Spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t yet watched IT: Welcome to Derry’s sixth episode on HBO or via HBO Max subscription, so be warned!

More so than other installments, at least to me, the latest episode of IT: Welcome to Derry kept its spotlight on the myriad relationships between the central kids and adults. From Will’s fractured bond with his father to Lilly’s ill-advised visit to Ingrid Kersh’s abode to Ronnie’s reunion with her in-hiding dad Hank, the generational divides are relevant all the way around. The clear exception would have been Rich getting googly-eyed for Marge’s ocular wounds, but then they partied with soldiers.

This week’s episode also marked another batch of fun-to-spot easter eggs tying back to Stephen King’s iconic novel, the rest of his (dark)towering bibliography, and Andy Muschietti’s own two IT films. So if you haven’t already, check out our fairly comprehensive rundowns of all the interesting and head-scratching references from the previous five episodes, and then read on for all the connective tissue we caught while watching "In the Name of the Father."

King's Characters Suffer A Lot Of Parental Abuse

Not a fun reference/trope to talk about, so we'll TLDR it from the jump. Stephen King's books are filled with both protagonists and antagonists dealing with one form of parental abuse or another. The Losers Club members suffered a spectrum of examples themselves, with Alvin and Beverly Marsh's relationship being particularly revolting.

IT: Welcome to Derry's latest ep puts something of a spin on that issue by having Will take the aggressive stance of verbally striking at his father's still-fresh wound from Russo's death in the sewers. That was absolutely the kind of step-too-far move that kids are prone to take, with Leroy unfortunately rebutting with his hands instead of de-escalating things with his words. It's interesting to think about Will as an adult reflecting on this situation with his own son Mike (or anyone, really) and how that would have affected Mike's feelings about Leroy. Maybe it's just me?

Rich Was In The Webelos

Anything Rich says at this point should be taken with a grain of salt, such are his claims about his relatives' experiences. But he claims to have been part of the Webelos "for a couple of years," indicating he's still part of the Boy Scouts in general. Or that he never successfully earned the badge.

In any case, this isn't so much a direct reference as a general acknowledgment that Stephen King has peppered his written works with characters boasting histories with the Cub Scouts, Webelos and Boy Scouts. (Shout out to Scouting Magazine and its King fan for their non-conclusive rundown of scout-related references.)

Dick Hallorann Actually Explains His Lockbox

After Episode 5 gave viewers a visual depiction of Dick's grandparents and his Shine-protected lockbox through the prism of Pennywise's destructive influence, Chris Chalk's character put it all into words for Leroy, albeit after just waking from a liquor-steeped sleep. In particular, he talks about how his ability, which which stronger than his grandmother's, also cursed him with seeing the dead. When given the advice to effectively block out that part of his brain, he said:

No word on if any of the dead people he saw as a kid were young twin girls seeking out a playmate, but it does imply that the character is about to go through a terrifying situation in the aftermath of everything that's set to go down at the Black Spot.

Derry Canal Days Has Been A Local Tradition For Many Years

Lilly's perusal of Mrs. Kersh's family photo album led to some gigantic reveals and references. The very first photo features Ingrid at Derry Canal Days in 1960, which is a local event notable in both the novel and in Chapter Two. Adrian Mellon and Don Haggerty are leaving the carnival when a group of prejudiced youths beat them and throw Adrian off of a bridge, where he is devoured by Pennywise in the waters below.

The Gray Family Possibly Spent Time In 'Salem's Lot

When Ingrid was 7 or 8 years old, during the summer of 1908, she and her father apparently took a trip to Cumberland County, ME. First, I'm passing judgment on anyone who identifies family trips solely by county. But second, that real-world area is home to the fictional location of Jerusalem's Lot, whose name was famously shortened for the 1975 novel "Salem's Lot. I don't recall any ranches mentioned in the novel, but could easily be forgetting something. And maybe those pics are separate from the others, since Ingrid didn't double-up descriptions in other instances.

Bob Gray/Pennywise Was Apparently A Real Person Before IT Took Over

After already blowing my mind a little by turning Mrs. Kersh from Stephen King's Gingerbread House Witch monster into a real person with a social security number, IT: Welcome to Derry doubled down and confirmed that her father Bob Gray was also a corporeal being who employed a clown persona. (I don't feel comfortable saying it was a fun or popular clown persona.) This reveal was admittedly less of a leap after Episode 5 showed IT taking on the form of Matty, a character that we knew was already real.

It does make me reflect on the IT-possessed family that picked Matty up in the premiere, and whether their friends and other family members know what happened to them.

Another Possible Nod To 'Salem's Lot

During the town meeting (read as: lynch mob) that gathered to discuss less lawful means of searching for the fugitive Hank Grogan, one of the attendees makes this suggestion:

I can't readily assume that he's specifically talking about Robert and Patrick Boone, the two brothers at the heart of the short story "Jerusalem's Lot" published in 1978's Night Shift that delved into the sordid history of the town and its Chapelwaite manor. Considering their importance to that story, and the prior Cumberland Country mention, it's hard to shrug off a "Boone brothers" namecheck as being purely coincidental.

Bonus Possible Easter Egg: McMurtry Portrait Studio

I can't say for sure if this was an intentional nod by the creative team, but I'd think this would be a hat tip to the esteemed Larry McMurtry, an author Stephen King has lauded time and again, and whose standout novel Lonesome Dove has been stated as King's favorite book of all time.

Until next week, Constant Watchers, when it will likely all come crashing down.

It perhaps sounds a bit weird, but jumping headlong into a pop culture staple can be intimidating. Be it Star Wars or Star Trek, Marvel or DC, or any other long-running series or franchise, one can look at the full breadth of a canon and be frozen by the scope to the point that you don’t know where to begin. That being said, having the guiding view of an expert can help mitigate any of that daunting feeling. For example, who better to take advice from about Stephen King books than Stephen King himself?

