Satan Comes to Town
Satan Comes to Town
Feature Screenplay, 112 pages
Horror, Comedy
Written by Michael Chase Walker
AnimatedCharacter DrivenComic Book CharactersCourtroomCrimeFairy TaleHigh ConceptMythicalOccultPeriodSupernaturalTime Period: 20th CenturyStory Location: USASpecial Effects: Extensive SFXTarget Audience: Adult | Early Teen | Teenagers | Young Adult
Active ✔ PDFDuring the Great Depression, a dyslexic boy’s letter meant for Santa Claus accidentally summons Satan Claus, who descends upon his struggling Midwest town promising salvation and prosperity — but instead offers temptation, corruption, and damnation.
STORY SUMMARY
Act I:
Fork Hollow, Indiana, 1934. Amid breadlines and despair, 11-year-old Danny Webster struggles with poverty, his mother’s illness, and a stutter. After hearing “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town,” he writes Santa a heartfelt letter asking him to visit Fork Hollow — but his misspelled address (“Satan” instead of “Santa”) sends it to Hell.
Meanwhile, in a spectacular animated sequence, demons deliver the letter to Satan, who gleefully accepts the “invitation.”
Act II:
“Satan” arrives in town disguised as Nicholas von Schlecter-Brudder (“Ol’ Nick”), a charismatic industrialist promising jobs and wealth. Fork Hollow, desperate for hope, embraces him. Only Danny grows suspicious as Ol’ Nick’s gifts — cash, contracts, and “miracles” — corrupt the townspeople.
Danny’s friend Arthur, a street-smart black kid, becomes Nick’s errand boy; the witchy postal worker Marie Laveau aids the devilish scheme.
The tone oscillates between Capraesque small-town drama and surreal black comedy.
Act III:
As the town collapses into moral decay, Danny discovers the truth — and realizes he must undo his mistake before everyone he loves, including his father Big John, falls under Nick’s spell. The story builds toward a confrontation between innocence and temptation, culminating in Danny’s redemption and the town’s salvation (implied in the pages beyond the provided excerpt).
