October 12, 2012 (2012-10-12) – March 4, 2022 (2022-03-04)
A Haunting is an American paranormaldramaanthology television series that depicts eyewitness accounts of alleged possession, exorcism, and ghostly encounters. The program features narrations, interviews, and dramaticre-enactments based on various accounts of alleged paranormal experiences at reportedly haunted and mostly residential locations.
Overview
A Haunting originally began as two feature-length specials, A Haunting in Connecticut and A Haunting in Georgia, which were developed by Allison Erkelens, who also served as head writer. The specials were executive produced by Tom Naughton and Nicolas Valcour for New Dominion Pictures.[1] Based on strong ratings, A Haunting became a weekly series on the Discovery Channel in the Fall of 2005 and was produced by Larry Silverman.[2]
The series has featured several alleged paranormal encounters, including traditional hauntings, demonic activity, ghost attacks, possessions, and cryptic visions.[3][4] The series covers incidents from various locations mostly in the United States, but five episodes are set in international locations around the world, these are Canada, England, Ireland, and Taiwan. Episodes may be set in houses, apartments, farms, commercial areas, and even vast outdoor regions.[2][5][6] Most episodes present several accounts of paranormal experiences through cinematic re-enactments, which are accompanied by commentary from eyewitnesses and investigators themselves.[7]
According to Silverman, the show's writers search for stories and then filter out accounts with enough substantial content.[2] He has further added that the episodes are strictly based on the accounts of victims, although the Discovery Channel did compel the show's producers to sanitize certain case histories due to their graphic sexual and violent content.[2] Bill Bean, whose real-life experiences were first featured in the episode "House of the Dead", claimed that the show's producers left out some of his story and that "some of the content was altered."[8]
Episodes within the series follow a frequently recurring pattern, in which victims of hauntings begin noticing peculiar incidents that gradually become more frequent and bizarre. Denial is most often the first reaction. As the situation escalates, however, and every possible conventional explanation is explored and found wanting, they either contact a paranormal investigator, a member of the clergy, or a spiritual medium for assistance. In some cases, victims are able to successfully resolve their paranormal issues, while in others, victims are forced to vacate their residence.[9][10] Certain episodes have also featured commentary from famed demonologist and clairvoyantEd and Lorraine Warren, who have actually investigated some of the cases featured on the series. The episode "The Dark Side" was dedicated to the memory of Ed, who died in 2006.[10] The episode "Dangerous Games" featured commentary from the Warrens' nephew, John Zaffis.[11]
The show originally aired from August 6, 2002, to November 9, 2007, on the Discovery Channel, which produced four seasons of 39 episodes. After nearly a five-year hiatus, New Dominion productions began producing new episodes of a A Haunting in 2012. The show's fifth through eighth seasons were broadcast on the Destination America channel, which aired between October 12, 2012[12][13] and March 20, 2016. As of the show's ninth season, it aired on the TLC Network, where it premiered on October 21, 2016, and ended the following year on October 30, 2017. In 2019, the show's tenth season premiered on The Travel Channel.[14] After a two-year hiatus, the eleventh season of A Haunting debuted on December 31, 2021, on the Travel Channel as well as Discovery Plus.[15]
