Advertisement

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina: 5 witch shows to watch before it airs

Mads Lennon
Mads Lennon

1428 Elm

American Horror Story Coven witches. Jessica Lange, Emma Roberts, Jamie Brewer, Taissa Farmiga

‘Tis the season of the witch. If you’re excited for The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina then you don’t want to miss out on these five other shows featuring witches. 

A week ago, one of our other writers, Molly Henry, wrote a fantastic article about movies centering around teen witches to get readers in the mood for The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. Next up: the best witches from television.

In just a few short weeks,The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is due to drop on Netflix. Both The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and Sabrina the Teenage Witch are based on the character Sabrina originated in the Archie comics. While Melissa Joan Hart’s version was more family-friendly, Netflix’s version aims to be a much darker journey into occultism.

If you’re a fan of The CW’s Riverdale, this is a series you won’t want to miss as it’s in the same universe and even shares a showrunner in Roberto-Aguirre-Sacasa. The show has also already been renewed for a second season but before it starts streaming, you’ve got a few weeks to binge these five other shows featuring witches you can’t miss!

The Secret Circle

From L to R: Diana Meade (Shelley Hennig), Melissa Glaser (Jessica Parker Kennedy), and Faye Chamberlain (Phoebe Tonkin); Courtsey of IMDb, and The CW

More from Horror on TV

Everyone has that show you really wish hadn’t been cancelled. For me, it’s The Secret Circle, based on L.J. Smith’s book series of the same name. 

The show centered on a recent Washington state transplant named Cassie Blake who discovers her magical heritage and becomes part of a coven along the way.The Secret Circle was a great counterpart to the more popular Vampire Diaries, and it’s ratings were not bad by any means, especially for The CW. But, I digress, I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.

However, that doesn’t mean the first season isn’t still worth watching. The show did give us one of the most memorable and popular television witches in the teen drama echelon: Faye Chamberlain. Phoebe Tonkin played the “wicked witch” whose sass and charisma made her a hit with many teens and young adults.

Faye isn’t the only reason to give the show a shot though, the female friendships are compelling and realistic. The bonds between Diana, Faye, and Melissa were complicated, but a big draw for me and many other fans. There was also plenty of romance too if that’s more in line with your interests.

Even though we’ll never know what was to come of the Blackwell lineage storyline, I still have just as much fun rewatching the sole season of this now as I did when it aired.

Penny Dreadful

Helen McCrory as Evelyn Poole in Penny Dreadful (season 2, episode 6). – Courtesy of IMDb, Jonathan Hession, and SHOWTIME

In my opinion, Penny Dreadful is one of the best, and most underrated, horror shows of all time. While it only got the chance to air for three short seasons on Showtime, I was still blown away by the production value, the story and the acting. Eva Green not scoring any Emmy nominations in her emotional and dynamic turn as Vanessa Ives is a travesty I can never forgive.

The 19th century gothic backdrop and themes made for a show living up to its name. It featured many famous characters from British literature including, but not limited to, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Dorian Gray and even Count Dracula himself.

One of the reasons I loved the show so much was because it wasn’t afraid of going to the darkest realms of witchcraft. The second season featured a coven with horrific intentions. Helen McCrory played Evelyn Poole, a witch so entrenched in the dark arts as she murdered infants to create her twisted puppet machinations, which all served her master plan to marry Satan.

It’s also worth mentioning Joan Clayton (the Cut-Wife), played by the esteemed Patti LuPone (who actually played a different character in the third season of the show). She was a hedge witch who did not share Evelyn’s beliefs about occultism and for her traitorous stance she was tarred and burned alive in one of the most shocking scenes of the entire series.

Charmed

A photo of the Halliwell sisters from Charmed; from L to R Prue Halliwell (Shannon Doherty), Phoebe Halliwell (Alyssa Milano) and Piper Halliwell (Holly Marie Combs). Courtesy of IMDb and Paramount Television.

More from Horror on TV

It’s impossible to talk about witches without mentioning Charmed, one of the first television shows to have all of its main characters be witches. It debuted in 1998 and ran for eight seasons before coming to an end. Its legacy doesn’t end there however, a reboot is due to premiere on the CW this fall.