When it comes to getting into King’s expansive body of work, there are three particular titles that he would recommend starting with – and that’s the lead story in this week’s edition of The King Beat. But that’s not the only headline, as the pop culture icon has also revealed some fun facts about his personal movie-watching habits and discussed how the on-going Vietnam War in the mid-1960s ended up influencing him to write the exceptionally hardcore tale that would become his first completed novel: The Long Walk. There’s a whole lot to get into, so let’s dig in!

Do You Want To Start Getting Into Stephen King Books? King Himself Has Suggestions Where You Should Start

Without looking it up, can you guess how many books Stephen King has written – including novels, non-fiction, collections, published scripts, independent novellas and comics? If you guessed “92,” you’d be spot on… though I’d also wonder if you possibly cheated.

That’s a hell of a lot of titles to choose from, and I can understand any wannabe reader being overwhelmed in considering where to start. The epics like The Stand, IT, and The Dark Tower series are obvious choices to set aside until one has reached veteran status, but there are still dozens of other options. Should one go back to the very beginning, or perhaps start with the more modern titles, which led to lean more toward mystery than horror? Is a novel the way to go, or perhaps does the better way in include the smaller bits that come with his collections?

I’d wager that every Stephen King fan has their own take on the best way to proceed, but why not go straight to the source for a recommendation? With the release of The Long Walk on the near horizon (set to arrive in theaters September 12), the author recently participated in an AMA session on Reddit, and one question he answered concerned proper starting places for new readers. Asked for a list of three titles, he responded,

Those aren’t exactly low-profile titles, as all three of those books have been gotten the extra exposure that comes with being adapted, but if you’re personally unfamiliar with the stories, I’ve provided their individual loglines below:

• Salem’s Lot: An author returns to his home town with the intention of writing a book inspired by the most traumatic event in his childhood, but what he discovers instead is that the small Maine hamlet is becoming infested with vampires.
• Misery: In the midst of making a big career change and bringing an end to his most famous and beloved series of books, an author finds himself held hostage by a madwoman who forces him to resurrect her favorite character.
• The Long Walk: In a dystopian America, teenagers are selected to compete in what is essentially an incentivized death march – with the last boy left standing in the endurance trial winning riches and the ability to make a single wish.

The three books can all be classified as “Classic King” (released in the period between 1975 and 1987), and while I wouldn’t say that they are the books that best showcase the author’s underrated range as a storyteller, they do all feature the core elements that have made his work so beloved: they all have tremendous and complex characters who make meaningful and compelling choices that drive their stories forward.

Personally speaking, one of my go-to recommendations for folks looking to become Constant Readers is 1999’s The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon (the story of a girl who gets lost in the Appalachian Mountains and must find a way to survive in the wilderness), but those are some terrific choices for any novice looking for a perfect entry point.

Stephen King Offers His Thoughts On The Perfect Movie Watching Experience On The Big Screen

When it comes to watching movies in theaters, we all have our own individual preferences – including where we like to sit and what we like snack on. Personally speaking, I always try to get into the middle of the first row of a theater’s rear section, hoping that the screen fills my entire field of vision, and while concessions aren’t always my thing, I’m a guy who takes the share bag of Peanut M&Ms and sprinkles them into my popcorn for bites blending salty and sweet.

But how does Stephen King enjoy the big screen experience?

It’s no secret that Stephen King loves going to the movies (evidenced in both the cinematic qualities of his writing and his penchant for posting reactions to what he’s been watching on social media), and one of my favorite answers from his Reddit AMA this week concerns his habits when going to see a new release at his local theater. It turns out that he’s the kind of guy who likes to sit close and chow down, writing

I love that answer in general, but calling the movie theater popcorn butter “animal sweat” is such a perfect and awful description that I think I’m going to personally use it going forward. And as for the seat choice and the snacks? Fans can perhaps follow his lead to enhance their experience watching The Long Walk when it arrives in cinemas everywhere next month. And to further discuss that particular story…

Stephen King Discusses How Writing The Long Walk Was Influenced By Hearing About His Peers Dying In The Vietnam War

When Stephen King first wrote The Long Walk at the age of 19, it was a very scary time to be a teenager. The Vietnam War was raging on with no end in sight, and young men that were the same age as the author were regularly being sent overseas to meet their fate. King was able to avoid service personally because he was enrolled at the University of Maine at Orono, but the shock of what he was seeing happen to his generation was very real, and it was a key inspiration in writing what would be his first completed (albeit not first published) novel.

In the same Reddit AMA that has inspired all of this week’s King Beat headlines, the author was asked about how the environment of the late 1960s influenced what remains one of the darkest books he has ever written. He explains in his response that he was very aware of kids his age dying in the jungle during the international conflict, and the horror of it all was fuel for his creative fire:

What’s even scarier is that while The Long Walk was written nearly 60 years ago and published nearly 50 years ago, it feels as relevant as ever. It feels all too common that younger generations have to carry the burden of choices made by older generations, and it’s both unfair and regularly cruel. The fact that screenwriter JT Mollner barely had to make any updates to the story in adapting the book for the big screen is perfectly disturbing evidence of this – and you’ll find out what I mean soon, with the exceptionally bleak and buzzy upcoming Stephen King movie now less than two weeks away from arriving in theaters across the country.

That wraps up this week’s edition of The King Beat, the last one of August 2025, but as the calendar flips over to September, there is a whole lot King-centric stuff to look forward to, including not only the theatrical arrival of The Long Walk but also the publication of the author’s take on the fairy tale Hansel & Gretel (featuring artwork from the legendary Maurice Sendak). As always, I’ll be back here on CinemaBlend next Thursday with a full roundup of all the biggest news from the world of King, so be sure to head back here then to read all about it.

