Are You Afraid of the Dark Universe? with Dylan & Dalton
In 2017, Universal Studios announced a new shared universe of monster movies, but after the first film's failure, the project was abandoned. In 2022, horror fan Dalton Deschain and film critic Dylan Roth took on the task of resurrecting the concept. Over three years and 70 episodes, they built an expansive audio epic with guest appearances from writers, comedians, and filmmakers. The podcast features a full cast and original score, turning a joke premise into a complete saga.
Episodes
BONUS: Lee Cronin's The Mummy
The Pod Universe gang returns to the DARK for one night only!Dylan, Dalton, and Sarah review the new non-Universal monster movie, "Lee Cronin's The Mummy," which takes the basic conceit of "What if there was a mummy?" and goes in a very different direction. We don't mind different! But does this new feature hold up as either a Mummy movie or the Exorcist movie it plainly wants to be? PLUS: A sneak
Enter THE POD UNIVERSE!
If you've completed the entire Death's Door Saga, join Dylan & Dalton for their next adventure!Welcome to The Pod Universe with Dylan and Dalton, the only podcast that's creating a shared universe of original sci-fi movies, one script at a time. Dive into our saga of produced table reads of new screenplays, each accompanied by a discussion and workshop session. Check out movie pitches from exc
BONUS: Into the Weeds
You didn't think we'd go radio silent for August, did you? While we toil away at the next phase of our show, we'll be keeping the party going by releasing a few of our favorite bonus episodes — usually exclusive to our Patreon — onto the main feed. Enjoy!Sign up at Patreon.com/DylanAndDalton to enjoy more goofy nonsense like this.Originally published to Patreon on February 16th, 2025.On this episo
Revisiting The Mummy / Fan Q&A
In the final episode before the big relaunch, Dylan & Dalton take one last look at the film that started it all, 2017's The Mummy, and try and figure out what they'd do differently if they'd been able to start the Dark Universe totally from scratch. Then, at long last, we answer as many fan questions as possible before closing Death's Door for good.PLUS: A clip from this month's new episode of
Finding "Hell on Earth" - The Last Dark Universe Story Break
Back in April, Dylan & Dalton sat down to decide how to end their Dark Universe. This is the entire story break meeting in which the two hosts determined how to make their two separate visions for Dark Legion: Hell on Earth into one cohesive story.IN TWO WEEKS: One last look back through Death's Door, before venturing out into a new frontier...TIMESTAMPS 00:00:00 - Planning 00:22:46 - Field of
Dark Legion: Hell on Earth, Part Three
Three years ago, we resurrected the Dark Universe. Now, we're ending it.It's the finale to the Death's Door Saga, and this era for our podcast. We're so grateful to everyone who's been with us for this journey, and we're so excited to embark on a new one.In two weeks, as always, we'll post the complete story break session we recorded before writing the script to Dark Legion: Hell on Earth, then on
Dark Legion: Hell on Earth, Part Two
It's Act Two of our massive saga-ending crossover, and this time, we'll see you in Hell.Only one episode left in the Death's Door Saga, coming in just three days...There are some MAJOR SPOILERS in the cast credits below, so most of this description is going to be us warning you to stop scrolling.Last chance to avoid cast spoilers.Okay, here we go.FEATURING THE VOICES OF... Julian Ames as Larry Ani
Dark Legion: Hell on Earth, Part One
Here we are, at the end of the line.The final chapter in the Death's Door Saga is being divided into THREE parts. This is Act One, with all of our usual preamble, fan predictions, and some big announcements. Act Two will be released on Thursday, June 19th, and Act Three arrives on Sunday, June 22nd. After that? Oh, we'll get there. But for now...FEATURING THE VOICES OF... Anique Evans as Emily Abe
Incubus w/Calvin Kasulke & Mattie Lubchansky
For our last guest episode before HELL ON EARTH, we've brought back two of our past guests to create our most manic creative jam session yet! Hot off their tour and in the best comedy form of their lives, author Calvin Kasulke and cartoonist Mattie Lubchansky return to pitch a remake of Incubus, the 1966 occult horror flick starring William Shatner and performed entirely in Esperanto!Plus, a clip
TRAILER: Dark Legion: Hell on Earth
IN THREE WEEKS, the Death's Door Saga comes to an end. Since you've all been so patient, we thought we'd treat you to a little sneak peek...Featuring Frankie Starker as the voice of Ahmanet.First person to detect what song Dylan has trailer-fied in the middle chunk of the trailer gets a high five.NEXT WEEK: Incubus with Mattie Lubchansky and Calvin Kasulke!
