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A Series of Unfortunate Events - Behind the Scenes | official featurette (2017)

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Based on the internationally best-selling series of books by Lemony Snicket (aka Daniel Handler), the third and final season of the Peabody award-winning Netflix original premieres worldwide January 1, 2019.

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Follow Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire Children on their escape from Count Olaf who is trying to kill them to inherit the large fortune intended for the children.

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Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events

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The official website for Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. Scream and run away!

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People feel this is a good series to watch while grieving over a past loved one. 

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People feel this is a good series to watch while grieving over a past loved one. 

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Netflix's A Series of Unfortunate Events might mask itself as kooky Tim Burton for kids - but it's actually an incredibly honest and nuanced depiction of grief.

And for those who've ever lost a loved one, Lemony Snicket's tale can feel like someone reaching out from the screen or page to assure you that you're not alone in it.

The entire series of unfortunate events is centered around not one, but two devastating experiences of death. One is a recurring motif that begins every other episode with a brief from an unknown griever, addressing his lost love. The first reads: To Beatrice - darling, dearest, dead - and they only get more gut-wrenchingly frank from there. The other, of course, is the Baudelaire children losing their parents in a tragic fire.

Both these deaths motivate the entire plot of the children's story. And the writer's willingness to be honest with that young audience about what happens after someone dies makes it one of the bravest and most important stories in modern pop culture.

I'd never read the Lemony Snicket books before trying out the show on a whim. When Season 1 released in Jan 13, 2017, I was about a month into figuring out how to cope with the loss of my sister to suicide.

While deep in the do-nothing-but-sit-on-the-couch-numbly-and-binge-watch-TV-so-you-don't-have-to-think stage of grief, I was stunned to hear Lemony Snicket put the words to the unspeakable things I was feeling:

"If you have ever lost a loved one, then you know exactly how it feels. And if you have not, then you cannot possibly imagine it."

Learning how to cope with grief is an impossible task. But there's comfort in seeing others go through that same struggle. So here's a guide to grief, courtesy of A Series of Unfortunate Events:

Life goes on, but you don't

After the Baudelaire's tragedy, the plot moves on with disorienting speed. One minute, your world is normal. The next, it's changed forever. But the weird part is that no one else acts or sees how the world has completely changed. They just... go on. And expect you to.

Even the Baudelaires are guilty of this themselves, when they can't understand why Aunt Josephine changed so much after the death of her husband - and why she can't go back to the person she was.

There is no going back. There's only doing your best with a new normal.

The world will not be sensitive to your tragedy

In the same breath that people share their deepest sympathies for your loss, they'll also feed off your tragedy like vultures. You become a macabre fascination to many, which the Baudelaire's realize in the first episode. Editor-in-chief of The Daily Punctilio, Eleanora Poe, uses their grief to sell papers. People like Count Olaf and Mr. Poe also see them as victims who can benefit them.

People don't know what to do with you

One of the hardest parts about losing someone (especially when it's tragic), is just how alienating it can be. To no fault of their own, even the most well-meaning people have no idea what to say to you. Sometimes, that even makes them ignore you, or your grief, or the death causing it. Mr. Poe, for example, can do little more than comfort the kids with a single pinky. It doesn't make him evil, but it does make you feel more alone than ever - like you lost much more than just one person.

You do need to laugh to keep from crying

The mixed tone of darkness and humor in A Series of Unfortunate Events might feel jarring to some, but those who've experience grief know that it's spot on. The pain can be so enormous and impossible that it often feels ridiculous. Comical, even. And you're either going to laugh about it, or drown in it. Or both. At the same time.

Normal questions become hard to answer

Before a familial loss, questions like, "Where are your parents?" or "How many siblings do you have?" are simple. After, it becomes impossible to answer them without dread. For one, it's a reminder of your loss, every single time. For another, answering honestly ("they're dead") makes people uncomfortable. In the case of losing a sibling, deleting that family member from the equation feels wrong - like you're lying.

