‘Bly Manor’ Isn’t Oliver Jackson-Cohen’s First Time Playing a Terrifying Abuser

In the Netflix series The Haunting of Bly Manor, Oliver Jackson-Cohen portrays Peter Quint. Initially, Quint comes off as a suave, sweet talker — a man clever with his words and thoughtful in his actions. Yet, as the story progresses, his darker inclinations and twisted sense of admiration come to the forefront. 

[spoilers for The Haunting of Bly Manor, episodes 1-3]

A Peter Quint analysis (up through episode 3)

Peter Quint quickly becomes infatuated with the first governess for the Wingraves children, Rebecca Jessel. He finds his way into her heart. He plays with her and the children during daylight hours and seduces her in stolen moments throughout the large manor. Yet, the man carries malice — a tendency toward ownership and aggression that he buries beneath charm and Hollywood good looks. 

Soon after their relationship grows intimate, Quint grabs Jessel’s arm when she tries to get out of the bed before he is ready for her departure. And, soon after this, he storms out of the manor, arguing that she’s an “easy woman” after she allows Owen — the house chef — to bring a spoon to her mouth to taste his batter. Yet, the chef does the same thing, in an utterly innocent way, with everyone else in the room at the time. 

Peter Quint’s destructive way of thinking and perspective on romance grows as the show progresses. Yet, this is not the first time that Jackson-Cohen has taken on such a man: easy on the eyes, yet dangerous when permitted too close. 

All about Oliver Jackson-Cohen in ‘The Invisible Man’

Oliver Jackson-Cohen also starred in 2020’s The Invisible Man, opposite Elisabeth Moss. He and Moss played a couple in a destructive relationship. In the film, Jackson-Cohen portrays Adrian Griffin: a well-known scientist who stages his suicide before going on to use his technological advancement to stalk his ex-girlfriend, Cecilia Kass…invisibly. 

Griffin creates a suit of invisibility that he uses to torture and torment his ex-girlfriend. While those around her initially believe she is psychologically unstable, as she argues that Griffin is not dead, it eventually becomes evident that Cecilia is right, and the convoluted plot begins to unravel. 

Forced to take matters into her own hands, Cecilia goes up against an unbalanced and dangerous man, Griffin. In an attempt to claim her freedom and peace of mind once and for all, she takes unpredictable, yet necessary risks. Jackson-Cohen’s unsettling acting in Bly Manor is also front and center in The Invisible Man. The actor seems to have the right look and vibe for portraying such men — men who find a way in, only to deceive and destroy everything and everyone they have conned their way into accessing.