C.H.U.D. w/Patrick Gill
As we inch ever-closer to Dark Legion: Hell on Earth, journalist, streamer, and video producer Patrick Gill joins us to pitch a fresh, modern take on the cult classic monster movie C.H.U.D.! What compelled Patrick to rent this movie from the old mail-order Netflix? What does this high-end B-movie have in common with Jaws? How will Patrick, Dylan, and Dalton reimagine it to speak to modern New York
DU Plus: 5 TV Pitches w/Joseph Fink
Back in 2024, we appointed Welcome to Night Vale co-creator Joseph Fink to be the Dark Universe's Head of Television. Now, he's returned to the show to pitch Dylan & Dalton FIVE new TV ideas that run the gamut from hospital drama to reality competition show! It's a jam-packed one-hour creative jam session like nothing we've done before.Check out Joseph's new podcast The Best Worst, and find ou
Field of Nightmares
Nearly two years ago, Dylan announced that he'd be writing a Dark Universe take on Field of Dreams. Now, for his last solo pitch of the Death's Door Saga, he finally has to pitch it, and it's not remotely the script he initially planned. So, is that a good thing, or a bad thing? What the Hell is Field of Nightmares, and how will it be recieved by Dalton, who has no fondness for the 1989 baseball f
Waterworld: The Stunt Show w/Danielle Radford
Actor, writer, podcaster, and professional funny person Danielle Radford join the Dark Universe to pitch what might be our most unhinged installment yet. It's not "Waterworld," it's "Waterworld: The Stunt Show... The Movie? Learn how this beloved theme park attraction based on the maligned box office boondoggle found a special place in Danielle's heart, and how we can possible turn this into a fra
The Exorcist
It's Dalton's final solo pitch of the Death's Door Saga, and not coincidentally the bleakest and most disturbing! In the spirit of the original Exorcist and their beloved Exorcist III, Dalton's reimagining is obscene, blasphemous, but also totally sincere and even a little bit profound. Be aware that this episode is not for the faint of heart and we've included a LONG list of content warnings that
The Invisible Woman w/Stella Sacco
In 1940, Universal cashed in on the success of their Invisible Man films with a spin-off, The Invisible Woman, which was very much not a horror movie! Instead, we got an extremely slight and forgettable screwball comedy. Now, in 2025, our guest writer/video game narrative designer Stella Sacco has been tasked with creating a new darker, scarier and (if you can believe it) gayer version of The Invi
Mystery Men
Hell has broken loose in the Dark Universe, and we could really use some levity — both there and in the real world! Fear not, for our heroes may be dead, but at least there's, uh, these guys. Time to meet Dark Universe MYSTERY MEN! For the first time, the Didactic Mr. Dylan has (mostly) stepped off his political soapbox to deliver a pure action-adventure romp whose primary objective is to show the
The Covenant w/Lindsey Kelk
Author, journalist, and co-host of the wrestling podcast Tights and Fights Lindsey Kelk joins Dylan & Dalton to revisit a cringey teen-targeted dark fantasy from 2006 — The Covenant, starring current Oscar-nominee Sebastian Stan! What makes this film so memorably bad, and how will Lindsey reimagine it into something worthy of our Dark Universe?Plus: Lindsey tells us about her latest novel, The
The Old Dark House
2025 kicks off Big, Old, and Dark with Dalton's first solo pitch of the season! It's a modern twist on gothic horror, based on a 1928 novel by J.B. Priestley and a James Whale Universal horror classic that was almost lost forever. How will Dalton reimagine this spooky tale to fit into the HELL ON EARTH era of our ongoing Dark Universe?We'll be real with you - this is a heavy episode, so we've incl
Another Dark Universe Holiday Special
ED. NOTE: At 5:04 in this episode, Dylan says that National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation is "not good" and that he "watched it for Dalton," only laughing "one time." However, if you check Dylan's Letterboxd review from last year, he ADMITS he only watched the first half hour before tapping out. That, in this reporter's opinion, does not count as watching the film and I move that his comments be st
