Creepshow/The Hat

The Hat
Season 4, Episode 2A
Release date	October 20, 2023
Written by	Byron Willinger & Philip De Blasi
Directed by	Kailey Spear & Sam Spear
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Creepshow — Season Four

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The Hat is part of the second episode of the fourth season of Creepshow, and the nineteenth episode overall.

Starring: Ryan Beil (Jay), Sara Canning (Astrid), Marlee Walchuk (Nicole), Kelly Metzger (May), David Beairsto (Bachman)

Plot Overview

Jay Stratton, a writer struggling to turn out a book, is loaned a fancy hat that belonged to his idol. After he puts the hat on, Jay is soon overwhelmed by a strange force and churns out amazing novels that quickly turn him into a world-class author. It soon becomes apparent that his new hat carries an unusual method of not only giving Jay his new inspiration, but everything that comes with it.

Trivia

The Show

• Jay and Astrid are shown to use the time-altering armoire from Time Out as a place to store their hats.

• The "Father's Day" ashtray is shown in Nicole's office, placed among her keepsakes from famous authors.

• The Creep's introductory panel has him typing "All work and no play makes the Creep a dull boy.", very much reminiscent of Jack Torrance of The Shining.

Allusions and References

• All of the portions of the novels Jay is seen writing are actually excerpts from the 1815 novel The Devil's Elixirs by E. T. A. Hoffmann.

• During the comic montage of Jay's success, he is seen on what is very obviously the set of The Tonight Show, being interviewed by Jay Leno.

• Jay's idol, Stephen Bachman, is clearly modelled after Stephen King, combining his birth name with his pen name "Richard Bachman". King himself is even depicted on an old poster of Bachman in his prime.

• Nicole's collection of famous authors' keepsakes includes Ray Bradbury's typewriter, Richard Matheson's pipe, and H. P. Lovecraft's Civil War bullet.

• The parasitic hats featured in the episode bear a resemblance to Headcrabs from the Half-Life series, as they position themselves on a host's head and slowly kill them from the inside out.

Goofs

• The comic cover lists "The Rat" under the "Featuring" section, but that monster was actually from previous episode Twenty Minutes with Cassandra.