Chris Smith, Steven “Doogie” McDougal, Scott Porter, Brannon Smith
Where have the Tennessee Wraith Chasers been hiding? Are they even still around? Why don’t we see them on TV anymore? Are they ever coming back?
These are all great questions. Ones I started asking in 2019 when I noticed they weren’t part of Travel Channel’s 2019 Halloween lineup. Something I instantly found suspicious because just the year before, they’d headlined Travel Channel’s first weekly live series, Haunted Live. Travel Channel had made quite a fuss about it and it launched to coincide with the network’s 2018 Halloween programming.
Then…crickets. Three were no more show announcements that included the Tennessee Wraith Chasers. So where did they go? What have they been doing? Will they ever return to TV again?
Sometimes I still find myself wondering about all of this, but mostly it’s when someone stops by and comments about them. Like Troy Thiesen from Breach the Evil Spirit Hunters has done a few times. I told him this would make a great post because while he’s the most recent to pose the “What happened to the Tennessee Wraith Chasers?” question, he’s not alone in wondering. So for those who need to get their TWC fix, let’s see how you can do that.
A Look Back at the Tennessee Wraith Chasers’ Career
The Tennessee Wraith Chasers first burst onto the paranormal TV scene in 2014 on Destination America with Ghost Asylum. It starred Chris Smith, Brannon Smith, Scott Porter, Steven “Doogie” McDougal, and Chasey Ray McKnight.
In 2017, on the same network, another popular series featuring the Tennnessee-based ghost hunters premiered, Haunted Towns. Except for Chasey Ray McKnight, who was replaced by Mike Goncalves, it starred the same guys who were in Ghost Asylum.
Then Haunted Live appeared on Travel Channel in 2018 with Mike Goncalves, Chris Smith, Brannon Smith, and Scott Porter. Jamie Kaler and Jess Blaze Snider hosted.
Wraith Chasers Events
Even though they haven’t had a new series in a minute, their past shows are still fan faves. That’s why you’ll often see one or more members of the Tennessee Wraith Chasers appearing as guests at paracons.
Two members, Mike Goncalves and Chris Smith, have rebranded into the Wraith Chasers. On their site, they list which events and paracons they’ll be at. Paracons you can catch them at in 2023 include:
- Enigmacons: Saturday, April 22, 2023 -Radford, VA
- East TN Paracon: Friday, April 28-Sunday, April 30, 2023 – Pigeon Forge, TN
- Michigan Paranormal Convention: Thursday, August 24-Saturday, August 26, 2023 – Sault Ste Marie, MI
- Pensacola Comic Con: Saturday, September 23-Sunday September 24, 2023 – Pensacola, FL
- New Jersey Paraunity Expo: Saturday, November 4-Sunday, November 5, 2023 – Woodbridge, NJ
In addition to coordinating their own ghost hunting events, which they have several of in 2023, they also team up with Ghost Hunt Weekends for overnight investigations. They’ll be at several Ghost Hunt Weekend events in 2023, including the Thomas House in Red Boiling Springs, Tennessee, for a New Year’s Eve overnight ghost hunt party. Non-overnight 2023 investigations with Ghost Hunt Weekends include Bobby Mackey’s in Wilder, Kentucky, at the end of January, and the Titanic Museum in Branson, MO, in August.
Speaking of ships, you can also sail with them this year on the Dark Waters Cruise. It embarks from Tampa, Florida, on March 4 and has two sea days along with two stops, one in Cozumel and one in Grand Cayman, before returning to Tampa on Mar. 9.
To see their entire lineup of events, visit: https://thewraithchasers.com/events
What the Other Tennessee Wraith Chasers Are Doing
Okay, so now we know what Mike Goncalves and Chris Smith are up to. They’re still carrying the Tennessee Wraith Chasers torch in rebranded form. But what about Scott Porter, Brannon Smith, Steven “Doogie” McDougal, and Chasey Ray McKnight.
I got an unexpected assist on their whereabouts and what they’re up to from Troy Thiesen in one of his comments. According to Troy, last summer Doogie did a live investigation that sold out. So sometimes you can still find him that way, but it looks like he’s transitioned to a career in real estate, judging from his Twitter and Instagram profiles.
Chasey Ray and Brannon seem to be out of the paranormal game altogether.