The Real Dark Universe Theme Park w/Alicia Stella
After two years of plotting and discussing totally imaginary films and television shows, isn't it about time we got real?!?! Theme park journalist Alicia Stella of Orlando ParkStop joins us to discuss the upcoming Dark Universe land at Universal Studios: Epic Universe in Orlando Florida. Learn how she got the scoop about the Dracula, Frankenstein, and Wolf Man themed rides and attractions. Then, h
Night of the Living Dead
Dark Legion: Death's Door unleashed Hell on Earth. Now, Dylan & Dalton are exploring their universe's terrifying new status quo with a season of standalone stories packed with new (read: expendable) characters. First up, Dylan is taking a swing at a Dark Universe reimagining of one of the most important horror films of all time: Night of the Living Dead. The last version of this script was kil
BONUS: Smokey & the Bandit / Generations of Murder
Dylan needed an extra week to get his Night of the Living Dead script up to code, so as a consolation we're releasing this month's bonus episode to the main feed, plus we're making the video version available to all paid subscribers.Dalton Deschain & Dylan Roth answer a challenge from Studio Executive Birras to come up with a Dark Universe version of the 1977 comedy Smokey & the Bandit! To
House of 1000 Corpses w/Abe Goldfarb
It's the crossover nobody asked for, least of all Dylan & Dalton! And yet, in this FULL VIDEO, SEASON 4 premiere of AYADU, guest Abe Goldfarb (Beetlejuice: The Musical, First Time Caller) sells our hosts on a Suicide Squad-style romp in which Otis and Baby Firefly bring their bloodlust into the Dark Universe's new status quo!This episode is available as a video podcast on our YouTube channel:
Unlocking Dark Legion: Death's Door
Here it is at last: The complete story break conversation in which Dylan & Dalton determined when, how, and why the Dark Legion would meet their terrible fates in Dark Legion: Death's Door! How much did our storytellers know before they broke ground on their sadistic sequel? How much of their plans changed between this initial discussion and the final draft? Have they let any clues or crumbs s
Dark Legion: Death's Door, Part Two
WHO WILL SURVIVE?Part One of the Phase Three finale put our heroes — and our audience — through Hell. The stakes are higher than ever. What fate awaits the Dark Legion?Our partner podcast this month isn't a podcast, but an honest to god book, by our friend and voice of Dr. Jennifer Halsey — Ella Dawson! Check out But How Are You, Really? wherever books or audiobooks are found.GUEST CAST (watch out
Dark Legion: Death's Door, Part One
THE END IS NEAR.The two-part finale of Phase Three begins here. Ahmanet lives. Set is loose. The Dark Legion is in great danger. What terrors await Earth's Mightiest Monsters?PLUS: A bonus clip from the patest episode of Are You Afraid of Dylan & Dalton?, available for Patrons at Patreon.com/DylanAndDalton.GUEST CAST (watch out for spoilers!) Ella Dawson as Dr. Jennifer Halsey Gita Jackson as
BONUS: Mamma Mia! / Under the Influence of Sybonk
While you await DEATH'S DOOR with bated breath, here's this month's episode of the Patron-exclusive podcast Are You Afraid of Dylan & Dalton? in its entirety absolutely free! Don't worry, we're not just being generous. We're after your money.We're starting an exciting new project on our bonus podcast ARE YOU AFRAID OF DYLAN & DALTON? called Studio Mandates, in which patrons who subscribe a
Robot Monster w/Bill Corbett
Heads up: For this, our 50th episode, we have created a full VIDEO VERSION of the episode. Not just a picture of the episode cover with some graphics on it, but an honest-to-god video. Watch it here, if you'd like: https://youtu.be/XxN4CXdufAc One of our comedic heroes, Bill Corbett of Mystery Science Theater 3000 and RiffTrax, calls in to pitch us an updated version of a film that has been tackle
Phase Three Recap! Plus: Dracula in Hell
