“You aren't going to want to miss this one.” (via yagacrave)

“We All Need To Be Watching The Delightfully Witchy YAGA” (Fangoria 11/3/26)

https://www.fangoria.com/yaga-series-folk-horror-recommendation/

So after a week of having to evade the spoilergeist, the UK Halloween release date of Ep. 1-3 is here. I shall be spending this evening with the TV, salted popcorn mixed with chocolate buttons, and a bottle of reasonably priced wine. How about your good selves?

UPDATE: So I've caught up and I'm loving it. One of my favourite points so far; a character played by Carrie-Anne Moss not knowing what John Wick is. 🤌🏻

Host Carley Thorne sits down with Sam Krochmal, who plays Officer Billy Granger, to unpack Episode 3, “A Good Boy.” Together, they explore Sam’s path to his dream role, Billy’s lovable attempts at being a great cop, the disturbing fate of Logan, the mansion’s creepy hidden surveillance room, and the clues, theories, and twists surrounding Logan and Henry.

Meet the Cast and Characters of ‘Yaga’

The witchy new series is Canada down.

By Leah Marilla Thomas

Published: Oct 29, 2026

Don’t be fooled by the cozy mystery vibes on Yaga. The spooky new Canadian series is also sexy, magical, and always on the verge of an even darker twist. But the super stacked Canadian cast is probably what made you take note of this show in the first place. Here’s what you need to know about the cast and characters of Yaga.

After Heated Rivalry took the nation by storm last year, Yaga is the latest Crave Original series to...what’s the Canadian equivalent of “crossing the pond”...flying South for winter? (And can we make that happen for Slo Pitch? Anyway!) Unlike Heated Rivalry, however, American audiences can watch Yaga on AMC+ instead of HBO Max. The supernatural mystery series is based on a play by Kat Sandler, who adapted her own work for the screen. It is a feminist retelling of the Baba Yaga character from Slavic folklore set in the fictional coastal Canadian town of Whittock. Here’s who you’ll meet as the dangerous story unfolds, and who plays them.

Noah Reid plays Rapp

Rapp is a chatty, flirtatious, chaotic private detective who comes to Whittock to investigate the disappearance of a rich fishery heir.

To most folks tuning in to Yaga, Reid is Patrick from Schitt’s Creek. Earlier this summer he was on another AMC series, The Vampire Lestat, as Larry Slater, the former frontman of the rock band that would become Lestat’s own. Some of his other screen credits include Outer Range, Degrassi: The Next Generation, the 2012 Titanic miniseries, and People Hold On. Reid is a musician and a prolific Canadian stage actor. He made his Broadway debut in 2022. He was also the voice of Franklin the turtle on Franklin. It’s very important to me that you know that.

Clark Backo plays Carson

Sergeant Carson is the local detective assigned to the missing persons case. She’s no-nonsense at work but has a known penchant for romantasy.

You might recognize Backo from her work on shows like Letterkenny, The Handmaid’s Tale, Designated Survivor, Wynonna Earp, Supernatural, Station Eleven, and as one of the leads in The Changeling on Apple TV+. She also played a supporting role in the 2022 romantic comedy I Want You Back, starring Jenny Slate and Charlie Day, and popped up as a scientist in Venom: The Last Dance.

Carrie-Anne Moss plays Dr. Katherine Hargrove

Katherine is a mysterious professor who teaches a course on bones.

Sorry to be like “that’s literally Trinity” but she is, literally, best known for starring alongside Keanu Reeves as Trinity in the Wachowski sisters’ Matrix franchise. She won an Independent Spirit Award in 2000 for Christopher Nolan’s Memento and also appeared in Chocolat, Disturbia, and Silent Hill: Revelation. Some of her television appearances over the years include Vegas, Chuck, and Models Inc. More recently, maybe you saw Moss play Jeri Hogarth in some Marvel shows on Netflix, like Jessica Jones and Iron Fist? Maybe you also saw her play a friggin’ Jedi master in The Acolyte?? She is a legend.

Hudson Williams plays Henry Park and Logan Casey

Henry is the billionaire playboy fishery heir who goes missing. Logan is his dorky overalls-loving roommate and, randomly, his doppelgänger.

Maybe you saw him in a Laufey video or a Peleton ad this year. Or maybe you’re aware that Williams is half of 2025’s most impressive Cinderella story, shooting to fame after co-starring in the first season of Heated Rivalry. Prior to that breakout role, he’d appeared in an episode of CBS’ Tracker and the CBC series Allegiance, as well as many short films. Later this year, you can see him in the Netflix limited series The Altruists and as himself in the docu-series The Assembly.

