The final issue of True Believers arrived Oct. 13, bringing the blood-soaked comic book series from Stephen Graham Jones, Joshua Viola, Ben Matsuya and Jeremiah Lambert to its chaotic conclusion.
The third issue reunites the creative team behind the meta-horror series that’s featured cameos from Jamie Lee Curtis, GWAR, R.L. Stine and more horror icons across its run. This time, Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash, Re-Animator stars Barbara Crampton and Jeffrey Combs, and Celldweller’s Klayton join the mayhem as another masked killer terrorizes convention-goers obsessed with the fictional slasher franchise Killr™.
Jones, whose novel The Buffalo Hunter Hunter appeared on President Barack Obama’s 2025 Summer Reading List, co-wrote the series with Viola. The duo has crafted a trilogy that blends outrageous kills, tongue-in-cheek humor and meta Easter eggs while questioning just how far fandom can go.
I spoke to Viola about wrapping up the final arc for Killr™, collaborating with Jones on the chaotic horror narrative and the Easter eggs horror fans should watch for in the issue. Fans can purchase all three issues of the series from Bit Bot Media.
Thanks for talking with us again about True Believers. From our previous conversation, I know it was designed to be a wild ride, but how does issue #3 push the story to its conclusion?
Viola: In the end, we return to the very roots of the original Killr, drawing on the hints planted in the first two issues, and unleash a hilarious and bloody conclusion that ties the whole thing together.
You’ve taken advantage of the setting by bringing celebrities into the book. What was it like integrating “real people” into the story?
Viola: It was a blast. We focused on honoring who they are in ways that felt funny and fit naturally into our story world. Everyone was a great sport about it. Slash especially stood out. He was the most “fleshed out,” since he serves as our narrator in this issue.
How did you approach wrapping up the final arc for Killr™ in this last issue?
Viola: When we kicked this series off, we had a general idea of how things might unfold, but not the exact path. Working with Stephen really takes that to another level. He writes on the fly and constantly throws out wild ideas for how to get from A to B. It keeps the process exciting and full of surprises, not just for readers, but for us collaborators too.
You co-wrote the series with Stephen Graham Jones. How did your collaboration work, especially with such a chaotic, horror-filled narrative?
Viola: I’ve worked with Stephen a few times now. True Believers is the first true collaboration, though I’d edited and published his work before, so I had a sense of what I was getting into. We’re also friends outside of work, and our shared tastes make it easy to click creatively. Usually, we’ll kick things off by tossing around ideas over text or email, and then Stephen just runs with it. I’ll suddenly find a full draft sitting in my inbox one morning, often written while he’s on the road (the guy travels constantly). From there, I do a pass, and we’ll go back and forth a few times before sending it over to Ben, the artist.
The series also has strong visuals. What was it like working with Ben Matsuya, Jeremiah Lambert and Matthew Therrien on this final issue?
Viola: All of the artists are phenomenal. I’ve worked with each of them several times now. Not just on this series, but on other projects as well. There’s a reason I keep coming back to them. They’re incredibly talented, reliable, and they just get it.
Were there any surprises in the art that made the final issue even better than you imagined?
Viola: What I love most about working with a great comics team is that you can hand something off knowing they’ll make it even better. That’s exactly what happens here. Honestly, it feels like Christmas morning whenever I get new pages in my inbox. I’m always blown away by their creativity and how they find fun, unexpected ways to push things further. That’s the magic of collaboration.
The series has been full of Easter eggs for horror fans. Are there any hidden details in the final issue that readers should look out for?
Viola: This issue is packed with callbacks and clues. Fans who want the full picture of the original Killr might find themselves flipping back to the earlier issues. We’ve also loaded it with Easter eggs and nods, especially tied to our celebrity cameos with Barbara Crampton and Jeffrey Combs. And yes, there are a bunch of inside jokes that only Stephen and I will get, but that’s half the fun of making it.
Can fans expect to see more of the Killr™ universe in the future, or is this the definitive end?
Viola: We do have some things cooking behind the scenes, though they’re still pretty early. This arc is definitely wrapped, but we’re already playing around with what might come next.
With this being the final issue, what else do you have on your plate for the future?
Viola: There are plenty of projects I’d love to spill the beans on, but those pesky NDAs keep me quiet. You’ll be hearing a lot more once we hit Q1/Q2 of 2026.