Stephen King Praises Netflix Gothic Thriller Series

If Stephen King refers to your show as a masterpiece, then you know you have done horror correctly. Such was the case for director Mike Flanagan, who earned the highest possible praise from the prolific author. Flanagan is no stranger to the horror genre, having directed nearly a dozen projects, including the Netflix original The Haunting of Hill House (2018), which continues to receive high praise from critics. He has even delved into some of King’s original work, directing the book-to-screen adaptations of Gerald’s Game, Doctor Sleep, The Life of Chuck, and the forthcoming Carrie, set to premiere in October on Prime Video.

In a 2024 interview with Dread Central, King even complimented the director’s ability to adapt his stories, saying Flanagan respects the material in a way that keeps him from getting too cute with it. But it wasn’t until August 2025, when the author reportedly got around to watching Flanagan’s Netflix miniseries The Fall of the House of Usher, that King publicly praised the director on X (formerly Twitter), calling Flanagan the Quentin Tarantino of horror.

THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER (Netflix): I missed this when it bowed due to hip surgery, but this is a case of delayed gratification. Scary, involving, with writing that’s witty and moves the plot. There’s a case to be made for Mike Flanagan being the Quentin Tarantino of…

— Stephen King (@StephenKing) August 24, 2025

What makes The Fall of the House of Usher a masterpiece?

The Fall of the House of Usher follows twins Roderick and Madeline Usher and their company, Fortunato Pharmaceuticals. The twins market an alleged miracle drug, which is a hyper-addictive opioid, and secure their wealth for decades after making a pact with a mysterious supernatural entity. When their empire starts crumbling around them, death and destruction ultimately drive the twins to madness, but there is a lot that happens between the rise and fall of the story. The story itself is told in a non-linear format, true to Edgar Allan Poe’s original narrative style, and jumps between an older, shut-in Roderick played by Bruce Greenwood and a younger, ruthless Roderick played by Zach Gilford. For her part, Madeline is depicted in her youth by Willa Fitzgerald and as an older adult by two-time Oscar nominee Mary McDonnell.

When their empire starts crumbling around them, death and destruction ultimately drive the twins to madness, but there is a lot that happens between the rise and fall of the story.

The show is loosely based on Poe’s 1839 short story of the same name, but Flanagan takes some creative liberties with it to pay homage to a wider range of the writer’s work. The most notable change is modernizing the setting. Poe’s original Fall of the House of Usher was set in the early 19th century, whereas the Netflix show takes viewers to a more modern time, which allows Flanagan to highlight issues like corporate greed and the opioid crisis. But as you watch The Fall of the House of Usher, there is no mistaking the show’s original inspiration, and each episode is dripping with Poe references.

The Fall of the House of Usher is available to stream in its entirety on Netflix. At the time of this article, the show maintains a Rotten Tomatoes score above 90% and was named among the Top 20 Horror TV Shows to Watch for September 2026.

Source: Polygon