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In addition to thrilling viewers with his intriguing performances on screen (including the recent Late Night with the Devil and the morbidly delightful talk show Grave Conversations, in which he interviews guests while lying in a coffin), David Dastmalchian has also been enthralling readers as an insightful writer of must-read comic book series such as Count Crowley and Creature Commandos.
When it comes to conjuring captivating stories on the paneled page, Dastmalchian is just getting started, as readers can look forward to diving into his fantastical tale of self-discovery when his new graphic novel Through (illustrated by Cat Staggs with cover art by David Mack and edited by Rantz Hoseley) comes out next year from Z2 Comics, followed by PANICK Entertainment’s summer 2026 debut of The Accessories, a four-issue series created by Dastmalchian and Leah Kilpatrick (with illustrations by Patrick Piazzalunga and colors by Marco Brakko) that follows the henchmen of classic monsters as they try to free themselves from the toxic relationships of their manipulative masters, all while avoiding the wrath of vengeance-seeking humanity.
While at New York Comic Con, Daily Dead had the great pleasure of talking with Dastmalchian about Through and The Accessories, and as an additional seasonal treat, he also shared the Halloween special that he must watch every October!
Below, you can read our full interview with David Dastmalchian, and we also have release details for Through and The Accessories. To learn more about Dastmalchian’s upcoming projects, visit Z2 Comics, PANICK Entertainment, and Good Fiend Films!
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David Dastmalchian: Through is a psychological puzzle of a story. It’s a mystery about a young woman named Alex who lives in Chicago. She’s a freshman in college. And she’s done it all by herself. No parents, no family, no friends. She is a top-of-her-class, busting-her-ass student. And she is so driven that every morning after studying all night, she wakes up at four to go running on the waterfront in a frozen Lake Michigan Chicago winter. And at the beginning of our story, she falls through the ice of Lake Michigan and ends up being rescued by an old man who, when he pulls her out of the icy water, collapses, has a stroke, and ends up in a coma in the ICU.
And Alex is so confused as to who this guy is, and it turns out that his pockets and all of his stuff are filled with maps, notes, and details about her day-to-day life. And she’s so haunted by this idea that this man that rescued her has been stalking her, that she goes and figures out where he lived, breaks into his little apartment, and when she gets in there, finds an entire puzzle that goes back to her earliest childhood in elementary school and realizes this man’s been following her since she was a little girl.
Why? She needs to know. And digging further into his apartment, she finds these miniatures, these little sculptures that he’s spent his life building within the eyes of these sewing needles. And through a fantastical experience, she actually falls through the eye of one of the needles and ends up in this realm that was built entirely for her. And the whole story is her diving in within herself and the world Through and trying to piece together from her past and her childhood who this man could be and why this whole place exists and why it’s now tormented by a dark force that she has to overcome.
I’m really proud of it. It’s got a little Pan’s Labyrinth, it’s got a little Alice Through the Looking Glass. It’s got a lot of Black Swan, the Aronofsky film.
Very character-driven.
David Dastmalchian: Very much so. And that’s interesting because I’ve been working on the story for 20 years, and I always had the world fleshed out and the monsters and the ideas, but I never knew what the character really needed. What was the darkness and the fear? And then me personally going on a journey in the last few years that was some of the hardest mental health work I’ve ever done in my life, confronting my own struggles, even though I’m not in active addiction anymore, the manifestation of control and compulsivity, manic behavior, codependency, they’re all really dark shadows that have been hard for me in my life to navigate. And so I wanted this character to wrestle with those same things and I was like, “Holy shit. This is the perfect analogy, perfect metaphor with her journey through what I’ve been going through.” So she’s the most personal character I’ve ever written, and it’s definitely the most important story I’ve ever written.
Well, that’s great. From what I’ve read of your writing and obviously Count Crowley, you put a lot of yourself into your books, and not only does it make for great reading, but it also feels like it’s inspirational for people who read it. Somebody who’s like, “I’ve had this struggle.” It allows them to find this fantastical story as a way to work through this stuff.
David Dastmalchian: It’s the best thing. It’s what I love and what I want to do with Good Fiend Films, and what I’m trying to do with my life as a storyteller. I love genre, I love horror, I love science fiction, I love superheroes. And I think there’s a way we can tell stories that wrestle with really big questions and tough ideas in that space. I don’t see why not. I don’t see why I can’t splatter the wall with brains and also hopefully learn a bit about my own brain.