Those of you who regularly read The King Beat are already well-aware that 2025 has been a special blessing for Stephen King fans. A little over half-way through the year, we’ve seen the release of two new King movies (The Monkey and The Life Of Chuck) and the debut of a new King TV show (The Institute), and the months to come include two more upcoming King movies (The Long Walk and The Running Man) and the debut of another new show (IT: Welcome To Derry). For Constant Readers, our cup runneth over… but those of you who are still screaming for more really need to put writer/director Zach Cregger’s Weapons on your radar: it’s not an adaptation, but it’s King coded to the extreme.

You don’t need to just take my word for it, as I had the great pleasure of talking with Cregger about it this week, and discussion of Stephen King’s influence on the new horror movie is the headlining story of this week’s column. But that’s not all, as there is also some very exciting home video news to discuss, both in the realm of physical media and streaming. There’s a whole lot to go over, so let’s dig in!

Weapons’ Zach Cregger Explains How The Shining And The Trailer For Needful Things Helped Inspire The Upcoming 2025 Horror Movie

Small town life. A supernatural mystery. Children in peril. Teachers. Alcoholism. Any Stephen King fan will tell you that these are all classic elements featured in the author’s bibliography – among the most influential in pop culture history – and they are also core pieces of Weapons, which is the latest work from Zach Cregger (his genre follow-up to 2022’s acclaimed Barbarian). When I had the chance to see the 2025 movie at the start of this week, I couldn’t help but perceive these links, so when I spoke with the filmmaker on Monday during the feature’s Los Angeles press day, King was the first thing I asked about… and my read of the upcoming horror story was substantiated.

Zach Cregger told me that he didn’t specifically set out to create Weapons as a love letter to Stephen King or anything of that sort, but he also didn’t deny that the influence is there – and at certain points it is more direct than at others. A perfect example of the latter: the story begins when students from a single third grade class simultaneously wake up at 2:17am and mysteriously flee from their houses, and that very specific time is intended as a reference to Room 217 a.k.a. the most horrifying room at The Overlook Hotel in The Shining. Speaking to taking inspiration from King, Cregger told me,

For those of you who aren’t aware, Room 217 is the heart of terror in Stephen King’s The Shining, inspired by the haunted room at The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado where the author stayed and got the initial idea to write the book. Per J.W. Rinzler and Lee Unkrich’s The Making Of Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, it was changed to Room 237 in Stanley Kubrick’s controversial adaptation due to concerns from Tad Michel, the general manager of the Timberline Lodge – the Oregon hotel that was used for exterior shots of The Overlook Hotel in the film. Michel was worried that the movie would cause people to fear booking Room 217 in his establishment, and he asked for the number to be changed to 237, 247 or 257 because those rooms didn’t exist at the Timberline.

There is more King in Weapons than just that special string of numbers, though. Zach Cregger also name-dropped Needful Things – Stephen King’s epic novel from 1991 that was adapted as a feature by director Fraser Clarke Heston two years later. In the book, a mysterious and malicious man named Leland Gaunt arrives in the small town of Castle Rock, Maine, and after setting up a little antiquities shop, he sets about getting the community to tear itself apart by requesting that his customers play little pranks on each other that ultimately snowball into chaos. Getting surprisingly specific, Cregger acknowledged not simply the tome or the film as having an impact on his work, but the excellent trailer for the latter. He continued:

You can check out the very cool trailer for reference below:

For what it’s worth, the theatrically released version of Fraser Clarke Heston’s Needful Things doesn’t totally capture the spirit of the book that Zach Cregger properly identified and appreciated from the trailer – but the extended cut that was later made for television is much more faithful to the source material and a superior work (and yes, I gave it a full-throated endorsement during the interview).

Curious about the larger influence of Stephen King on Weapons? You won’t have to wait much longer to discover them for yourself, as the Zach Cregger film, which has started generating massive buzz, will be in theaters everywhere on August 8. Be sure to stay tuned here on CinemaBlend in the coming weeks for not only more from my interview with Cregger, but also stars Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, and Josh Brolin.

Tobe Hooper’s Salem’s Lot Is Getting A Fresh Home Video Release Thanks To Arrow Films

Of the 85 Stephen King movies and TV shows that are currently available for purchase on physical media, an impressive number (28 to be exact) have already been released in 4K UHD – the best quality available for home video presentation. Clearly there is an understanding that there is considerable overlap in the Venn diagram of collectors and King fans, and both major studios and boutique labels have done a brilliant job working on beautiful restorations and collecting fascinating special features.

This summer alone, we have seen the arrival of two titles in the format, with Neon putting out Osgood Perkins’ The Monkey and Vinegar Syndrome putting together a tremendous set for George A. Romero’s The Dark Half, but this week, it appears that Constant Readers have another fresh release to look forward to: a new edition of Tobe Hooper’s Salem’s Lot.

An official announcement has not yet been made, but this news comes courtesy of reliable home video scooper/s Dawn On The Discs on Bluesky, which says that Arrow Films is working on a crop of new releases that includes the 1979 adaptation of Salem’s Lot along with the anthology horror Three… Extremes, the comic book movie Spawn, and two John Carpenter titles: In The Mouth Of Madness and Prince Of Darkness. The post doesn’t mention a release window, and it doesn’t confirm that Arrow is specifically putting out a 4K UHD restoration, but Warner Home Video has already made the miniseries widely available on Blu-ray, so one has to imagine that this is going to be a format upgrade.

When it comes to physical media, the early Stephen King adaptations have gotten the majority of the love, and a 4K UHD edition of Salem’s Lot would mean that restorations of the first eight King adaptations would all be available (the other titles being Carrie, The Shining, Creepshow, Cujo, The Dead Zone, Christine and Children Of The Corn). In fact, of the first 22 movies and shows based on King’s work – spanning the years 1976 to 1990 – the only works not available in the ultra-high definition format include Firestarter, Maximum Overdrive, the 1990 IT miniseries, and the anthology shows Tales From The Darkside and the 1980s revival of The Twilight Zone.

Arrow Films’ other Stephen King releases include the aforementioned Children Of The Corn and Creepshow 2 – which has a new 4K UHD limited edition set that has a September 30 street date and is now available for pre-order.