Dark Legion: Death's Door is just a month away, which means it's time for another rapid-fire Dark Universe recap! Join us as we attempt to coherently summarize the past ten canon episodes of our show in no more than five minutes each, while also reflecting back on some of the season's twists and turns.PLUS: By your request, we've compiled all eight of this season's serialized post-credit scenes in
Darkman w/Daniel Kibblesmith
A decade before directing the blueprint for a generation of superhero blockbusters, Sam Raimi attempted to create his own mashup between comic book hero and Universal Monster: Darkman! How the hell did it take us so long to adapt this one? Luckily, Emmy-nominated TV and comics writer Daniel Kibblesmith is here to pitch an exciting new take on the cult classic!PLUS: Some exciting updates about our
Van Helsing, Part Two
It's time for the shocking conclusion of Dalton's Van Helsing pitch, the Carmilla Trilogy, and what I suppose we can start calling the House of Frankenstein Trilogy. The Dark Legion faces their most daunting challenge to date: each other! Phase Three's threads converge here, and everything will change! PLUS: Who got married during the two-year gap? Your answers are here.Our podcast partner this we
Van Helsing, Part One
They said it would never happen — Dalton has written script too big for one episode! Van Helsing revisits the ruthless Adelaide, last of the Van Helsing line, in a story that wraps up Dalton's Carmilla Trilogy and reassembles practically the entire Dark Legion. It's a tall order. Can this pitch live up to its lofty expectations?PLUS: A bonus clip from the patest episode of Are You Afraid of Dylan
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir w/Magnolia Porter Siddell
In our latest guest pitch episode, writer and cartoonist Magnolia Porter Siddell brings us her take on the 1947 supernatural romance The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, in which a fiercely independent widow grows attached to the deceased sailor (sorry, SEAMAN, he wants to be called a seaman) who haunts her new house. Dylan & Dalton are immediately taken with the original film, but how can a story about g
Return to the Black Lagoon
Last season, Dalton brought us a unique and ambitious reimagining of a Universal classic: THE BLACK LAGOON. It's a bleak and surreal horror story about gender, isolation, oppression, repression, and death. It's not a movie that calls for a sequel, and even less a movie that calls for a sequel from Dylan. Nevertheless, that was Dylan's assignment for this episode. Did he deliver? How does one write
Jaws w/Patrick Willems
There's only one storyteller we would trust to pitch a Dark Universe reimagining of Jaws, one of the greatest films of all time: filmmaker and YouTube star Patrick Willems joins us from Cannes, France to share his vision of the most ill-advised movie remake of all time! Plus, learn about the time Patrick met Tom Cruise at the premiere of the latest Mission: Impossible movie, and learn the history
The Invisible Man's Revenge
Dalton's informal "Carmilla Trilogy" continues with The Invisible Man's Revenge, a sequel to our breakout episode from way back in 2022! The fanbase is split as to what to expect from this one. Will this chapter be another kooky slapstick comedy, or will it be a nihilistic bloodbath the likes of which the Dark Universe has never seen? You'll get your answers, plus nearly 90 minutes of story, right
Village of the Damned w/Avery Edison
Writer and comedian Avery Edison has come to pitch a new take on Village of the Damned, and she has come PREPARED. It's our most in-depth guest pitch to date! This one's got it all: Creepy children, uncanny creatures, gender feelings, and ties to our Dark Legion! And, bits? Yeah, we got those, too. You don't want to miss this one.Our podcast partner this week is No Bad Food, a show about great foo
Cat People (OR Kill Your Darlings)
After a months of sequels and spin-offs, it's time for a wholly new addition to our Dark Universe, and it's even more different than anyone expected. On this episode, Dylan pitches a new take on the 1942 classic Cat People, a small-scale, low-budget, Sundance-style horror dramedy with minimal connections to the Dark Legion mythology. It's a very rough draft, but the hosts are ready for workshop —
