Mike Flanagan teams up with Netflix once again to bring a horror classic to life. Flanagan has previously adapted the works of Shirley Jackson, Henry James, and Christopher Pike for Netflix. He’s currently taking on Mr. “The Raven” himself, Edgar Allan Poe, with a new Netflix limited series based on The Fall of the House of Usher.
The short story is one of Poe’s most well-known stories, at least among fans of the writer. Many Poe fans and beyond can’t wait to see Mike Flanagan’s spin on this classic tale. Flanagan has had a lot of success with his Netflix collaborations. He’s been able to keep the foundations and core themes and messages of these classic horror stories and give them a modern and distinct Flanagan stamp. His past Netflix work The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, and his original creation Midnight Mass (which was set up in one of his much earlier movies) proves that The Fall of the House of Usher is one of the must-watch on the upcoming Netflix TV schedule
Let’s explore what we know so far about Mike Flanagan’s The Fall of the House of Usher Netflix adaptation.
What Is the Release Date For The Fall Of The House Of Usher?
Just in time for spooky season, The Fall of the House of Usher streams on Netflix on October 12, 2023. All of the episodes will be available to stream on that day. This is just one of the many exciting shows on the October 2023 TV schedule.
The Fall of The House of Usher Is Based on Edgar Allan Poe’s Work
Though Mike Flanagan’s Netflix TV show is titled The Fall of the House of Usher, that will only be one of the Edgar Allan Poe stories that the show references. The Fall of the House of Usher will act as the main starting point for the series, but Intrepid Pictures, Mike Flanagan and Trevor Macy’s production company, announced on its official Instagram page that the TV show would be based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe.
Poe has quite a hefty body of work that includes many short stories, poems, essays, and a novel. The Black Cat, The Raven, The Masque of the Red Death, The Tell-Tale Heart, Lenore, and Annabel Lee are among Edgar Allan Poe’s most well-known stories. Flanagan and team will have a lot of potential material with Poe’s large body of work, even if they just focus on his most popular material. The possibilities are almost endless.
Sibling Rivalry And Murder Take Center Stage In The Fall Of The House Of Usher
According to Variety, the series follows the wealthy Usher siblings as they must deal with skeletons from their past. A woman from their youth starts to kill off the heirs to their dynasty. In the same article, Flanagan confirms that supernatural elements will be at play in this story. He also mentions that the series has a lot of dark humor.
The Netflix Limited Series Has Eight Episodes
With the initial announcement about The Fall of the House of Usher, the Intrepid Pictures team revealed that the limited series only has eight episodes. Most of Mike Flanagan’s previous TV shows have ranged from seven to ten episodes. The series is one episode longer than one of Flanagan’s most recent series, Midnight Mass, and an episode or two shorter than his previous shows, The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, and The Midnight Club. This should be plenty for The Fall of the House of Usher to leave an impression on viewers.
The Fall of The House Of Usher Has A Huge Cast That Includes Mark Hamill And Bruce Greenwood
On Twitter, Mike Flanagan announced that The Fall of the House of Usher would feature the largest ensemble in his production company’s history. The first actors announced were Frank Langella, Carla Gugino, Mary McDonnell, Carl Lumbly, and Mark Hamill. Flanagan also revealed Langella would lead the ensemble cast as Roderick Usher, the head of the Usher dynasty.
However, in April 2022, Langella left the project for “unacceptable conduct on set,” according to Deadline. Bruce Greenwood replaced him in the lead role. Greenwood has worked with Flanagan before on The Haunting of Hill House, Gerald’s Game, and Doctor Sleep.
Flanagan also disclosed, during the initial cast announcement, that McDonnell plays Rodrick’s sister, Madeline Usher. Lumbly plays investigator C. Auguste Dupin. The second wave of cast announcements included Henry Thomas, Samantha Sloyan, T’Nia Miller, Rahul Kohli, Kate Siegel, Sauriyan Sapkota, Zach Gilford, Katie Parker, and Michael Trucco.
The Fall of the House of Usher cast also includes Malcolm Goodwin, Crystal Balint, Kyliegh Curran, Paola Nuñez, Aya Furukawa, Matt Biedel, Daniel Jun, Ruth Codd, Robert Longstreet, JayR Tinaco, Igby Rigney, Willa Fitzgerald, and Annabeth Gish.
Fans of Mike Flanagan may recognize many of the names from previous projects, including The Midnight Club and the well-reviewed film adaptation of Doctor Sleep.
Among the new actors to join Flanagan’s worlds are Mark Hamill, JayR Tinaco, Daniel Jun, Paola Nunez, Mary McDonnell, and Malcolm Goodwin, who has an iZombie reunion with Rahul Kohli.
Mike Flanagan And Michael Fimognari Share Directing Duties On This Project
The initial project announcement of The Fall of the House of Usher revealed that Mike Flanagan would direct four episodes and Michael Fimognari would direct the other four episodes. Fimognari and Flanagan have been long-time collaborating partners.
Fimognari has been Flanagan’s director of photography on many projects, including Doctor Sleep, Gerald’s Game, Midnight Mass, and Ouija: Origin of Evil. Fimognari is also an executive producer on The Fall of the House of Usher. According to IMDB, this will be the first TV show that Fimognari has directed. His previous directing credits include To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You and To All the Boys: Always and Forever.
Production On The Fall Of The House Of Usher Began In January 2022
In December 2021, Mike Flanagan announced on Twitter that principal photography began on The Fall of the House of Usher in January 2022. What’s On Netflix reported that, according to Production Weekly, this Netflix limited series was scheduled to begin filming on January 24th, 2022 and end on May 25th, 2022. However, Flanagan confirmed (via Twitter) that filming wrapped on July 9, 2022. It didn’t officially begin filming until January 31 (also confirmed via Twitter).
It Won’t Be Like Any Other Mike Flanagan Project
Mike Flanagan has told multiple publications that The Fall of the House of Usher would be a completely different project than audiences may expect from him. He spoke on The Boo Crew Podcast and had this to say about how The Fall of the House of Usher differs from his previous work.
A lot of the stuff I do is a slow burn. The Fall of the House of Usher is a brush fire. It is an explosion. It is as aggressive and rock ‘n roll and over the top and just violent and insane and horrific as anything I have ever done… by a lot.
Flanagan also told The Wrap how The Haunting TV shows are different from The Fall of the House of Usher and why it’s not a third Haunting series.
It’s very much its own thing tonally, thematically. It’s something we’ve actually never done before. And so it felt like we would be limiting it, in an unfortunate way, if we tried to shove it into that ‘Haunting’ shoebox. It very much is its own crazy, over-the-top, insane, beautiful, macabre, just wicked thing that is so different.
The Fall of the House of Usher very much feels like a different TV show than we’ve seen from these Netflix and Mike Flanagan collaborations, which makes me very excited to watch it. Stream The Fall of The House of Usher on Netflix on October 12.
