The 90% RT Rated M. Night Shyamalan Horror Show That Stephen King Called “Extremely Creepy” Is Still Worth Watching

M. Night Shyamalan has had one of the weirdest career trajectories of any filmmaker within the last several decades, as his fall from grace and subsequent comeback have been equally fascinating. Despite being dubbed “the next Steven Spielberg” after the success of The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, and Signs, Shyamalan released too many bad films that his early admirers were forced to question what his real legacy would be. Even if his legacy had turned into a joke by the time that After Earth became one of the biggest bombs of his career, Shyamalan wasn’t finished. He proved he was still a talented storyteller with The Visit and Split, both of which became surprise hits. However, Shyamalan capped off his resurgence by serving as the showrunner of the horror series Servant, which is easily among the most underrated Apple TV+ shows of all time.

Although there aren’t many half-hour drama shows, Servant made the most of its short length and minimalistic production design, as it offered the perfect means of telling a serialized story. Those who follow Shyamalan’s career may have expected there to be a few twists and turns along the way, but due to the length of Servant, not even an underwhelming reveal would impede the trajectory of the show. While it didn’t quite inspire the same ecstatic enthusiasm that other Apple TV+ shows like Severance or Presumed Innocent have received, Servant was praised by Stephen King, who said that the series was “extremely creepy and totally involving.”

What Is M. Night Shyamalan’s ‘Servant’ About?

Servant focuses on the grieving process of a wealthy Philadelphia couple, as the acclaimed chef Sean Turner (Toby Kebbell) and his wife Dorothy (Lauren Ambrose) lose their infant son only three months after he is born. While Sean finds it challenging to go back to work, Dorothy is in such a state of denial about the tragedy that she comes to believe that a lifelike doll named Jericho is actually the son that she believed to have died. Dorothy’s delusions reach a different state when the couple hires the nanny Leanne Grayson (Nell Tiger Free) to take care of the doll, which makes Sean suspicious that there could be supernatural forces involved. Although Dorothy’s alcoholic younger brother, Julian Pearce (Rupert Grint), attempts to provide as much emotional support to his sister and brother-in-law as he can during a very difficult time, his susceptibility to Leanne’s charms makes things even more complicated.

Servant is the perfect blend of horror mythology and identifiable family drama; these aren’t just the components behind all of Shyamalan’s best films, but it is the same combination that historically made King’s own approach to the horror genre so groundbreaking. Servant was allowed to get darker and weirder as it got into its later seasons, and the show was unafraid to delve into demonic imagery and feature some truly terrifying depictions of powerful cults. However, Servant was able to justify its bold swings by keeping the focus on the central family and showing how far they would be willing to go in order to cope with their unimaginable loss. Although Servant was smart to avoid anything so devastating that it would deplete the show’s entertainment factor, the series was able to turn characters like Sean, Dorothy, and Julian into empathetic people who were more than just victims.

Shyamalan is often not given enough credit for his surprising ability to add humor to his work, as films like Trap have shown that he is far more self-aware than his critics are willing to acknowledge. Since the setup of Servant is fairly grounded, the show provides several opportunities for the characters to call out just how ridiculous the circumstances are, allowing the audience to relate to them more strongly. This is particularly true for the character of Julian, as Grint has proven to be a talented comedic actor who is great with physical humor. Even though there are some moving moments of Julian reflecting upon his life choices, Grint occupies a whimsical space that allows the show to avoid being too self-serious.

‘Servant’ Demonstrates the Best of M. Night Shyamalan’s Talents

Servant feels like the natural progression of Shyamalan’s body of work, as it takes place in his home of Philadelphia, and shares thematic parallels with other supernatural thrillers about splintered families, including The Sixth Sense and Lady in the Water. Although Shyamalan’s work on the cult thriller Knock at the Cabin may have spawned divisive reactions, Servant was able to break down the way that hive-like organizations can take advantage of young, impressionable people like Leanne. Before taking on this series, Shyamalan had begun to experiment with body horror in Split and Glass, but Servant allowed him to push the boundaries even further with some truly gnarly moments, which certainly never could have aired on network television.

Servant stuck to its guns and provided consistent, reliable scares, which is a novelty for Apple TV+ shows. Many of the streamer’s most popular programs, such as Ted Lasso and The Morning Show, took such ridiculous lengths to raise the stakes that they began to lose sight of what had made them appealing in the first place. On the flipside, Severance delivered an extraordinary second season, but it was only after audiences had waited over three years for the cliffhanger to be resolved. The pace at which Servant was produced allowed it to never lose momentum, which may be why it was appreciated by someone like King; due to the chapterized ways in which the episodes were framed, Servant often felt like turning the pages to a good book.

Servant stuck to its guns and provided consistent, reliable scares, which is a novelty for Apple TV+ shows. Many of the streamer’s most popular programs, such as Ted Lasso and The Morning Show, took such ridiculous lengths to raise the stakes that they began to lose sight of what had made them appealing in the first place. Servant never faces this issue, remaining consistent throughout. On the flipside, Severance delivered an extraordinary second season, but it was only after audiences had waited over three years for the cliffhanger to be resolved. Servant avoided that trap as well. The show was produced at a pace that allowed it to never lose momentum, which may be why King appreciated it. Due to the chapter-like ways in which the episodes were framed, Servant often felt like turning the pages of a good book.