Stephen King Just Gave Mike Flanagan’s ‘Carrie’ a Huge Seal of Approval

Mike Flanagan’s new ‘Carrie’ series has already cleared one very important hurdle before it even reaches Prime Video. Stephen King has seen the adaptation of his famous horror novel, and he has given it a very strong vote of confidence.

King shared his reaction on Threads, where he praised Flanagan’s version of the story and pointed to one part that seems to have impressed him the most. “Mike Flanagan’s version of CARRIE is brilliant. What it has to say about social media is shocking and true,” King wrote.

That is a big deal for a project based on one of King’s most famous books. The author has watched many of his stories become movies and TV shows over the years, and he has never been afraid to say when an adaptation does not work for him. So hearing him call this new version “brilliant” before its release should give fans even more reason to pay attention.

Flanagan’s ‘Carrie’ is not simply trying to remake the 1976 movie. Instead, the filmmaker is taking King’s 1974 novel and bringing the story into the modern world. The eight-episode limited series is set to explore the same basic story of Carrie White, a bullied teenage girl with powerful abilities, but it adds a major new element that could make her experience feel very different.

Social media plays a major part in this version. In the original story, Carrie’s humiliation happens in front of her classmates. Today, something like that can spread much further and much faster. A private moment can become a video, a post can reach thousands of people, and bullying can follow someone long after they leave school.

That is the part King appears to find especially effective. Flanagan has updated some of Carrie’s most important moments to show how smartphones and social media can make teenage cruelty even more brutal. The change also gives the series a way to talk about a modern problem while staying close to the main ideas of King’s original story.

Interestingly, King was not immediately convinced that another ‘Carrie’ adaptation was necessary. When Flanagan first approached him about the project, King reportedly told the director, “She’s good, she’s done.” Flanagan then had to explain why he believed there was still something new to say with the character and her story.

It seems that argument worked.

Summer H. Howell has taken on the difficult role of Carrie. The actress was chosen after a huge casting search, with nearly 1,500 performers reportedly reading for the part. Flanagan also wanted her to create her own version of Carrie rather than simply copy what Sissy Spacek did in Brian De Palma’s classic 1976 movie.

Howell had not seen the original film or read King’s novel before getting the role. That may have helped her approach the character without feeling pressured to recreate Spacek’s performance. Instead, the series can give viewers a Carrie who belongs to this new version of the story.

Samantha Sloyan plays Margaret White, Carrie’s deeply religious and controlling mother. The cast also includes Siena Agudong, Josie Totah, Amber Midthunder and Matthew Lillard, one of Flanagan’s frequent collaborators.

Flanagan is directing four of the eight episodes and is also serving as an executive producer. King is involved as an executive producer as well, with Amazon MGM Studios behind the project.

The series is scheduled to premiere on Prime Video on October 7, with all eight episodes arriving at once. That means fans will not have to wait week after week to see where this new version takes Carrie. The show will also receive an early screening at the Toronto International Film Festival before its worldwide streaming debut.

The first teaser has already given fans a look at the updated version of Carrie’s world, including the way her classmates use social media to spread her humiliation. But King’s comments suggest that there is much more going on beneath the surface.

For Flanagan, getting the chance to reinvent ‘Carrie’ was already a major opportunity. Getting Stephen King to watch it and come away calling it “brilliant” is an even bigger win. Now the pressure is on for the series to show everyone else why the author was so impressed.

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