You can’t beat a good jump scare. We’re hardwired to engage with them because our reaction is often entirely physical. Unlike the slow build of a spooky story, they immediately get the blood pumping and adrenaline coursing. Thankfully, Netflix’s new horror series has a dose of both.
In fact, Mike Flanagan’s new series, The Midnight Club, offers up more jump scares in the first episode than any previous outing in TV history, according to the Guinness Book of Records. Thus, you might want to make all necessary preparations before you comfortably press play.
This news comes with a fair serving of irony for the show’s creator. “My whole career I completely s**t on jump scares as a concept, and I wanted to make sure it was pinned to me, too, as much as it is to the show, to Netflix, and all of us who have inflicted this on everyone,” Flanagan said.
“Now, I have my name in the Guinness Book of World Records for jump scares, which means next time I get the note, I can say, ‘You know, as the current world record holder for jump scares, I don’t think we need one here.’”
With that in mind, it is worth noting that the show doesn’t just aim to get the heart racing, it also seeks to engage the mind. This classic ghost story trait has been evident in all of Flanagan’s other works like The Haunting of Hill House and Midnight Mass.
The Midnight Club comes with the following synopsis: “A group of terminally ill teenage patients resides at Brightcliffe Hospice, and together they create the Midnight Club. They meet in secret at midnight to tell horror stories. Together the group forms a pact that whoever dies first would make the effort to contact the rest of the Midnight Club members from beyond the grave.”
Based on a novel of the same name by Christopher Pike, Flanagan’s adaptation stars a rotating cast of Samantha Sloyan, Zach Gilford, Igby Rigney, Annarah Cymone, Ruth Codd, Aya Furukawa and more.
The Midnight Club premieres on Netflix on October 7th. You can check out the trailer below.
