Widow’s Bay creator Katie Dippold revealed that Apple TV+’s new horror comedy began as a very different project: a spec script for an episode of NBC’s Parks and Recreation. Dippold, who previously worked as a writer and co-producer on the sitcom, said the early version was much more joke-driven and leaned closer to spoof territory. While she believed it reflected her sense of humor, she said she is not sure she would have personally watched that lighter version of the story.
Dippold explained that she wanted Widow’s Bay to feel fully immersive as a horror series, rather than too comedic. Her goal was to create a setting that felt like New England, isolated and eerie, with an island viewers could imagine exploring for hidden corners and unsettling places. That atmosphere became central to the show’s identity as it moved away from its original concept.
In Widow’s Bay, Matthew Rhys plays a New England mayor named Tom Loftis, who tries to increase tourism on a small island as a chain of strange events awakens an ancient curse. The series blends comedy and horror, but Dippold said the inspiration for its tone came from a very real childhood feeling: the thrill of being scared while also finding the experience exciting and fun.
She pointed to family trips to a boardwalk in Long Branch, New Jersey, as a key influence. Dippold said that as a child she found the place both chaotic and terrifying, but also thrilling. She described the experience as one of dangerous excitement, where fear and laughter were closely tied together. That mix of emotions, she said, is what she wanted to bring to television.
She also recalled childhood adventures with friends, including visiting abandoned houses and running away in fear, only to want to do it again. For Dippold, those memories shaped the feeling she wanted Widow’s Bay to capture: a world that is scary but also irresistible, where the audience feels both dread and delight at the same time.
The series has already been renewed for a second season by Apple TV+, and Dippold has signed an overall deal with the streamer. The Season 1 finale of Widow’s Bay is set to stream on Wednesday, June 17.
