Eva Green’s Underrated Horror Is Still the Best Gothic Show Ever Made
Stop watching American Horror Story, here comes a darker tale.
Being recognized as one of the sex symbols of the modern acting industry, Eva Green is definitely very much of a skilled horror performer.
It’s proved by her fruitful collaborations with Tim Burton that include dark comedy Dark Shadows (2012) and gothic fantasy Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2016).
Green’s talent for depicting mysterious women with supernatural abilities shines even brighter in a TV show that was unfairly forgotten by the audience. It’s still hailed by fans who claim every horror veteran should immediately put it on their watchlist.
Set in Victorian London, it starts by introducing us to Sir Malcolm, a witty explorer whose daughter goes missing, and he blames the city’s mysterious creatures for it.
That’s why he teams up with seductive clairvoyant Vanessa (played by Green) who promises to help him to find his daughter and to catch some monsters in the way.
The series features a great number of 19th century’s fictional characters, including Dorian Gray from Oscar Wilde's novel, some creatures from Bram Stoker's Dracula, Victor Frankenstein and his monster from Mary Shelley's gothic masterpiece and so on.
Therefore, the more the protagonists progress in their investigation, the more this show presents these characters’ origins, artfully intertwining them with the main storyline. If you like classic horror stories, be sure you’ll be in complete awe of this series.
The series doesn’t at all forget about its horror aspect, as scary sequences are really nail-biting here. That’s why it becomes reminiscent of 2010s successful horror shows, such as American Horror Story ( 2011 - …), Dracula (2013 - 2014) and Salem (2014 - 2017).
Titled Penny Dreadful, this Showtime ’s must-watch stands out due to its dark setting and tone that really immerse you into the world of a gothic tale. It’s enhanced by Green’s stellar performance and the ones of Timothy Dalton, Rory Kinnear and Billie Piper.
“The best horror show I've ever watched. Eva Green is absolutely incredible on this show,” claims Redditor @sergiocamposnt about it.
Luckily, you can check out how these different horror universes blend, as all three seasons of Penny Dreadful are available for streaming on Hulu and Paramount+.