A family member's death changes your identity

When it comes to losing a sibling, there's also often a weird thing with numbers. You're used to saying, "I'm one of [X number of kids]." And now, that number is smaller. And it's just too weird.

In Season 2, the Quagmires insist that they are the Quagmire triplets, not twins. While all the unkind characters ignore this, characters like the Baudelaires defend their right to still include their dead sibling. Early in the first season, the Baudelaires also go from being just children - to permanently being known as the Baudelaire orphans.

Even if your loss doesn't come with a noun change, you feel marked. Like it's the only thing people see when you walk down the halls of your new school, Prufrock Preparatory.

Sharing grief brings you closer together

Several times throughout the seasons, the Baudelaires share moments of mutual understanding with others who've lost. These exchanges are always a huge relief, and the dialogue and plot momentarily slow down - as if to finally give them time to process their grief. Sharing your grief with others is integral to healing, and awards a break from the rest of the world's indifference.

You realize death is inevitable, and everywhere

This is perhaps the entire mantra of A Series of Unfortunate Events, which insists that you look away from the horrible tragedy unfolding. And it's the literal motto of Prufrock Preparatory, as Klaus translates the latin phrase "Momento Mori" to "Remember You Will Die."

Sounds bleak, but it's not untrue. We all understand death on an existential level, but it's different to how you know death once someone you love is gone. The understanding that death comes for us all is embedded into Lemony Snicket's narrative, and personified through Count Olaf's never-ending pursuit of them. Knowing death in a way that others don't is something the Baudelaire kids continue to struggle with, and probably always will.

Yet losing someone always comes as a shock

One of the most tragic characters of all, Aunt Josephine, captured this feeling perfectly when she told the Baudelaire orphans, "It is a curious thing, the death of a loved one. It's like climbing up the stairs to your room in the dark, thinking there is one more stair than there is. And your foot falls down, through the air, and there is a sickly moment of dark surprise."

Klaus looks at her, stunned, and says, "That's exactly what it's like."

The feeling of solace on both his and Violet's faces are exactly what's it's like to hear your own indescribable pain finally put into words. And maybe, for a moment, their sickly moment of dark surprise feels a little less dark.

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The comfort of watching 'A Series of Unfortunate Events' while grieving

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Netflix's A Series of Unfortunate Events might mask itself as kooky Tim Burton for kids - but it's actually an incredibly honest and nuanced depiction of grief. And for those who've ever lost a loved one, Lemony Snicket's tale can feel like someone reaching out from the screen or page to assure you that you're not alone in it.

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A Series of Unfortunate Events Season 1 Trailer

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A Series of Unfortunate Events Season 1 Trailer

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Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events | Official Trailer [HD] | Netflix

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The Netflix Original, "A Series of Unfortunate Events," inspired by the Lemony Snicket novels, doesn't disappoint with the second season. The comedic and dark series continues as it follows the Baudelaire children through these unfortunate events.

Season one set the stage for the mysterious world of Snicket, clearing up the background of how the Baudelaire children ended up as orphans and who their parents were. However, season two throws you into a literal lion's den of stressful events.

Season two offers everything season one did and more. As the show's plot gets thicker with characters and as more unfortunate events unfold, the mystery of the show starts to get revealed. This second season is nearly impossible to take your eyes off of because everything happens so quickly. There are too many miscellaneous details that can be missed without focusing.

Airing March 30, the new season received astounding reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and received praise for its adaptation of the original books. Many agree that the show exemplifies the darkness the books try to get across. From the costumes to the set design, the new series holds true to the book series.

Each book starts with an author's note advising the viewer to turn away from the horrific events about to take place. The show utilizes this comedic intro by foretelling the events about to unfold with a goofy song.

This entire series is built upon the mysterious death of the Baudelaire parents and the secret organization of which they were a part. The Baudelaire orphan children use their wit and humor to get through their new life and discover the secrets their parents left behind.