Osgood Perkins’ The Monkey Will Make Its Streaming Debut On Hulu Next Month

Are you not a physical media person? I personally am, but I can respect anyone who isn’t: not every cinephile has the space and/or resources to start a collection. The good news is that streaming Stephen King movies is most definitely an option, and those of you who have a Hulu subscription will discover a special treat arriving in the coming weeks.

If you missed Osgood Perkins’ The Monkey when it was in theaters earlier this year and haven’t felt inspired to either rent or purchase it digitally, you should know that the 2025 film starring Theo James, Christian Convery, Tatiana Maslany, Colin O’Brien, and Rohan Campbell will be added to the Hulu streaming library starting on August 7. It’s not a movie for the faint of heart, as it is arguably the goriest King movie made to date, but it’s also super funny in addition to being excessively horrific, so it’s definitely worth checking out if you can stomach it.

Based on the Stephen King short story of the same name, the movie centers on a pair of estranged twin brothers (Theo James) who find themselves reunited thanks to the return of a horrible icon from their childhood: a drumming monkey toy that causes extreme death whenever anybody activates it by turning the key in its back. As I noted in my CinemaBlend review of The Monkey, it’s gory, wild madness, and it’s one of the best horror titles of 2025.

That wraps up this week’s edition of The King Beat, but as always, I’ll be back here on CinemaBlend next Thursday with another fresh roundup of all the biggest stories coming out of the world of Stephen King. In the meantime, you can do a bit of exploring in the history of King on screen with my series Adapting Stephen King.

Some movies get stuck in development for years and years before a single frame gets shot. However, what is even more disappointing is when a movie is shot, edited, and pretty much ready to go, but it takes years and years before a soul gets to see a single frame. The following are some of the most noted examples of movies that took a while to get to the big screen (or even just the small screen) after they were already finished.

Red Dawn (2012)

Principal photography on director Dan Bradley's remake of the classic '80s movie Red Dawn, starring Chris Hemsworth, Josh Peck, and others as teens stepping up to defend their town from invading terrorists, took place in 2009. However, according to the LA Times, financial troubles at MGM and an effort to change its antagonistic country from China to North Korea in post-production led to its delay before FilmDistrict bought the distribution rights.

A Thousand Words (2012)

A Thousand Words is a fantasy comedy starring Eddie Murphy as a literary agent who must keep silent to keep a mysterious tree (and himself) alive. SlashFilm recalls that it was filmed in 2008 and early 2009 but was shelved for years as a result of DreamWorks Pictures' separation from Paramount Pictures and Viacom and also underwent reshoots in 2011 before securing its 2012 theatrical release.

The Other Side Of The Wind (2018)

The final film by writer and director Orson Welles, which follows the events leading up to the death of a jaded Hollywood director (played by John Huston), took six years to film in the early 1970s, as Bright Wall/Dark Room recalls. Unfortunately, The Other Side of Wind would not see the light of day until 33 years after the Citizen Kane creator passed away in 1985, when producers secured distribution through Netflix.

Night Of The Ghouls (1984)

Ed Wood was the mastermind behind some of the most infamous B-movies of all time – one of which he never lived long enough to see properly released. Night of the Ghouls was shot in 1958, but a lack of funding prevented the horror movie from receiving theatrical distribution. As recalled in Gary D. Rhodes and Tom Weaver's book, Ed Wood's Bride of the Monster, it would be made available to the public for the very first time on VHS in 1984 by a wealthy fan of the filmmaker named Wade Williams.

Roar (2015)

In 2015, the marketing for the infamous creature feature, Roar, relished in the fact that several cast and crew members suffered injuries by the 150 wild animals on set. However, the reason it took 34 years to secure a North American release actually had to do with the distributors wanting to claim the profit shares promised to the lions and because most of the crew was non-union, as recalled by Scene Stealers.

Blue Sky (1994)

Jessica Lange earned her second Academy Award for playing the wife of a military officer (played by Tommy Lee Jones) embroiled in a nuclear testing cover-up in Blue Sky in 1994. However, according to BFI, director Tony Richardson's final film was shot in mid-1990 but suffered a delay when Orion Pictures faced bankruptcy.

Chaos Walking (2021)

Doug Liman's adaptation of author Patrick Ness' sci-fi trilogy was initially shot in 2017 and, a year later, was scheduled for reshoots that could not begin until late 2019 after Daisy Ridley was done filming Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and Tom Holland completed Spider-Man: Far From Home, according to THR. In 2021, Deadline reported that Chaos Walking finally secured a March release date that year, following a worldwide movie theater shutdown during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Margaret (2011)

Anna Paquin leads an all-star cast as a high school student inadvertently involved in a fatal bus accident in Margaret, which was filmed in 2005. However, the drama was delayed for six years as writer and director Kenneth Lonergan struggled to settle on a favorable edit, which led to a series of lawsuits that went on until 2014, according to THR.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1997)

One of the most reviled installments in the Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise is subtitled The Next Generation (known for starring a young Matthew McConaughey and Renee Zellwegger), but it premiered as The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre at SXSW in March 1995 before securing a limited release later that year. That October, Columbia TriStar Pictures bought the home video rights with plans for a wider theatrical distribution under a new title and with a new edit. However, according to Film Vault, the studio delayed the release until after Zellwegger's Jerry McGuire role made her a household name.

The Cabin In The Woods (2012)

Chris Hemsworth auditioned for 2011's Thor when he was still filming the horror-comedy favorite The Cabin in the Woods, in 2009, which was also the year it was initially set to hit theaters. Collider reported that co-writer and director Drew Goddard's clever genre deconstruction went through several delays (due to its conversion to 3D and financial troubles at MGM) before setting a 2012 release date under Lionsgate.

