Season 4, Episode 65: Interview with Aline O’Neill (Tonya Perkins) from “Hysteria!” (2024)

It was wonderful speaking to Aline O’Neill about her role as Tonya in the new Peacock Original series, “Hysteria!” starring Bruce Campbell, Emjay Anthony, Chiara Aurelia, Kezii Curtis, and Anna Camp. Acting as ‘Tonya Perkins’ in this series, this was sort of Aline’s break-out role. She described how much it meant to her acting alongside the wonderful actors and actresses and how fortunate she was to acquire the part. Even though the series focuses on the “Satanic Panic” of the 1980s, there is plenty of teenage angst, diving into danger, and teenage rebellion to go around, enough to keep the Sherriff (Bruce Campbell) busy. Aline is such a wonderful person, and I am very glad that I had the opportunity to speak to her; clearly, she is very talented, and I can see her career soaring. Hopefully, and fingers crossed, that she will return in season 2. If I could briefly sum up the series, it would be this: Hysteria! Is full of a talented ensemble of teens which makes it easy for the audience to root for the characters and share a yearning to belong and to be seen for who they are. However, in the 1980s, it was an unfortunate decade due to the era of the “satanic panic” and heavy metal causing parents to live in terror and blame television shows, even the Smurfs.