Watch the Chilling Trailer for 'The Fall of The House of Usher'
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Carla Gugino in 'The Fall of the House of Usher.'
For every person dreading the end of the summer, there’s someone else looking forward to its demise, because longer nights can only mean one thing: the start of horror season. In the past several years, the arrival of autumn has usually also heralded the debut of a new Mike Flanagan series or movie (Hush, The Haunting of Hill House). That will be true again this year thanks to The Fall of the House of Usher, Flanagan’s new Netflix show.
The latest installment in the Flanaverse is loosely inspired by Edgar Allan Poe’s short story of the same name, but it also references some of the 19th-century author’s other famous works. Carla Gugino, for example, plays a character named Verna whose name, not coincidentally, is an anagram for the word “raven”—otherwise known as the most famous bird in American literature.
“It’s bats--t crazy in the best possible way,” Gugino told Netflix ahead of the show’s release. “It has quite a lot of very dark humor, but also really touches the soul.”
Gugino didn’t confirm whether she’s really playing the titular character of “The Raven,” but she hinted that Verna isn’t exactly a regular woman. “There is a fantastical supernatural element to the story, and she is the manifestation of that,” she explained. “You could say she’s the executor of fate or the executor of karma.”
Keep reading for everything to know about The Fall of the House of Usher.
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What is The Fall of the House of Usher about?
Like other Mike Flanagan adaptations, The Fall of the House of Usher is only loosely based on its source material. According to the official plot synopsis, Roderick, the CEO of a pharmaceutical company, must face his past when his children start dying unexpectedly. While the short story focuses on a pair of twins—Roderick and Madeline—struggling with illness, the show, which is set partly in the present day, has imported the children from other Poe stories, as they are not part of the original “The Fall of the Usher.” Napoleon, for example, is from “The Spectacles,” while Prospero is from “The Masque of the Red Death.”
In any case, the series will likely be very scary. Flanagan has said it's the closest he’s ever come to giallo horror, the Italian subgenre that usually involves grisly violence and psychological terror.
Is The Fall of the House of Usher based on a book?
The Fall of the House of Usher is partly based on Edgar Allan Poe’s short story of the same name, which was first published in 1839. Creator Mike Flanagan, however, also chose to incorporate elements from other Poe works. Carl Lumbly plays C. Auguste Dupin, the amateur detective who appears in several Poe stories, including “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” and “The Purloined Letter,” while Katie Parker stars as the titular character from the poem “Annabel Lee.”
What is The Fall of the House of Usher release date?
The Fall of the House of Usher premieres on Netflix Oct. 12, 2023.
Who is in The Fall of the House of Usher cast?
Carla Gugino as Verna
Gugino previously worked with Flanagan on 2017’s Gerald’s Game, which is an adaptation of the Stephen King novel of the same title. She also appeared in Flanagan’s shows The Haunting of Bly Manor and Midnight Mass.
Bruce Greenwood as Roderick Usher
Eike Schroter/Netflix
Greenwood, who replaced Frank Langella as the Usher family patriarch, starred opposite Gugino in Gerald’s Game. He also made an uncredited appearance as a ghost in The Haunting of Hill House.
Zach Gilford as Young Roderick Usher
The Fall of the House of Usher marks Gilford’s third collaboration with Flanagan after Midnight Mass and The Midnight Club. Less horror-inclined viewers, however, likely know him as Matt Saracen from Friday Night Lights.
Related: Where Is the Friday Night Lights Cast Today?
Mary McDonnell as Madeline Usher
Eike Schroter/Netflix
McDonnell hasn’t appeared in a Flanagan project before, but she’s no stranger to horror, having starred in Scream 4 and Donnie Darko. From 2012 to 2018, she starred as Sharon Raydor on the TNT series Major Crimes.
Willa Fitzgerald as Young Madeline Usher
Fitzgerald is also a Flanagan newbie, but horror obsessives may recognize her from the Scream TV series. She’s also appeared in Dare Me, The Goldfinch and Reacher.
Carl Lumbly as C. Auguste Dupin
Veteran actor Lumbly worked with Flanagan on 2019’s Doctor Sleep, the sequel to The Shining. His many TV credits include roles on This Is Us, S.W.A.T., Supergirl and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. In 2024, he is set to appear in the Marvel movie Captain America: Brave New World.
Related: All About Captain America: Brave New World
Malcolm Goodwin as Young C. Auguste Dupin
From 2015 to 2019, Goodwin played Clive Babineaux on The CW’s iZombie. He stars alongside House of Usher castmate Fitzgerald on Reacher.
Henry Thomas as Frederick Usher
Frequent Flanagan collaborator Thomas has appeared in Midnight Mass, Ouija: Origin of Evil, The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, Gerald’s Game and Doctor Sleep. Thomas has been acting since childhood, most famously starring as Elliott in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.
Mark Hamill as Arthur Pym
Hamill—yes, Luke Skywalker—is making his Flanaverse debut in The Fall of the House of Usher. While Hamill will always be known for his work in Star Wars, he’s actually been very busy with non-Skywalker projects in recent years, appearing in What We Do in the Shadows and voicing Chucky in the 2019 Child’s Play remake.
Related: Mark Hamill Reveals the Unlikely Inspiration for His Even More Unlikely Career
Kate Siegel as Camille L'Espanaye
Eike Schroter/Netflix
Siegel, who is Flanagan’s wife, has collaborated with her husband many times. She starred in and co-wrote 2016’s Hush, and she’s appeared in Oculus, Ouija: Origin of Evil, The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, Gerald’s Game and Midnight Mass.
The large ensemble cast includes Samantha Sloyan, T'Nia Miller, Rahul Kohli, Sauriyan Sapkota, Katie Parker, Michael Trucco, Annabeth Gish and Nicholas Lea.
Is there a Fall of the House of Usher trailer?
Netflix released a trailer for The Fall of the House of Usher on Sept. 12. In short, it's terrifying.
How many episodes are in The Fall of the House of Usher?
The Fall of the House of Usher will consist of eight hour-long episodes.
Does The Fall of the House of Usher connect to other Mike Flanagan shows?
It remains to be seen whether The Fall of the House of Usher connects to any other Mike Flanagan movies or series, but it seems likely that there will be at least a few hidden references for superfans to find. “It's all becoming incredibly convoluted, really connected,” Flanagan told Entertainment Weekly in September 2021 when asked about Easter eggs in Midnight Mass. “That's our goal. I want all of [these projects] to just be a big ball of rubber bands by the time we're done, just impossible to extricate from each other.”
At the very least, several of Flanagan’s frequent collaborators will be back, including his wife, Kate Siegel, as well as Carla Gugino and Zach Gilford.
How to watch The Fall of the House of Usher
All eight episodes of The Fall of the House of Usher will stream on Netflix starting Oct. 12, 2023.
