Sorry, Ratched—there’s a new number one series on Netflix, and it’s called The Haunting of Bly Manor.
Based on Henry James's 1898 novella, “The Turn of the Screw,” the horror show is a follow up to the streaming platform’s also popular The Haunting of Hill House. So, we’re not entirely surprised that it’s jumped to the top spot of Netflix’s highest-ranked content. Here’s why everyone is obsessed right now.
First, it’s officially spooky season (AKA everyone is in the mood to get scared). And according to reviews, this one does the trick. The official synopsis reads: “After an au pair’s tragic death, Henry Wingrave hires a young American nanny to care for his orphaned niece and nephew who reside at Bly Manor with the estate’s chef Owen groundskeeper Jamie and housekeeper, Mrs. Grose. But all is not as it seems at the manor, and centuries of dark secrets of love and loss are waiting to be unearthed in this chilling gothic romance. At Bly Manor, dead doesn’t mean gone.”
From the beginning, season two was pegged to be scarier than season one. “For Henry James fans, it’s going to be pretty wild, and for people who aren’t familiar with his work, it’s going to be unbelievably scary,” series creator Mike Flanagan said in a statement. “I already think it’s much scarier than season one, so I’m very excited about it.”
The series also has a pretty impressive cast, including Victoria Pedretti who not only starred in the Haunting of Hill House but is also known for her role as Love in the popular thriller series, You. Pedretti plays Dani, a nanny whose life is changed after she takes a job at a haunted British manor home.
In a recent interview with TV Line, the 25-year-old actress said, “I get what people are saying about [the show having] that sense of dread, less than it’s outright scary, and more that it makes you, like, a little bit nauseous.” Yikes.
Pedretti is also joined by Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Henry Thomas, Carla Gugino, Kate Siegel, Rahul Kohli, Amelia Eve, T’Nia Miller, Andrew Neil McKenzie and Amelie Bea Smith (who just so happens to be the voice of animated TV character Peppa Pig).
Nail biting, spooky and satisfying? Yep, you know how we’ll be getting into the Halloween spirit this week.