The storyline for every episode is generally the same as a new misfortune greets the main characters, Violet (Malina Weissman), Klaus (Louis Hynes) and Sunny (Presley Smith). The three orphans struggle to escape from Count Olaf's evil clutches.

The antagonist of the show, Count Olaf (Neil Patrick Harris) spends every episode trying to kidnap the Baudelaire children and steal the family fortune.

In total, there are 13 original books. The show breaks each book into two parts, enabling the addition of more details and dramatic flair to each unfortunate event with a dark sense of humor. The narrator, Snicket, breaks up episodes with foreshadowing of the misfortunes about to unfold.

It's somewhat painful and aggravating to watch how no one believes the orphans when they recognize Count Olaf through his phony costumes. Despite the annoyance, it has become quite funny to see what crazy costume Olaf will wear to fool every character except the three children.

This show is the perfect binge watch for the cold days we've been having lately. Ten hour-long episodes take you away to a different world full of life and humor, despite the bleakness of the situation at hand. The second season provides a lot of hope in the darkness. The orphans have come across many people who will help them, but those people are fleeting in this series of unfortunate events. There are already plans for a third season to air in the spring of 2019.
arts@dailynebraskan.com

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REVIEW: 'A Series of Unfortunate Events' hooks viewers with dark humor in both seasons

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The Netflix Original, "A Series of Unfortunate Events," inspired by the Lemony Snicket novels, doesn't disappoint with the second season. The comedic and dark series continues as it follows the Baudelaire children through these unfortunate events.

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While it may be the second season, Season 2 is going to be just as dark as the first!

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While it may be the second season, Season 2 is going to be just as dark as the first!

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The Baudelaire orphans don't have any more fortune this year.

Lemony Snicket's "A Series of Unfortunate Events" was always dark. The children's series was grim and depressing and overwhelmingly morbid. And somehow, the Netflix series got darker.

Now in its second season, the story of the most unfortunate orphans in the world trying to evade the capture of Count Olaf hasn't lightened the mood. It hasn't provided a glimmer of hope. It hasn't paused for laughter. But showrunner Barry Sonnenfeld said he isn't worried about getting too gloomy.

"I think that there's a good balance between darkness and comedy," the Washington Heights native told the Daily News.

The humor is subtle, an over-the-top prop choice or an outlandish line, but the most hilarious aspect of the show remains the overt cluelessness of every adult on screen.

"What I love about the books and the series is that they posit that all adults, whether they mean well or are villains, are inept," Sonnenfeld told The News. "Only children are capable and wonderful."

The NYU grad who made his name on "The Addams Family," the "Men in Black" trilogy and "Pushing Daisies" said he relishes the opportunity to be a "world creator."

"We make whole towns and water and carnivals and a city block. We create this world where you don't really know what year it takes place. The cars are all over the place, from the 1940s to a brand new Fiat 500. There are no electronics, no computers, no cell phones. Yet I wouldn't call this a period piece," he said.

"A Series of Unfortunate Events" has no defining characteristics: it doesn't exist in a time or place, but rather simply exists.

"It's a fairy tale, to a certain extent," Sonnenfeld said.

Malina Weissman, who plays the eldest Baudelaire orphan, Violet, bounces between set and school with co-star Louis Hynes, who plays Klaus Baudelaire. Sometimes, she joked, they'll come back from class to a different decade.

"It really helps to make your own world," the 15-year-old New York native told The News. "You get to believe what you want to believe in."

The Lemony Snicket novels, 13 books published between 1999 and 2006, focused on a specific narration style and relentless rollercoaster of hope and despair, an absurdist black comedy in which adults are useless or evil or both and children are left to fend for themselves. Sonnenfeld's challenge was bringing a wordy text to life.

The first season of the Netflix show was a whirlwind of snakes and lakes and lumber mills. The second season, while just as gloomy, is brighter: Carmelita Spats' pink dress and Esmé Squalor's blindingly white pinstriped suit. Each prop, each diction, each costume seems intentional.

