A deadly hit-and-run. A fisherman with a hook. A killer who refuses to let the past stay buried.

Tonight at Dark Academy, we’re celebrating the Fourth of July with a ‘90s horror classic: I Know What You Did Last Summer. We revisit the coastal slasher that helped define a generation, discuss what still works, what makes us yell at the screen, and why the Hookman remains one of horror’s most recognizable killers.

Then we examine the heartbreaking true story of Tony Parsons, a charity cyclist whose fatal hit-and-run led to a cold blooded cover-up.

Next, we head to Virginia to untangle the still-mysterious Colonial Parkway Murders. Recent DNA evidence identified fisherman Alan Wade Wilmer as the killer in several cases, but lingering questions and unsolved murders continue to fuel speculation that another predator may still be part of the story.

Finally, we gather around the campfire for our Final Fright and trace the evolution of The Hookman urban legend. From 1940s Lovers’ Lane warnings to campfire tales, Hollywood slashers, and the age of AI, why has this story survived for nearly 80 years?

So grab a flashlight, stay with your friends, and whatever you do…

Don’t stop on a lonely road.

In this episode of Dark Academy, we gather in the Midnight Library to discuss all things Exorcist. The whole show is the Exorcist.

Join me as we journey from the ancient ruins of Iraq and the legend of the Mesopotamian demon Pazuzu to the streets of Georgetown, where a young girl’s possession would forever change the horror genre.

But the story doesn't end there.

The movie was based on real events. A real demon possession? You may ask. Yes! Or so they say. We’ll explore the claims, the exorcisms, the skeptical explanations, and the events that blurred the line between faith, fear, folklore, and reality.

Then step into the resulting American fear of the occult, demon possession, ouija boards and the rise of the Satanic Panic

Finally, we'll close with the strange and unsettling stories surrounding the production of The Exorcist itself. From mysterious fires and on-set injuries to deaths connected to the cast and crew, many came to believe the film was cursed long before audiences ever sat down to watch it.

Was Roland Doe truly possessed?

Did The Exorcist unleash a new era of fear?

And was the production really cursed?

Grab your candle and join me in the Midnight Library circle as we explore one of the darkest stories in horror history.

Topics include: The Exorcist, Roland Doe, Ronald Hunkeler, exorcisms, Pazuzu, demonology, Catholic exorcism rituals, Satanic Panic, paranormal folklore, horror history, and alleged curses.

Step into the woods… actually, don’t.

In this episode of Dark Academy, we gather in the Midnight Library to explore The Village, a film where fear isn’t just a feeling… it’s a system. A system designed to protect. To control. To keep people safe…

From “Those We Do Not Speak Of” to the quiet authority of those who claim to know what’s best, The Village forces us to ask a chilling question:

Can we trust the people who decide what we’re allowed to know?

We start with the film itself—its tension, its love story, its carefully constructed fear, and unravel the deeper horror beneath it: not monsters in the woods, but the stories we’re told to keep us in line.

Then we step beyond the screen.

Into the lies we tell children to keep them safe.

Into folklore and superstition designed to control behavior.

Into real-world beliefs that blurred the line between protection… and harm.

From childhood warnings to cultural traditions, and even true crime rooted in fear and belief, this episode explores how easily we accept what we’re told, especially when it feels like it’s for our own good.

Because sometimes the scariest thing isn’t the unknown…

…it’s trusting the wrong voice in the dark.

So the question is:

Would you rather know the truth…

or feel safe believing the lie?

Welcome back to Dark Academy.

Grab your candle.