This article contains spoilers!
The Creepy Guy in the Woods Film Series is an ongoing series of films written, directed, filmed and edited by Scott Pincus. The first film, How to Avoid a Creepy Guy in the Woods was released in December 2013 as Scott's first short film. Two sequels, The Creepy Guy Returns and The Search for the Creepy Guy in the Woods, were released in May and June 2014, respectively. A feature-length fourth film, The Legend of the Creepy Guy in the Woods, which acts as a semi-reboot to the series, was released in March 2017. A fifth and final film, The Curse of the Creepy Guy in the Woods, was stuck in development for several years, undergoing major rewrites and planning struggles. The project was heavily revised in summer 2021, and filming took place in spring 2022. It was released in December 2022, concluding the series after its nine-year run.
The series stars Gabe Sagherian as a teenager named Gabe who has multiple encounters with a masked maniac, who he nicknames "The Creepy Guy in the Woods". In the original three films, Scott Pincus portrays the character. In the third film, a set of new characters are introduced, played by Russell Parkinson, Ryan Bowman and John P. The fourth film introduces many actors, including Alex Fanelli, Eric Gorbaty, Chris Lombardo, Dakota Markle, Sean Larkin, Zion Figueroa and more. To give Scott more focus on directing and writing the film, Austin Brinser takes over as The Creepy Guy. The fifth and final installment will see the return of several actors from the fourth film, with several newcomers to the cast including Michael Behrenshauser, Alex Lombardo, Kaile Martinelli, Jack Landolt and Adam Harel.
The original three films was created for Scott's Video Applications class as three separate projects throughout the school year, while the fourth film served as the crew's high school graduation project, and the fifth film was a "passion project" that concludes the series.
The Creepy Guy in the Woods Films[]
How to Avoid a Creepy Guy in the Woods (2013)[]
The first installment, How to Avoid a Creepy Guy in the Woods, was released on December 19, 2013. It follows Gabe (Gabe Sagherian) as he is given advice by Scott (Scott Pincus) on how to avoid a "creepy guy in the woods". As Gabe takes a hike through the walking trail, he eventually encounters The Creepy Guy (Scott).
After The Creepy Guy fails to respond to any of Gabe's statements, Gabe runs away. Scott gives advice to the viewer on how to avoid the "creepy guy". Eventually, The Creepy Guy corners Gabe next to a creek, where Gabe uses an apple to negotiate with him. The Creepy Guy takes the apple and retreats, with Scott telling the viewer to expect the unexpected and be ready for anything.
The Creepy Guy Returns (2014)[]
The second installment, The Creepy Guy Returns, was released on May 9, 2014. It features returning cast members Gabe Sagherian and Scott Pincus as Gabe and The Creepy Guy, respectively. The film follows Gabe as he goes back to the walking trail a week after the first film overcome his fear of the Creepy Guy in the Woods. Yet the Creepy Guy returns, leaving Gabe to deal with the problem again.
Upon encountering him a second time, Gabe is pursued before being knocked unconscious. He awakens next to a stop sign, where he wonders if what he saw was a dream or reality. Infuriated, he goes off to find The Creepy Guy, and confronts him at a school playground. After he's knocked unconscious again, the film ends with Gabe sitting in a dark room, his mouth and wrists duct taped, and loud footsteps are approaching him.
The Search for the Creepy Guy in the Woods (2014)[]
The third and at the time final installment, The Search for the Creepy Guy in the Woods, was released on June 13, 2014. It once again features returning cast members Gabe Sagherian and Scott Pincus in their roles from the second film, with Scott also returning as the instructor from the first film. New additions to the cast include Ryan Bowman, John P and Russell Parkinson, with Jacob Doerr having a cameo in the film. Filming took place on May 25 and 31, 2014, as well as June 4 and 11. The film follows a search organized by Scott (Scott Pincus) to save Gabe and stop the Creepy Guy from causing any harm to anyone.
