4. The Strain

With the terrifying Penny Dreadful impressing many horror fans earlier this year, FX’s The Strain looks set to keep us hiding behind the sofa this summer.

Based on a trilogy of novels (which were later turned into a Dark Horse comic book series) from Pacific Rim director Guillermo del Toro and author Chuck Hogan,the first episode was directed by Del toro who also co-wrote the pilot alongside Hogan. Behind the scenes, the show is just as impressive with former Lost co-showrunner Carlton Cuse set to run the series and executive produce.

Offering up a unique and frightening new take on vampires, The Strain could do for them what The Walking Dead did for zombies, so it’s well worth keeping an eye on, especially with del Toro’s prove track record of creating visually unique and scary movie monsters. The fantastic cast includes Corey Stoll, Sean Astin, Kevin Durand and John Hurt.