Behind Love Never Dies (AYADD bonus preview)
Hello, gentle listeners, here's a little taste of what you might be missing on our Patreon at Patreon.com/dylananddalton. Once a month, we release a new episode of our bonus podcast, Are You Afraid of Dylan and Dalton?, where we talk about horror and sci-fi movies, challenge each other with stupid little trivia games, and answer non-Dark Universe-related questions from our listeners. We’re going t
The Thing That Couldn't Die w/Kendra Wells
Acclaimed writer and illustrator (and voice of Hunter Marin) Kendra Wells joins your hellish hosts to resurrect an infamously bad Universal monster movie, The Thing That Couldn't Die! It's a movie so weirdly unsatisfying that the only way to enjoy it is via Mystery Science Theater 3000, but Kendra has arrived with a plan to reshape it into something worth watching.CORRECTION: Ayo Edebiri is pronou
The Phantom of the Opera: Love Never Dies
Last season, Dylan surprised Dalton by composing four original songs for his Dark Universe take on The Phantom of the Opera. "Fuck," said Dalton, "Now I have to do a musical episode!" It's finally here, and it does not disappoint. The Phantom of the Opera: Love Never Dies is a new Dark Universe story, a sequel to Dylan's Phantom, a riff on Andrew Lloyd Webber's Love Never Dies, and a fully produce
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World w/Rax King & Amber Rollo
You've heard us say it before and it's never been more true than it is now: This is the wildest guest pitch we've ever heard. Rax King and Amber Rollo, the hosts of Low Culture Boil, have reimagined the 2011 Edgar Wright film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World as an X-rated bloodbath slasher movie starring a certain very large six-time world champion professional wrestler. How will this new interpretatio
The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Part Two
It's the stunning conclusion of our giant-sized action-horror blockbuster, The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Will Victor Frankenstein be able to reconcile with his resurrected son? What will become of Esmeralda? And, crucially, WHO WAS IN THE BATHROOM? These questions will be answered, plus a lot that you probably didn't have about Dylan's chaotic writing process vs. Dalton's more orderly and functiona
The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Part One
A pitch too big for one episode! Dylan's brought in a whopping 80-page script for his half of the House of Frankenstein duology, The Hunchback of Notre Dame! How will he connect this massive Victor Hugo novel with the mythology of Frankenstein? How accurate are the fan predictions? Will the seeds planted by Dalton in A Native American Werewolf in Paris bear fruit?Find out now, and stay tuned for P
The Mad Ghoul w/Ramon Villalobos
Comics artist Ramon Villalobos joins our devilish hosts to discuss what might be the worst movie we've ever had to watch for this show, "The Mad Ghoul," a creature feature so forgettable that Universal didn't bother renewing the copyright. Can this rowdy trio salvage a potentially ripe concept into a movie that belongs in our Dark Universe? Can they do it without saying anything inflammatory and l
A Native American Werewolf in Paris
At long last, it's Dalton's first solo pitch of Phase Three and the first half of our loose "House of Frankenstein" duology: A Native American Werewolf in Paris! Dalton's all about fulfilling the promise of the premise, so how will they make this story appropriately wolfy, thoroughly Parisian, and respectful towards Gwen's indiginous heritage without overstepping their bounds as a white storytelle
Teen Wolf w/Joseph Fink
It's the Dark Universe's first ongoing TV series pitch! Our hosts are joined by Joseph Fink, the legendary co-creator of Welcome to Night Vale, to workshop a new take on the 1985 sports comedy Teen Wolf! Note that we didn't call it a horror-comedy, and that we're sort of calling it a comedy under protest. (We don't like it very much!) How much inspiration will it take from the original Michael J.