The main plot of Charmed  followed the story of the Halliwell sisters, Phoebe, Prue, and Piper – aka “The Charmed Ones.” The girls discover an ancient grimoire in the attic of their home titled the Book of Shadows and from there they learn about their magical heritage and abilities. Over the course of the series, they battled all sorts of creatures, demons, ghosts, spirits, vampires — you name it. One of the main selling points of the series was each sister’s trademark gift. Phoebe had the gift of clairvoyance, Prue had telekinetic abilities and Piper could freeze time.

The show is still extremely popular and beloved to this day, (the announcement of the reboot earned its fair share of backlash from people not wanting to tarnish the original’s legacy). It’s more light-hearted and fun than some of the other shows on this list which makes it a breezy, entertaining binge watch.

If you’re interested, you can catch the premiere of the reboot October 14th on the CW.

Salem

Janet Montgomery as Mary Sibley, sitting on her throne in an episode Salem. Courtesy of IMDb and WGN.

Salem is a lesser-known gem within the witch genre. It’s a sexy, entertaining, bloody magical adventure. It aired on WGN as their first attempt at a scripted series. For a network most known for airing Matlock reruns, an edgy show about witchcraft was a surprising direction but it paid off. Even during their brief attempt at creating more original dramas, Salem remained one of the highest rated on the network.

It starred Janet Montgomery as Mary Sibley, one of the strongest witches in Salem who hoped to perform one of the most sacred, twisted and dangerous rituals of all time, known as the Grand Rite.

To perform the Grand Rite was to prepare a body to host the Devil and open the Gates of Hell on Earth. It involved thirteen sacrifices, a clock of doom and plenty of depravity.

The third season featured a role for Xena’s Lucy Lawless, who has become somewhat of a cult favorite to horror and sci-fi fans alike (with her most recent horror role being a stint on Ash vs. the Evil Dead). She played Countess Marburg, a former bride of Lucifer, with a sinister agenda of her own.

Another surprising actor who appeared in the third season? Marilyn Manson. The witches on this show were certainly not for the faint of heart..

American Horror Story: Coven

AMERICAN HORROR STORY: COVEN Boy Parts – Episode 302 –Pictured: Lily Rabe as Misty — Courtsey of Michele K. Short, IMDb, and FX.

More from 1428 Elm

While not entirely a show about witches, American Horror Story featured an entire season based around witchcraft in New Orleans during its third season.

As an anthology show, Horror Story has the luxury of changing its focus every season. Coven is widely considered one of the best seasons of the show due to its over-the-top camp, dark humor and compelling characters.

It featured a group of witches fighting to demonstrate the seven wonders and become the new Supreme, a witch powerful enough to lead the charge and control the coven and all of New Orleans. Coven also boasted a star-studded ensemble, featuring actresses like Kathy Bates, Angela Bassett, Jessica Lange and Sarah Paulson.

Plus if you’re looking for witches, Coven is set in the heart of one of the most enchanting cities in the world. The rich history of New Orleans is the perfect backdrop for a show of this nature and it’s only thirteen episodes so a suitably quick binge before The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina drops!

The current season of American Horror Story is set to feature the return of the Coven witches, so keep an eye out for them if you enjoyed this season.

Honorable Mentions: The Vampire Diaries, The Originals, True Blood, The Witches of East End

The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina begins streaming its first season on Oct. 26th, exclusively on Netflix.

Fan of witches? Looking forward to The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina? Let the other sorcerers know what you think in the comment section below.

Mads Lennon

Mads Lennon

Maddy is the Editor of 1428 Elm, covering all things horror on the regular. She has been a member of the FanSided network since 2019 and has contributed to multiple sites across the entertainment division, including Hidden Remote, Amazon Advisor, and Show Snob, and previously serving as the Associate Editor of Netflix Life. She's been religiously watching horror movies and related media for the majority of her life. Apart from horror movies and shows, she also loves reading and video games.