The supernatural horror miniseries ‘Midnight Mass‘ is one of Mike Flanagan’s least-discussed shows. It received decent reviews at the time of its release and featured Kate Siegel, Zach Gilford, and Hamish Linklater in prominent roles.
However, Flanagan is convinced that the show could never happen again. He admitted that if he pitched the same series today, no platform would approve it, not even Netflix.
Mike Flanagan Believes ‘Midnight Mass’ Wouldn’t Be Approved In The Current Streaming Climate
Out of all the horror shows Mike Flanagan has created on Netflix, ‘Midnight Mass‘ was based on an original script instead of being adapted from other sources. Flanagan revealed that the show had little to offer. “It still amazes me that Netflix made Midnight Mass, frankly. There’s nothing about it on paper that makes sense to make”, said the director on Flanagan’s Wake podcast.
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Unlike ‘The Haunting of Hill House‘, ‘The Haunting of Bly Manor‘, ‘The Midnight Club‘, and ‘The Fall of the House of Usher‘, this story was not adapted from a known book. In fact, it came entirely from his own imagination. As a result, it lacked the built-in audience that adaptations often bring. However, success gave him leverage at the time.
Flanagan shared, “And I think it got made because ‘Bly Manor’ did so well, and, well, because ‘Hill House’ did so well, really”. After Hill House became a massive hit, Netflix wanted more projects from him. Flanagan agreed to create ‘Bly Manor,’ but only if the company also approved ‘Midnight Mass.’ He even joked that there was “a little bit of hostage-taking involved.” That bargaining power helped push the show forward.
Even so, he believes that kind of opportunity no longer exists. “It happened at the perfect time when Netflix was saying yes to so many things. The industry’s just not like that anymore“, said Flanagan. Today, platforms rely more heavily on recognizable titles and clearer genre hooks. Therefore, a slow, sermon-heavy horror drama would likely struggle to receive approval.
Netflix’s Executive Regime Change Shows Why It Wouldn’t Work Now
At the same time, events behind the scenes proved his point. While the series was filming, Netflix went through a major leadership change. By the time the show was finished, the executives who had approved it were no longer there.
When the new team watched the completed series, they reportedly asked, “Where are the vampires?” They expected a more traditional horror show. Flanagan replied that the vampires would show up, but added that “the real vampire is fanaticism.” Later, he admitted they did not find that line funny.
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Flanagan also revealed that the new leadership in place wanted major reshoots to turn the series into a commercial vampire series that might get mainstream attention. However, production timing helped him. COVID rules kept the cast and crew in a filming bubble. By the time changes were suggested, the sets had already been destroyed. Reshooting large parts would have cost too much money. So, Netflix released the show as it was.
Interestingly, the show performed well after release. In its first full week in 2021, it ranked second across major streaming platforms in minutes watched. Only ‘Squid Game‘ had bigger numbers at the time. Critics praised it, and many viewers connected with its themes. Still, Flanagan remains firm.
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