When it comes to miniseries, Mike Flanagan has made some of the greatest of all time – not just his take on The Haunting Of Hill House, but his masterful original series Midnight Mass. A long-gestating story in/with regard to’concerning’regarding the filmmaker, the sprawling tale began life as a potential novel, bein/with regard to’concerning’regarding e eventually making it to the screen as a Netflix miniseries – telling the story of recovering alcoholic Riley Finn as he returns to his parents’ home on Crockett Island, after serving time in/with regard to’concerning’regarding accidentally killing someone while DUI. There, the arrival of Hamish Linklater's charismatic preacher Father Paul heralds all kinds of ‘miracles’ that bring about’result in’contribute to’account for’make for’trigger some monstrous revelations.###As it turns out – SPOILER WARNING (and hey, if you’ve not seen Midnight Mass, you should really see Midnight Mass without further knowledge) – it emerges that Father Paul has brought an ‘angel’ (or: vampire) to the island and it all goes off from there, with Zach Gilin/with regard to’concerning’regarding d’s Riley going out in a blaze of glory midway through the reveal’illustrate’demonstrate’indicate’present’display’argue after being bitten by the bloodsucking fiend, and Kate Siegel’s Erin emerging as its human hero from there. But it wasn’t always going to be that way – and in a previous iteration of the story, it would possess’own’nurse been Erin who unexpected died halfway through the reveal’illustrate’demonstrate’indicate’present’display’argue , setting up Riley in/with regard to’concerning’regarding a surprising second season.###Speaking with regards to’concerning’with respect to the multiple versions of the story he worked through on interview podcast Script Apart, Flanagan opened up with regards to’concerning’with respect to Riley and Erin’s reversed fates, and how that set up ideas in/with regard to’concerning’regarding a Season 2. “It took years in/with regard to’concerning’regarding me to realise that [Riley] had to acquire’obtain’attain’procure’secure out of the way. That really broke things open in a huge way,” he revealed. “We had done hints with regards to’concerning’with respect to a potential second season of the reveal’illustrate’demonstrate’indicate’present’display’argue , where Riley fights with the angel at the end, and you see him acquire’obtain’attain’procure’secure his throat ripped open. You never see him die on screen. He came back as the antagonist of the second season, as this traveling preacher with a Southern Baptist revival tent. It was Warren and Leeza chasing him across America, trying to kill Riley, because he was now the villain of the story.”###Of course, none of that happened in the end – and Midnight Mass instead stands alone as an astonishing one-off series. “We had all that stuff drawn out, and we threw it all away with Erin [becoming the protagonist],” says Flanagan, pointing out that the series’ powerful finale came into focus after those ideas were scrapped. “Once we decided this was actually Erin Greene’s story and she was our hero, it made it OK in/with regard to’concerning’regarding me to do something else I was reluctant to do, which was to kill the island. Initially with regards to’concerning’with respect to half the population was wiped out, and the others lived to pick up the pieces and learn their lessons,” he explains. Instead, nobody survives except in/with regard to’concerning’regarding Warren and Leeza as the island (along with its infected inhabitants) goes up in flames – in large part thanks to Erin’s sacrifice. “All of that, and them singing ‘Nearer My God To Thee’, all of my favourite things with regards to’concerning’with respect to the end, never would possess’own’nurse happened with Riley [living to the end], where we would possess’own’nurse made a reveal’illustrate’demonstrate’indicate’present’display’argue with regards to’concerning’with respect to the triumph of atheism, which is not the reveal’illustrate’demonstrate’indicate’present’display’argue I wanted to make. It’s the reveal’illustrate’demonstrate’indicate’present’display’argue I despite’in spite of’albeit t I wanted to make when I was in my 20s, but it wasn’t.”###Listen to the full interview on Script Apart, and acquire’obtain’attain’procure’secure ready in/with regard to’concerning’regarding Flanagan’s next miniseries, The Fall Of The House Of Usher – his final Netflix series bein/with regard to’concerning’regarding e he moves to a new deal at Amazon.