The Fall of the House of Usher: 6 lesser-known facts about Mike Flanagan’s Netflix horror series

Acclaimed horror filmmaker Mike Flanagan is set to release his latest Netflix series titled, The Fall of the House of Usher. The TV show is adapted from Edgar Allan Poe’s eponymous short story, and stars Bruce Greenwood, Carla Gugino, Mary McDonell, Rahul Kohli, Kate Siegel, Zach Gilford, and Mark Hamil among others. It tells the story of twins Roderick and Madeline, whose pharmaceutical dynasty begins to unravel when their heirs mysteriously die. The horror series is expected to feature Flanagan’s signature blend of emotional themes and psychological horror, which were instrumental to the success of Flanagan’s previous works such as The Haunting of Hill House, Doctor Sleep, and Midnight Mass among others. For today’s Now You Know podcast, we take a look at lesser-known facts about The Fall of the House of Usher.

1. The series and the short story by Edgar Allan Poe revolve around twins Roderick and Madeline Usher. Historians and writers have speculated that the characters are inspired by real twins James Campbell Usher and Agnes Pye Usher, who were the children of a friend of Poe's mother Eliza. Both James and Agnes were said to have suffered various mental illnesses as adults just like Poe’s characters, and their names being Usher adds credibility to the theory that James and Agnes served as inspiration for Roderick and Madeline.
2. German author E.T.A. Hoffman was an inspiration for Edgar Allan Poe throughout his career. Hoffman's 1817 story Das Majorat revolves around the warden of a crumbling estate, who hears eerie noises in his house and envisions his own death. Additionally, the castle’s baron is also named Roderick, just like Poe's main character.
3. Did you know that several of the main cast members have ties to DC’s Batman mythos? Lead star Bruce Greenwood, who plays Roderick Usher, voiced Batman in the acclaimed animated series Young Justice. While Rahul Kohli voices Scarecrow in the adult animated series Harley Quinn, starring Kaley Cuoco. Mark Hamill on the other hand, is credited for immortalising the Joker across award-winning animated films, TV shows, and video games. Additionally, filmmaker Zack Snyder revealed that Carla Gugino, who plays Verna in Mike Flanagan’s upcoming series, would’ve been his ideal choice to play Catwoman opposite Ben Affleck’s Batman in Snyder’s unfinished DC universe. Snyder previously worked with Gugino on another DC project – the 2009 film Watchmen, in which Gugino essayed the role of Sally Jupiter.
4. Veteran actor Frank Langella was originally set to play the role of Roderick Usher. However, he was fired from the TV series and Bruce Greenwood was brought in as his replacement. Langella was axed from his role following an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct and harassment on set.
5. While the Usher House in the series is fictional, there was an actual Usher House in Boston during the turn of the 19th century. Just like the house in the TV show, the real house in Boston has eerie and macabre stories associated with it. When the house was torn down several years later, there were reports of two skeletons found in the basement. Local folklore claims that the skeletons, which were locked in an embrace, belonged to a sailor and his mistress who were having an affair. The mistress’s husband apparently caught them in the act and allegedly buried them alive.
6. Mike Flanagan often casts people who have worked with him on previous projects. British actor Rahul Kohli, who has starred in a few of Flanagan’s previous shows including Midnight Mass and The Haunting of Bly Manor, plays Leo Usher in the upcoming series. Flanagan’s wife Kate Siegel, who plays Camille L'Espanaye, has also collaborated with her husband on multiple projects. Similarly, Siegel’s Midnight Mass co-star Zach Gilford, who also stars in Flanagan’s Midnight Club, plays the role of a younger version of Bruce Greenwood's character Roderick Usher. But did you also know that Gilford’s wife Kiele Sanchez, a popular TV actress, co-wrote the final episode with Flanagan?

Well that's the OTTplay Now You Know for today, until the next episode it's your host Nikhil signing out.

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• Written by Ryan Gomez

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