Trick 'R Treat (2009)

There has never been a publicly stated explanation as to why Michael Dougherty's cult favorite horror anthology movie Trick 'r Treat was pulled from Warner Bros.'s 2007 theatrical release schedule and distributed straight-to-DVD two years later. Possible reasons, as collected by ScreenRant, include the studio wanting to avoid competition with Saw IV or not knowing how to market a horror movie in which children die.

'Salem's Lot (2024)

Writer and director Gary Dauberman's 'Salem's Lot was supposed to be the first theatrical adaptation of Stephen King's vampire story and was initially set for a September 2022 release after wrapping the previous November. However, it was delayed several months and then indefinitely shelved (much to the author's chagrin), before being distributed exclusively with a Max subscription in October 2024.

Take Me Home Tonight (2011)

Not long after his That '70s Show cast tenure, in 2007, Topher Grace shot a comedy movie set in the 1980s that was released with the title Take Me Home Tonight... four years later. The Film Stage reports that Relativity Media was hesitant to release a movie featuring young people using certain illicit drugs that were popular in the Reagan Era, which would explain why it was shelved for so long.

Case 39 (2010)

Case 39 director Christian Alvart explained to EW that his thriller – about a social worker (played by Renée Zellweger) discovering a seemingly abused child is a kid you don't want to mess with, to say the least – was shleved for three years after wrapped in early 2007 because it was a low priority project for Paramount. One might assume that releasing the film after star Bradley Cooper had achieved A-list status might have helped its chances at the box office, but it only made a worldwide profit of a little more than $2 million.

Accidental Love (2015)

Originally titled Nailed (referencing the freak accident that Jessica Biel's character suffers at the beginning), Accidental Love went through various production setbacks, from cast and crew member walkouts to financing issues, leading director David O. Russell to quit the project two years into production in 2010. EW reported that when the dark rom-com was set to release five years later, Russell requested to be credited as "Stephen Greene."

All The Boys Love Mandy Lane (2013)

Amber Heard stars in the title role of All the Boys Love Mandy Lane – a slasher movie that premiered at TIFF in 2006, not long after it completed filming. However, poor test screenings and the disappointing box office returns of Grindhouse the following year convinced The Weinstein Company to sell distribution rights to a German company called Senator, which did release it overseas. According to the LA Times, it was not until the studio bought back the rights that the movie was finally released in the U.S. in 2013 under its subsidary, Radius-TWC.

Jet Pilot (1957)

Vivien Leigh and John Wayne are the stars in Jet Pilot, a Cold War-era romance that was filmed between 1949 and 1953. However, producer Howard Hughes' tinkering kept it out of theaters for another few years, finally being released in 1957.

Rampage (1992)

Not to be confused with a video game movie from 2017, Rampage is a drama starring Michael Biehn as a DA pursuing a notorious serial killer played by Alex McArthur. According to The Sun Sentinel, the film played at festivals and had an overseas theatrical release in 1987, but when De Laurentiis Entertainment Group went bankrupt, it was left shelved for five years. During that time, director William Friedkin changed the ending before Miramax became the new distributor.

Henry: Portrait Of A Serial Killer (1986)

The brutal, fact-based crime drama, Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, was initially given an X rating after it premiered in 1986, which led Atlantic Entertainment Group to back out of its distribution deal with the film. As detailed in Shaun Kimber's book about the controversies surrounding the movie, the MPA refused to accept any attempts to cut it down to secure an R rating. Roger Ebert's review is often credited with helping it land theatrical distribution through Greycoat Films, who released the film unrated in 1990.

Shortcut To Happiness (2007)

Alec Baldwin's directorial debut, Shortcut to Happiness – in which he also stars as a struggling writer who finds success after a run-in with the Devil (Jennifer Love Hewitt) – was shot in 2001. However, as reported by Variety, it was plagued by several financial woes and did not find distribution until 2006, at which point Baldwin disowned the project, feeling it was no longer the story he intended to tell.

Shanghai (2015)

In Shanghai, John Cusack stars as an American who uncovers the mysteries surrounding his friend's death in China months before the attack on Pearl Harbor. Deadline reported in 2015 that The Weinstein Company set the noir thriller for a 2008 U.S. release date before pushing it to the following year and, later, removing it from the schedule completely for another six years.

Car 54, Where Are You? (1994)

Director Bill FIshman's cinematic adaptation of the 1960s cop comedy series, Car 54, Where Are You?, starring the late David Johansen, was one of several films produced around 1990 that was delayed due to Orion's financial struggles at the time. Star John C. McGinley told The AV Club that it was initially filmed as a musical-comedy, but most of the numbers were edited out.

The Plot Against Harry (1990)

Writer and director Michael Roemer's The Plot Against Harry stars Martin Priest as a Jewish mobster seeking redemption after he is released from prison. An article from The New Yorker explains that the film was shot in 1969 but failed to find distribution until 21 years later and was released commercially to wide critical praise.

Eye See You (2002)

Sylvester Stallone stars in Eye See You as an FBI agent who discovers the elusive killer he has been tracking has followed him to a rehab facility that specializes in treating law enforcement officials. According to Ain't It Cool News, the thriller, which was originally shot under the title Detox in 1999, was shelved by Universal until 2002 due to poor test screenings, multiple reshoots, and additional title changes.

Collateral Damage (2002)

The largely overlooked Arnold Schwarzenegger movie Collateral Damage stars the Austrian actor as a man seeking revenge on the terrorists who caused the death of his wife and child. IGN mentions in an article about Hollywood's reaction to the tragic attacks on September 11, 2001, that the film was originally slated for October of that year. It would eventually come out in late 2002.

The New Mutants (2020)

Director Josh Boone insisted to EW that, despite rumblings of reshoots, his X-Men-adjacent, YA Marvel movie, The New Mutants, boasts the exact vision he had intended. Disney's acquisition of Fox was among the reasons the comic book movie experienced several release date pushbacks before it finally hit theaters three years after principal photography had been completed.

