Mike Flanagan's The Haunting Of Bly Manor left a major hint for the next installment in his The Haunting series in episode 1, "The Great Good Place". Each season of the series is adapted from a major work of horror literature. The Haunting Of Hill House was influenced by Shirley Jackson's 1959 novel of the same name. The Haunting Of Bly Manor was adapted from Henry James's 1898 novella The Turn Of The Screw and other stories by James. Undoubtedly, Flanagan will adapt another story by one of the genre's most influential authors, but which one will he take on for The Haunting season 3? Bly Manor's "The Great Good Place" offered a major clue within the first five minutes.
There are several incredibly talented and influential horror authors that Flanagan could pick from to further The Haunting series. He commonly tackles stories that feature a family dynamic, a tumultuous love story, ghosts, and death. The director is well-versed in adapting any and all literary horrors, proven by his filmography that includes Stephen King stories Doctor Sleep and Gerald's Game. While some have speculated that Edgar Allan Poe was next on his list, Bly Manor episode 1 offered insight on an entirely different author who is lesser known than Poe. In fact, she doesn't commonly get the recognition she deserves due to her short-lived writing career. Regardless of this fact, it appears Mike Flanagan has taken notice of Charlotte Brontë based on episode 1's reference to her third and final novel, Villette.
As the narrator of Bly Manor's story prepares to tell her tale of love, loss, and ghosts, the other wedding guests discuss the spirit that haunts the castle they are staying in. The description could be perceived as an allusion to the upcoming story, but it's actually a well-hidden hint that could rival even Ryan Murphy's most creatively hidden clues for the upcoming American Horror Story season 10. Here's how the nun, the convent, and the ghosts of the Flora Wingrave's wedding venue mean that The Haunting season 3 will likely be adapted from Charlotte Brontë's Villette.
As Flora and her soon to be husband sit around the fire with their wedding guests, they start to discuss the supposed ghost of the castle. They describe her as being an apparition of a nun. Her fiancé tells her "This place used to be a convent for, like, a few decades in the '40s." Brontë's 1853 novel takes place in a convent and features a nun who was supposedly buried alive on its grounds due to breaking her vow of chastity. The ghost of Justine Marie, the nun, haunts Lucy Snowe, the main character. Justine appears to her as a weeping woman due to the loss of the man she hoped to marry, Paul Emanuel. After her family objected of the arrangement, she fled to the convent and became a nun. She only appears to Lucy because her previous lover is now intertwined with her.
This isn't the only clue Flanagan hides in Bly Manor that hints at Brontë's story. A major theme throughout the series is love and the loss of a loved one. In the 1853 novel, Lucy is told that she will be reunited with the one she truly loves in death when she is only 14 years old. As The Haunting of Bly Manor concludes and reveals that the ghost story is actually a love story, the narrator/Jamie (Carla Gugino) has a conversation with Flora about losing their forever person. When "The Beast In The Jungle" comes to a close, it shows that her wife, Dani (Victoria Pedretti) was always there with her. It also alludes to the notion in Brontë's story that a person will be reunited with the one they love in death.
The Haunting Of Bly Manor and Villette share several similarities as well. They are both narrated by an individual, particularly a woman, and feature a love story impacted by the ghosts of the past. While Edgar Allan Poe could still be a possibility for the series' future, the hint towards Charlotte Brontë's Villette in The Haunting Of Bly Manor episode 1 means it is a major contender for season 3's story.