Television series

Ghost Adventures

Name: Ghost Adventures
Genre: Horror, Mystery, Supernatural
Released: 2008
Cast: Zak Bagans, Aaron Goodwin, Nick Groff, Billy Tolley, Jay Wasley

A crew led by the ever-intense Zak Bagans locks itself overnight in supposedly haunted asylums, prisons and hotels, provoking spirits with EVP boxes and dramatic reactions to every creak. It's less rigorous investigation than theatrical adrenaline television, heavy on history-channel trivia and Bagans' full-body startle reflex. Great horror comfort food for genre fans; frustrating if you want skepticism or actual evidence.

TVMaze rating

3.4

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy long nights spent waiting in a notorious haunted location, where the appeal is the jumpy, cramped anticipation and the crew's running commentary more than polished scares.

Skip it if you want tight storytelling or polished documentary craft; this is mostly a team sitting in the dark, with long stretches of talk and a format repeated across decades.

What it asks of you: Expect an hour an episode, a slow crawl between sudden bursts of noise, and a mood that stays dark and unsettled rather than light.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Ghost Hunters2004

The show that founded the lockdown-investigation format, following plumbers-turned-investigators Grant Wilson and Jason Hawes, who approach hauntings with methodical skepticism rather than Zak's theatrics. The genre's true origin point.

But Slower pacing and more debunking than scares can feel flat if you came for jump-out-of-your-seat drama.

Most Haunted2002

British and gloriously camp, with medium Derek Acorah's on-camera possessions and Yvette Fielding's screaming pushing the theatrical stakes even higher than Zak ever does. So-bad-it's-brilliant television.

But Extremely dated production values and a level of melodrama some viewers find exhausting rather than fun.

BuzzFeed Unsolved: Supernatural2016

Same haunted-location format stripped of solemnity — Ryan and Shane's comic double act mocks the genre's clichés while still delivering real unease. Perfect if the seriousness ever grates.

But Deliberately jokey tone means none of the immersive dread that draws people to straight paranormal television.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Ghost Adventures

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Grave Encounters2011

It's Ghost Adventures' fictional nightmare mirror — same lockdown format, same crew dynamic and provocation stunts, played dead straight until the scares stop being staged.

A found-footage horror film about a ghost-hunting TV crew who lock themselves in an abandoned asylum for a night shoot — and the hauntings turn horribly, unironically real. Genuinely scary and pointedly satirical.

But The shaky-cam aesthetic and slow build won't land if you want the polish and narration of proper television.

Kindred Spirits2016

Amy Bruni and Adam Berry investigate with a gentler, more empathetic approach, treating hauntings as unresolved human stories rather than provocation opportunities. A warmer alternative to confrontation.

But The lower-key emotional focus means fewer scares and slower momentum than adrenaline-seekers might want.

Paranormal Witness2011

Dramatized reenactments of real witnesses' terrifying encounters, shot with genuine cinematic dread rather than shaky live cameras. Closer to horror filmmaking than investigative reality television.

But No investigation team or ongoing crew dynamic — a different structure entirely if you're attached to Zak's ensemble.

Destination Fear2019

A younger crew locked overnight in haunted spots with rigged scare tech and genuine friction between them, closest in tone and format to Ghost Adventures if you simply want more of exactly this.

But Familiarity breeds diminishing returns — if you've seen one lockdown show, this adds little that's new.

The Dead Files2011

A retired detective and a psychic investigate separately then compare notes, blending procedural skepticism with spiritual conviction in a format that keeps believers and doubters both engaged.

But The split-investigation gimmick feels repetitive across seasons, with pacing slower than lockdown-style shows.

A Haunting2005

Reenacted 'true story' hauntings told as tense short horror films rather than live investigations — good for viewers who prefer narrative dread to reality-television theatrics.

But No real investigators, cameras, or devices at all — a completely different kind of viewing experience.

Portals to Hell2019

Jack Osbourne and Katrina Weidman bring warmth and genuine history-nerd enthusiasm to their investigations, a likeable pairing if Zak's intensity ever starts to wear thin.

But Format is nearly identical to Ghost Adventures, so it scratches the same itch without offering much new.

Hellier2019

Same basic premise — a crew with cameras chasing the unexplained — but it trades Zak's showmanship for real dread, letting uncertainty do the work jump-scares usually do.

A real investigative team follows a strange lead about underground creatures and cryptic phone calls, and the deeper they dig the stranger and more genuinely unsettling it becomes — no theatrics required.

But Slow-burn and deliberately ambiguous; if you want confirmed scares and tidy resolution each episode, this will frustrate you.

The Stone Tape1972

It's the ancestor of every EVP session Zak runs — the same fascination with machines catching what the eye can't, treated as serious drama instead of showmanship.

A BBC television play in which scientists use recording equipment to try to capture a supposed haunting — a moody, intelligent ghost story taking the idea of technology 'recording' spirits seriously, decades before EVP devices became reality-TV shorthand.

But Slow, stagey, and very much a product of 1970s British television — no jump scares, just accumulating dread.