Trivia

The Carmichael character is very clearly based (including physically) on the real-life James Randi. Randi was a talented magician who became a famous psychic debunker and he started an institute that offered a large reward to anyone that could reproduce their supposed paranormal powers in controlled conditions. Over decades, nobody was able to win the money.

Actor David Dastmalchian was cast in the lead role and film's central character Jack Delroy after the film's directors read an article by him about regional horror TV hosts, which he had written for 'Fangoria' magazine. Co-director Colin Cairnes said in an interview with the film's two directors published in this magazine: ''Well, I mean other than sure just recognizing his awesome work and all the films he's been in. But then I opened up 'Fango' one day and read an article by David on regional horror hosts. And reading that, and knowing his work, I just thought, 'this is going to be a really good fit.' Obviously, our hero Jack is a TV host, so it felt like there would be some affinity there.''

In a 2024 interview with The Moveable Fest, Colin Cairnes explained the reason the film is set in 1977: "The film had to happen on a Monday night for Sweeps Week, so the stakes are high and this is the beginning of the week that's gonna make or break Jack Delroy's career, right? And it just so happened that 1977 was the only year in the '70s where Halloween fell on a Monday night, so we thought ''77, that's pretty much, you're right in the thick of it.' So that worked for us."

In a 2023 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Cameron Cairnes gave details on the production schedule, shooting process, and design of the film: "We had 20 days in a studio, essentially one location on what was basically a 360-degree set. We shot the film like it was a TV show with three cameras running the whole time. There was the temptation there to shoot on all old vintage tube cameras, but just with the effects, demands, and everything we ended up shooting digitally, but we shot using three cameras running all the time. For the set design, the inspiration was a lot of those game shows and talk shows from that period, but we were fortunate enough to have a production designer who worked in that era on local TV here, including a very popular music program called Countdown (1974). It was all too easy for him I think to come up with that design. And that palette of browns and oranges and beige. It all felt very of the time, and we really embraced that."

Famed horror novelist Stephen King has praised the movie. He said: "I got a screener. It's absolutely brilliant. I couldn't take my eyes off it. Your results may vary, as they say, but I urge you to watch it when you can."