Frank Langella Reacts To House of Usher Firing

Frank Langella reacts to his The Fall of the House of Usher firing, refuting the allegations levied against him and slamming cancel culture.

Frank Langella reacts to his The Fall of the House of Usher firing, refuting the allegations levied against him and slamming cancel culture. The series marks the latest collaboration between Netflix and Mike Flanagan after the acclaimed horror-thriller Hush, adaptation of Stephen King’s Gerald’s Game, The Haunting anthology and Midnight Mass limited series as well as the upcoming adaptation of The Midnight Club. The horror drama also serves as an adaptation of Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher” short story and other works in the gothic author’s bibliography.

The Fall of the House of Usher will revolve around a man who is invited by his childhood friend Roderick Usher to visit his grandiose mansion in which he lives with his twin sister and learns of the supernatural ongoings occurring there. Flanagan has assembled an ensemble cast of new and familiar faces for the series including Bruce Greenwood, Carla Gugino, Mary McDonnell, Carl Lumbly, Mark Hamill, Samantha Sloyan, Willa Fitzgerald, Rahul Kohli, Henry Thomas, T’Nia Miller, Kate Siegel, Zach Gilford, Katie Parker, Michael Trucco, Robert Longstreet and Annabeth Gish. Production on The Fall of the House of Usher is set to wrap this summer, but one star is opening up about his frustrations of his brief time on the project.

Nearly a month after being let go from the series, Frank Langella penned a guest column to Deadline reacting to his Fall of the House of Usher firing. The Oscar nominee attempted to clarify on the allegations brought against him, revealing he and an unnamed female co-star were filming a love scene when he touched her leg after the director called cut, shocking the actress and leading to the investigation in which he would ultimately be fired. Langella also took to condemning cancel culture for the reason behind his firing. See part of what Langella wrote below:

“I have been canceled. Just like that. In the increasing madness that currently pervades our industry, I could not have imagined that the words “collateral damage” would fall upon my shoulders. They have brought with them a weight I had not expected to bear in the closing decades of my career. And along with it has come an unanticipated sense of grave danger. Netflix terminated me after three months of work with only three weeks left to shoot, and I have as yet to be fully remunerated for my services.
Most importantly, my reputation has been tarnished. These indignities are, to my mind, the real definition of unacceptable behavior. Cancel culture is the antithesis of democracy. It inhibits conversation and debate. It limits our ability to listen, mediate, and exchange opposing views. Most tragically, it annihilates moral judgment. This is not fair. This is not just. This is not American.”

In the guest column, Langella detailed the events leading up to his Fall of the House of Usher firing in which he was contacted by Netflix’s Human Resources a week after the incident occurred, which revealed an incident prior in which he had a disagreement with the show’s intimacy coordinator over the handling of the scene. According to Langella, his efforts to keep “the atmosphere light and friendly” on the set of Flanagan’s series in turn resulted in other allegations of telling “an off-color joke,” calling an actress “baby or honey” and hugging or touching the shoulders of some of his co-stars, all of which an unnamed producer told him he “cannot do.” Langella also states that he “was not given a hearing with Netflix” and all requests to speak with the unnamed actress behind the allegations were denied, thus leaving him and his representatives unable to comment on the situation at the time.

Langella’s The Fall of the House of Usher firing comes in the wake of the #MeToo movement in Hollywood subsequently resulting in a harder crackdown on inappropriate behavior conducted on sets, a shift praised by many though criticized by some who have seen their careers subsequently affected like Langella. Following his dismissal from the series, Flanagan would turn to another former collaborator with Gerald’s Game and Doctor Sleep star Bruce Greenwood filling in Langella’s shoes. With production on The Fall of the House of Usher continuing, only time will tell if others close to the situation offer further insight to Langella’s firing or if he remains the sole voice of the situation.