The guest stars, too, add to the fantastic world of "A Series of Unfortunate Events;" in season 2, Nathan Fillion, Tony Hale, Sara Rue, Lucy Punch, Roger Bart and Allison Williams all join the already impressive cast.

Some, Sonnenfeld said, knew the Snicket series from their own children. Others were drawn to the script.

Readers get their own takeaways from the depressingly dark tale of death and despair. They get a gloriously shot TV series. They get some of Neil Patrick Harris' best work as the devilishly evil Count Olaf. And they get, hopefully, comfort in knowing the Baudelaire orphans always have it worse.

The second season of "A Series of Unfortunate Events" premieres on Netflix Friday.

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'A Series of Unfortunate Events' returns to Netflix as dark as ever in its second season - NY Daily News

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The Baudelaire orphans don't have any more fortune this year. Lemony Snicket's "A Series of Unfortunate Events" was always dark. The children's series was grim and depressing and overwhelmingly morbid. And somehow, the Netflix series got darker.

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A Series of Unfortunate Events: Season 1 - Rotten Tomatoes

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Synopsis: Lemony Snicket tells the story of the three Baudelaire orphans, who face countless obstacles and an evil uncle Count Olaf (Neil Patrick Harris) in their search for the truth behind their parents' deaths. Adapted from the best-selling book series.}

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You've read the books, watched the movie and the show, but still you wonder: When is A Series of Unfortunate Events set? Lemony Snicket's writing choices lend his 13-book series a strange and timeless feel that makes tying it to a particular setting rather difficult. There are a few clues to help us figure out when Lemony Snicket's books are set, though, so let's dive in, shall we?
Spoiler Warning: This article includes minor spoilers for Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events books and the Netflix series below.
A Series of Unfortunate Events centers on the three Baudelaire orphans in the years following their parents' death in a house fire. A misinterpretation of Mr. and Mrs. Baudelaire's will leaves Violet, Klaus, and Sunny in the hands of their closest living relative, geographically: their distant cousin, Count Olaf.

Olaf wants to make sure the orphans' fortune - which they will inherit when Violet comes of age - falls into his hands, so he stages a fictional play in which he will really, legally marry his 14-year-old cousin. The Baudelaires are removed from his custody, but he pursues them from home to home, always in a different disguise and with a different scheme to kill them for their fortune.

In Brett Helquist's illustrations and on-screen, the Baudelaires' wardrobe isn't all that anachronistic, unlike other elements of Snicket's series. In fact, a cursory glance over the book covers reveals that most of the costuming comes from the same time period: the 1920s. During that decade, boys wore knickers like Klaus', girls wore sailor dresses like Violet's, and women wore hats and furs like the lady in fuchsia on the cover of The Penultimate Peril. Additionally, Esmé Squalor's obsession with fashion fits perfectly into that decade, although stiletto heels probably weren't invented until sometime later.

So that's it? A Series of Unfortunate Events is set during the 1920s? Not so fast. The technologies represented in Lemony Snicket's books paint a different picture of the Baudelaires' lives.

In The Hostile Hospital, the orphans find The Last Chance General Store after escaping the Village of Fowl Devotees. Among other things, the store sells fiber optic cable and has a telegram service. Later in the novel, the Heimlich Hospital uses an intercom system to send messages from the Director of Human Resources to the staff. While there is some overlap between these technologies, only one, the telegram, was available in the 1920s.

Telegramswere used into this millennium, even though sending Morse code messages fell out of favor in the 1960s and '70s, but fiber optic cable wasn't used widely before those decades. Additionally, the intercom system wasn't invented until the 1930s.

So when is A Series of Unfortunate Events set? There's no good answer to that question. Snicket deliberately blends an early 20th century aesthetic with more modern technologies, giving the Baudelaires' adventures a timeless feeling that fans of all ages love.

Ultimately, it doesn't matter when A Series of Unfortunate Events is set, because Lemony Snicket's books are not historical fiction, and never have been. The absurdist experience is what's important here, and, even though the Baudelaire orphans' lives are filled with sorrow, that's why we love the books today.

