This week on Sasquatch Odyssey, I’m joined by screenwriter and paranormal podcaster Richard Hatem — the mind behind the screenplay for The Mothman Prophecies and the host of Richard Hatem’s Paranormal Bookshelf. Richard and I first crossed paths back in September at the Mothman Festival in Point Pleasant, West Virginia, and I’ve been excited to get him on the mic ever since.

In our conversation, Richard takes us inside his first-ever Mothman Festival experience — the energy, the people, and the strange pull Point Pleasant has on anyone who’s even remotely fascinated by the unknown. From there, we dive deep into the making of The Mothman Prophecies: what inspired his approach, how he balanced real-world lore with cinematic storytelling, and the emotional undercurrent he wanted the film to carry. Richard shares what it was like shaping a story that lives in the space between dread, wonder, and grief — and why Mothman remains one of the most haunting and compelling American paranormal legends.

We also zoom out into the bigger picture: the strange intersections between Mothman, Bigfoot, UFOs, high strangeness, and the broader paranormal tapestry. Richard offers thoughtful insight into how these phenomena echo each other, why certain stories endure, and what our fascination with the unknown might say about us as human beings.

Finally, Richard talks about his show Paranormal Bookshelf and his love for the stories that hide in dusty corners of folklore, eyewitness encounters, and forgotten history — reminding us that the best paranormal discussions aren’t just about proving something exists… they’re about what these mysteries awaken inside us.

If you’re into Mothman lore, Bigfoot encounters, or the deeper “why” behind paranormal obsession, this one’s for you.

Richard Hatem's Paranormal Bookshelf

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Have you had a Bigfoot encounter, Sasquatch sighting, Dogman experience, or other cryptid or paranormal encounter? We’d love to hear your story. Email [email protected] to be featured on a future episode of Sasquatch Odyssey.

Sasquatch Odyssey is a leading Bigfoot and cryptid podcast exploring real encounters, field research, and scientific analysis of the Sasquatch phenomenon.

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