George Northy, a writer/producer whose credits include Charmed for The CW, is launching Yuletide, a horror comic about the darker side of the holiday season. While the comic won’t be published until October (by Oni Press), it’s already been acquired by Valhalla Entertainment to develop into a movie. Cemetery Dance spoke with writer Northy and artist Rachele Aragno about working together, what’s going on with Valhalla Entertainment, and how to mix horror with a holiday not generally associated with horror.
(Interviews conducted by Danica Davidson)
George Northy
CEMETERY DANCE: What is the inspiration behind Yuletide?
GEORGE NORTHY: It all started when I was creating a “Christmas Day Quiz” for my visiting in-laws. I wanted one of the rounds to be about “The Forgotten Monsters of Christmas” and in my research, I really became obsessed with all these creatures. I loved the idea of tying them all together into one epic Amblin-style action-adventure that explores the long-buried, darker side of the Yuletide.
How do you mix horror with a holiday generally not seen as involving horror?
I think they blend together quite seamlessly actually. It’s literally the darkest time of the year in most of the places that celebrate Yule or Christmas, and so there have always been these darker sides to every holiday legend. The way we, as a culture, have left them all behind for a more cheerful, sanitized (or should I say… “Santa-ized”?) version of the midwinter solstice has really become a huge part of the central conflict in the story we are telling.
Congrats on the news from Valhalla Entertainment! Can you tell us a bit more about that?
It’s very exciting, but also very early in the process. Right now, we are focused on making the comic book as great as it can be, but I’ve been working on ideas for the feature film version in the back of my head for a while and there are some many directions to go — from live action with CGI, to animation to leaning hard into practical puppetry and special effects makeup.
Did your background working on Charmed help you approach creating a graphic novel?
Charmed was the perfect training ground for this! Every episode, we tried to take ancient demons, ghosts or other supernatural threats and connect them to modern day themes or situations that the lead characters would be going through. One episode I wrote took the legend of Medusa and recontextualized her as not a monster, but also as a feminist icon for the Me Too era. My hope for Yuletide, is that we can take these ancient forgotten Yuletide creatures and show that the ways they have been long-buried can reflect how the darkness of the Holiday season has also been buried.
Where can people find out more about you and your work?
Check out my IMDB page to find my TV and film work, which is usually streaming somewhere. As for comics, I have two more upcoming projects with Oni Press: keep an eye out for a story I wrote for Shiver SuspenStories #2 and also an original supernatural horror-fantasy whodunnit comic series coming in 2026.
Rachele Aragno
CEMETERY DANCE: What was your process for illustrating Yuletide?
RACHELE ARAGNO: The process was simple because it’s the same one I use for all my books. I always start by reading the script to get a general idea of the story. Then, together (with George in this case), we discussed the setting, the characters, and the settings, and I began to study things, especially the creatures. Then I start with the storyboards, then the pencils, and finally the ink. Of course, editor Matt Dryer, who is fantastic, along with the author, helped me adjust my approach at times and find the right solutions to make everything work best.
How did you and George work together?
They asked me to work on this project when they showed me the script, and I fell in love with it immediately! I then discovered that George is an exceptional person, and working with him was truly wonderful. We have the same vision and we like the same visual imagery. So we had a great connection, which, I think, helped us a lot in developing the comic. I could work with him forever!
Where can people find out more about you and your work?
I’m very active on both Instagram and Facebook; you can find everything by simply searching for my name. I’m also starting to post videos on Tik Tok, but I need to get used to it.