A Sound Of Thunder (2005)

Ray Bradbury's acclaimed short sci-fi story, A Sound of Thunder, was adapted into a feature film that was completed in 2003 but held back until 2005 due to its bankrupt production company, director and actor changes, script issues, and a Hollywood strike at the time. IGN reported that these issues also affected the release of Nintendo's tie-in video game.

The Lovers On The Bridge (1999)

The Lovers on the Bridge is a French drama following the romance between an addicted aspiring circus performer (played by Denis Lavant) and a nearly non-seeing young painter (played by Juliette Binoche). Budgeting issues forced the production to last four years, but, as reflected in an article by The Nation, it took another eight years for it find American distribution.

White Dog (2008)

White Dog is the story of a young woman (played by Kristy McNichol) who discovers her new pet has been trained by his former white supremacist owner to attack people of color unprovoked. Despite an enthusiastically positive reception at the festival circuit, Paramount was hesitant to give the film an official theatrical release in the United States due to its sensitive subject matter. It was made available for home viewing in the U.S. for the first time 27 years after it was filmed, thanks to The Criterion Collection.

Prozac Nation (2005)

Based on Elizabeth Wurtzel's 1994 memoir, Prozac Nation – starring Christina Ricci as a woman struggling with her mental health while attending Harvard – premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2001. However, according to Variety, after a series of test screenings and subsequent re-edits, it was finally released to the public on Starz! in March 2005 before coming out on DVD three months later.

Romance And Cigarettes (2007)

The star-studded dramedy Romance and Cigarettes premiered at the Venice Film Festival in September 2005 and was released in the United Kingdom and Ireland and other European countries the following year. However, it would not be shown in American theaters until writer and director John Turturro distributed it independently in 2007 due to Sony Pictures and MGM's merger, according to Playbill.

Camp Hell (2010)

Camp Hell – which depicts a devilish encounter at a spiritual retreat for Christian youths – was shot in 2007 and released straight-to-DVD in 2010 with Jesse Eisenberg's face and name featured prominently on the cover. As reported by THR, Eisenberg, having recently received an Oscar nomination for The Social Network, filed a lawsuit against Lionsgate for promoting the horror movie with him as the star despite mere minutes of screen time.

When Lewis Pullman joined the cast of Top Gun: Maverick he was in for an experience unlike any other. While Tom Cruise himself is known for always doing his own stunts, Cruise made sure that everybody who flew did the same. They went to school to learn how to fly so that the action could all be done without CGI, which was tough according to all involved. Having said that, it honestly sounds like Pullman’s time making Salem’s Lot was even rougher.

In a recent interview with the Just for Variety podcast, Pullman points out that, while making Maverick was hard work, he at least got to sit down during the hardest parts of it. And making Salem’s Lot was essentially an action movie for him. He explained…

I'm aching just hearing Pullman talk about getting regularly battered while making the movie. Real injuries are possible, as Tom Cruise himself knows. Pullman calls out his stunt double, Taylor McDonald, during the interview, who he says handled some of the harsher physical work, though clearly Pullman did his share.

While Lewis Pullman may have been seated a lot making Top Gun: Maverick, we know that the work was still hard for the cast. The G-forces involved made members of the cast sick, so it wasn’t easy. Still, because all the work was done sitting down, it was a different sort of hard work compared to Salem’s Lot.

The most recent adaptation of Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot, which starred Pullman as the main character Ben Mears, is King’s version of the classic Dracula story, and as such you might not see it as an action story. However, Pullman admits that there was a lot of stunt work that he needed to do with battered and bruised him, and while it was fun, his body went through a lot. He continued…

Honestly, if given the choice, I think I’d rather ride in a fighter jet than go through the action that Pullman did for his newest film. Both would be rough on the body but only one would actually leave me bruised and sore.

It’s that special time of year. There’s a chill in the air, pumpkin spice flavoring is being pumped into all matters of food and beverage, and people everywhere are spending their evenings and weekends watching nightmare-inducing cinema. I am, of course, referring to Spooky Season – and if you find yourself presently on the hunt for movie recommendations, a legend of the genre has a killer one for you, as Stephen King has named what he sees as being the scariest horror movie of all time.

That’s just the lead story of this week’s edition of The King Beat, however, as this feature also digs into thoughts about diversity in Stephen King’s stories from Salem’s Lot star Alfre Woodard and news about stars who have joined Glenn Powell in director Edgar Wright’s remake of The Running Man – the latest upcoming Stephen King movie set to go into production. There’s a lot to discuss, so let’s dig in!

Stephen King Argues For George A. Romero’s Night Of The Living Dead As The Scariest Horror Movie

For years, Stephen King and writer/director George A. Romero were wonderful creative partners. Not only did their collaboration yield some excellent genre fare (including 1982’s Creepshow and 1993’s The Dark Half), but fans will forever be able to speculate and wonder about the adaptations they wanted to make together but couldn’t make work – including visions for The Stand, IT and Pet Sematary. There is a forever link between the legacies of the two men, and it got a bit stronger this week, as King has named Romero’s seminal film, 1968’s Night Of The Living Dead, to be the scariest horror movie of all time.

In advance of Halloween, Variety is publishing a series of features from guests writing about their favorite scary films, and Stephen King selected the title that reinvented the cinematic concept of the zombie. In his piece, he argues that picking a “scariest” movie is subjective based on age, as he felt that superlative belonged to director Robert Wise’s The Haunting when he was 16, and as an adult, he fondly remembers being freaked out by The Blair Witch Project (highlighting the work’s “building sense of doom and those truly horrible last 35 seconds”). When it comes to the “overall” perspective, however, his choice is Night Of The Living Dead.

Made independently with a shoestring budget, Night Of The Living Dead was George A. Romero’s first feature film and a title that has gone from being a controversial release to being considered a cinematic classic. The story centers on a group of strangers who find themselves holed up in a farmhouse when dead people mysteriously start getting resurrected and attacking the living. The film famously features a combination of shocking horror and smart commentary on race and capitalism, and it has long been considered a genre staple.