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When Is 'A Series Of Unfortunate Events' Set?

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You've read the books, watched the movie and the show, but still you wonder: When is A Series of Unfortunate Events set? Lemony Snicket's writing choices lend his 13-book series a strange and timeless feel that makes tying it to a particular setting...

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In the photo we see Count Olaf removing his wig, revealing to the audience that the wedding scene was in fact a real wedding.

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Netflix has debuted its fair share of ambitious projects over the past year, and new series A Series of Unfortunate Events definitely qualifies. The show is based on a book saga that is loved by many but failed to take off into a successful film franchise. Season 1 premiered on January 13. Netflix doesn't release ratings, but some estimated numbers are in and they tell us just how A Series of Unfortunate Events performed in its first weekend. Honestly, those numbers aren't half bad.

The Live+3 Day numbers indicate that 3.75 million adults in the valuable 18-49 age demographic tuned in to A Series of Unfortunate Events during its opening weekend in the average minute. The 3.75 million ranks A Series of Unfortunate Events as the #4 most-streamed show in its opening weekend on Netflix, according to calculations from Symphony Advanced Media. The only shows to score better viewership in Live+3 were Fuller House Season 1, Orange Is the New Black Season 4, and the Gilmore Girls revival in December.

While the #4 ranking is impressive for A Series of Unfortunate Events, it should be noted that Symphony has only been approximating Netflix viewership for a little over a year. The numbers for shows released several years earlier are not available, so it's entirely possible that Unfortunate Events would rank much lower if previous seasons of shows like Orange Is the New Black and House of Cards were in the running. That said, A Series of Unfortunate Events did definitively beat out other recent originals in Symphony's numbers.

A Series of Unfortunate Events did slightly better than Luke Cage Season 1, which earned 3.38 million viewers in the average minute over its first weekend. Luke Cage is followed by Daredevil Season 2, Fuller House Season 2 (which was a huge drop from Season 1), Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Season 2, and House of Cards Season 4. Fuller House Season 1 continues to hold the record for most viewers in the average minute in Live+3.

Of course, Netflix is known for its refusal to share official viewership numbers, so it's impossible to verify Symphony's calculations to the exact decimal point. Symphony produces its numbers based on cell phone microphones and audio recognition technology in order to identify what program a given viewer is watching, according to The Wrap. Live+3 numbers also aren't always the best indicators of the success or failure of a series. It should be interesting to see how A Series of Unfortunate Events performs when more time has passed and more data has been accumulated.

Hopefully Netflix will be encouraged enough by the numbers for A Series of Unfortunate Events Season 1 to order a Season 2. Book author Lemony Snicket is actively planning a second season with a team of writers, but no official announcement from Netflix has yet been made. Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for the latest in renewal and cancellation news, and be sure to check out our 2017 Netflix premiere schedule to see what else you can stream in the near future.

Blended From Around The Web

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How Popular A Series Of Unfortunate Events Is On Netflix

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Netflix has debuted its fair share of ambitious projects over the past year, and new series A Series of Unfortunate Events definitely qualifies. The show is based on a book saga that is loved by many but failed to take off into a successful film franchise. Season 1 premiered on January 13.

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How dark is a Series of Unfortunate Events?

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How dark is a Series of Unfortunate Events?

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If you're expecting a review that bemoans streaming TV or the commercialization of popular children's literature, you should look elsewhere. You would do better to read a cheerier Federalist article, such as one about the state of modern journalism or peanut allergies.

This is because the Netflix adaptation of "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events" is morbidly brilliant, an addictive take on the postmodern fairytale.

