‘The Haunting’ Season 3? Creator Mike Flanagan Weighs in on the Possibility
The Haunting franchise is one of the most popular in the horror genre. The first show, The Haunting of Hill House was released on Netflix in 2018, focusing on a family moving into a desolate area, where they experience supernatural events that haunt them for the rest of their lives. It wasn’t intended to kickstart a franchise, but it was so well-liked that it led to the creation of another show, The Haunting of Bly Manor.
But what about a third? Will there be a third Haunting of series? Here’s what creator Mike Flanagan said when asked.
How ‘The Haunting’ shows came about
The first show was based on the novel The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson and had a cast of well-known actors including Victoria Pedretti, Henry Thomas, and Elizabeth Reaser. It took off after hitting Netflix in October 2018, earning praise from fans and critics alike, with Rotten Tomatoes giving it a stunning 93% rating.
While it had a conclusive ending for the Crain family, some of the cast were brought back for 2020’s The Haunting of Bly Manor, which was inspired by Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw. Like its predecessor, Bly Manor was also a success, drawing big ratings and positive reviews from viewers.
But will there be another ‘Haunting of’ show?
With all of its success, the idea of making another show makes sense. Unfortunately, Flanagan told Entertainment Weekly that there currently aren’t plans for another series. But that’s not to say it can’t happen. For him, it would require finding the perfect piece of literature to base the show upon.
“One of the things that defines the Haunting anthology for me is that both of them so far are about updating and riffing on existing classic literature. Midnight Mass was always so original and important and personal, it just never felt like it was ever going to be a part of that universe,” Flanagan explained, referencing his new Netflix show.
“If the stars align in such a way that we decide to go back into the Haunting world, it would have to be so much on that track that we’ve set up,” Flanagan continued. “It would have to be with the right piece of IP, it would have to be with the right ghost-centric story, and it would have to really fit with Bly and Hill House.”
In the meantime, watch his new show
Though a Haunting show isn’t on his radar, Flanagan is still cranking out content to keep viewers entertained. As he mentioned, he’s also responsible for the show Midnight Mass, a supernatural horror series set on an island where unexplainable things start to happen after a young priest shows up. It arrived on Netflix in September with a few familiar faces from both Hill House and Bly Manor. Watch it now on Netflix.
