Carnies follows a traveling sideshow in 1936, when the workers set up their oddities and illusions in another town hit by the Dust Bowl. However, this town is different, as a sinister force begins to kill off the carnies one-by-one.
Detective Ellison (Reggie Bannister of ‘Phantasm’) is put on the case and looks at several of the carnies, including the mysterious carnival owner, Helen (Denise Gosset); the strong man, Virgil (Chris Staviski of ‘Zombie Hunter’); and Ratty, the snake handler (Doug Jones of ‘Hellboy’ and ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’).