Close Menu
  • Login
  • Support Us
  • Newsletter
  • News
  • Features
  • Interviews
  • Reviews
    • Video Games
      • Previews
      • PC
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X/S
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Xbox One
      • PS4
      • Tabletop
    • Film
    • TV
    • Anime
    • Comics
      • BOOM! Studios
      • Dark Horse Comics
      • DC Comics
      • IDW Publishing
      • Image Comics
      • Indie Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • Oni-Lion Forge
      • Valiant Comics
      • Vault Comics
  • Podcast
  • More
    • Event Coverage
    • BWT Recommends
    • RSS Feeds
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
Support Us
But Why Tho?
RSS Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube
Trending:
  • Features
    Marvel's Spider-Man Secret Lair promotional image

    Get a Look At the Secret Lair x Marvel’s Spider-Man Superdrop

    09/08/2025
    Starseeker: Astroneer Expeditions gameplay still

    Starseeker: Astroneer Expeditions Is All About Adventure (with Friends)

    09/08/2025
    Chord in Persona 5 The Phantom X

    Now Is The Perfect Time To Jump Back In ‘Persona 5: The Phantom X’

    09/05/2025
    Cosmic Spider-Man card details

    [EXCLUSIVE PREVIEW] The Spider-Man Set Gets A 5-Color Legendary Spider

    09/02/2025
    Lee Corso from College Football GameDay in EA Sports games

    EA Sports Always Understood Lee Corso’s Legacy

    09/01/2025
  • Indie Games
  • K-Dramas
  • Netflix
  • Apple TV+
But Why Tho?
Home » TV » FANTASTIC FEST: ‘The Creep Tapes’ Keeps The Homespun Magic

FANTASTIC FEST: ‘The Creep Tapes’ Keeps The Homespun Magic

Kate SánchezBy Kate Sánchez09/25/20244 Mins ReadUpdated:09/25/2024
The Creep Tapes (2024) - Fantastic Fest
Share
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Reddit WhatsApp Email

Creep is hands down the best-found footage horror film (or thriller, depending on which camp you lie in) since The Blair Witch Project, at least when it comes to Western productions. Mark Duplass’s dedication to humor and serial killer dread isn’t just admirable, it’s innovative. That said, after two critically and fan-beloved films, the franchise has moved into television with The Creep Tapes. As Duplass mentioned in the Fantastic Fest Secret Screening Q&A sessions, it came out of a failed attempt at Creep 3.

But that is the only time you can use the word “failed” when discussing The Creep Tapes. As tight sub-30-minute excursions into the titular Creep’s life, the audience experiences his kills and relationship with Peachfuzz through individual episodes. Treated more like vignettes in an anthology, each and every episode screened at the genre festival captured the weirdness that Duplass’s horror creation has become known for with the right bite of thrilling reveals to keep the audience excited.

Get BWT in your inbox!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get the latest and greated in entertainment coverage.
Click Here

Get BWT in your inbox!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get the latest and greated in entertainment coverage.
Click Here

I would be lying if I said that I was asking for The Creep Tapes. While I would have gladly signed any number of petitions for Creep 3, I was also fine with letting the franchise rest and basking in the shadow it cast over others in the subgenre. When the series was announced for Shudder and AMC, I questioned where it could go. In the first three episodes, it gave us an answer: everywhere.

True to the core of the first two films, The Creep Tapes excels in its small budget and reliance on giving its actors the camera to record the events as they unfold. Despite the production for a major television network, The Creep Tapes maintain their budget glory. There is nothing about the series, at least in the three episodes that we screened, that departs from the pillars of the originals: scamming people, Peachfuzz, and a nice axe to the dome. That said, The Creep Tapes consistently one-ups itself and takes the idea of the Creep’s decaying and co-dependent relationship with Peachfuzz and his mother to its most extreme measures.

The Creep Tapes (2024) - Fantastic Fest

Moving from the larger concepts of the series, we have to turn the focus to Duplass himself. A creative in the series, it’s his acting that chills you, excites you, and, honestly, is just plain weird. Duplass is a menacing hot mess, and, of course, a psychopath. His ability to maneuver from an awkward, creepy disaster to an absolutely threatening psychopath is worth applauding—and I did. The balance between traditional humor, black comedy, and the perfect agitation ala Patrick Bateman represents the best rendition of a serial murderer in cinema and in this case, television.

