The Fear of God: A Horror Movie Podcast

Reed Lackey & Nathan Rouse
  • 4.9 (118)
  • Christianity
  • Updated Semiweekly

Faith and the Horror genre may seem to be opposites, but every week Reed and Nathan put them in dialogue together. Join us for conversations about the things that haunt us and the things that heal us, explorations at the intersection between faith and fear, where we examine what scares us, in order to find what saves us.

  1. 1d ago ·  Bonus

    Hot Spot Interview with Agnieszka Smoczyńska

    We have another interview bonus for you this week about a film that hits theaters Aug 21, 2026 from the acclaimed director of The Lure. In HOT SPOT, set in a near future society ruled by sentient A.I., a private eye investigates a murder case only to discover a rebel group capable of undermining the digital overlord. As the detective's identity slowly unravels, his world enters a state of hypnotic meltdown. We were able to sit down with director Agnieszka Smoczyńska for a remarkably thoughtful conversation about loss of control amidst an era of escalating fears. Hot Spot is a thought-provoking, hypnotic experience that is part murder-mystery, part techno-neo-noir, and part body horror nightmare. It's inventive and propulsive and we hope you'll check it out. Meanwhile, we hope you enjoy our conversation! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

  2. 4d ago

    The Deliverance (2024)

    We're continuing our special series curated by our friend, Rev DeAnna Daniels, PhD. The series is intent on elevating horror-themed cinematic works that directly feature voices and experiences that grow our spirits, our minds, and our capacity to love all of God's FoGgers better. This week's film, directed by Lee Daniels, is THE DELIVERANCE, which centers around a struggling single mother who has battled both addiction and personal demons. When she moves her three children and her mother into a new house in Indiana, she soon finds herself battling what might very well be a real demonic presence. Tilting away from stereotypical Catholic approaches to exorcism tales, The Deliverance is rooted directly in the Pentecostal tradition of deliverance ministry. It makes some dubious creative choices -- including a wide-swing choice of characterization from Glenn Close -- and it's not clear if the end result is as effective as it would like to be. But there is something undeniably compelling in the substance of the film that is difficult to dismiss. Joining us and DeAnna is returning friend of the show Dr. Nicole Symmonds and newcomer to the FoG, Dr. James Howard Hill. Together we dive deep into both the missteps and the potential of the film's thematic interests, including the ways faith-centric thrillers have often missed the greater opportunities to speak to a truly liberating theological framework. It's a hefty and thoughtful conversation that we really hope you enjoy! 5:10 - Two Questions with Dr. James Howard Hill Patron Only Segment: Whatcha Watchin' / Readin' / Listenin' to? 19:56 - THE DELIVERANCE See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

  3. Aug 15 ·  Bonus

    Saint Delilah Interview with Isabelle Spotts

    We have another special interview bonus episode for you this week focusing on the debut novel from Isabelle Spotts. SAINT DELILAH, a feminist supernatural suspense drama, tells the story of a young woman who has been brutally murdered and left in the woods in the small midwestern town. But for Delilah, her death was only the beginning. Delilah finds herself in a surreal, spectral existence. She's hunted by mysterious entities and her only real friend is the town medium, Magda. When a stranger arrives named Cross who can not only see Delilah but touch her and love her, she feels alive once again. But Delilah is steadily hurtling towards a dreadful, tormented afterlife existence unless she, Cross, and Magda can learn who killed her and find a path to justice for her untimely death. Isabelle's novel is part Twin Peaks, part Promising Young Woman, and saturated with rich and complex characters. It grapples with the threat of male violence, particularly towards overtly sensual women, and the ways that moral judgments are cast upon victims as barricades to keep us from facing our most horrific tendencies. It's a wonderful book and we really hope you'll check it out. We sat down with Isabelle for a brisk and remarkably fun conversation about her novel, its origins, and its numerous treasure trove of compelling themes. We hope you'll check out SAINT DELILAH, available wherever books are sold as of August 11, 2026 and we hope you enjoy our conversation with the author, Isabelle Spotts. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

  4. Aug 11

    Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.

    This week is a special episode. First, we're kicking off a brand-new miniseries of films curated by friend of the show and professor Rev DeAnna Daniels, PhD. It's an opportunity for us to more directly engage our values, in expanding our FoG family in more deliberate ways, and in elevating horror-themed cinematic works that directly feature voices and experiences that grow our spirits, our minds, and our capacity to love all of God's FoGgers better. Kicking off this special series is coverage of a film that wouldn't necessarily be considered horror on its surface. HONK FOR JESUS. SAVE YOUR SOUL. is a film centering on a pastoral couple (Sterling K. Brown and Regina Hall) who formerly lead a booming megachurch ministry before a scandal obliterated their influence and scattered their congregants elsewhere. The film, told in a mockumentary style, follows their aim to recapture their former glory -- in the name of the Lord, of course -- and the seemingly unconquerable obstacles in their path. We're joined by DeAnna as series curator and her friend Dr. Indhira Udofia, an interdisciplinary educator and scholar whose work is committed to cultivating spaces where justice, leadership, and healing converge. It's a hearty and robust conversation (among the lengthiest in FoG history), in which we each vulnerably and thoughtfully discuss church, faith, and the captivating intersection where the divine and the monstrous are sometimes indistinguishable. We really hope you'll open your ears and your hearts for this one, and we really hope you enjoy it. 7:11 - Two Questions with Indhira Udofia Patron Only Segment: Whatcha Watchin' / Readin' / Listenin' To? 21:28 - HONK FOR JESUS. SAVE YOUR SOUL. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

