You know those creators who just seem to come out of nowhere and suddenly everyone is talking about them? That's Little Marvin. Honestly, a few years ago, his name wasn't even on the radar for most horror fans. Now? He’s basically the architect of some of the most unsettling, "can't-look-away" television on Prime Video.
If you’ve spent any time on social media lately, you’ve probably seen clips of Them. It’s a show that gets under your skin. It doesn't just use jump scares; it uses history. And that’s the thing about Little Marvin movies and TV shows—they aren't just about ghosts in the basement. They’re about the ghosts in our own backyard.
Who is Little Marvin, really?
It’s kinda wild to think that Little Marvin didn't start in Hollywood. He wasn't some child prodigy filmmaker. He actually spent years as a marketing executive and creative director. He was "white-knuckling it," as he puts it, while secretly harboring this dream of writing.
He eventually made a bet with himself. If he didn't get a specific promotion at his corporate job, he’d quit and move to LA. He didn't get it. So, he packed up, locked himself in a room, and taught himself how to be a showrunner by watching YouTube roundtables. No joke. That’s how the creator of one of Amazon’s biggest horror hits got his start.
The Breakthrough: Them: Covenant
When Them: Covenant dropped in 2021, it felt like a lightning rod. Set in the 1950s, it follows the Emory family during the Great Migration. They move from North Carolina to East Compton, Los Angeles. Back then, Compton was a "lily-white" neighborhood, which is hard to imagine given how we think of it today.
✨ Don't miss: Why the Cast of Hold Your Breath 2024 Makes This Dust Bowl Horror Actually Work
The show is a "pressure cooker." It only spans about ten days. You’ve got two types of horror happening at the same time:
- The neighbors: White residents who are genuinely terrifying in their psychological and physical harassment.
- The supernatural: Malevolent forces inside the house that feed on the family’s trauma.
Some critics found it "too much." They called it "trauma porn." But Little Marvin has been pretty vocal about why he made those choices. He wanted to explore the tension between the public and private space. For a Black family in 1953, the "American Dream" of homeownership was often a nightmare. He didn't want to give audiences "empty jump scares." He wanted the horror to feel emotionally rich.
The Evolution: Them: The Scare (2024)
After a long wait, we finally got the second installment, Them: The Scare, in April 2024. This time, the setting shifted to 1991 Los Angeles. If you remember that era, it was the time of the Rodney King trial and the subsequent uprisings.
Deborah Ayorinde returned, but in a totally different role as Detective Dawn Reeve. It’s a gritty, 90s-style police procedural mixed with supernatural dread. Little Marvin took inspiration from 70s and 80s classics like The Exorcist and The Shining. It felt more like a "steely detective" story than the domestic horror of the first season.
🔗 Read more: Is Steven Weber Leaving Chicago Med? What Really Happened With Dean Archer
One of the coolest parts? The legendary Pam Grier joined the cast. Having a Blaxploitation icon in a Little Marvin production felt like a full-circle moment for a creator who obsesses over film history.
What’s Next for the Odd Man Out?
Little Marvin isn't slowing down. His production company, Odd Man Out (sometimes referred to as Oddly Kid in early development circles), has a massive overall deal with Amazon Studios. This means he’s not just sticking to TV. He’s tasked with creating original movies and series that will stream in over 200 countries.
Here is what we know about his current and future pipeline as of 2026:
- Them Season 3? Marvin has hinted he is "a thousand percent" ready with more ideas. While Amazon originally ordered two seasons, the success of The Scare has kept the door wide open for another anthology chapter.
- Feature Films: Under his Amazon deal, several film projects are in early development. He’s mentioned wanting to keep centering people who have been historically marginalized, putting them "front and center in their own stories of American terror."
- Creative Collaborations: He continues to work closely with Lena Waithe (Hillman Grad Productions), who was an early champion of his work.
Why You Should Care
A lot of people compare Little Marvin to Jordan Peele. It’s an easy comparison, but it’s sort of a lazy one. While both use horror to discuss race, Marvin’s style is much more of a "slow burn." He’s obsessed with the "soundscape" and the visual flair of different eras.
💡 You might also like: Is Heroes and Villains Legit? What You Need to Know Before Buying
If you're going to dive into his work, be prepared. It isn't "background noise" TV. It’s dense, it’s sometimes very violent, and it asks big questions about who "them" actually refers to. Is it the people outside the house? The people inside? Or the society that put them there?
Actionable Tips for Watching
- Watch in order, but know they are anthologies: You don't need to see Covenant to understand The Scare, but it helps to see how Marvin’s visual language evolves.
- Pay attention to the production design: In Covenant, even the wallpaper has secrets. The colors and textures are meticulously chosen to reflect the characters' mental states.
- Check out his influences: If you like his vibe, go back and watch Don't Look Now or Rosemary's Baby. You’ll see the DNA of those films all over his work.
The reality is that Little Marvin movies and TV shows are changing how we look at the genre. He’s taking the "domestic thriller" and turning it into a mirror for American history. Whether you love it or find it hard to watch, you can't deny that he’s one of the most original voices working in entertainment today.
Keep an eye on Prime Video throughout 2026. With his "Odd Man Out" deal in full swing, we're likely to see a trailer for his next big swing sooner rather than later.
For the best experience, start by streaming Them: The Scare on Prime Video to see how he handles the transition from 50s domestic horror to 90s psychological thriller. If you haven't seen it yet, pay close attention to the sound design in the first three episodes—it's designed to be immersive and specifically disorienting. Once you've finished the series, look up his interviews regarding the "Great Migration" to understand the real-life housing covenants that inspired the first season's plot.