The Creep Tapes push past expectations and give Creep fans exactly what they were asking for by burying it into something new and exciting. Truthfully, television is the best format for the next step in the Creep franchise—or, as Duplass noted, the Creep universe. It allows the series to tackle situational comedy and situational distress in a way that builds out its main character as someone beyond his chilling inclinations. The future is nearly endless when viewed as an anthology series of the lives that Duplass’s Peachfuzz has snuffed out. And man, I want it to be.

The Creep Tapes is an unbeatable piece of genre storytelling that highlights the creativity in self-restraint and outmuscles any and every killer series around it. Director Patrick Brice and Mark Duplass (as both writer and star) are a dynamic duo that uses The Creep Tapes to embody everything I love about genre filmmaking, even if it’s in television format.

The Creep Tapes screened at Fantastic Fest 2024 and will debut on AMC+ and Shudder on November 15, 2024, with new episodes weekly. 

The Creep Tapes (Episodes 1-3)
  • 10/10
    Rating - 10/10
10/10

TL;DR

The Creep Tapes is an unbeatable piece of genre storytelling that highlights the creativity in self-restraint and outmuscles any and every killer series around it.

Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Email
Previous ArticleREVIEW: ‘Uzumaki: Spiral Into Horror’ Deserves Your Unwavering Attention
Next Article REVIEW: ‘Agatha All Along’ Episode 3 — “Through Many Miles Of Tricks & Trials”
Kate Sánchez
  • Website
  • X (Twitter)
  • Instagram

Kate Sánchez is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of But Why Tho? A Geek Community. There, she coordinates film, television, anime, and manga coverage. Kate is also a freelance journalist writing features on video games, anime, and film. Her focus as a critic is championing animation and international films and television series for inclusion in awards cycles. Find her on Bluesky @ohmymithrandir.bsky.social

Related Posts

Helluva Boss Season 2 But Why Tho
9.5

REVIEW: ‘Helluva Boss’ Season 2 Is A Deeper Dive Into Love And Power

09/11/2025
Helluva Boss Season 1 Episode 7 But Why Tho
9.0

REVIEW: ‘Helluva Boss’ Season 1 Is Full Of Violence, Chaos, And Heart

09/11/2025
Sandra Yi Sencindiver stars as Yutani in Alien Earth Episode 6
9.0

REVIEW: ‘Alien: Earth’ Episode 6 — “The Fly”

09/10/2025
Task promotional key art featuring Mark Ruffalo from HBO
7.0

REVIEW: ‘Task’ Episode 1 — “Crossings”

09/08/2025
Aneesha Malik in Invasion Season 3 Episode 3
9.0

RECAP: ‘Invasion’ Season 3 Episode 3 — “Infinitas”

09/07/2025
Peacemaker Season 2 Episode 3
9.0

RECAP: ‘Peacemaker’ Season 2 Episode 3 — “Another Rick Up My Sleeve”

09/06/2025

Get BWT in your inbox!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get the latest and greated in entertainment coverage.
Click Here
TRENDING POSTS
The Long Walk (2025) film review promotional image
9.5
Film

REVIEW: ‘The Long Walk’ Is The Most Heartfelt And Heartbreaking Stephen King Adaptation

By Kate Sánchez09/11/2025Updated:09/11/2025

The Long Walk is a brutal watch. Equally heartfelt and heartbreaking, it’s one of the best adaptations of Stephen King’s work.

Black Women Anime — But Why Tho (9) BWT Recommends

10 Black Women in Anime That Made Me Feel Seen

By LaNeysha Campbell11/11/2023Updated:12/03/2024

Black women are some of anime’s most iconic characters, and that has a big impact on Black anime fans. Here are some of our favorites.

EA Sports FC Icons Match promotional image from Nexon News

2025 Icons Match Returns With Football Legends Bridging The Pitch And Video Games

By Kate Sánchez09/03/2025Updated:09/03/2025

NEXON has announced the return of the ‘2025 Icons Match,’ a live event that brings a full roster of legendary players to the pitch.

Gojo Jujutsu Kaisen - But Why Tho (2) Features

Everything To Know About Satoru Gojo

By Kate Sánchez09/07/2023Updated:02/16/2025

Satoru Gojo is the heart of Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2 — now, heading into Cour 2, here is everything you need to know about the character.

But Why Tho?
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest RSS YouTube Twitch
  • CONTACT US
  • ABOUT US
  • PRIVACY POLICY
  • SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER
  • Review Score Guide
Sometimes we include links to online retail stores. If you click on one and make a purchase we may receive a small contribution.
Written Content is Copyright © 2025 But Why Tho? A Geek Community

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

But Why Tho Logo

Support Us!

We're able to keep making content thanks to readers like YOU!
Support independent media today with
Click Here