breathe (2016), and Pitch Black (2000)—three films that remind us that darkness isn’t just the absence of light, it’s the presence of bad decisions.We start with Wait Until Dark, in which Audrey Hepburn, recently blinded, gets harassed by Alan Arkin and a few other men who apparently missed the memo about “don’t terrorize vulnerable women.” Then we stumble into Don’t Breathe, where three young idiots break into the wrong house and discover that Stephen Lang’s blind war vet has taken “home security” to a level that can only be described as “OSHA violation.” Finally, the crew rockets to Pitch Black, where Vin Diesel proves once again that he can growl through any lighting condition. It’s a film so early-2000s it practically comes with a Nu Metal soundtrack and a free AOL disc.So grab your flashlights, blow out your candles, and maybe keep one bulb unbroken… you know, just in case.Featured FilmsTonight's Triple Feature:Wait Until Dark - Apple TV | Amazon | LetterboxdPitch Black - Apple TV | Amazon | LetterboxdDon’t Breathe - Apple TV | Amazon | LetterboxdView Our List on Letterboxd(00:00) - Welcome to Sitting in the Dark(02:05) - Between Light and Dark(04:33) - Wait Until Dark(25:44) - Don't Breathe(47:20) - Pitch BlackSupport The Next Reel Family of Film Podcasts:Become a member for just $5/month or $55/yearJoin our Discord community of movie loversThe Next Reel Family of Film Podcasts:Cinema Scope: Bridging Genres, Subgenres, and MovementsThe Film BoardMovies We LikeThe Next Reel Film PodcastSitting in the DarkConnect With Us:Main Site: WebMovie Platforms: Letterboxd | FlickchartSocial Media: Facebook | Instagram | Threads | Bluesky | YouTube | PinterestYour Hosts: Kyle | Kynan | Pete | TommyShop & Stream:Merch Store: Apparel, stickers, mugs & moreWatch Page: Buy/rent films we've discussedOriginals: Source material from our episodesSpecial offers: Letterboxd Pro/Patron discount | Audible
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    1 hr and 12 mins
  • Death Edging with the Films of Final Destination

    Death Edging with the Films of Final Destination
    Sep 26 2025
    Sometimes horror doesn’t need a killer in a mask—it just needs gravity, leaky plumbing, and a loose screw. This week Pete, Tommy, Kynan, and Chelsea dive headlong into the beautifully deranged contraptions of fate in the Final Destination series. We zero in on films one, two, five, and six, skipping the middle entries (with Chelsea reluctantly leaving her beloved roller coaster behind) to track how the franchise evolved from eerie paranoia to glossy spectacle—and sometimes back again.What makes these films so uniquely unnerving? They erase the safe distance of supernatural slashers and drop death right in our kitchens, on our highways, and even at the optometrist. From the infamous log truck pile-up in Final Destination 2 to the unexpectedly brilliant twist of Final Destination 5, the series keeps daring us to see everyday objects as lethal Rube Goldberg machines. Along the way, we debate the rules of death (are they rules or just improv?), celebrate Tony Todd as the connective tissue of the franchise, and wrestle with whether the overpolished look of Bloodlines makes its gore more cartoonish than chilling. And yes, we all pick our favorite kills—expect airbags, bathtubs, and gymnastic mats to come up in conversation.It’s a franchise that’s as much about philosophy as phobia—existential dread wrapped in popcorn horror, where the fun lies in watching fate toy with its victims like a sadistic game master. Whether you love the paranoia of not knowing which object will strike next or the catharsis of absurd spectacle, Final Destination has a death with your name on it. Join us, as we laugh, squirm, and admit how these movies have ruined car rides, kitchen appliances, and even snow globes forever.Featured FilmsTonight's Quadruple Feature:Final Destination 1 - Apple TV | Amazon | LetterboxdFinal Destination 2 - Apple TV | Amazon | LetterboxdFinal Destination 5 - Apple TV| Amazon | LetterboxdFinal Destination Bloodlines - Apple TV | Amazon | Letterboxd📋 View Our List on Letterboxd(00:00) - Welcome to Sitting in the Dark(02:26) - Final Destination(11:49) - Final Destination(22:27) - Final Destination 2(36:18) - 3 & 4(37:16) - Final Destination 5(45:21) - "Death Edging" — Tommy(48:01) - Final Destination Bloodlines(01:05:05) - Favorite Kills(01:10:19) - Coming AttractionsSupport The Next Reel Family of Film Podcasts:Become a member for just $5/month or $55/yearJoin our Discord community of movie loversThe Next Reel Family of Film Podcasts:Cinema Scope: Bridging Genres, Subgenres, and MovementsThe Film BoardMovies We LikeThe Next Reel Film PodcastSitting in the DarkConnect With Us:Main Site: WebMovie Platforms: Letterboxd | FlickchartSocial Media: Facebook | Instagram | Threads | Bluesky | YouTube | PinterestYour Hosts: Kyle | Kynan | Pete | TommyShop & Stream:Merch Store: Apparel, stickers, mugs & moreWatch Page: Buy/rent films we've discussedOriginals: Source material from our episodesSpecial offers: Letterboxd Pro/Patron discount | Audible
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    1 hr and 13 mins
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