  5. Aug 5 ·  Bonus

    Big Baby Interview with Spider One and Krsy Fox

    We have another bonus interview for you this week about a film that hits VOD on Friday, Aug 7th. BIG BABY tells the story of a screenwriter who has a nightmarish dream of a hulking killer in a baby mask. When he begins to put his dreams in a screenplay, he quickly realizes that maybe this nightmare is more than merely imagination. Reed and Vera sit down with writer/director Spider One and star Krsy Fox to discuss their new film, including the personal connections that made this creative process so meaningful. Big Baby is not only an inventive contribution to the slasher genre, it's also a fascinating commentary on our relationship with our own creativity. We hope you'll check out Spider and Krsy's film and we hope you enjoy this interview! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

  6. Aug 4

    Lord of the Flies (2026)

    We have a very special podcast crossover episode for you this week! Friend of the show and fellow NCFCA Film Critic Lindsey Dunn invited us to collaborate on an episode with her podcast, 1 OF MY STORIES. William Golding's iconic novel LORD OF THE FLIES was recently given the miniseries treatment on Netflix, developed and directed by Jack Thorne (of Adolescence) and starring a host of young talent like Winston Sawyers, Lox Pratt, David McKenna, and Ike Talbut. The story paints a bleak and harsh portrait of a decaying civilization when a handful of adolescent boys crash land on a remote island, where their superstitions, prejudices, and fears foster a downward spiral into chaos and violence. In this week's episode, Reed joins Lindsey -- alongside fellow guests Aaron Jones and Anna Gonowon -- for a hearty discussion of the show's central themes, cultural significance, and with a particular focus on its four primary characters. It's a robust and thoughtful analysis of what makes a leader, what makes a coward, what makes a society, and what makes us human. We're very proud to present this episode simultaneous with 1 of my Stories and we really hope you enjoy it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

  7. Jul 28

    Apocalypse Now

    In an episode that is both unconventional and textbook for The Fear of God, we continue our examination of societal and individual deterioration by exploring Francis Ford Coppola's landmark 1979 film APOCALYPSE NOW (specifically, the version known as THE FINAL CUT). Apocalypse Now was loosely based on Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad and set in the Vietnam war. It tells the story of a mercenary soldier (Martin Sheen) who is tasked to travel deep into the heart of Cambodia to find and assassinate the rogue Colonel Kurtz (Marlon Brando). Along the way he encounters a parade of human experiences, from bloodthirsty militarists (Robert Duvall) and French expats to civilian casualties and an extravagant USO show. He will also inevitably confront the landscape of his own soul and be forced to face how shattered it has become through the addictive torment of war. We're joined by Father Josh Bowron to dig into the cinematic, spiritual, and cultural aspects of Coppola's astonishing film. We unpack the different ways our addictions to combat manifest; and we directly tackle the distortions that politics and power can create for the perspective of the Christian faith. It's one of our more bold and robust conversations, but also thoughtful and vulnerable. We really hope you'll join us and we hope you enjoy it. Patron Only Segment: Stump Reed 3:56 - APOCALYPSE NOW See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

  8. Jul 21

    Jumanji (1995)

    It's time to curl up by the campfire for another Ghoul Scouts edition of The Fear of God! This week, our intrepid scouts Vera Goudie, Jess Fischli, and Jocee Worley continue their journey through childhood fears by tackling a film as adventurous as it is terrifying. 1995's JUMANJI was a thrilling action comedy about a board game with magical consequences. It featured the incomparable Robin Williams and Bonnie Hunt (alongside a young Kirsten Dunst and Bradley Pierce) as two childhood friends whose lives were devastated by the game's unexpected dynamics. When a chance to finish the game and end the chaos for good emerges, they realize that finishing might just cost them everything. Jumanji had a unique blend of thrills, suspense, humor, and heart. It also featured some disarming observations about family and friendship and the power of our personal choices. The Ghoul Scouts unpack all of this and more in a fast-paced and thoughtful discussion we really think you'll enjoy! Patron Only Segment: Favorite Childhood Board Games 5:20 - JUMANJI See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Faith and the Horror genre may seem to be opposites, but every week Reed and Nathan put them in dialogue together. Join us for conversations about the things that haunt us and the things that heal us, explorations at the intersection between faith and fear, where we examine what scares us, in order to find what saves us.

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