The Terror is AMC’s award-winning horror anthology, and its first season tells one of history’s greatest mysteries: the loss of HMS Erebus and HMS Terror in the Arctic. This guide covers all three seasons, the true story behind the ships, and where to watch The Terror in 2026.
Key facts
- Network: AMC, with seasons streaming on AMC+ (season 3 also on Shudder)
- Seasons: 3, each a stand-alone story (26 episodes in total)
- Latest: The Terror: Devil in Silver, starring Dan Stevens, premiered May 7, 2026
- True story: season 1 is based on Sir John Franklin’s lost 1845 Arctic expedition
- Executive producer: Ridley Scott
Every season of The Terror
The Terror is an anthology, so each season has a new story, a new cast and a new period of history. You can start with any of them.
| Season | Premiered | Episodes | Setting | Rotten Tomatoes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. The Terror | March 25, 2018 | 10 | Royal Navy Arctic expedition, 1845–1848 | 94% |
| 2. The Terror: Infamy | August 12, 2019 | 10 | Japanese American internment camp, World War II | 80% |
| 3. The Terror: Devil in Silver | May 7, 2026 | 6 | A New York psychiatric hospital | 95% |
The Terror season 1: the Franklin expedition
The first season of The Terror is the one most people mean when they search for the show. It is based on Dan Simmons’s 2007 novel, and it was adapted by showrunners David Kajganich and Soo Hugh.
The story begins as HMS Erebus and HMS Terror leave Beechey Island in the Canadian Arctic, searching for the Northwest Passage. Soon, the ships freeze into the ice near King William Island. Then the men face cold, hunger, disease and each other, while something in the ice hunts them.
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Jared Harris | Captain Francis Crozier, HMS Terror |
| Tobias Menzies | Commander James Fitzjames, HMS Erebus |
| Ciarán Hinds | Captain Sir John Franklin, expedition leader |
| Paul Ready | Assistant Surgeon Harry Goodsir |
| Adam Nagaitis | Caulker’s Mate Cornelius Hickey |
| Nive Nielsen | Lady Silence (Silna) |
Critics loved it. Rotten Tomatoes sums it up as “gripping, atmospheric supernatural horror,” and Jared Harris’s performance as Crozier is widely seen as the heart of the series.
The true story of HMS Terror
The real HMS Terror had a remarkable life long before the Arctic. She was built in 1813 as a bomb vessel, a warship designed to fire heavy mortars. In 1814, during the War of 1812, she took part in the bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore. That attack inspired the “bombs bursting in air” in the US national anthem.
Two decades later, the Royal Navy strengthened Terror for polar work. She sailed on George Back’s Arctic expedition of 1836–1837, where pack ice nearly crushed her. Next, she joined James Clark Ross’s Antarctic expedition of 1839–1843 alongside HMS Erebus. Antarctica’s Mount Erebus and Mount Terror are named after the two ships.
In May 1845, both ships left England under Sir John Franklin with 129 men. Their goal was to finish mapping the Northwest Passage. Instead, they were trapped in the ice off King William Island in September 1846.
Franklin died on June 11, 1847. In April 1848, the survivors abandoned the ships and set out on foot under Captain Crozier. None of them survived. Searchers later found a note left at Victory Point that recorded the abandonment, and Inuit oral history described the men’s final days.
How the wrecks of Erebus and Terror were found
For more than 160 years, nobody knew where the ships lay. Then, in September 2014, a Parks Canada search found HMS Erebus. Two years later, on September 12, 2016, the Arctic Research Foundation announced the discovery of HMS Terror in Terror Bay, off King William Island. A tip from Inuk crew member Sammy Kogvik helped lead the team there.
Terror was found in remarkably good condition, with her hatches closed and her masts still standing. Today the wrecks form a national historic site in Nunavut, managed jointly by Parks Canada and Inuit.
The Terror season 2: Infamy
The Terror: Infamy moved the story to the United States during World War II. Derek Mio stars as Chester Nakayama, a young Japanese American whose community is sent to an internment camp, while a vengeful spirit, or bakemono, haunts them. George Takei, who was interned as a child, plays community elder Yamato-san. Showrunner Alexander Woo co-created the season with Max Borenstein.
The Terror season 3: Devil in Silver
The newest season, The Terror: Devil in Silver, premiered on AMC+ and Shudder on May 7, 2026. It is based on Victor LaValle’s 2012 novel. Dan Stevens plays Pepper, a moving man who is wrongly committed to the New Hyde Psychiatric Hospital, where a mysterious creature stalks the patients.
Judith Light, CCH Pounder, Stephen Root and Aasif Mandvi co-star, and Karyn Kusama directs. The six-episode season earned a 95% score on Rotten Tomatoes, the highest of the series so far.
Where to watch The Terror
| Season | Where to stream (US) |
|---|---|
| The Terror (season 1) | AMC+ |
| The Terror: Infamy (season 2) | AMC+ |
| The Terror: Devil in Silver (season 3) | AMC+ and Shudder; AMC channel later in 2026 |
Streaming deals change often, so check JustWatch for the latest options in your country. Also, if you enjoy the true story, Dan Simmons’s novel The Terror is a great companion to season 1.
The Terror: frequently asked questions
What is The Terror about?
The Terror is an AMC horror anthology series. Each season tells a separate story set in a real historical period with a supernatural twist. Season 1 follows the lost Franklin expedition in the Arctic, season 2 (Infamy) is set in a Japanese American internment camp during World War II, and season 3 (Devil in Silver) takes place in a New York psychiatric hospital.
Is The Terror based on a true story?
Season 1 is based on a true story. HMS Erebus and HMS Terror really sailed from England in 1845 to find the Northwest Passage, became trapped in Arctic ice, and all 129 men died. The monster is fiction, taken from Dan Simmons’s 2007 novel The Terror.
How many seasons of The Terror are there?
There are three seasons: The Terror (2018, 10 episodes), The Terror: Infamy (2019, 10 episodes) and The Terror: Devil in Silver (2026, 6 episodes). Each season can be watched on its own.
Where can I watch The Terror?
All three seasons stream on AMC+. Season 3, Devil in Silver, also streams on Shudder, and it is scheduled to air on the AMC channel later in 2026. Availability on other services changes often, so check a guide such as JustWatch for your country.
Will there be a season 4 of The Terror?
As of October 2026, AMC has not announced a fourth season. The series is an anthology, so any new season would tell a new story with a new cast.
Was the real HMS Terror ever found?
Yes. The wreck of HMS Terror was found in Terror Bay, off King William Island in Nunavut, Canada, and announced on September 12, 2016. Its sister ship, HMS Erebus, was found in September 2014. Both wrecks are now a protected national historic site.
Sources: AMC, Deadline, Wikipedia, Parks Canada, Rotten Tomatoes.
Images (all public domain, via Wikimedia Commons): James Wilson Carmichael, “Erebus and Terror in the Antarctic” (1847); John Edward Davis, “H.M. Ships Erebus and Terror in the Ross Sea”; after George Back, HMS Terror in the ice (1837); The Illustrated London News (1845); the Victory Point note; NASA Earth Observatory (2024).