The Fall of the House of Usher: The Langella Recasting and Greenwood's Triumph

The Langella Recasting Controversy

Nearly two years after he was fired from the show, Kate Siegel reflects on Frank Langella's infamous The Fall of the House of Usher recasting. The Oscar nominee was originally cast for Mike Flanagan's final Netflix project as Roderick Usher, the patriarch of the titular family whose past deal with the mysterious Verna helped them rise to wealth, though is now coming back to claim them all. Langella was fired a few months into production following a misconduct investigation, with Bruce Greenwood taking over the role.

Bruce Greenwood looking shocked in The Fall of the House of Usher

During a recent interview with WFPK's Kyle Meredith, Siegel was asked about the Langella recasting situation for The Fall of the House of Usher. After acknowledging that 's--t went down', the star praised Greenwood for coming in and making the part his own, while recalling being 'furious' at what she learned from her co-stars for how the original actor made them feel. See what Siegel shared below:

Roderick-and-Juno-Usher-in-The-Fall-of-the-House-of-Usher

"The most s—t went down. Most people who are correctly praising Bruce need to remember that every single scene that Bruce shot that wasn’t sitting down across from Carl Lumbly was an emergency reshoot. We redid almost all of it. It’s amazing what he did. It was heartbreaking. It was overwhelming and heartbreaking and disappointing, and people were hurt. I was tangentially — I wasn’t involved in any of the actual HR stuff, but hearing about it, knowing that cast members felt sad and uncomfortable and taken advantage of by other member of the cast, it was just devastating.

The Fall Of The House Of Usher Episode 8 Roderick Bruce Greenwood

Because Mike has spent so much time building an amazing set life and experience and family, and to know that one person can come in and just f—k that s—t up made me furious. I think when Bruce came, there was palpable relief from everybody, because we had a scene partner, we had somebody who we respected and respected us, and a family member back. I think it just, for me, solidified that feeling of you don’t need to be tortured to be an artist. You can be a good person and show up and do your job, even if you’re playing somebody extreme, even if you are in extreme situations, you are capable — anybody’s capable — of being sane, pleasant and professional on set."

Bruce Greenwood as Roderick on the ground with a bloody face in The Fall of the House of Usher

The Triumph of Bruce Greenwood

Though the show included a number of newcomers to the world of Flanagan filmmaking, including Mark Hamill and Paola Nuñez, Greenwood was one of multiple frequent collaborators of the creator/director to appear in The Fall of the House of Usher, some of whom included Carla Gugino, Siegel and Rahul Kohli. Prior to the Netflix horror title, Greenwood had starred in both of Flanagan's Stephen King adaptations, Gerald's Game and Doctor Sleep. The star even made a sneaky cameo in The Haunting of Hill House, appearing as one of the many hidden ghosts throughout the show behind Gugino.

Bruce Greenwood Sitting in a Chair in The Fall of the House of Usher

More than just a welcome reunion for the creatives, however, Greenwood ultimately proved to be the perfect fit for The Fall of the House of Usher's lead. Across his 47-plus-year career, Greenwood has found an interesting balance in more protagonistic roles and antagonistic, playing everyone from multiple US Presidents in Thirteen Days and National Treasure: Book of Secrets to a more ruthless President in Kingsman: The Golden Circle and arrogant tech CEO in I, Robot. But even in the latter roles, Greenwood often infused a sense of realism and accessibility to his characters that made it just as easy to hate them as it was to want to keep watching them.

Greenwood's performance as the titular dead husband in Gerald's Game is the ultimate proof of such. Despite being the catalyst for Gugino's brutal story in the movie, even taunting her in spiritual form after his death, the combination of the SAG nominee's screen presence and Flanagan's writing made the character all the more captivating to watch alongside Jessie. This trend continued in The Fall of the House of Usher, with Greenwood and Flanagan showing just enough of Roderick's sincere humanity and guilt throughout the show to make him a meaningful character to watch, even in spite of his crueler behaviors.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the recasting of Frank Langella in The Fall of the House of Usher brought about unexpected challenges and controversies, but ultimately paved the way for Bruce Greenwood to shine in the lead role. Greenwood's experience and versatility as an actor, coupled with his collaborative history with Mike Flanagan, made him the ideal choice to embody the complex character of Roderick Usher. Despite the setbacks, the production of The Fall of the House of Usher emerged triumphant, delivering a compelling and captivating portrayal of the titular family's haunting story.