In his piece about the film, Stephen King argues that time and pop culture have sucked some of the scariness out of Night Of The Living Dead, but it’s nonetheless a title that left him with indelible memories thanks to its grimness and minimalism. King writes,

If you have never seen Night Of The Living Dead, perhaps Spooky Season 2024 will be remembered as the holiday when you changed that. For what it’s worth, it’s exceptionally easy to find, as a mistake with the copyright in the development of the film has left it forever in the public domain (you can check it out right now on everyone’s favorite streaming service, Wikipedia). That being said, should you wish you watch the best widely available version of the movie, you I would recommend you pick up the 4K UHD release from The Criterion Collection.

Salem’s Lot’s Alfre Woodard Discusses Diversity In Stephen King Stories And Increased Diversity In The New Adaptation

To be frank, racial diversity has never been a particular strength in Stephen King’s writing. He does include some minority characters in his books, but the vast majority of his protagonists and antagonists are white, and there are multiple examples in his bibliography of him leaning on the Magical Negro trope (such as Mother Abigail Freemantle from The Stand, Speedy Parker in The Talisman and John Coffey in The Green Mile).

I had this history in mind late last month when I did the virtual press day for writer/director Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot and spoke with actress Alfre Woodard. In the new movie (which is now available to stream with Paramount+ subscription), Woodard plays Dr. Cody, who is a white male character from the book that is race and gender swapped for the film, and I used part of my interview time to ask her about the lacking diversity in the King canon. She acknowledged that the author’s heart is in the right place politically-speaking, and pointed to the fact that his writing very much reflects the environment in which he grew up:

Stephen King has long been directly associated with Maine, and Alfre Woodward makes a strong point that King’s book’s reflect the state’s demographics. According to the 2020 census, the population of Maine is 90.8 percent white and the Black/African American population accounts for just 1.9 percent.

Alfre Woodard’s Dr. Cody is one of two prominent Black characters in Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot – with the other being Jordan Preston Carter as young horror-obsessive Mark Petrie. Woodward had great praise for the energy her young co-star brought to the film and also spoke to the value of adaptations enhancing diversity among the characters:

Salem’s Lot is now streaming, so you can add it to your Halloween watch list along with Night Of The Living Dead.

Katy O’Brian And Daniel Ezra Have Joined Glen Powell In The Cast Of Edgar Wright’s The Running Man

It was all the way back in April during CinemaCon 2024 that Glen Powell was announced as the lead of Edgar Wright’s developing remake of The Running Man, but he remained alone on the cast list for a very long time. That being said, we’ve been expecting casting news ever since word came out during the summer that the project was aiming for a fall start of production, and we finally got some this week. There are still a lot of roles to be filled, but we learned in the past few days that the upcoming film will include Katy O’Brian and Daniel Ezra in its supporting cast.

Technically a remake of the 1987 movie of the same name starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, the new adaptation of The Running Man is set to be a much more faithful adaptation of the book it’s based on (which Stephen King wrote under the pseudonym Richard Bachman). The dystopian tales follows a man named Ben Richards who is desperate to find a way to make money so that he can support his wife and sick child. With no options available to him, he ends up volunteering as a game show contestant for the government-sponsored TV network, and he is selected as the newest “star” of The Running Man: a show that turns him into a targeted fugitive and sees his potential prize money go up the longer he can stay alive.

The Hollywood Reporter says that Katy O’Brian will be playing “one of the contestants on the show” – though it’s not entirely clear how that will work, as The Running Man only features one contestant at a time in the book. Deadline reported the Daniel Ezra casting, but the report doesn’t mention what role he landed. O’Brian just recently worked with Glen Powell in the new film Twisters and her other standout credits include Love Lies Bleeding starring Kristen Stewart, the Star Wars streaming series The Mandalorian and Marvel Studios’ Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania. Ezra is best known for playing the lead in the football-centric CW series All American.

Filming on The Running Man is set to start soon, so we can expect more casting news in the weeks ahead. Paramount Pictures has announced that the movie will be arriving in theaters in a little over 12 months – specifically on November 21, 2025. It is one of three Stephen King adaptations currently set to appear on the 2025 movie release schedule (the other two being Osgood Perkins’ The Monkey and Mike Flanagan’s The Life Of Chuck), but we’re also still waiting for Francis Lawrence’s The Long Walk to get a release date after completing production in recent weeks.

That wraps up this latest edition of The King Beat, but I’ll be back next Thursday here on CinemaBlend for a brand new roundup of the latest news out of the world of Stephen King. In the meantime, you can explored the history of King in film and television with my series Adapting Stephen King.

SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains light spoilers for the new Salem’s Lot adaptation, Stephen King’s novel, and the Dark Tower series. If you haven’t watched/read one or all of them and don’t wish to know anything about them, proceed at your own risk!

The arrival of a new Stephen King movie is always a thrill for the author’s legion of fans – and it’s been an exciting fall. It was just a few weeks ago that Mike Flanagan’s The Life Of Chuck premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, and now, after literal years of waiting, Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot is finally available to stream for Max subscribers. In last Thursday’s edition of The King Beat, I reported on how the new movie connects to Dauberman’s history with King, as he previously wrote the scripts for IT and IT: Chapter Two, but this week, I have something different: how Salem’s Lot doesn’t connect to the larger King universe but almost did through a super cool idea.

Along with information about the other big new Stephen King-related release in the last few days (a fresh audiobook recording of Danse Macabre) and a new Recommendation Of The Week, this fresh column is bursting with awesome, so let’s dig in!

Salem’s Lot Director Heavily Considered A Connection Between Salem’s Lot And Stephen King’s The Dark Tower

While Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot is the third adaptation of the Stephen King novel, it’s the first that has been made with the opportunity to link the beloved vampire story into the larger universe of King’s fiction – by which I mean the saga of The Dark Tower. As fans of the epic western/sci-fi/fantasy series know, one the Salem’s Lot’s key characters, Father Donald Frank Callahan, makes a notable return in The Dark Tower V: Wolves Of The Calla, but neither of the miniseries based on the 1975 book (respectively released in 1979 and 2004) could adapt that link because they went into production before the tome existed.

