Horror auteur Mike Flanagan has created several massive hits for Netflix and amassed a loyal following. In 2023, with his overall deal with the streamer coming to an end, execs and fans were expecting him to go out with a bang. The Fall of the House of Usher was poised to be his biggest, scariest, bloodiest project to date.

All of the main characters die in the end. 

Rather than pin this fact as a spoiler, we decided to embrace it. Throughout our campaign, we positioned the Usher family as rich and awful people who you love to hate, replacing the question “Who will die?” with “How will they die?” 

We differentiated the series from Flanagan’s other works by selling the blood and gore balanced with cheeky humor.

Through several special shoot teasers and two story trailers, we set the stage for our characters to fill the void left by HBO’s Succession, which had ended just months prior. Our A/V created a countdown to each of these unlikable characters’ demises, eventizing and teasing the creative deaths to come. 

Additional social assets featuring moody shoot footage and critic reviews underscored the show’s violent-yet-fun nature.

The Fall of the House of Usher debuted on Netflix at #1 in the U.S and several other countries. Critic and audience responses were overwhelmingly positive, insisting the show was one of Flanagan’s best since the hit Haunting of Hill House. Social chatter about the show was sustained for several weeks after launch - with several publications and fans pointing out the the connections and themes we had laid the groundwork for in our campaign.