Welcome back to Tony Talk, a column in which Gold Derby contributors Sam Eckmann and David Buchanan offer Tony Awards analysis. Now that the 2026-27 Broadway season is officially underway, we offer our first impressions of the Tony chances of the first production, a rare horror play.
David Buchanan: Sam, we’ve already been talking about the 2026-27 Broadway season for months — since the week after the Tony Awards, in fact — so I’m extremely excited to say that it has now finally begun with the opening of Paranormal Activity on Aug. 25.
Admittedly, horror is not one of my favorite genres; I must confess that I haven’t seen any of the seven existing Paranormal Activity films. It’s also not the type of show that comes to Broadway very often, either. And yet, despite those mitigating circumstances, I’m happy to report that I found the production both frightening and frightfully entertaining! Do you think the show is — to spoof the words of Marla Mindelle’s Celine Dion in Titaníque — “spooky crazy”?
Sam Eckmann: Come to the dark side, David! I’m thrilled that you enjoyed this, because unlike you, I’m a horror afficionado. The genre rarely makes an appearance on stage, especially on Broadway. But Paranormal Activity is one of the most successful — and yes, spooky crazy — scary stage productions I’ve ever encountered.
Perhaps we should have anticipated the success of this show based on the pedigree of its creators. The script is courtesy of playwright Levi Holloway, who made his Broadway debut with the ghostly Grey House in 2023. That drama, featuring Tatiana Maslany and Laurie Metcalf, proved that Holloway knew how to craft an emotionally gripping drama with enough space for creative stage magicians to build scares.
His script for Paranormal Activity cleverly subverts many of the common tropes from the film franchise all while delivering an engaging portrait of a romantic relationship strained to its most extreme limits. I was also quite impressed with the ways in which director Felix Barrett played with tempo to create a sense of dread. Barrett is the artistic director of Punchdrunk, where he helmed the moody international sensation Sleep No More, and a bevy of other immersive theater pieces. His knack for creating eerie atmosphere is just as effective within a proscenium stage.
Do you think either of these gentlemen could scare up a Tony nomination? A Best Play bid might be a tall order for Holloway, as nominators frequently opt for dramas with “important” messages or unique writing styles. Still, the exuberant critical and audience response means this show can’t be totally counted out. Even if Paranormal Activity ultimately misses the Best Play category, I can still envision Barrett as a dark-horse contender in the director race. The way he can create a genuinely terrifying scare out of a tender moment between the main protagonists is both nightmare-inducing and awards-worthy. Plus, the opportunity to nominate the man who helmed Sleep No More might be too tempting to pass up for many voters.
Buchanan: I agree that a Best Play nomination might be a tall order for a show written and designed predominantly to scare. But at this early point in the season, it doesn’t hurt to take its chances seriously. As with last year, the Best Play Revival slate is a lot more crowded than the original dramas; right now, I think we can only confidently say Here There Are Blueberries, Inter Alia, Mix and Master, and Montauk are the undoubtedly new shows debuting this season alongside Paranormal Activity.
That thin slate thus far means we’ll only get three or four nominees, but it wouldn’t be the first spectacle-driven production to break through. Yes, Stranger Things missed the top category, but Harry Potter and the Cursed Child actually won — and I don’t recall anybody thinking that script deserved the Pulitzer!
Barrett is a likelier bet, and not just because there will definitely be five nominees for Best Director. As you said, this production is all about pacing and building suspense, all in a particularly large playing space. Barrett knows how and where to draw your eye — either toward something scary or to divert your attention away from a bigger scare to come — which is essential to the success of the whole experience. I must give him kudos, too, for knowing that scary doesn’t only equal loud. Yes, there are jump scares with unexpected, booming noises, but I’d say most of the frights come from brilliant sleight-of-hand, unexplainable stage craftsmanship, and psychological surprises that keep the audience guessing and gasping.