After Gabe goes missing, Scott organizes a search with Ryan (Ryan Bowman) and Mitchell (John P). Scott and Ryan search through the walking trail, with Ryan eventually being killed by The Creepy Guy while Mitchell joins forces with Russell to rescue Gabe. As they return to the walking trail, Scott and Mitchell are also killed, yet Mitchell provides the ultimate solution to stopping The Creepy Guy: a bag of apples. After Russell is beaten up by The Creepy Guy, Gabe negotiates with him for a final time, giving him the apples and telling him never to return again. After accepting his offering, The Creepy Guy disappears into thin air. Russell states that the search is over before the two walk up the trail together.
The Legend of the Creepy Guy in the Woods (2017)[]
The fourth installment, The Legend of the Creepy Guy in the Woods, was released on March 5, 2017. It was the first installment in the series in nearly three years, and the series' first full-length installment. The film features the return of Gabe Sagherian in the lead role, while Austin Brinser takes Scott Pincus' place as the Creepy Guy. Scott returns to direct, write and edit the film, and he also composed its score. Alex Fanelli, Dakota Markle, Eric Gorbaty, Chris Lombardo, Sean Larkin and Zion Figueroa are the newcomers to the film's cast. Filming for the project commenced in July 2016 before wrapping in February 2017. The film is set two years after the third installment, and follows Gabe as he's pulled into a conflict with The Creepy Guy and an uncanny demon, Saathi.
Having realized he has psychic powers, Gabe experiences a nightmare of The Creepy Guy (Austin Brinser) and Saathi (Dakota Markle, prompting him to join Eric (Eric Gorbaty), Alex (Alex Fanelli), Sean (Sean Larkin) and Chris (Chris Lombardo) as they head into the woods to find answers behind The Creepy Guy's past. Gabe finds himself being influenced by Saathi and The Creepy Guy on separate occassions, though all the while Saathi is trying to corrupt Gabe and turn him against The Creepy Guy - who is revealed to be his lost brother, Austin. Saathi corrupts Gabe and kills Sean and Chris, but Eric redeems Gabe, who fights Saathi in the astral plane. Gabe closes the dimension and is seemingly lost, leaving Austin to head off on his own. After the conflict, Zion (Zion Figueroa) urges Alex to head out with him to find Austin and bring him home.
The Curse of the Creepy Guy in the Woods (2022)[]
The fifth and final installment, The Curse of the Creepy Guy in the Woods, was released on December 17, 2022. Having been announced in March 2018, the film was stuck in development for many years due to script rewrites and the productions of many, different projects. Austin Brinser, Alex Fanelli, Zion Figueroa, Dakota Markle, Scott Pincus and Gabe Sagherian reprise their roles from the fourth film, with Michael Behrenshauser, Alex Lombardo, Kaile Martinelli, Jack Landolt and Adam Harel join the cast. Filming briefly began in November 2021, before resuming in March 2022 and wrapping in May. The film follows The Creepy Guy's descent into madness in the years after Gabe's death, with Alex and Zion returning to the woods to settle the conflict.
In the years after Gabe's death, Austin fails to escape Saathi's corruption, and becomes a mindless killer. Over time, he stalks and kills those who venture in the woods. Six years after his last ordeal, Alex feels tremendous guilt for what's happened. He meets with Zion, who urges him to return to the woods and help kill The Creepy Guy. Alex is hesitant, though after Dakota counsels him and he reminisces on the last time he "spoke with" Gabe, Alex returns to the woods with Zion. In the ensuing chaos, The Creepy Guy fights and wounds Zion, and pursues Alex to the fenced-off lake. Austin comes to his senses and pleads with Alex to kill him, assuring that he's lived his life. As Austin closes his eyes and sees Gabe in the astral plane, Alex can't bring himself to shoot him, until Zion enters the lake and shoots Austin. The two look on at his body in silence, as Austin and Gabe walk through a field in the astral plane.
Reception[]
The first three films in the series have gained positive reactions, with each scoring a 100% rating. This score is based on fourteen likes for the first installment, ten likes for the second installment, and eighteen likes for the third installment. The fourth film has a score of 86%, based on 32 likes and 5 dislikes. The first three films have 1,100, 500 and 700 views, respectively, while the fourth film has 2,100 views. These numbers are accurate as of August 2021.