In the annals of horror, the found footage subgenre has undoubtedly garnered a dedicated fandom, but it remains slightly niche; consider the hundreds of films in the genre that are released annually, yet often overlooked, in favor of the one or two that capture mainstream attention. Adapting the genre for television has proven even rarer. Even with successes like The Creep Tapes on Shudder and the love letter to the medium, Found Footage Finds on Found TV, the broader fandom has been slow to embrace these TV projects.
This makes The River, the ABC channel’s found footage horror series, such an oddity in a landscape where, especially on primetime TV, executives are not necessarily willing to take chances on a format without a proven track record. This was also in 2012, long before a series like The Creep Tapes was given the green light, having spun off from a massively successful found footage franchise. Yet the one-and-done season of this series remains a true gem for found footage horror fans.
‘The River’ Came and Went in a Flash on ABC
The River offered a genre mash-up of horror, sci-fi, and adventure set in the Amazon rainforest. The story starts with the disappearance of beloved TV explorer and adventurer Dr. Emmet Cole (Bruce Greenwood) while on a trip deep into the uncharted Amazon. Six months later, his emergency beacon picks up a signal, prompting his wife, Tess Cole (Leslie Hope), and estranged son, Lincoln Cole (Joe Anderson), to search for him. The expedition is funded by the station, which sends a camera crew to document it. They are also joined by others who have a vested interest in uncovering what happened. During the trip, the cast and crew encounter various supernatural phenomena, with the cursed journey captured on multiple cameras.
The series was created by Oren Peli (creator of Paranormal Activity) and Michael R. Perry (screenwriter for Paranormal Activity 2) and had some big names backing the project, including executive producers Steven Spielberg (through Amblin Television) and Jason Blum of the infamous horror studio Blumhouse Productions. ABC clearly hoped that the recent success of the Paranormal Activity films would translate easily into a TV series format.
However, the series did not capture a big enough audience. The River started with decent numbers, bringing in 8.2 million viewers in the 18-49 demographic, but the decline was sharp, with the number dropping to 6.8 million in the show’s second hour — the worst debut for a drama series on ABC that season (via TV Series Finale). Although found footage is often seen as an affordable format — which explains the numerous films produced in this style — the location shooting in Hawaii and the use of special effects made The River a costly production, reducing its viability for ABC in 2012. The River would ultimately be canceled due to low ratings, leaving its fans with a cliffhanger.
Critic Reception Was Mixed, but ‘The River’ Still Found Its Fans
The River currently has a 63% rating on Rotten Tomatoes among critics, although it has only 27 scores recorded. The positive scores are not glowing reviews, but merely ratings that fall above the halfway mark. Scathing reviews, such as those from The New York Times, would describe the program as “neither intriguing nor particularly scary, and it doesn’t help that there’s hardly a glimmer of humor,” while a fresh review still came with a bit of a dig with Time Magazine saying; “The River is a highly unrealistic story shot in hyperrealistic style, which is the source of its strengths and some problems.”
Still, found footage fans, if anything, understand that the genre is often misunderstood and downplayed, with The River finding a small cult fandom of those in the know who were early to embrace the format. Notably, the series was a pioneering attempt to adapt the visual style to the TV format, one that generated a degree of instant excitement for many.
From the abrupt disappearance of Dr. Emmet Cole to ghastly discoveries, such as the pulsating cocoon or a room filled with corpses, the series delivered some of the most intense and terrifying moments in the genre. Atmospheric, with eerie supernatural undertones and crazy plot twists, The River may have come too soon to be the hit among found footage fans it truly could have been.
Is ‘The River’ Still Worth Watching?
The found footage horror genre has continued to evolve, including international features coming to dominate the subgenre, since the release of The River in 2012. Add in the fact that The River ended on a cliffhanger with its final episode titled “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” leaving the fate of the expedition to save Dr. Emmet Cole and his family up in the air, in a way that begs for a second season. Still, those viewers who don’t require a clear conclusion and have a fondness for the found footage genre should certainly give The River a try. All eight episodes of The River are available to rent/own on YouTube, Apple TV, and Prime Video.
