I'm a firm believer that everyone has their personal collection of shows that they think were abandoned or canceled way too soon. Fact is, the streaming era can feel kind of cruel; sometimes, you'll stumble onto a show that's exactly your kind of watch, only to find that it was unceremoniously axed by its streaming service home.
One of the shows I've personally never stopped mourning is Prime Video's "Truth Seekers," a British horror-comedy series that debuted on October 30, 2020. It's a quirky half-hour comedy series co-created by and starring Nick Frost ("Shaun of the Dead") as a broadband engineer with an interest in all things paranormal.
It's a fun, weird romp that ran for eight episodes before being promptly canceled just a few months later, and I've always thought it deserved more love. Seeing as it's nearly five years to the day since it originally premiered, I decided to rewatch "Truth Seekers" on Prime Video again, and I'm marking the occasion by recommending that you go and stream it, too.
What is 'Truth Seekers' about?
"Truth Seekers" is a British comedy-drama series that follows Gus (Nick Frost), an everyman who spends his days installing broadband, moonlighting as a paranormal investigator, and sharing his findings online.
Together with his new partner, Elton (Samson Kayo), and the enigmatic Astrid (Emma D'Arcy), a woman with ghost problems of her own, they start looking into a strange spike in supernatural events. As they continue to hunt ghosts, the group's supernatural encounters grow deadlier and more terrifying, and they eventually uncover a deadly conspiracy that just might spell trouble for the entire human race.
In addition to the above names, the "Truth Seekers" cast also includes Simon Pegg, Malcolm McDowell, Susan Wokoma, Julian Barratt, Kelly Macdonald and Taj Atwal.
'Truth Seekers' was a fun mix of horror and comedy — and it had real potential
If this is the first time you're hearing about "Truth Seekers," you've missed out. This is a real quirky (and distinctly British) mix of comedy and macabre, spooky goings-on that I don't think ever got given a real shot before it was unceremoniously axed.
That's a big shame, too, as it has a lot to offer: the supernatural events can get genuinely creepy or gory, and it offers plenty of small-scale intrigue to sustain itself across eight brief half-hour episodes, both in the individual supernatural events and the main series arc (which only really kicks in partway through). That cancellation particularly stings as "Truth Seekers" has a solid end-of-season tease that the team had more to offer.
Crucially, as a comedy, "Truth Seekers" is first and foremost a sparky, fun watch. It's maybe not as endlessly quotable as "Hot Fuzz," but the silliness and laughs are there, and the main cast gels together as a gang well. It being canceled in 2021 was just such a downer, as "Truth Seekers" season 1 feels like a really solid foundation to work from.
It's not like it was terribly received, either: the series is Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, with a critics' score of 77% and a Popcornmeter score that's slightly higher (81%). Sure, that's not "universal acclaim" levels of praise, but it's indicative that the audience could have been there.
"Truth Seekers" may have been a more offbeat offering than some of Prime Video's biggest hitters, but I still think it could have ended up being a solid addition to the wider Prime Video library if it had continued.
Alas, we'll just have to wonder at what other spooky stuff Gus might've encountered, as Nick Frost's verdict on the show's cancellation was pretty damning: "We really put our all into this – our heart and soul, and blood in some cases, so to not come back is really sad for us. It’s a shame. I think we had lots of lovely ghost stories to tell – stories that will remain now untold." (quote via Deadline)
Nevertheless, you can still stream "Truth Seekers" on Prime Video if you want to see why I've had a soft spot for this fun horror-comedy for the last five years. I rewatched the whole season before writing this article, and it definitely still holds up.
Not sold on "Truth Seekers," but still need something new to stream? We can help. If you're looking for suitably spooky viewing, take a look at our list of the best Halloween movies on Prime Video right now, or scroll through our definitive list of the best Prime Video shows for tons more top streaming suggestions.
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