The newly released show, Archive 81, has climbed to the top of Netflix at #1 in under a week. This new hit combines science fiction, mystery, and thriller genres while packing in suspense and horror. From the brilliant mind 0f filmmaker James Wan, director of Malignant, The Conjuring, and Insidious, Archive 81 checks of every box and more particularly in the nightmare department.
Archive 81 centers around a young archivist, Dan Turner played by Mamoudou Athie. As he repairs the tapes of an old building fire which resulted in many deaths, Dan unearths a sadistic cult in the Visser building, a young filmmaker's mysterious disappearance, and a realm to another world. Within the tapes and mystery of the Visser, is the documented footage of filmmaker Melody Pendras and the people of the building, most of whom were part of the cult. Archive 81 captivates viewers with a superb story with the scariest of characters that bring the meaning of spine-tingling to a new level.
John Smith
The first person Melody meets is the repairman, John Smith. Eden Marryshow who starred in Season 2, Episodes 8-12 of Jessica Jones as Shane Rybeck, plays a frightening figure in Smith. He is a tall man that appears higher than Melody when they meet, typically indicating power. However, his large stature is not the only chilling aspect to him.
John Smith is an ambiguous name that is used many times as an alias or false name to cover their real identity. This is true perhaps not with his name, but his persona. At the end of their first conversation, he tells Melody, "Stay away from the sixth floor". That is a bit harrowing. Furthermore, Smith is secretly part of the cult, the Circle, and assists in kidnapping Melody later in the series. Vagueness to a character is often very disturbing.
Anabelle
Despite being Melody's best friend, Julia Chan's character Anabelle is a bit chilling. She enters the series at the end of the second episode, "Wellspring," and stays with Melody to help her find her mother. Anabelle is an aspiring artist with a bubbly spirit and a sense of kindness.
Unfortunately, that all changes a few episodes later when Cassandra gives her the fungus-invested paints of her former lover, Eleanor. In the fifth episode, "Through The Looking Glass", Anabelle turns into a paranoid, mentally unstable, and violent woman that is overtaken by the fungus to a point the point of shoving Melody, breaking the jaw of Maddy Stanton, and stabbing an officer in the eye. When breathing the hallucinogenic fungus, Anabelle is an unstable and petrifying person.
Iris Vos
It does not take more than one episode to make this list. Georgina Haig who played Queen Elsa in Season 4 of Once Upon A Time and Emilia in TNT's Snowpiercer plays none other than Iris Vos. Iris is introduced late in the season as Dan and Melody learn more about the Visser. In the seventh episode, "Ferrymen", viewers finally see Iris and what occurred the first time the cult tried to summon Kaelgo in 1924. As the leader of the Vos Society cult, Iris cares nothing more than reaching the Otherworld. She will kill just about anyone in her way including her young maid Rose. Gradually over this single episode, Iris becomes more deranged and delirious and her obsession becomes scary and uneasy for viewers because Iris might do something violently surprisingly in an instant.
Virgil Davenport
One of the first characters introduced in the series is Virgil Davenport. Played by Tenet and Weeds actor Martin Donovan, Davenport is an off-putting man from the start. He reaches out and hires the services of Dan in the first episode, "Mystery Signals," to recover the footage of a collection of damaged tapes. Dan learns that Davenport is the CEO of LMG, a company with an umbrella of specialties, yet little information about it. Much like Dan, viewers cannot trust an ounce of what Davenport says especially with him surveilling Dan's every move. His vague personality gives people goosebumps but becomes truly frightening when it is revealed that he is Samuel's brother.
Cassandra Wall
Archive 81 focuses on Melody as the female lead of the series, but Cassandra Wall takes first place as the most chilling female character. Played by Kristin Griffith of the indie-drama film Interiors, Wall is frightening at every moment.
In the third episode, "Terror In The Aisles", Wall posts a flyer for canasta, ignores Melody's question, and sniffs Anabelle's neck. Regardless, of having never met Anabelle, sniffing a person's neck without permission is creepy. Wall's constant forced smiles and switches in personality are uneasy for Melody and every viewer. It will make people grasp a blanket tightly, especially when she tries to trick Jess into unknowingly joining the Circle.
Kaelego
Unlike all the other characters in this series, Kaelgo is from the Otherworld. An ancient demonic entity, Kaelgo simply scares everyone that watches Archive 81. Kaelgo makes its on-screen and terrifying out-of-screen appearance at the end of the fourth episode, "Spirit Receivers". This is a James Wan trademark, featuring only "flashes" of the villain. As the series continues, Dan is frequently scared by a Kaelgo pushing through digital screens as he gets closer to finding the truth. With each time Kaelgo appears to Dan, Kaelgo gets even closer to touching Dan and even breaking into the present world. Between its screeching radio-like yell, unexpected hauntings to Dan, and appearance in the season finale, Kaelgo makes people turn off screens at night.
Samuel
Safe to say, but Samuel is the most chilling and scariest character in Archive 81. Portrayed by actor Evan Jonigkeit of X-Men: Days Of Future Past, Samuel is the creepy leader of the cult in 1994. At the beginning of season one, Samuel acts as a kind, caring, and loving tenant residing in the penthouse of the Visser. Over the season as Melody begins to uncover the history of the Visser and cult, Samuel becomes one untrustworthy and haunting man. Samuel masks a horrendous personality and mission. He forges a letter from Melody's mother to convince her to come to the Visser, murders Father Russo, mentally and physically torments Melody, tries to use Jess as a vessel, and opens a gateway to the Otherworld. Samuel embodies evil and makes viewers squirm.