Scott Porter is forging his own paranormal path with psychic Stephanie Burke. (Who, if I’m interpreting some of their Instagram posts correctly, are also paramours.) You can still find Porter doing events. In fact, this past October he and Stephanie held an event that combined ghost event, meet and greet, haunted history tour, and seance in the Church of the Pilgrimage in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
While all of the former Tennessee Wraith Chasers are often asked on socials if they have any TV shows in the works, they rarely acknowledge such questions. However, you may yet still see one of them materialize back on TV.
Scott Porter shared several posts of him and Stephanie in Ireland. It wasn’t entirely clear if it was for work or a getaway until an enigmatic post on his Instagram that showed him posing with Stephanie in front of a video camera. The caption read: “Well here it is! Sorry it’s late but we were a little busy till 3am! Can’t say much but say hello to the hosts of a brand new paranormal series coming to your TV soon!”
View this post on Instagram
There have been other posts since then, but no further updates with any show info. Is it still in the works, or did it get scrapped? No idea.
But of course, if I see or hear anything more, I’ll share another update. Or if you know something, I invite you to put the comments section to good use and share it!
Check-In
Besides (or maybe in addition to) the Tennessee Wraith Chasers, are there any other teams or shows not on TV anymore you’d like to see make a comeback?
Courtney Mroch is a globe-trotting restless spirit who’s both possessed by wanderlust and the spirit of adventure, and obsessed with true crime, horror, the paranormal, and weird days. Perhaps it has something to do with her genes? She is related to occult royalty, after all. Marie Laveau, the famous Voodoo practitioner of New Orleans, is one of her ancestors. (Yes, really! As explained here.) That could also explain her infatuation with skeletons.
Speaking of mystical, to learn how Courtney channeled her battle with cancer to conjure up this site, check out HJ’s Origin Story.
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I haven’t seen the Mountain Monsters in awhile, though I think they’re still active.
GREAT observation, Priscilla! They haven’t had a new season announcement in a while now either. Another one to check on. lol
I sure miss these guys. They were so good at what they did and so professional! TOP OF THE LINE! None better!
The whole Discovery Channel has gotten ridiculous. There are no more good ghost shows left except for Kindred Spirits (who only do 10 EPISODES!), Ghost Hunters (who only do 8 EPISODES!), Ghost Adventures (if you can stomach the arrogance of Zak Bagans), and Paranormal Caught On Camera. What the heck are they doing over there? There is a huge market for it, and they know it. Ghost Adventures is consistently their highest rated show. So people WANT TO SEE ghost shows! Also, it doesn’t cost much at ALL to produce ghost shows! Recently, I haven’t seen anything new over there that is enticing at all; just a bunch of uninteresting garbage! I did like Expedition X, but no word on a renewal for that one either … probably not, if it goes the way everything else is going. I think I am going to cancel my Discovery+ membership, the only streaming service I have left. I can get everything else that’s worth getting on YouTube or through other means, if you catch my drift. Their programming is not even worth the $7/month to me anymore! It’s just trash! And I am pissed!
Hey Troy!
So I do believe the merger with Warner Bros is what’s happening with all the cancellations of paranormal shows and the lack of any new ones. Or maybe they’re saving up for Halloween season? I don’t know. We’ll see what announcements come out then. But I did read that there was a lot of debt on the books, and they did cut all those movies last year to try and curb expenses so I think the paranormal shows have fallen victim to that.
