Dark Shadows (1966): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1966, Dark Shadows is a drama, sci-fi & fantasy and soap series.

What it’s about. Dark Shadows is an American gothic soap opera that originally aired weekdays on the ABC television network, from June 27, 1966, to April 2, 1971. The show was created by Dan Curtis. The story bible, which was written by Art Wallace, does not mention any supernatural elements. It was unprecedented in daytime television when ghosts were introduced about six months after it began. The series became hugely popular when vampire Barnabas Collins appeared a year into its run. Dark Shadows also featured werewolves, zombies, man-made monsters, witches, warlocks, time travel, and a parallel universe. A small company of actors each played many roles; indeed, as actors came and went, some characters were played by more than one actor. Major writers besides Art Wallace included Malcolm Marmorstein, Sam Hall, Gordon Russell, and Violet Welles.

Who’s in it. Dark Shadows stars Jonathan Frid as Barnabas Collins / Bramwell Collins, Mitchell Ryan as Burke Devlin, Frank Schofield as Bill Malloy and Nancy Barrett as Carolyn Stoddard, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 7.3/10, Dark Shadows has been warmly received by audiences.

Where to watch. In US you can stream it on Amazon Prime Video, Peacock Premium, Amazon Prime Video with Ads and Peacock Premium Plus and rent or buy it from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies and Fandango At Home. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Dark Shadows page.

If you liked it. Fans of Dark Shadows tend to enjoy Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and Attack on Titan.