Mike Flanagan has utilized both feature films and episodic television to establish himself as one of the horror genre’s most reliable and talented names, but the creative freedom afforded to him by Netflix has seen him gain a new lease of life. The Oculus, Hush, Ouija: Origin of Evil and Doctor Sleep director has only made one project for anyone other than the streaming service in the last five years, with subscribers reaping the benefits.
Gerald’s Game was a taut and stomach-churning Stephen King adaptation, while The Haunting of Hill House and sequel series Bly Manor took vastly different approaches to the ghost story template, but won equally strong reviews. Today brings the arrival of Midnight Mass, and if the critical consensus is any indication, it could be Flanagan’s best Netflix series yet.
Midnight Mass focuses on a remote and isolated island community plagued by supernatural events, which may be linked to the sudden and unexplained appearance of a mysterious priest and a disgraced young man. Naturally, all of the footage we’ve seen so far has been suitably chilling, with Flanagan’s track record yielding increased expectations.
Currently boasting a 95% score on Rotten Tomatoes, it looks as though Midnight Mass lives up to the hype. Don’t worry if you binge all seven episodes before the end of today, though, because Flanagan already The Midnight Club and comic book adaptation Something is Killing the Children in the works for the platform.