10 Terrifying Facts You Need To Know About Guillermo del Toro’s FX Series The Strain

FX’s The Strain combines viral outbreaks and vampires in fascinating ways. This horror series, which aired for four seasons between 2014 and 2017, features an ensemble cast navigating a world overrun by a virus connected to an ancient form of vampirism. Set in New York City, The Strain follows these disparate characters as they band together in order to ensure their survival.

The Strain stands apart from other recent vampire dramas. Not only does it take the genre in new directions, but the series also presents itself like a medical procedural ⁠— one with a supernatural edge. Despite being co-created by genre icon Guillermo del Toro, The Strain remains criminally under-watched. Fortunately, all four seasons are currently available on Hulu. Here’s everything you need to know before you binge this unique horror show.

10 It Is Based On Three Novels By Del Toro And Chuck Hogan

Before he developed the show, Guillermo del Toro co-wrote The Strain trilogy with novelist and screenwriter Chuck Hogan. The pair waited until after they finished the books before developing the television show. They decided upon FX because the network wanted to remain faithful to the books.

Even though they hoped to make it a five-season series, under FX’s guidance, del Toro and Hogan condensed their storyline to four.

9 The Series Follows A Viral Outbreak

Corey Stoll plays Dr. Ephraim Goodweather, the head Centers for Disease Control and Prevention scientist who is called upon when all of the passengers on a large commuter plane are found dead. With his colleague, Dr. Nora Martinez (Mía Maestro), Dr. Goodweather traces the strange virus that affected all the passengers onboard.

Soon, the CDC doctors realize they’ve got much more on their hands than a deadly virus. What they’re dealing with is a contagion that turns everyone infected into vicious vampires.

8 The Virus Is Connected To An Ancient Form Of Vampirism

Dr. Goodweather and Dr. Martinez cross paths with a cantankerous old man named Professor Abraham Setrakian, played by David Bradley. Setrakian’s character pays homage to Dracula’s vampire hunter, Abraham Van Helsing.

As the virus slowly starts to transform those it infects into vampires, Setrakian works with the doctors to share his knowledge of this grotesque strain of vampirism, which goes back to his youth in Poland.

7 The Vampirism Involves Complex Mythology And Folklore

As the show evolves, the history and origin of its particular brand of vampirism are explored. The strain originates with an ancient being known as the Master, a supernatural entity that inhabits human beings in order to remain alive. The Master arrives in New York at the behest of some powerful acolytes who hope to take over the world.

It turns out the Master controls all those infected with the virus. There is only one way to kill this seemingly indestructible being: an old tome called the Occido Lumen.

6 The Plot Incorporates World War II History

Thomas Eichhorst, played by Richard Sammel, is one of the Master’s highest-ranking acolytes, a ruthless killer who wants to see the human race consigned to the status of vampire food. Eichhorst was an SS officer in World War II who ran the camp that Abraham Setrakian was imprisoned in during the war.

Eichhorst is a vampire whose fascist ideology persists in the present. The Strain explores the vampirism’s connection to Nazis and World War II. After surviving the Holocaust, Setrakian dedicates his life to waging war against the vampires.

5 It Takes A Procedural Approach, Focusing On Government Response

Chuck Hogan’s experience writing screenplays for procedurals prepared him for The Strain‘s special blend of horror and methodological investigations. In addition to focusing on the CDC, The Strain traces how the government responds to the supernatural epidemic.

Samantha Mathis plays Justine Feraldo, a councilwoman for Staten Island who suspects some high-level government officials are involved in the Master’s arrival in New York. This adds extra tension to the narrative.

4 The Series Also Includes Classic Horror Elements

For those who like to be scared, The Strain doesn’t hold back in delivering plenty of terror. The more intellectual aspects of the plot are balanced out by action, gore, and moments of pure fright.

Kevin Durand’s character Vasiliy Fet serves as the classic action movie hero in the series. This tough Ukrainian rat exterminator brings his fighting skills to the group of the survivors, balancing out Setrakian’s knowledge and the doctors’ medical expertise.

3 Del Toro’s Stylized Approach To Storytelling Is Evident Here

Guillermo del Toro builds believable yet fantastical worlds in his films. That skill is evident in The Strain, too. While aspects of the series are inspired by procedurals like CSI or The Wire, del Toro fills it with horror atmospherics.

From camera work to lighting, every aspect of The Strain fills viewers with the sense that something awful lurks around the corner. The series usually delivers on that promise.

2 Plays On Vampire And Zombie Tropes

The vampires in The Strain are unlike others in cinema and literature. Instead of fangs, these creatures attack by projecting a long, proboscis-like tongue into their victim’s neck. Once turned, these creatures go after their loved ones first.

Abraham Setrakian refers to these beings as Strigoi. The Strain also includes daywalkers and an ancient coterie of vampires the Master once belonged to but eventually broke away from.

1 It Is Currently Streaming On Hulu

If you’re into vampires, procedurals, and the ancient fight between good and evil, The Strain is the series for you. Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan’s expertise is evident throughout the entire series.

The Strain contains nuanced characters and a compelling narrative that is often hard to predict. Fortunately, you can watch every season on Hulu.

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