The Haunting: An Anthology Horror Series by Mike Flanagan
In 2018, subscribers to Netflix discovered the anthology series titled The Haunting created by Mike Flanagan. Two independent seasons were released with themes of haunted houses and ghosts, drawing inspiration from classic horror literature. Whilst the series was successful, Netflix did not sign for a third season. However, the creator of the series has just revealed what we could have had if a new season had come to light.
The Haunting Success on Netflix
Indeed, between 2018 and 2020, the audience was able to enjoy The Haunting anthology series by Mike Flanagan. The series draws inspiration from horror literature classics, exploring themes of the haunted house. The first season is a loose adaptation of Shirley Jackson’s novel The Haunted House. The second is an adaptation of Henry James’s novel The Turn of the Screw.
Despite the show’s success on Netflix, its creator stated in December 2020 that he had no plans to develop a third season, but he didn’t completely close the door on the venture. If he ever decided to change his mind, he would do so publicly.
After producing two seasons of The Haunting, Mike Flanagan continued his collaboration with the streaming giant by producing three other shows for the platform: Midnight Sermons in 2021, The Midnight Club in 2022, and this year’s mini-series The Fall of the House of Usher, loosely based on the Edgar Allan Poe’s novella.
What The Haunting Season 3 Could Have Been
In a recent interview with Bloody Disgusting, the writer/director talked about the third season of his anthology series on Netflix. Mike Flanagan revealed what the audience could have expected. He explains that another classic book could have served as inspiration for this season that never came into existence. This book was Richard Matheson’s Hell House.
If there had been a third season, Flanagan would have wanted it to be The Haunting of Hell House. As this was the first title explored upon completion of Hill House.
We owe many science-fiction and horror works to Richard Matheson, for example, I am Legend, adapted to film in 2007 starring Will Smith, and The Shrinking Man with an adaptation featuring Jean Dujardin scheduled for May 2024.
If Mike Flanagan had wanted to draw inspiration from Hell House, it’s because Matheson “thought visually” and “had a knack for cinematic settings, audience expectations and visceral thrills that eluded many of his literary predecessors”. Flanagan continues by quoting Stephen King, who believed that “without I am Legend, there would be no Night of the Living Dead”. Just like for the king of horror, Flanagan thinks that without Hell House, we would not have had Poltergeist, The Conjuring or Insidious.
Currently, Mike Flanagan has left Netflix after several years of collaboration to join Amazon Prime Video, signing an exclusive contract with Jeff Bezos’ streaming platform. The question remains as to what Flanagan is planning next…
Assise à la terrasse d’un café typiquement parisien, Élodie Moreau feuilletait avec attention les dernières pages de son scénario. Diplômée de la prestigieuse École nationale supérieure des métiers de l’image et du son (La Fémis), elle avait rapidement gravi les échelons pour devenir l’une des scénaristes les plus recherchées de Paris. Spécialisée dans la création de séries télévisées captivantes, Élodie avait un don pour tisser des histoires qui captivaient le public, mélangeant habilement drame, mystère et une touche de comédie française. Son dernier projet, une série ambitieuse explorant les dessous du cinéma parisien des années 60, promettait déjà de révolutionner le paysage télévisuel. Alors qu’elle prenait une gorgée de son café noisette, Élodie savait qu’elle était sur le point de donner vie à une œuvre qui marquerait l’histoire du cinéma et de la télévision française.
