Twelve Hands (TV series)

Twelve Hands
Genre	Psychological horror Drama Anthology
Created by	Naomi Elridge
Starring	Varies by season
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	8
Production
Producer	Gabrielle Knox
Cinematography	Varies by episode
Running time	47–62 minutes
Production company	Horizon Cellar Productions
Original release
Network	Netflix
Release	October 13, 2025 (2025-10-13) – present

Twelve Hands is an American psychological horror anthology television series created by Naomi Elridge for Netflix. Each season presents a self-contained narrative centered on a haunted or corrupted location, such as an abandoned boarding school, a condemned apartment tower, or an underground train depot. The show blends psychological dread with elements of folklore, spiritual grief, and cosmic horror.

The first season, subtitled The Dredging, follows a group of siblings returning to their childhood home, only to uncover buried memories linked to a drowned town beneath the lake. The series has been praised for its mature storytelling, atmospheric tension, and restrained use of supernatural elements.

Production

Conception

Twelve Hands was conceived by Elridge in early 2024, after her limited series Loom received critical acclaim on the festival circuit. Inspired by the concept of "place as memory," Elridge envisioned an anthology where each season uses a haunted space as a metaphor for generational trauma and community guilt. She pitched the series to Netflix as a "meditation on unresolved pain, disguised as horror."

The series was greenlit in July 2024, with Elridge serving as showrunner and executive producer. Horizon Cellar Productions, an independent company known for intimate genre storytelling, signed on to produce. Elridge stated her creative mandate was to avoid exploitative violence and instead focus on emotional disintegration and surrealism.

Casting

The first season stars Ariela Barer, Joe Keery, and Jacki Weaver. Barer plays Mara Hemsley, the eldest sibling drawn back to her lakeside home after her father's disappearance. Keery portrays her estranged brother Seth, while Weaver plays an elderly neighbor whose dementia masks prophetic visions. Additional cast includes Ian Alexander, Lola Kirke, and Lance Reddick in one of his final performances.

Elridge intentionally cast younger actors from outside the horror genre to ground the show in realism. Guest directors brought in their own casting choices for specific episodes, giving each chapter a unique tone.

Filming

Principal photography for the first season began in November 2024 and concluded in late February 2025. Filming took place across British Columbia and upstate New York, with production utilizing practical effects and in-camera tricks to create a dreamlike atmosphere. The abandoned Seton Lake facility was redressed as the series' key location.

Elridge directed the pilot and finale, with episodes helmed by emerging directors including Aisha Harris and Julian Park. The show’s visual language emphasized long takes, minimal lighting, and decaying architecture to mirror the mental states of the characters.

Release

Twelve Hands premiered on Netflix on October 13, 2025, with all eight episodes released simultaneously. The first season received generally positive reviews, with particular praise for its slow-burn horror and thematic depth. Critics compared the tone to The Haunting of Hill House and The Leftovers, while noting its restrained supernatural presence.

As of June 2025, a second season is in development, subtitled The Paper Orchard, rumored to center around an abandoned amusement park built on stolen land.