Adapting Fear: Ian McCulloch Talks TEACUP's Twists and Unpredictable Journey

Image courtesy of Peacock | Photo by Mark Hill/Peacock

By Shannon McGrew

Inspired by Robert McCammon's New York Times bestselling novel "Stinger," TEACUP follows a disparate group of people in rural Georgia who must come together to survive a mysterious threat.

For the release of the new horror/thriller series, Creepy Kingdom's Shannon McGrew spoke with Showrunner/Executive Producer Ian McCulloch. During our chat, we discussed his journey to becoming the showrunner, crafting shocking twists, and what horror fans can expect from the rest of the series.

Thank you so much for speaking with me today, Ian. I am obsessed with this series. How did you become attached to it as showrunner?

Ian McCulloch: A few years ago, James Wan and his company, Atomic Monster, came to me. I knew their work, of course, and I'd met with them several times over the years. They knew my work and said, hey, we've got this book; what do you think about adapting it? I said, let me give it a read. I read the book, and a light bulb moment went off. I said, I'm going to write a script, and it will be very different from the book. If you love it, we will do something with it; if you hate it, we won't. I went off and wrote the script, and luckily, they got it, and they bought into the idea, and now you and I are talking [Laughs].

Image courtesy of Peacock | Photo by Mark Hill/Peacock

Both Scott Speedman and Yvonne Strahovski have played in the horror sandbox. Talk a bit about bringing them on for this project.

Ian McCulloch: Scott and I have known each other for a few years and have worked on some things together that have yet to be made, so I was very excited to have him on board because I think he's a pro. From the second they say action, you believe him as an actor and whatever character he plays, and that's half the battle. When we met Yvonne, I think it took a bit of convincing. She loved the script, but she wanted to make sure that it was something that she felt like she could bring things that were important to her to the role. She wanted to make sure that I knew what I was doing [Laughs]. We had a very long Zoom call, and obviously, it worked out. She's a very in-demand actress, and she's picky and should be picky. I feel lucky and blessed that she got on board cause she is amazing in the series, as is Scott as well.

The first episode ends with a shocking twist that left me floored—it delivers some seriously gnarly body horror, which I never expected to see on a Peacock show. Can horror fans expect more surprises like this as the series unfolds?

Ian McCulloch: Absolutely. It's less about the shock value, which there is to some extent at certain key points in the series. It's more about the idea that the story you think you're in episode one is very much not the story you end up in episode 8. As we peel back the layers of the mystery of what's happening and as we wind our way through the events, the story changes as well as it should, and I think that audiences looking back, if they were to watch all 8 episodes, will be surprised that they ended up where they ended up.

TEACUP's first two episodes are available now to stream on Peacock. Two episodes will be released weekly through Halloween.