On Netflix, Doctor Sleep filmmaker Mike Flanagan created a portfolio of work that was simultaneously diverse and cohesive. From classic scares in the Haunting duology, religious horror in Midnight Mass, and a YA adaptation with The Midnight Club, Flanagan’s distinct style and his re-use of strong actors made his entire body of work feel like a single project.
Unfortunately, Netflix’s Flanaverse is ending, but not before one last series tackles one of the greatest gothic horror writers ever... with a decidedly modern twist.
The Fall of the House of Usher has been a long time coming, with the miniseries first announced all the way back in December 2021. Boasting a huge cast from Flanagan’s past work (and some surprising new names, like Mark Hamill), it will adapt various stories by Edgar Allan Poe. Now, it finally has a release date: October 12, 2023. Plus, Netflix just released the series’ first images, which definitely have Flanagan’s stylish fingerprints all over it.
Netflix calls The Fall of the House of Usher “a wicked horror series based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe. Ruthless siblings Roderick and Madeline Usher have built Fortunato Pharmaceuticals into an empire of wealth, privilege and power. But past secrets come to light when the heirs to the Usher dynasty start dying at the hands of a mysterious woman from their youth.”
Like most of Flanagan’s work, Usher takes classic Poe elements and updates them to be contemporary. Fortunato Pharmaceuticals, for example, is a reference to Fortunato, a character in “The Cask of Amontillado.”
Poe Easter eggs abound in the cast list too, with characters named Prospero, Annabel Lee, Lenore, Camille L’Espanaye, Morelle, Auguste Dupin, and Victorine Lafourcade, all references to various Poe characters. Even Mark Hamill’s character, Arthur Pym, is named after Poe’s only complete novel, The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket.
Flanagan has been building to this miniseries for some time. It’s not only a love letter to one of the most influential American writers ever, but to every other element of the Flanaverse. Before Flanagan moves on to bigger and better things, we’ll have one last chapter of his signature comforting-yet-unsettling storytelling style.
