Marlon Wayans to Adapt Midnight Horror Story for U.S. Audience

LOS ANGELES, CA — Marlon Wayans is set to continue his horror trend with the announcement that he and collaborator Rick Alvarez will adapt the popular South Korean game show Midnight Horror Story for U.S. audiences through their company, Ugly Baby Productions. This news follows the success of their previous collaborations in the horror-comedy genre.

Midnight Horror Story, now in its fifth season, is produced by Munhwa Broadcasting Company (MBC). The show features actors who sit around a table, each selecting a viewer-submitted story to narrate while it is reenacted. After the story, an unseen audience of spirits — combining virtual and live members — determines its fright factor by lighting candles. Each candle symbolizes a spirit that found the tale terrifying, with the storyteller who earns the most candles declared the winner.

Wayans and Alvarez’s U.S. adaptation will maintain a similar format but will add a comedic twist to the scary tales, aligning with their history of blending humor with horror. Their previous collaborations include the A Haunted House series and the Netflix hit The Curse of Bridge Hollow.

The original show’s stories cover terrifying themes, such as sleep paralysis and ghostly figures. It remains to be seen how the U.S. version will balance comedy and horror.

Wayans and Alvarez are teaming up with Smart Dog Media for the adaptation. This marks Smart Dog Media’s second collaboration with MBC, having previously adapted King of Mask Singer into the hit show The Masked Singer.

Fans of Wayans won’t have to wait long to see him on screen, as his new movie Him releases on September 19. He will also co-produce Scary Movie 6, which begins filming in October, featuring a script co-written with his brothers. Wayans will reprise his role as Shorty, the comedic brother to Regina Hall‘s character Brenda.