Amelia Eve’s Favorite ‘The Haunting of Bly Manor’ Scene Isn’t in the Final Cut, but It Would Slightly Change the Ending
Going into The Haunting of Bly Manor, which premiered on Netflix on Oct. 9, viewers didn’t know much about the show. Other than the fact that it was loosely based on the Henry James novel, The Turn of the Screw, and that it was a Gothic Romance, fans didn’t know what to expect. There were a lot of scary surprises in store, along with some lovely ones too. And for actor Amelia Eve, who played Jamie the gardener, one of her favorite scenes didn’t even make it into the final cut. [Spoiler alert: Spoilers ahead for The Haunting of Bly Manor].
‘The Haunting of Bly Manor’ surprised fans with the strong relationship between Dani and Jamie
![Dani (Victoria Pedretti) and Jamie (Amelia Eve) in 'THE HAUNTING OF BLY MANOR.'](https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/dani_jamie.jpg?strip=all&quality=89)
Again, The Haunting of Bly Manor really played with fans’ emotions from the getgo because so much was unknown. And that might have had fans banking on something very similar to The Haunting of Hill House. But instead, viewers got a fulfilling love story within a rich world set at Bly Manor.
Mike Flanagan said that ghost stories and love stories are very similar, and Bly Manor really played on both of those things. And by the end, they’re the same; maybe they always were. And it’s not just one type of love that’s on display in The Haunting of Bly Manor. Outside of familial love, there’s also romance. And within that, there are a few couples.
There are Rebecca and Peter, who are the two most toxic people in the show, at least when they’re together. Then there’s the subtle love between Hannah and Owen; unfortunately, they don’t get the time to act on their feelings before Hannah is killed.
Then there’s Dani and Jamie, who had the most loving relationship on the show. They slowly start to come together, drawn to each other even though Dani has a lot to sort through when she comes to Bly. It’s healthy, it’s full, and it’s heartwrenching. And fans could have gotten one more scene of them together, according to Eve.
1 of Amelia Eve’s favorite scenes was cut, but she hopes it’s released one day
In an interview with Elle on Oct. 16, Amelia Eve talked about what her favorite scenes were. Eve said that the scene where Jamie swims into the lake at Bly Manor was exhausting but also emotional and stood out to her. It was very real because of the physicality, which made Jamie’s grief all the more tangible on-screen.
But another scene that she brought up wasn’t even in the final cut of The Haunting of Bly Manor. And it would have changed the course of the finale, even just slightly. It was supposed to appear after Dani wakes up 13 years after she invited the Lady of the Lake into her. She nearly strangled Jamie in her sleep and stops herself. But she knows she can’t put Jamie in danger anymore and she leaves for Bly.
“We shot a scene where Jamie woke up, and she sees Dani leaving, and she gets her to stay,” Eve said. “We filmed that scene and we poured our hearts into it, we were both in tears, and Victoria and I held one another in the scene, but even once they had shouted ‘Cut,’ we were still holding onto each other. I think there was just this beautiful feeling of catharsis for the both of us. That really stayed with me.”
If Dani and Jamie’s fans were already ruined by the finale, having that little scene would have been another stab in the gut. But it’s definitely something fans of the show would want to see, if only for the tragically romantic aspect of it all. The ending would have stayed the same, but having that little blip would be something. Eve also hopes it’ll come out eventually.
Dani and Jamie’s relationship was natural and felt right for Eve
![Dani and Jamie after their 'proposal' in 'The Haunting of Bly Manor finale.](https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/dani_jamie_finaleproposal.jpg?strip=all&quality=89)
Their relationship is really unlike a lot of things on television right now. They have a healthy coupling, one that’s far from toxic and growing each day. Plus, they’re lesbians and it’s celebrated and never questioned after they get together. When Elle asked Eve if she was aware of how big of a deal it was to have a “queer” relationship be the center, most vital one in the show, Eve said it didn’t cross her mind at first.
“Do you know what’s bizarre? When Mike told me Dani and Jamie were going to be a couple, this is gonna sound really silly, but I didn’t even think of them as a lesbian couple,” Eve said. “It just felt like a relationship. These two people completed one another. That’s how we acted it, that’s what felt natural and what felt right—it’s just a relationship between two people who are in love.”
She’s also blown away by the response to the characters and their relationship, which “really made [her] open [her] eyes a bit more.”
“What we did so naturally, without really thinking about it, means a lot more than I realized at the time,” Eve said. In the end, she also recalled telling her sister that “If I could help just one person feel something, I’ll feel like I’ve done my job.”