Personally, I believe, and this is my MBA talking, that once again, with the millennials being in charge of companies now, Discovery are so focused on the bottom line, they forget about their staff and their customer base, which FUELS their bottom line. These idiots don’t know what they’re doing, and these kinds of business dealings are running rampant through corporations worldwide. In the end, they will have realized they shot themselves in the foot, but by then, as with so many companies these days, it may be too late! I mean, look at the shows they have in their current and near future lineup: TONS upon TONS of reruns from up to and beyond a decade ago! And the new shows or new seasons: Dr. Pimple Popper (really?), Summer Baking Championship (I can’t even imagine the suspense that will, literally, be oozing from that show like cake frosting), 90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days, 90 Day Fiancé: Love in Paradise, Match Me Abroad, You, Me, & My Ex (Yeah, I’m not makin’ this crap up! Honestly, you could offer me $1 million to watch these four shows, and I would turn it down!), Street Outlaws: Mega Ca$h Days (A dumb car race with a cool name), Hoffman Family Gold (Watching rich people spending money to NEVER get gold on a gold-getting show is the most boring show in the world, and all “gold” shows are like that. They might find the equivalent of $110 in a months worth of back-breaking, laborious work. It’s ridiculous!), Expedition Unknown (Show’s okay, but it’s just the discovery of abandoned places, nothing supernatural. Expedition X was far, Far, FAr, FAR better!), Deadliest Catch (Probably one of the most boring, and surprisingly longest running, BORING shows I have ever laid eyes on! How many times can you catch a shark before it becomes old news?), Dead Files (Amy Allan is a disturbing person to watch–she always seemed like the greasy-haired girl who would sit in the corner by herself in elementary school and pick her nose and eat it. Anyhow it would appear that the new episodes with Cindy Kaza are not coming out until next year, since the new season 15 episodes still have annoying Amy Allan at the helm. Also, why are there NEVER any strange phenomena going on during her walkthroughs? I always, ALWAYS found it strange that we never see orbs or hear disembodied voices, why we never witness even the slightest poltergeist activity, why we aren’t witnessing apparitions, shadows, footsteps, or even the occasional knock. NOTHING … EVER! That always made me think the show was as fake as fakery could be. When a medium is walking a haunted location stirring things up, there is bound to be activity. There has not be one iota of activity in a single episode of Dead Files. Isn’t that just the strangest thing? Although, strangely, Amy sees stuff all over the place … ghosts in corners, demons manifesting, haunted children, shadow figures, and we don’t see anything. We just have to take her word for it), Eli Roth Presents: The Legion Of Exorcists (Eli Roth is good at what he does, but the synopsis of this show sounds like a yawn-fest!), and last but not least, Late Night Lockup (Won’t be watching that). So … goodbye forever Discovery and Discovery+! And I am sure, with this ridiculous lineup, I won’t be the only one leaving!
Hey Troy! You’ll probably be interested to read what I wrote about regarding show cancelations, inspired in part by another comment you left about what’s going on with the shows: https://www.hauntjaunts.net/did-the-warner-bros-discovery-merger-kill-travel-channel-shows/.
I really don’t mind others posting their opinions, and I do agree with some. I miss Expedition X and enjoyed it more than Expedition Unknown. The thing that does bother me is when you start bad mouthing individuals you do not know. If you don’t care for the cast and crew don’t watch the show. Yes, I know, if I don’t like what I am reading, stop reading.
Anyway, all that aside I love paranormal shows with Kindred Spirits and Paranormal Lockdown being my favorite. The Ghost Adventures team gets to be a little much for me and I will change over to something calmer. I do miss Ghost Asylum but watch it again and again with a few months in between (an advantage to old age!)
Well said, Jeannie. And OMG…I cracked up at your last words. I can relate!!! So much is new again after only hours in some cases. My brain doesn’t retain like it once did. LOL
Sure hope they bring Kindred Spirits back and don’t make that one for the trash heap too.
Oops, just read that comment from Jeannie. Courtney, it appears that what I wrote up there is disturbing some people. If you could delete it, would you please? I had no intention of upsetting anybody. I am a nice guy, but I am also a 100% disabled wartime American veteran who watched a lot of (friends) people get killed horrifically, and who, tragically, was forced by my government to kill a lot of people. As a result, I have severe PTSD among other issues. Being a soldier, though, I follow the Constitutional 1st Amendment of “free speech.” Sometimes, because of the combination of the two, I speak my feelings with blatant honesty. It’s partly rights and partly illness, and for that I am sorry. So, if someone is bothered by something I say, I would rather that it not be there for them to read.
My sincere apology, Jeannie, if my words of how I feel about something offended you, and yes, I did stop watching the show.
Hey, Troy. I haven’t heard about Kindred Spirits yet. In March Dakota Laden tweeted it was basically canceled when he listed all the shows that had been canceled then, but there is no confirmation either way from what I can tell yet.
And are you sure you want me to delete your comment? It’s just you being you. Jeannie even said she agreed with some of it. And you gave a nice apology. But if you still want it removed, I will. Just wanted to double check you did.
It’s okay, then leave it, if you didn’t mind. I just didn’t want to offend anyone. I wasn’t trying to be offensive … honestly. That’s the point. If you met me in person, you would see that I’m a very sweet guy. I can be confrontational if someone attacks me or my loved ones or my country; that’s why I was a soldier (I run TOWARD the sound of fighting, not away). But in times of serenity, I am generally calm and peaceful, and my wife loves me to pieces! And, most of all, I like about 99.9% of the things you like! LOL!
BTW, my wife & I love Battlebots! Did Dakota mention Battlebots as a show that’s leaving the Travel Channel group of networks?
I’ll leave it then, Troy. And yep. You even were a good sport and picked a spooky Barbie! lol
Did not hear him say anything about Battlebots. Only paranormal shows.