The Dark Universe Holiday Special
Because we don't know how not to do shit like this: It's The Dark Universe Holiday Special, a full-script, full-cast episode featuring our entire surviving Dark Legion! What do we have in store for this short, semi-canonical installment in the Death's Door Saga? How silly will we get? Will we be parodying a beloved holiday classic? Which of our heroes will learn the true meaning of Christmas? We a
Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein w/Branson Reese
Because you demanded it: The time has come at last to introduce our Dark Universe's take on the beloved classic, Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein! Fans have speculated for the past year how AYADU might incorporate this concept into our ongoing narrative. Will we cast new actors as Abbott & Costello's characters? Will we select a modern comedy duo to goof off with our monster cast? Lucki
The Mummy: Heaven's Gate
Phase Three is officially in full swing! For the first canon pitch of the season, Dylan takes up the reins of our Mummy franchise, creating a new adventure starring both Nick Morton and Evelyn O'Connell that will change the shape of the Dark Universe forever. What awaits on the other side of Heaven's Gate? How has the world changed since the events of The Mummy's Hand? And what the hell does any o
Colossus: The Forbin Project w/Gita Jackson
Our first guest pitch of Phase Three is a departure from our usual creature feature; It's a bleak 1970s sci-fi thriller, but one that definitely still qualifies as a monster movie. Open your mind to the terror of Colossus: The Forbin Project, a forgotten gem about a surprisingly sassy artificial intelligence, dug up by journalist Gita Jackson. What does Gita have in store for their fresh take on C
Launching Phase Three of our Dark Universe
The wait is over! Are You Afraid of the Dark Universe? is back and we're going to keep cranking out movie pitches until you're sick of us. On our season premiere, hosts Dalton Deschain & Dylan Roth answer questions from the lovely Dark Universe fanbase and reveal the titles of all [REDACTED] movies in Phase 3! Plus, who will be our first guest of the season?You know things have gotten serious
BONUS: Two Weeks to the Season Premiere!
The wait is almost over! The first episode of the new season is in the can, the first guests are booked, and the first script is in progress. Are You Afraid of the Dark Universe? is back for Phase 3 on October 22nd. In the meantime, there's a new episode of our bonus podcast up on our Patreon, Patreon.com/DylanAndDalton, and we're making some guest appearances on other shows throughout October! Ca
BONUS: Introducing Are You Afraid of Dylan & Dalton?
Dylan & Dalton's Patreon has surpassed its initial $200/mo goal, which means they're kicking off a new show just for paid subscribers! Sign up at Patreon.com/DylanAndDalton for $5/mo and get access to this new monthly series as well as our lovely and lively Patreon server! Here's a little taste of what the other podcast has in store.Don't worry! Are You Afraid of the Dark Universe? will return
Planning Dark Legion: The Mummy's Hand
Flashback to this past May! Before they started writing Dark Legion: The Mummy's Hand, Dalton Deschain and Dylan Roth sat down to hash out the story, determine each character's journey, and decide who wouldn't be surviving. Get a peek into the creative process behind the feature-length event, with a few teases about what's coming in Phase 3, plus a bunch of start we had to redact. We'll be back in
Dark Legion: The Mummy's Hand, Part Two
It's the finale of PHASE 2 of the DARK UNIVERSE, and big changes are ahead! With Imhotep seemingly defeated, what's next for the Dark Legion? Will they be able to recover their lost friend Nick from his metaphysical tomb in the Black Lagoon? What's the next stop on Claudia Lawrence's magical murder tour? Find out in the stunning conclusion of DARK LEGION: THE MUMMY'S HAND!SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR CAS
Dark Legion: The Mummy's Hand, Part One
At last, we arrive at the finale of Phase Two, the double-sized crossover DARK LEGION: THE MUMMY'S HAND! We're picking up threads left over from our past six main line entries, but have done our best to make this installment as friendly to new listeners as possible. If you want to go in a little less cold, we recommend checking out last season's big crossover, THE DARK LEGION: HOUSE OF DRACULA.We'
Our Story So Far: A Breathless Phase 1 & 2 Recap
In preparation for the upcoming Dark Legion 2 event, hosts Dalton Deschain and Dylan Roth attempt to summarize the entire series as concisely as possible, fuelled by nothing but caffiene and corn nuts. Can the architects of the new Dark Universe retain their sanity long enough to provide an onramp for new listeners? Will any of this make sense? We sure hope so, because in two weeks, the next cross
Dracula's Daughter w/Dominic Griffin
Hot on the heels of Dylan's Dracula Lives, our guest and fellow film critic Dominic Griffin joins us over Skype to pitch a reimagining of Dracula's Daughter, which was a direct sequel to the 1931 Dracula. What makes this lesser-known Universal monster movie a hidden gem, and how much of it do we want to retain for our Dark Universe remake? Will Dom's pitch become adopted into our canon?Our partner
Dracula Lives
You've waited patiently for our Dark Universe to get its first Dracula movie. Now, in the aftermath of The Dark Legion: House of Dracula, the infamous Count has been cursed with a mortal, human life, and must survive a gauntlet of vengeful enemies. Can Dracula endure this unprecedented threat? More importantly, has Dylan FINALLY written a horror script? Find out the our penultimate main line chapt
The Black Cat w/merritt k.
