Mike Flanagan’s Fall of the House of Usher Is a Modern Gothic Masterpiece

Mike Flanagan has become one of modern horror’s most accomplished creators, working across film and television with Netflix. His Fall of the House of Usher, while rooted in Edgar Allan Poe’s 1839 story, expands into an inventive homage that uses a modern lens to explore societal evil.

Stephen King praised the series, saying "there's a case to be made for Mike Flanagan being the Quentin Tarantino of horror." Flanagan structures the tale non-linearly, using flashbacks to trace the Usher family’s decline. Young siblings Roderick (Zach Gilford) and Madeline (Willa Fitzgerald) found Fortunato Pharmaceuticals, a corrupt company that harms public health; older versions of the siblings (Bruce Greenwood and Mary McDonnell) reflect on their mistakes as a curse seems to doom each of Roderick’s children to horrific fates.

mike flanagan, usher, poe, netflix, stephen king, zach gilford, willa fitzgerald, fortunato pharma, bruce greenwood, mary mcdonnell