“I Don’t Think The Show Would Be Made Today”: Mike Flanagan’s 7-Part Horror Series Happened At The Right Time

Mike Flanagan has become a major name in horror on Netflix, creating critically acclaimed series like The Haunting of Hill House and The Fall of the House of Usher. But even among his best work, Midnight Mass is special. Released in 2021, it’s more than just a typical high-quality horror show—it’s a deeply personal, thought-provoking, and surprisingly beautiful story that continues to stand out.

Midnight Mass is a truly unique horror series that stands out from others in the genre. It’s a slow-paced, deeply unsettling story that explores faith, addiction, loss, and the dangers of extremism. Expect long, thoughtful conversations, awkward pauses, and sudden moments of intense violence. Even if you’re familiar with Mike Flanagan’s other work, this Netflix show will stay with you long after the credits roll.

What made Midnight Mass so special is also why it’s difficult to create anything quite like it. Very few shows explore similar deep questions about life and meaning. According to the show’s creator, Mike Flanagan, the unique combination of creative freedom and support that allowed Midnight Mass to be made might not happen again.

Midnight Mass Is Aging Well

Time Has Turned This Slow-Burn Horror Into A Modern Classic

Even five years after it first came out, Midnight Mass doesn’t feel dated. In fact, it feels more impactful now than ever. As horror TV moves towards quicker stories and wider audiences, Mike Flanagan’s thoughtful seven-episode series on Netflix increasingly stands out as a true achievement.

What really struck me about Midnight Mass is how slowly it unfolds. We meet Riley Flynn, played by Zach Gilford, coming back to Crockett Island weighed down by his past, and around the same time, Father Paul Hill, with Hamish Linklater, arrives as this incredibly captivating but mysterious new priest. The conversations between them are long and thoughtful – they would have felt like a gamble on TV just a few years ago, but when it came out in 2021, they felt really brave, and now, looking back in 2026, they almost feel revolutionary.

Watching Midnight Mass again and again brings out new details and deeper meaning. The complex discussions about faith, Erin Greene’s subtle sadness (played by Kate Siegel), and the truly frightening conviction of Bev Keane (Samantha Sloyan) all become more impactful on a second viewing. The show doesn’t offer simple solutions; instead, it encourages viewers to think about challenging questions of belief, what it means to be human, and the importance of community.

Even now, Midnight Mass remains visually compelling. The changes the characters undergo are disturbing and heartbreaking, but not overly sensational. The horror feels justified when it finally arrives, and episodes like “Book VI: Acts of the Apostles” create a truly devastating chaos thanks to the show’s deliberate and careful pacing.

Unlike a lot of Netflix shows from 2021, Midnight Mass still feels fresh today. It doesn’t suffer from looking or feeling old-fashioned, and its central ideas – like faith, obsession, addiction, and finding forgiveness – are issues people will always connect with.

The show’s enduring appeal comes from its well-developed, relatable characters and their satisfying journeys. While some initially found the pacing slow, it now feels like one of the show’s greatest strengths. Since Midnight Mass debuted on Netflix, nothing quite like it has appeared, and what felt like a risk at the time now feels like a uniquely successful combination of elements.

Why Mike Flanagan Believes Midnight Mass Wouldn’t Get Made Today

The Show Was Born From A Rare Creative And Corporate Perfect Storm

I think one of the reasons Midnight Mass still resonates with me – and a lot of other fans – is that it didn’t feel like your average streaming horror show. It was really focused on its characters and had a lot of conversations, and it wasn’t worried about keeping things moving at a super fast pace to grab attention. Honestly, that’s exactly why Mike Flanagan thinks a show like that wouldn’t get made today.

During an appearance on the Flanagan’s Wake podcast, Mike Flanagan discussed the risks involved in making a show like Midnight Mass and explained why he believes a project with that level of creative freedom wouldn’t be possible today.

I doubt a show like that would get made now, anywhere. It really felt like a series focused on characters’ inner thoughts and moral lessons, and it didn’t offer easy answers – because life rarely does. That uncertainty was central to what the show was, and ultimately it was a simple story about faith, life, and human connection, which is a tough concept to pitch to audiences.

Flanagan truly understands what sets Midnight Mass apart. The show builds horror through its religious themes and characters’ internal struggles, rather than relying on cheap thrills or flashy effects. The vampires themselves almost take a backseat to the bigger ideas the show explores. This approach is unusual for a streaming service like Netflix, which typically prioritizes content that quickly grabs a wide audience.

The fact that Midnight Mass was a difficult project to get approved raises the question of why it was greenlit at all. Luckily, Flanagan explained this as well. He shared in the same interview that the show’s development coincided with a period of major changes at Netflix.

When we finished the show, Netflix wasn’t sure how to handle it. A major shake-up in leadership happened at Netflix while ‘Midnight Mass’ was being made.

Originally, Midnight Mass was greenlit by the previous leadership team. However, by the time production wrapped up, those who initially supported the show had moved on. Despite this change, the series was already completed.

We were so focused on our creative process that by the time we finished the show, all the original people who approved it had left. A completely new team was in place, and when we presented our work, their first question was, ‘Where are the vampires?’ I explained that the story would build to that, and that the true ‘vampire’ in the story was actually extreme devotion—but they didn’t find that very amusing.

That story perfectly illustrates the show’s approach. While Midnight Mass involves vampires, it’s not a typical horror story. It focuses more on exploring faith and meaning than on jump scares or special effects. In today’s television landscape, where shows are often quickly changed to fit trends, this kind of thoughtful storytelling could easily have been dismissed or altered.

The project managed to come together perfectly, released at just the right time. Mike Flanagan and his team were able to work with a lot of creative freedom, protected enough to finish their vision without interference. It’s unusual to find such a good match between a creator and the company supporting their work.

The series stands out as truly unique. It’s unlike anything else in Mike Flanagan’s previous work, and also different from all the other horror content available on Netflix. It has a special quality that makes it feel like something that can’t be easily replicated, and perhaps, it never will be.

Will Mike Flanagan Ever Make Another Netflix Show?

The Horror Auteur Has Moved On From The Platform That Made Him A Star

Netflix offers a wide variety of original horror content, and many of its most popular and highly-rated horror series have been created by Mike Flanagan. Starting with The Haunting of Hill House in 2018 and continuing through 2022’s The Fall of the House of Usher, Flanagan has been key in establishing Netflix as a home for quality horror.

With The Fall of the House of Usher, it seems like Mike Flanagan is finishing up his long relationship with Netflix. He’s now signed a deal with Amazon Studios, which means a fresh start and a move away from the platform where he first gained recognition for his unique creative vision.

That’s frustrating for Netflix viewers. Mike Flanagan’s series were unique because they combined heartfelt stories with genuinely scary moments. He didn’t shy away from difficult themes like loss, belief, and deep anxieties, and he gave audiences the space to really feel those emotions.

He’ll keep working on horror adaptations at Amazon, including a TV series based on Carrie, but he feels his time with Netflix has come to a natural end. Looking back, Midnight Mass really showcases his unique, thought-provoking style of horror.

If Mike Flanagan is correct that Midnight Mass wouldn’t get made now, that makes the show even more special. It wasn’t just a good horror series on Netflix; it was the result of a rare combination of bold creative vision and the right support from the studio.

2026-02-25 16:11