Writer, editor, and podcaster merritt k. visits the studio to pitch her remake of the 1934 Universal classic that's kinda-sorta-not remotely based upon an Edgar Allan Poe story: The Black Cat! It's a film that asks, "What if a house had bad vibes?" as well as a number of other interesting questions that it doesn't have time to answer in its scant 65-minutes runtime Can merritt's new take fulfill t
The Bride of Frankenstein
We might need to subtitle Phase 2 as "The Experimental Era," because once again we've taken a well-known, well-loved Universal monster title and turned it completely on its head. It's time for Dalton's take on The Bride of Frankenstein, and it's not what any one could have possibly expected. Will this be the installment that polarizes the fanbase, The Last Jedi-style, or another entirely hypotheti
Ssssssss! w/Mattie Lubchansky & Jaya Saxena
We've worked through all of the major classic Universal Monsters, but our Dark Universe is still going strong! So, in the tradition of Marvel Studios, we're inviting some of the Internet's keenest creative minds to pitch us new takes on more obscure Universal horror properties. First up, cartoonist Mattie Lubchansky and writer Jaya Saxena attempt to charm us with a requel based on a 1973 snake-cen
The Phantom of the Opera
It's Dylan's turn to pitch a movie, and he's unmasking a new take on The Phantom of the Opera! One of the most unlikely Universal Monsters is also one of the oldest, dating back to a 1925 silent film starring Lon Cheney, Sr. But can any modern retelling of the Gaston Leroux novel escape the gravity of Andrew Lloyd Weber's musical adaptation? Should it? Oh, have we got some surprises in store for y
MonsterMania w/Nick Bond
Wrestling columnist Nick Bond phones into the show (against former co-worker Dylan's objections) to pitch a WWE match incorporating characters from our Dark Universe! Which WWE Superstars will be entering the AYADU canon? Which of our famous movie monsters will be taking a Canadian Destroyer off of a hotel staircase? All this plus the listener mail bag in this electrifying new episode.Today's part
The Black Lagoon
Brace yourself as we dive into Dalton’s bold and unexpected new take on another Universal classic, simply titled: The Black Lagoon. What are the essential ingredients to an aquatic creature feature? What’s the difference between art and pop? How does one escape the shadow of The Shape of Water? Those answers and more in the latest chapter in our ongoing Dark Universe. Plus, a major announcement: D
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen w/Calvin Kasulke
The success of our revived Dark Universe is bound to spark competition, and that means someone's bound to reboot The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen! As a form of opposition research, the studio has assigned Calvin Kasulke, author of the novel Several People are Typing, to pitch a requel to the 2003 flop based on the Alan Moore/Kevin O'Neill comic. It's our rowdiest episode yet!Starting this wee
Werewolves of London
It's time for Dylan's first contribution to Phase 2 and our first sequel to one of our own movies: Werewolves of London! What are our characters from The Wolf Man up to after House of Dracula? Can Dylan avoid the structural problems that have plagued his previous pitches? PLUS: Dalton issues their co-host a challenge that could change the course of the Dark Universe!Our podcast partner for this ep
Dark Universe Fandom w/Frankie Starker
The studio has been closely monitoring Dalton and Dylan's progress with their Dark Universe revamp, and now it's time for them to weigh in! Though the identity of their benefactor at Universal remains a mystery,* they've hired fan relations consultant Frankie Starker (they/them) to weigh in on the probable response of the so far entirely hypothetical fanbase. What will Dark Universe fan fiction lo
The Mummy Returns
Our Phase Two begins at last with a sequel to the only Dark Universe film that actually exists. That's right, it's time for Dalton Deschain's THE MUMMY RETURNS! After obsessing over 2017's The Mummy, Dalton is convinced they've figured out how to turn this franchise around. Have they succeeded? Whether or not the studio is on board, Dalton's about to put Nick Morton through hell in an experimental
