Haley Z. Boston on Building the Emotional Horror of Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen

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From its ominous title to its blood-soaked finale, Netflix’s Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen thrives on uncertainty. But for creator and showrunner Haley Z. Boston, the supernatural elements were never the starting point. Instead, the series grew from a much more human foundation of understanding exactly how its protagonist Rachel would emotionally navigate every turn.

“I always want the supernatural horror to have emotional logic to it,” Boston explained. “I want it to resonate with people and not feel random.”

That philosophy became the guiding principle for the series. Before mapping out the mythology or introducing narrative twists, Boston focused on Rachel’s emotional journey, imagining step by step how she herself might react in each circumstance. That process quickly became what she describes as the show’s “north star,” allowing the writers room to build suspense while always remaining grounded in character.

One of the challenges of horror storytelling, Boston noted, is that fear often diminishes once the audience fully understands what’s happening. As a result, the writers continually approached the series as a game, always asking how they could keep viewers questioning what the “very bad thing” actually was.

While they knew from the outset that the season would culminate in a bloodbath, the journey toward that ending evolved significantly during development. Rachel’s fate presented three possibilities: leave and allow the curse to continue through Nikki’s bloodline, say yes and survive if he truly was her soulmate, or say yes and die if he wasn’t.

Despite the horrific circumstances leading up to the wedding, she never wanted the show to argue that love or marriage itself was dangerous.

“I’m a romantic,” she said. “I believe in soulmates and I believe in love, and I wanted that to be Rachel’s experience as well.”

Even amid curses and death mythology, Boston constantly prioritized relatable emotions. The central supernatural threat, she explained, is ultimately a manifestation of doubt.

“The curse is a representation of doubt,” she said. “Once you have a feeling of doubt, it’s really hard to get rid of it.”

Because of that, she resisted ideas that would push the series too deeply into mythology. Questions surrounding magical concoctions or bargains with death were often abandoned because they risked overshadowing Rachel’s humanity.

“The more you do in the supernatural realm, the less personal and human it feels,” Boston explained.

Instead, Rachel’s choices had to feel authentic. Even moments where she rejects possible solutions stem from her inability to betray herself.

Part of Rachel’s crisis comes from discovering that the story she’s always told about how she and Nikki met wasn’t entirely true. Boston deliberately wanted the betrayal to exist in a gray area.

“It depends who you are whether you think that’s a big betrayal or not,” she said.

Early versions of the script featured an even smaller deception, but eventually the writers expanded it enough to create uncertainty without making Nikki irredeemable. For Rachel, however, the issue runs deeper than the lie itself. The relationship had been built on the belief that Nikki immediately saw and understood her.

“She’s seeking someone who really sees her,” Boston said. “The betrayal is realizing she built her whole relationship on that feeling.”

Even then, Boston wanted audiences to understand Nikki’s perspective. His decisions, she argues, come from trying to do the right thing.

“If this story were told from his perspective, I think you’d like him more,” she said. “I didn’t want him to feel evil.”

That nuance became essential because she wanted viewers to understand why Rachel stayed with him rather than falling into familiar horror tropes where audiences are left shouting at the screen.

The show’s unsettling visual language also emerged through collaboration. The mysterious “very bad” point of view which gradually becomes one of the series’ most disturbing signatures began as a way to externalize Rachel’s growing paranoia and sense of being watched. Boston was inspired by the iconic roaming camera from The Evil Dead, but wanted to create something uniquely her own. By warping the view from the camera lens and using sound effects, they landed on a visual and sound representation of something unsettling lurking nearby.

That balance between romance and terror, doubt and devotion is precisely what makes Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen linger long after the credits roll.

Watch the video here:

Host Mara Webster talks with Hayley Z. Boston, Creator & Showrunner of Netflix’s Something Very bad is Going to Happen