The Fall of the House of Usher | |
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Genre | |
Created by | Mike Flanagan |
Based on | "The Fall of the House of Usher" and other works by Edgar Allan Poe |
Directed by |
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Starring |
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Composer | The Newton Brothers |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of episodes | 8 |
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Executive producers |
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Producers |
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Production locations | |
Cinematography | Michael Fimognari |
Editor | Brett Bachman |
Camera setup | Single-camera |
Running time | 57–77 minutes |
Production company | Intrepid Pictures |
Original release | |
Network | Netflix |
Release | October 12, 2023 |
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview) |
The Fall of the House of Usher is an American gothic horror drama television miniseries created by Mike Flanagan. All eight episodes were released on Netflix on October 12, 2023, each directed by either Flanagan or Michael Fimognari, with the latter also acting as cinematographer for the entire series.
Loosely based on various works by 19th-century author Edgar Allan Poe (most prominently the eponymous 1840 short story), the series adapts otherwise unrelated stories and characters by Poe into a single nonlinear narrative set from 1953 to 2023. It recounts both the rise to power of Roderick Usher, the powerful CEO of a corrupt pharmaceutical company, and his sister Madeline Usher, the firm's genius COO, and the events leading to the deaths of all six of Roderick’s children. It stars an ensemble cast led by Carla Gugino as Verna, plaguing the Ushers, and Bruce Greenwood and Mary McDonnell as an elderly Roderick and Madeline.
The first two episodes of The Fall of the House of Usher premiered at Fantastic Fest in September 2023 before the Netflix release the following month, and the miniseries counted more than 13 million views in its first two weeks. It was met with positive reviews, with critics praising its production values, directing, and performances (in particular from Gugino, Greenwood, and Mark Hamill), although they were divided on its narrative, notably in relation to the source materials.