The Dark Universe Omnibus w/Giovanni Colantonio
Dylan and Dalton open up the gates to their Dark Universe for the very first time, as Giovanni Colantonio of Digital Trends and Left Trigger Right Trigger arrives to pitch a new video game based on their canon! It's the biggest and most ambitious Dark Universe video game yet — but not actually the first! Learn about the short-lived line of The Mummy tie-in games from 2017, then let Gio walk you th
Launching Phase Two of our Dark Universe
If AYADU had a Comic Con Hall H panel, this is what it would be like. Having completed the six-part opening salvo of movies in their imaginary Dark Universe, Dalton and Dylan revisit their creative process so far and determine whether or not they would do anything differently, if given the chance. Then, the duo announces the complete slate of fake movies planned for Phase Two, which will be premie
The Dark Legion: House of Dracula, Part Two
It's the exciting conclusion of our giant sized season finale, The Dark Legion: House of Dracula! Can our motley crew of benevolent monsters spoil the plans of Count Dracula? Will Nick Morton rise to the challenge of leadership? Will Wolf-couple Gwen and Larry patch things up? What does the Count have in store for The Invisible Man? Whatever you do, DON'T START WITH THIS EPISODE! Go back at least
The Dark Legion: House of Dracula, Part One
The perfect jumping on point for new listeners! It's Part One of our Phase One finale, our Dark Universe's equivalent to Marvel's The Avengers. For the first time, Dylan and Dalton have co-written a treatment, bringing the characters they've been developing all season — The Mummy, The Wolf Man & Wolf Woman, The Invisible Man, etc. — into a single climactic crossover film! We've also roped some
Prelude to The Dark Legion: House of Dracula
SPOILER ALERT! This episode is our brainstorming session in which we break down the story and character objectives for our first major crossover. Since we're figuring out this story together instead of one of us pitching a finished idea to the other, as usual, that means we're going to be spoiling major details about the next two episodes. If you want to enjoy the creative process along with us, g
Jekyll x Hyde
CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains a brief scene depicting an attempted suicide. Skip from timestamp 36:00 to 36:20 if this is something you'd prefer not to hear.Dylan takes a swing at writing psychological horror, modernizing Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde" and setting it in our Dark Universe. What has Russell Crowe's Jekyll been up to since "The Mummy
The Invisible Man
The Dark Universe takes an unexpected turn, as Dalton pitches a kooky comedy take on The Invisible Man starring John C. Reilly! And, no kidding, it's a pivotal entry in the franchise. It's our wildest episode yet!CORRECTION: Tiffany Haddish is only 42 years old, which is still older than Dylan had originally thought, but still a decade younger than Regina Hall.Follow us on Twitter @DarkUniversePod
The Wolf Man
It's Dylan's first turn at pitching a movie, and he's arrived with a 41-page scriptment for a new Wolf Man starring Amber Midthunder, Mason Gooding, and Jon Bernthal! But remember how he was deriding The Mummy for not being a horror movie? Well, he's got some explaining to do.CORRECTIONS: For whatever reason, Dylan mispronounces "Prodigium" this entire episode. It should be "pro-DIJ-ee-um."Follow
Frankenstein
It's our first movie pitch episode, and Dalton has arrived with a brooding new adaptation/sequel to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, starring the Dark Universe's hand-picked leading man, Javier Bardem. Can our team steer the franchise into a more interesting direction? And what will the studio have to say about it? The NEW new world of gods and monsters starts HERE!Follow Dalton on Twitter @DaltonDesc
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