A Better Adaptation of the Books

Assuming you're not familiar with "A Series of Unfortunate Events," the 13-book series for middle-grade readers, the story follows three children-Violet (played by Malina Weissman), Klaus (Louis Hynes), and baby Sunny (a remarkably expressive Presley Smith)-whose parents perish in a suspicious house fire. The orphans' lives go from bad to worse when they are adopted by Count Olaf (Neil Patrick Harris), an actor who seeks their fortune. No matter where the children go or how quirky or irresponsible their various guardians are, Count Olaf lurks somewhere in disguise. The children must always use their inventing, reading, and biting skills to outsmart him.

The Netflix version, scripted by David Handler (a.k.a. the real Lemony Snicket), for the most part follows these books to the letter, unlike the 2004 Jim Carrey adaptation with its Hollywood insistence on a happy ending. Each of the first four books gets two 45-minute episodes, which fill out their runtime by adding a subplot about the secret organization at the heart of the series.

ASOUE does a superb job of translating the books' meta-humor to the screen. This is most obvious in the narrator character of Lemony Snicket (Patrick Warburton), who opens the series in a maze of dank tunnels, grimly warning viewers to stream another show instead.

Unlike the books, where Snicket is simply a film-noir style narrator, we see Warburton standing in various ludicrous outfits as he comments on the story and defines words for viewers' edification. His ironic delivery somehow makes the show's dark humor and violence (characters die off screen by snakebite and being burned alive, among other things) more palatable-as if this were a bedtime story told by your strange, Tim-Burton-loving uncle.

Dark Tales Are a Human Tradition

Some might argue that ASOUE typifies a downward spiral in children's entertainment, where writers and filmmakers depict increasingly adult themes for younger and younger viewers. However, if anything, ASOUE is the latest chapter in a longstanding trend blazed by the likes of the Brothers Grimm and Roald Dahl.

Many children's authors have acknowledged that childhood is frightening. Children ultimately have little control over their families and life choices. They must face dead pets, injustice, and adults' inconsistencies, not to mention fears of abandonment and defenselessness. Literature helps them grapple with these problems vicariously, and often by exaggeration.

For instance, when Violet Beauregard turns into a blueberry in "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," children experience the horror of rebellious choices. When Cinderella's stepsisters have their eyes pecked out by birds, kids feel the victory of justice mixed with the grief of loss-in spite of Cinderella's happily ever after, she still doesn't reunite with her dead father.

ASOUE follows this pattern. Violence to evil characters is viewed as a natural consequence, while characters who die for no good reason are mourned. Soon after the Baudelaires' parents die, we get a lingering shot of the children gazing back at their burned home, sadness written across their faces. With every major character's death, the camera takes a few moments to let viewers contemplate its impact.

Postmodernism Throughout, For Good and Ill

The show, however, is just as much an heir to postmodern thought and literature, with its intertextual references to classics like "Moby Dick" and winking way of shattering the fourth wall. Few characters are depicted as black and white, either. The Baudelaires' many guardians are often well-intentioned, but through ignorance, pride, or fear, they refuse to care for the orphans as they should. Even Count Olaf, who is undoubtedly dastardly, is also a witty charmer in Neil Patrick Harris's capable hands.

Because or in spite of these postmodern shades of gray, the Baudelaires never let grief or injustice define them: What matters are their own attitudes and actions. Violet protects her siblings by being the optimistic one and by inventing delightfully complex machines. Klaus answers challenges with quips from his favorite books. In one scene, the orphans agree that even though Count Olaf has practically enslaved them, they have food and a roof and each other, and that is "better than nothing."

Certainly this response, though bleak, is better than other popular children's series, where violence is morally ambiguous and rebellion the best and immediate response to an oppressive authority.

Is ASOUE a show for kids? Much depends on your style of parenting and your child's personal taste. The show is undoubtedly a fun ride, with complexity and character development that are only possible with the long-form TV miniseries. Don't expect a happy ending though, because, as Snicket reminds all viewers, "That's not how the story goes."

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Netflix's Lemony Snicket Is A Morbidly Brilliant Postmodern Fairy Tale

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If you're expecting a review that bemoans streaming TV or the commercialization of popular children's literature, you should look elsewhere. You would do better to read a cheerier Federalist article, such as one about the state of modern journalism or peanut allergies.

