Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen Review: A Chilling Take on Happily Ever After
Horror wasn’t a genre I used to gravitate towards, but it’s slowly becoming one of my favourites. Between Welcome to Derry, Sinners, Obsession, Leviticus, Weapons, and Alien: Earth, I’ve had plenty of reasons to keep coming back. Now, Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen has earned a place on that list.
Created by Haley Z. Boston and executive produced by the Duffer Brothers, the series follows Rachel Harkin as she prepares for her wedding to Nicholas Cunningham. That basic setup doesn’t exactly scream horror. Then again, marriage is terrifying for some people, so maybe the genre fits after all (I’m just kidding). The series takes that familiar fear and gives it a supernatural twist.
We all hope we’re building a life with the right person, but there’s no way to know for certain. You can love someone, feel at home with them, and imagine a future together, yet still wonder whether you’ll grow in the same direction. That’s what makes a commitment like marriage so significant. You’re choosing to trust someone with a future neither of you can fully predict. There’s beauty in taking that chance, but also fear, because even a decision made with the best intentions can have consequences you never saw coming.
Image Courtesy of Netflix.
Now imagine this: what if choosing the wrong person came with consequences far more terrifying than a broken heart? That’s the fear this series taps into. As Rachel’s wedding approaches, she can’t shake the feeling that something terrible is going to happen. The closer she gets to saying “I do,” the harder it becomes to tell whether she’s dealing with ordinary doubts or a warning she shouldn’t ignore.
Once Rachel and Nicky arrive at his family’s secluded home, she has more to navigate than the wedding itself. Meeting your partner’s family can be nerve-racking enough when you’re worrying about what to say, how to behave, and whether you’re making a good impression. That made Rachel’s discomfort easy to understand. She’s stepping into a family with its own way of doing things, and she’s still trying to figure out where she fits.
Nicky’s family doesn’t make that adjustment easy. They’re wealthy, so maybe some of their behaviour was just unfamiliar territory for a brokey like me, but I couldn’t put everything down to that. Something felt off about their interactions, making it difficult to tell where the usual awkwardness of meeting the in-laws ended, and genuine cause for concern began. That outsider dynamic reminded me of Ready or Not, although I found more depth in the family relationships here. I was interested in how they treated one another as much as how they treated Rachel.
Image Courtesy of Netflix.
That said, the series does meander a little before getting to the meat of the story. I appreciated the time spent establishing Rachel’s discomfort and the family dynamics, but there are stretches where that groundwork starts to feel drawn out. The sense that something is wrong is already clear, and I found myself wanting the story to do more with it. That wait can take some of the bite out of the tension, so I can see some viewers losing patience early on.
Those who stick with it are in for a pretty good time overall, though I think a tighter build-up would have helped. With a story that takes its time like this, the performances, cinematography, and sound become even more important in keeping that sense of unease alive. I loved the entire production of this series. I’m not sure if I could put it properly into words, but the colour grading, set design, costumes, and special effects all came together to make the snowy woods of upstate New York feel real.
The cast was fantastic as well, especially Camila Morrone as Rachel. She captures the vulnerability of someone trying to trust her partner while questioning her own instincts. Across all eight episodes, Rachel felt like a real person to me. It was almost as though I was in the room with her, sharing the awkwardness, tension, and uncertainty as her wedding day approached. Morrone carries that intensity right through to the finale, delivering one of the best performances I’ve seen this year so far.
I had a great time with Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen, even if I wanted the story to move a little faster in places. The performances and production kept me invested, while its take on love, trust, and commitment gave me something to think about beyond the scares. It’s another strong addition to a genre I’m finding more reasons to love.