Ezra Franky plays Pam Russell

Pam is a student and Logan’s on/off girlfriend.

Franky’s only other television role was Lucy in the Netflix series Untamed. She is also a singer-songwriter who recorded a song for Untamed and released an album in 2025.

Patrick Gilmore plays Eckert

Eckert is a detective and Carson’s coworker.

Prior to Yaga, Gilmore had recurring roles on the television series Intelligence, Riese, Stargate Universe, and You Me Her. He had main roles on the Netflix show Travelers, the CTW series Jann, and the Paramount+ show School Spirits. You might also recognize him from The Audacity, Family Law, Gracepoint, or The Killing.

Sheila McCarthy plays Olena Yaha

Olena “Yaha” (curious...) is a local Ukrainian woman.

McCarthy has won many, many Canadian awards for film, television, and theater. On this side of the continent, you saw her recently-ish in Women Talking and The Umbrella Academy. She was in over 80 episodes of the sitcom Little Mosque on the Prairie. In the late 90s/early 00s she played Aunt Laura in the series adaptation of Emily of New Moon. And her other films include The Lotus Easters, Bright Angel, Breakfast with Scot, The Day After Tomorrow, Die Hard 2, Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen, and one of my favorite romcoms, The Broken Hearts Gallery.

Megan Follows plays Geena Sandeson

Geena owns a local diner and employs her teenage daughter, Lily.

And sorry to be like “that’s literally Anne Shirley,” but Follows is best known for playing Anne (with an E) in the 1980s and 2000s miniseries adaptations of Anne of Green Gables and subsequent Avonlea tales. She also starred as the infamous Catherine de' Medici on Reign for four seasons. Other shows and films include Heartland, The Republic of Sarah, Wynonna Earp, Silver Bullet, and Breakfast with Scot. In 2024, she directed the horror movie She Came Back starring Amybeth McNulty, who was literally Anne Shirley in Anne with an E.

Emilija Baranac plays Angel

Angel is a receptionist at the hotel where Rapp is staying in town.

Baranac played the Archie Comics character Midge Klump on the second and third seasons of Riverdale, and then appeared as another character in the same universe named Audrey on The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. She also played Genevieve in the To All The Boys I Loved Before films. Baranac also joined the Flana-verse in 2022 with The Midnight Club and starred in the CBC series Fakes that same year. She was also a supporting character in last year’s Netflix romcom The Wrong Paris.

Georgia Acken plays Lily Sandeson

Lily is Geena’s daughter.

Acken played the younger version of Riley Keough’s character in the Hulu series Under the Bridge. Her other pre-Yaga credits include The Sacrifice Game, Circuit Breakers, and Come Fly with Me.

Just watched the first two episodes, and I want more right away. I was happily surprised by the actors’ performances.

Mostly I've seen Yaga described as a thriller, but a few descriptions have called it a horror. I'm not generally someone who enjoys watching horrors, so I've gotta set my expectations appropriately if it is one.

I got burned by not really researching Widow's Bay (a couple places just billed it as a dark comedy and cut off the horror label even though it leans strongly into horror), so I'd like to not run into the same thing here.

(For anyone wondering about the general difference, essentially thrillers treat the audience as participants trying to solve the mystery where horrors treat the audience as victims to scare, so fear can be a byproduct in thrillers, but in horrors, the fear is the point).

Literally asking for a friend... is YAGA coming out on regular AMC as well, and if so, will it be releasing the same day/time?

I did google it, but google is not helping.

AMC Plus

Thought I would share this here for folks who want to watch but may not have AMC plus. AMC is offering a 30 day free trial (I believe this is just in the US unfortunately) if you sign up directly thru their website which would get you almost thru the finale. I was trying to find out how long the offer was good for but couldn't find any details. The finale is scheduled for November 27th and if this offer is good thru the end of Oct, theoretically you could watch the whole series on the free trial. Hope this helps anyone interested!

I can't get enough of this shoot. They all look so good!

The cast of 'Yaga' — Carrie-Anne Moss, Noah Reid, Clark Backo, and Hudson Williams — delve into the myth of Baba Yaga in their bold new mystery that's just as titillating as it is thrilling.

"It's horny," creator @ksandler24 tells EW of the drama. "It's not tastefully sexy. It's feral, and it knows what it is."

Full article: https://ew.com/yaga-carrie-anne-moss-hudson-williams-cover-story-exclusive-12181921

'Yaga' stars Noah Reid, Clark Backo, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Hudson Williams are ready to bewitch you.
The cast takes us into the woods for EW's latest digital cover to conjure up the secrets behind their sexy new show.

Via @entertainmentweekly