Speaking of sound and staging, this show feels tailor-made to be remembered by nominators in Scenic, Lighting, and Sound Design. In 2025, Stranger Things swept those categories. Even though we have the whole season in front of us, do you feel confident in a nomination for Paranormal Activity in any of those races?
Eckmann: I completely agree that those three design categories provide Paranormal Activity with its best shot at Tony nominations, and even potential wins. Scenic Designer Fly Davis plopped a sprawling two-story home on stage and it’s sure to be one of the biggest sets of the season. His haunted house feels appropriately lived-in and packed to the brim with detailed set dressing. Certain elements, like the classic stained glass above the front door or the long staircase, can make the space feel homey in one moment but foreboding in the next.
Lighting Designer Ana Watson brilliantly plays with every nook and cranny of Davis’ set. Every time a passing car’s headlights scanned the set through the living room window, I clutched my chest wondering if I had just seen an apparition in the far corner. Arguably even more effective is her employment of the absence of light. I had no idea one could create such darkness on stage. At one point, the hallway in front of the nursery became such a dark void that I became transfixed, certain that something horrific would spring forth from it. Sound designer Gareth Fry already has two Tonys to his name, for The Encounter and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. He will certainly be nominated once again for this scare fest. The louder effects used in several of the biggest scares obviously make him a contender, but it’s the subtle creaks and groans of the house that truly keep the audience on the edge of their seats.
I’d also be remiss to not highlight the work of illusion designer Chris Fisher. He received a Special Tony Award last season for his breathtaking effects in Stranger Things: The First Shadow. Now he’s back at it with more “how-the-heck-did-they-do-that?” moments in Paranormal Activity. There is one particularly gob smacking fake out towards the end of act one that sends decibel-busting screams through the audience. When the play concluded, folks were still discussing how scared they were from that singular moment as we spilled out into the street. It would be exceedingly rare for an artist to be bestowed with a Special Tony two years in a row, but Fisher is nevertheless a top candidate for the honor.
We don’t have official category placements for the actors yet, but I would imagine that Cher Álvarez and Travis A. Knight, who play Jimmy and Lou — the newlyweds at the heart of the story — will be deemed lead performers, while Shannon Cochran and Eva Kaminsky will both be eligible in featured actress. It might be tough for these roles to score acting nominations because the play doesn’t offer them traditional “awards bait” elements, such as an extended scene-chewing monologue. However, I must commend Álvarez and Knight for crafting a believable pair of lovers whom you instantly relate to and root for. They’re both able to pack a great deal of nuance and history into even the briefest moments. If there was a Tony category for “Best Chemistry” they would be shoo-ins. Do you think it’s possible any actors are recognized come spring?
Buchanan: The scene near the end of the first act that you’ve mentioned is absolutely a feat and definitely the moment from the production that I’m still thinking about! Oddly enough, I’d say the design work on Paranormal Activity reminded me of The Humans from a decade ago. That show also had a two-level domestic set and brilliantly used its sound and lighting design to create a foreboding eeriness, albeit on a smaller set and in smaller theaters. Obviously, Paranormal Activity ratchets up the fear factor exponentially and employs it to very different effect, but The Humans did earn scenic and lighting design noms and even won for David Zinn’s set, which might be good precedents for Davis and Watson.
Álvarez and Knight do indeed have great chemistry. They also have the tricky task of establishing a years-long relationship very briskly, as the play doesn’t give them too much runway before launching into the unsettling things happening in the house. If I was going to single out one performer that could conceivably receive recognition, I’d highlight Shannon Cochran as Jimmy’s mother.
Without divulging too much for folks who will be catching the show later in its run, I’ll just say that they introduce her in the first act as a source of tension between Jimmy and Lou with a touch of levity, but then the show completely subverts your expectations of her character and use her to terrific effect in the second act when things completely unravel for the couple. She is funny, folksy, and ultimately downright frightening over the show’s two-hour runtime, and she would be such a cool Featured Actress nominee.
