Them

 🎬 Them (2021)

Trailer provided by Amazon Prime Video UK & IE via YouTube

Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)
Release Date: Season 1 – April 9, 2021 | Season 2 – April 25, 2024
Genre: Horror, Drama, Thriller
Platform: Amazon Prime Video
Creator: Little Marvin
Executive Producer: Lena Waithe
Cast:
Season 1: Deborah Ayorinde, Ashley Thomas, Alison Pill, Ryan Kwanten
Season 2: Pam Grier, Luke James, Joshua J. Williams, Jeremy Bobb, Deborah Ayorinde (in a new role)

Some horror series haunt you with supernatural beings. Them haunts you with history.

Created by Little Marvin and executive produced by Lena Waithe, Them is a bold, brutal anthology horror series that dives deep into America's racial trauma. Each season functions as a standalone story under the shared thematic umbrella of Black fear, pain, and survival in the face of systemic oppression. The show is unflinching in its portrayal of generational trauma, historical racism, and the psychological horrors born from both.

Season 1: Covenant – Terror in 1950s Compton

The first season of Them titled Covenant, is set in 1953 and follows the Emory family—Henry (Ashley Thomas), Lucky (Deborah Ayorinde), and their two daughters—as they move from North Carolina to an all-white neighborhood in Compton, California. What begins as a hopeful relocation for a better life rapidly devolves into a waking nightmare as the Emorys are met with hostility, surveillance, and racially motivated violence from their new neighbors. But it’s not just the people around them that are menacing—there are other, darker forces lurking in their home.

The horror in Season 1 operates on dual planes. There’s the overt, systemic racism of the era—the microaggressions, the nightmarish redlining, the mob intimidation tactics—that builds a palpable atmosphere of dread. Then there’s the psychological and supernatural horror that infects the Emory household, mirroring their trauma and fracturing their sanity. As the episodes progress, the line between reality and hallucination blurs, amplifying the sense of disorientation and fear.

Deborah Ayorinde delivers a powerhouse performance as Lucky Emory, a woman battling grief, rage, and a society intent on breaking her spirit. Ashley Thomas provides a nuanced portrayal of Henry, torn between protecting his family and maintaining composure in a world that constantly dehumanizes him. Alison Pill plays Betty Wendell, the racist housewife from hell, with disturbing precision, creating one of the most quietly terrifying antagonists in recent TV memory.

The cinematography is saturated with tension, and the direction often leans into disorientation—claustrophobic close-ups, sudden sound cues, and surreal imagery evoke a dreamlike (or rather, nightmarish) experience. It’s clear that Them wants to do more than scare you—it wants to disturb you.

However, Season 1 was not without controversy. Many viewers criticized the show for its graphic violence and accused it of trauma exploitation, especially toward Black viewers. While some of the brutality does feel relentless, it also underscores the terror that was a daily reality for many during this time. It’s not horror for horror’s sake—it’s a confrontation.

Season 2: The Scare – The Price of Justice

Season 2, subtitled The Scare, takes a different approach. Set in 1991, it shifts from the suburbs to a police precinct in Los Angeles, in the aftermath of the Rodney King beating. Pam Grier stars as Athena King, a seasoned detective nearing retirement, partnered with a younger, idealistic officer, Edmund Gaines, played by Luke James. When a string of grotesque murders begins targeting LAPD officers, the case pulls them into a conspiracy that blends urban legends, political unrest, and deep-rooted institutional rot.

Unlike the first season’s slow-burn domestic terror, The Scare leans more into noir, procedural horror with heavy psychological elements. It's less about the haunting of a home and more about the haunting of an entire system. As the detectives dig deeper, they uncover a pattern that forces them to question justice, loyalty, and their own roles within a deeply flawed institution.

Pam Grier commands the screen with a fierce gravitas, and Luke James brings a layered vulnerability to his role. Their dynamic provides the emotional core of the season, with mentorship, generational tension, and mutual respect developing in nuanced ways. Jeremy Bobb adds a creepy edge as a conspiracy theorist with too much knowledge, while Joshua J. Williams gives a standout performance as a young boy who may be the key to unlocking the mystery.

Deborah Ayorinde returns in an entirely new role as a forensic psychologist brought in to assess the mental toll the case is taking on everyone involved. Her presence ties the anthology together, reinforcing the idea that trauma and horror don’t disappear—they evolve, shift, and find new ways to manifest.

Season 2 also expands the show’s thematic focus. While racial injustice remains central, The Scare also explores toxic masculinity, police accountability, and the price of silence. The horror here is more cerebral, but no less disturbing.

Stylistically, Season 2 sharpens the show’s visual palette. The cold sterility of the police station is contrasted with surreal, almost fever-dream sequences that hint at a supernatural undercurrent. The horror is more metaphysical this time, rooted in guilt and secrecy rather than jump scares.

Aesthetic and Sound Design

Across both seasons, Them boasts top-tier production design. The attention to period detail—whether it’s the pastel horror of 1950s suburbia or the grungy realism of early ’90s LA—is immersive and meticulously crafted. The show’s use of music is particularly haunting, often blending eerie lullabies with vintage tracks that carry sinister undertones.

The sound design deserves special mention. In Covenant, the ambient sound often mirrors the mental state of the characters—distorted laughter, whispers, creaks, and a soundscape that constantly keeps the audience on edge. In The Scare, silence is weaponized. Long pauses, subtle noises, and sudden ruptures in audio rhythm contribute to a deep unease that lingers well after the episode ends.

Final Thoughts

Them isn’t an easy watch—and that’s the point. It’s a horror series with a mission: to hold a mirror to America’s past and ask its audience to confront the monsters that live within its systems, history, and culture. Whether it’s a haunted house in Compton or a haunted badge in Los Angeles, Them ensures that the ghosts are never just ghosts—they’re symbols, memories, and warnings.

While its brutality might alienate some viewers, and while some narrative threads occasionally stretch the bounds of coherence, the series' ambition, performances, and thematic depth make it one of the most original and unsettling horror shows in recent years.

If you're looking for horror that chills your bones and challenges your mind, Them is well worth the watch.