On July 1, 2019, Netflix announced that Midnight Mass would be a seven-episode miniseries, with Flanagan serving as its writer, director and executive producer. [11] In February 2020, Zach Gilford, Kate Siegel and Hamish Linklater were announced as lead roles for the series. [12] Midnight Mass by F. Paul Wilson is a thrilling and suspenseful novel that explores the dark side of religion and faith. The story follows a group of survivors who are trying to resist a vampire invasion that is orchestrated by a fanatical priest and his followers. The novel is full of action, horror, and twists that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Wilson creates a vivid and terrifying world where vampires are not romanticized, but rather seen as ruthless predators who use religion as a tool to manipulate and enslave humans. The characters are well-developed and realistic, each with their own strengths and flaws. The novel also raises some interesting questions about morality, free will, and the nature of evil. Midnight Mass is a must-read for fans of horror and vampire fiction, as well as for anyone who enjoys a gripping and fast-paced story. Tallerico, Brian (September 24, 2021). "Midnight Mass". RogerEbert.com . Retrieved October 4, 2021. Is all this really horror? Midnight Mass was certainly marketed as horror. And Flanagan loves to slowly weave tonal qualities like atmospheric dread into a soft cocoon of meditations on life, love, and the human experience. He typically seems more concerned with the latter than the former, however, and his work nearly always rejects the fundamental core of most modern horror: the paradoxically comforting assertion that all hope is lost. Is a Mike Flanagan horror film ever really a horror film? I think no. Mike Flanagan’s new limited series Midnight Mass, with its Biblical horror and everyday villains, will surely have people talking. “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves,” reads Bible verse Matthew 7:15, and Flanagan has conjured one of nightmares.

Being that Carla Gugino and Kate Siegel are staples to his work, their individual storylines in his movies and television shows could allude to further connections and plotlines in Midnight Mass. Considering that the Lady of the Lake (Siegel) in The Haunting Of Bly Manor killed a vicar, there's an immediate connection between the actor and the religious aspects of the upcoming series. It may foreshadow Siegel's role in the series, as much is still relatively unknown. While Gugino hasn't been listed as a cast member, the fact that she was so isolated in Gerald's Game may contribute to another character's experience with isolation in Midnight Mass. The series' story won't likely make mention of either movie, as it solely exists as a book in their respective cinematic universes. However, it is entirely plausible that similar instances could be described as a form of fear mongering to keep people isolated on the island. Williams, Jordan (September 26, 2021). "Where To Spot Carla Gugino's Midnight Mass Cameo". Screen Rant . Retrieved December 1, 2021. Roeper, Richard (September 22, 2021). " 'Midnight Mass': The best Stephen King story Stephen King never wrote". Chicago Sun-Times . Retrieved October 6, 2021. After Sarah, Erin, and Hassan burned the church and rec center, the remaining congregation, now all vampires, realized there was nowhere to go when the sun came up. With most now realizing all the horrors they'd committed during the night, even having killed their own loved ones, they joined together in song. Led by Ed and Annie, the town sang the hymn "Nearer, My God, to Thee" (a song reportedly played by the Titanic's string ensemble as the ship sank), echoing Monsignor Pruitt's sermon from the second episode when he more or less subtweeted his entire plan, saying with fervor "that's what it means to have faith, that in the darkness, in the worst of it, in the absence of light and hope, we sing."Flanagan uses the plot of Midnight Mass as an allegorical stand-in for a broad range of extreme conservative reactions to the pandemic. On that theme, the series’ scathing reproach of Christianity’s enablement of hysteria, apocalypse mania, and survivalist extremism couldn’t be clearer. But if Flanagan wanted to condemn religious zeal more generally, he failed. When I was young there were three authors I could also count on, that I considered my three favorite authors whose books I enjoyed over every one else. Those three were Clive Barker, Richard Matheson and Stephen King. As an adult my tastes have changed, the amount of authors I have read have expanded and within the last year I put F.Paul Wilson into my current top three(Today he is with John Shirley and Robert McCammon).

King, Darryn (September 24, 2021). "Mike Flanagan Explores His Private Horrors in 'Midnight Mass' ". The New York Times . Retrieved October 2, 2021. There is a requirement for deep listening, and attention,” Annabeth Gish said of the series. “I think there’s a real availability for understanding about what’s happening in our world right now. It’s very timely. So, I hope that people receive that. I think there’s something very special about this project.” Wonderful and harrowing, horror legend Mike Flanagan’s seven-part series is deeply human – and unforgettable One of my first conversations with Mike was, ‘I’m playing a priest in this genre. I just want to make sure you don’t want me to be skewed, or sinister, or scary, or anything like that,'” Linklater said. “The guy is trying to do the right thing all the way through it, as far as his understanding of what the right thing is.”The characterizations here are great, though a tad clichéd, and the different perspectives give each personality greater meaning. You'll root for the ragtag rebellion, and laugh and cry along with them as they struggle to regain humanity's hold on the world. MIDNIGHT MASS, on Netflix: Mike Flanagan has created a dense, beautifully photographed terror tale that climbs to a high pitch of horror by the 7th and last episode. I believe it starts in 10 days. Squires, John (August 17, 2020). " "Midnight Mass": Filming Has Begun on Mike Flanagan's New Netflix Horror Series". Bloody Disgusting . Retrieved August 18, 2020. For creator/writer/director Mike Flanagan, the thematic ties between religion and vampire lore have fascinated him for a long while. In an interview with IGN, he spoke about his preoccupation with "what happens when we die."