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Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events gets dark. While director Brad Silberling's film stayed mostly faithful to the tone of the 13-part series, you can feel his 2004 adaptation sometimes holding back, and earlier cuts of the movie were apparently much darker. Author Daniel Handler's books have a sense of humor, but the jokes aren't always as broad as what we saw in the movie or what we saw in the previews for Netflix's new series. According to Neil Patrick Harris, who's playing the villainous Count Olaf, the show gets "shockingly dark."

Below, learn more about the Netflix's A Series of Unfortunate Events show.

Season one of the Barry Sonnenfeld-produced series is eight episodes long. Netflix is planning three seasons; two episodes will typically cover one of the 13 novels. The story follows Violet ( Malina Weissman), Klaus ( Louis Hynes), and Sunny Baudelaire after their parents perish in a tragic and mysterious house fire, leaving the children in the custody of Count Olaf. In The Night of the Hunter-inspired tale, Olaf and his theater troupe stop at nothing to steal the Baudelaire fortune.

A Series of Unfortunate Events is clearly a little darker than the average young adult series. Harris told Collider the show will remain faithful to the tone of the novels:

I think it's super faithful to the books. I think at times it's shockingly dark. From what I gathered, Netflix was concerned that adults weren't going to be able to value it because it was skewing towards a younger demographic. And I think now that it's done, they want to make sure the kids still value it and it's not gone too Stranger Things. I really wanted Olaf to be bad. To be a bad person.

Count Olaf is a real diabolical monster on the page, and that's exactly how Harris wanted to play the character:

I tried to just focus as much as I could on being as literary possible and try to honor how Olaf was described by Lemony [Snicket] and by Daniel Handler. So, a lot of piercing darkness and sort of delusional dementia. He thinks he's so handsome and he thinks he's incredibly charming and gifted as an actor, and yet he's not. So I didn't want to be overly charming, I wanted to be just awful. Distinctly mean. And then let the levity of the situation inform the takeaway for the viewer. I didn't want to make him like myself.

While Jim Carrey made for a very good Count Olaf in the 2004 film, the broadness of his performance sometimes detracted from the movie. Silberling's picture, as good as it is, leaned a little too heavily on comedy. You could tell they were trying to make a dark story more accessible to a mass audience. With Netflix's new adaptation, let's hope it's as "shockingly dark" as Harris says, because that sounds in tune with Handler's series.

Here's the official synopsis:

Based on the internationally best-selling series of books by Lemony Snicket (aka Daniel Handler) and starring Emmy and Tony Award winner Neil Patrick Harris, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events recounts the tragic tale of the Baudelaire orphans - Violet, Klaus, and Sunny - whose evil guardian Count Olaf will stop at nothing to get his hands on their inheritance. The siblings must outsmart Olaf at every turn, foiling his many devious plans and disguises, in order to discover clues to their parents' mysterious death. The eight-episode series is a Netflix original production, executive produced by Emmy Award winner Barry Sonnenfeld and Daniel Handler, and also stars Patrick Warburton (Lemony Snicket), Joan Cusack (Justice Strauss), Malina Weissman (Violet Baudelaire) and Louis Hynes (Klaus Baudelaire).

A Series of Unfortunate Events debuts on Netflix on January 13th.

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Netflix's 'A Series of Unfortunate Events' Is "Shockingly Dark," Says Neil Patrick Harris

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Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events gets dark. While director Brad Silberling's film stayed mostly faithful to the tone of the 13-part series, you can feel his 2004 adaptation sometimes holding back, and earlier cuts of the movie were apparently much darker.

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Count Olaf giving a tour to the Baudelaire's on their arrival to his mansion.

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Count Olaf giving a tour to the Baudelaire's on their arrival to his mansion.

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Sunny dangling in the cage as Olaf tries to get Violet to marry him for their fortune!

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Sunny dangling in the cage as Olaf tries to get Violet to marry him for their fortune!