Stephen King Praises ‘Disturbing’ Netflix Horror Series with 100% Rotten Tomatoes Score, Perfect for ‘Sickos Like Him’
Stephen King has a knack for spotting the kind of horror that burrows under your skin and stays there. When he points fans toward a show, people tend to listen. Lately, his attention has swung back to a Netflix title that many missed the first time around, and word is spreading fast that it is the real deal.
The series earned a rare burst of early acclaim from critics and is now finding a second life with streamers hunting for something that actually scares them. Fans describe it as unnerving and oddly funny in places, which lines up with the way King himself framed it.
The show is ‘Marianne‘, a French horror series that premiered in 2019 and quickly notched a perfect critics score on Rotten Tomatoes at launch. It centers on a successful horror novelist whose nightmare creation seems to have stepped into the real world, turning her life into the very story she tried to control.
King’s endorsement was simple and gleefully wicked. “If you’re one of those sickos–like me–who enjoys being scared, MARIANNE (Netflix) will do the job. There are glints of humor that give it a STRANGER THINGS vibe. It also has (I say it with all due modesty) a Stephen King vibe.” That blend of playful and petrifying is exactly what helped the series stand out.
Critics at the time praised the show’s mix of jolting set pieces and slow burn dread, noting how its heroine is stalked by a shape that feels both mythic and intimate. Horror outlets highlighted the way the series chases that adrenalized fear fans worry they can no longer feel. One review called it “nightmares personified,” which feels about right once the title character truly shows her face.
Part of the appeal is how ‘Marianne’ keeps things grounded in relationships. The lead returns to her coastal hometown and reconnects with childhood friends, only to discover that old wounds make the perfect door for something malevolent. The smaller character moments do not soften the edges. They make the sharp parts cut deeper.
King has never been shy about praising Netflix horror when it hits the mark. He boosted ‘The Haunting of Hill House’ and later admired ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’, so his seal of approval on ‘Marianne’ puts it in strong company. Yet the French series feels different. It is lean, mean, and unashamedly creepy, with jolts that arrive when you are least ready for them.
If you skipped ‘Marianne’ back in 2019, this is the moment to circle back. The scare quotient is high, the tone is snappy, and the craft is precise. King summed it up best in that wicked line to fellow horror hounds. “If you’re one of those sickos–like me–who enjoys being scared, MARIANNE will do the job.” Consider that both a warning and an invitation.