And I think some of the best stories do that, right?
David Dastmalchian: The Fly, oh my God, I was just thinking about Cronenberg’s The Fly, and the classic original, but the Cronenberg one in particular. What a beautiful story about relationships and love and passion and being consumed by things. When we’re consumed by our work, by our relationships, by ourselves, how important it is to see outside of yourself. Because when you don’t have that perspective, you can destroy everything you love.
I saw you have a new series with PANICK Entertainment called The Accessories, so let’s talk about that, because that’s a really cool idea.
David Dastmalchian: Leah Kilpatrick has been one of my most inspiring creative collaborators for a long time. We’ve been friends for 20 years. And she came up with the idea of what if the henchmen to the classic monsters decided to quit and try to get out of these toxic relationships that they have and end up needing to band together? Because now they’re stuck in the middle. You’ve got angry humanity coming after them for being accessories to horrific crimes for centuries. What a perfect analogy these are for codependent relationships when it comes to Igor and the toxic employer of Dr. Frankenstein, or Renfield and the addiction of Dracula, or even, in our version, Dr. Jekyll’s alter ego is Mrs. Hyde. So it’s the woman that has been buried inside and repressed within the face of their operation. Dr. Jekyll is the presentable, more acceptable one, but she’s actually been shoved in the closet, and now she’s broken free.
And these three figures come together and they’ve got humanity chasing them down to punish them for centuries of being accessories to horrible crimes. And then the monsters, their masters, chasing them down because they have all the secrets. They know how to defeat the monsters. It’s a really wonderful story. In fact, Patrick, our artist, is here. He’s in from Italy. And I just got the inks on issue one and it’s fucking awesome.
I’m excited for it. It’s one of those things that when you hear it, it’s just like, why has nobody done this?
David Dastmalchian: It’s time. PANICK’s doing it. It’s going to be beautiful. I’m really proud of it.
What are some of your favorite Halloween horror watches? What’s something you have to watch every Halloween?
David Dastmalchian: It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is one of the only I have to watch every year. Because I watch horror almost every day. I really do. Like Shudder or something is on my laptop or in my office every day.
And they’re always adding things.
David Dastmalchian: I’m always watching something. So when it comes to the Halloween season, the one I have to watch is probably It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.
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Through: David Dastmalchian (Late Night with the Devil, The Suicide Squad, Murderbot) has partnered with Z2 to release a powerful new original graphic novel telling the astonishing story of Alix, a young woman driven by a compulsive need to control the world around her. After a near-death experience, she’s thrust into a labyrinthine realm cloaked in shadows and populated by fantastical creatures, where she is stunned to discover that this mysterious land has been constructed solely for her… A kingdom to rule? Or a prison? As danger closes in, threatening complete obliteration, she must decipher the clues that reveal the true nature of this realm in order to save both the land… and herself.
The 140 page book is available in a Deluxe Edition as well as a signed Platinum Edition, which comes with art prints, a set of Focus Cards, and a metal pin featuring the needle that serves as Alix’s doorway to the world of Ananda Apastan. Deluxe and platinum editions are available exclusively at Z2’s website HERE, while a standard trade-sized edition is available via Amazon, Barnes & Noble, as well as other independent retailers and fine comic shops worldwide.
For more information on the book and to preorder your copy, visit z2comics.com/through
CREDITS
Written by David Dastmalchian
Illustrated by Cat Staggs
Edited by Rantz Hoseley
The Accessories: “After lifetimes in the background, three of history’s greatest horror sidekicks finally say what they’ve never dared to before: Enough is ENOUGH!
Igor, Renfield, and Mrs. Hyde have aided their masters’ diabolical missions for decades, but today is the day they stop being loyal. Today, the real horror walks out the front door. The looming question is…what do they do now? These three discarded servants find each other in the fallout, forming a band of gawky but determined anti-heroes caught between angry villagers, vengeful monster-hunters, and furious former employers. Their survival will take more than just guts; luckily, they know where to procure more.
In a darkly comic descent into revenge and rebirth, the hench finally claim the title they never asked for…THE ACCESSORIES!
CREDIT
Writers & Creators: David Dastmalchian & Leah Kilpatrick
Illustration: Patrick Piazzalunga
Colorist: Marco BrakkoThe Accessories © PANICK Entertainment LLC, David Dastmalchian, and Leah Kilpatrick”