So does 2024’s Salem’s Lot actually link to The Dark Tower and establish that never-before-possible link? The short, spoiler-free answer is no… but not for a lack of trying, as I learned last month during an interview with Gary Dauberman.

Broaching the subject in our conversation, I first asked about his familiarity with the Dark Tower series, and he immediately knew what I was setting up as my next question. With awareness that the film doesn’t create the link between Salem’s Lot and the mixed-genre masterpiece, I asked if there was a draft of the script that did make the connection, and he explained why it didn’t work:

In the novel Salem’s Lot, Father Callahan – an alcoholic grappling with a crisis of faith – sees his role in the story come to an end when he has a one-on-one confrontation with the vampire Kurt Barlow. His lack of conviction in his religion sees the cross he wields become useless, and in a moment of pure weakness, Barlow forces him to drink his blood. Having been damned, he can no longer enter his own church, and he ultimately departs Salem’s Lot on a bus to New York. (With the new movie having just been released today, I won’t give away how the adaptation changes the end of his story).

The Dark Tower V: Wolves Of The Calla reveals what happens to Callahan after he leaves The Lot, and Gary Dauberman is not ignorant of how great the story is. In fact, he told me that he even pitched a Callahan-centric TV series that didn’t end up gaining traction. Said the filmmaker,

Lightly discussing his vision, Dauberman explained that the prospective show would have picked up after the events of his Salem’s Lot adaptation and hewed close to the material in the fifth chapter of the Dark Tower series:

This probably goes without saying, but I wholly agree. Callahan is a fascinating character worthy of further exploration, and the setting Gary Dauberman describes would be a rich backdrop for the tale of a damned priest looking for redemption. And, of course, let’s not ignore that following further trauma, the character ends up becoming a vampire hunter and targeted by agents of the sinister Sombra Corporation. It’s a sad thing that the series’ potential wasn’t recognized (especially during a time when Warner Bros. is expanding on feature properties with spinoff shows, like the upcoming IT prequel Welcome To Derry).

The silver lining here is that there remains hope of someday seeing Callahan’s expanded story on screen – specifically with the Dark Tower series adaptation that Mike Flanagan is presently developing. The filmmaker has expressed the hope of making a show that faithfully brings King’s vision to life, and one imagines that includes the tale of the priest from Salem’s Lot. It’s not something fans would get to see until late in the prospective series’ run (the material is featured in the fifth of seven books), but we can keep fingers tightly crossed that Flanagan will get there someday.

Known from his roles in The Big C, Jessica Jones, The Good Fight and Gossip Girl, John Benjamin Hickey plays Father Callahan in Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot – which is now streaming on Max and co-stars Lewis Pullman, Makenzie Leigh, Alfre Woodard, William Sadler, Bill Camp, Spencer Treat Clark, and Pilou Asbæk. Be sure to stay tuned here on CinemaBlend in the coming days for more from my interviews with the writer/director and the film’s stars.

New Danse Macabre Audiobook Released

As regular King Beat readers know, I am a big fan of physical media (ever trying to build the ultimate Stephen King collection), but I also love audiobooks. I listen to them pretty much daily when I exercise, and there are many phenomenal listens for Stephen King fans – with personal favorites including Steven Weber performance of IT, David Morse’s read of Revival, and King’s own recording of On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft Book.

There are many titles that I would recommend in the format, and a new one just became available in just the last few days: Danse Macabre read by Holter Graham.

For those who aren’t familiar with it, Danse Macabre was Stephen King’s first non-fiction book – originally published in 1983 but later republished and expanded in 2010. It’s an exploration that dives into the history of horror in a wide variety of mediums and reflects on its influences, purpose and impact. Coming from one of the greatest writers to ever tackle the medium, it’s obviously incredibly insightful and fascinating.

This isn’t the first time that a Danse Macabre audiobook has been produced, as another version exists read by William Dufris, but Holter Graham delivers what I feel is a superior and engaging performance. It furthers an already solid relationship between Graham and the works of Stephen King, as he previously narrated the audiobook for Christine and contributed to the read of the omnibus Just After Sunset.

The Danse Macabre audiobook is now available from digital retailers including Audible, Barnes & Noble and Google Play.

Recommendation Of The Week: “One For The Road”

Have you already watched Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot and now want to read more about the doomed titular town? I’ve previously used this section of The King Beat to recommend “Jerusalem’s Lot,” which is the prequel story included in the 1978 Stephen King collection Night Shift, but now that the new film is out, I figure now is a great time to highlight “One For The Road” – a sequel tale featured in the same book.

Rather than focusing on the continuing adventures of Ben Mears and Mark Petrie, “One For The Road” is set two years after the events of Salem’s Lot and finds that the burned town has gained a reputation as a place of terror that people should stay away from. Unfortunately, protagonist Booth and his friend Herb "Tookey" Tooklander don’t have the luxury of staying away when they learn of a woman and child who have been stranded in the vampire-infested hamlet, left in a broken down car during a blizzard.

That wraps up this week’s edition of The King Beat, but I’ll be back next Thursday with a brand new column examining all of the biggest new developments in the world of Stephen King. In the meantime, you can discover all of the King projects in the works with our Upcoming Stephen King Movies and TV feature, and learn about the full history of King on screen with my Adapting Stephen King series.

How To Watch Salem’s Lot (2024) Online

Watch Salem’s Lot: Synopsis

As autumn falls and the days get darker, it’s the perfect time to get reacquainted with Stephen King’s spine-tingling tale about a New England town overrun by vampires. Tobe Hooper’s CBS miniseries was the first adaptation to traumatize a generation of young’uns. Now we’re headed back to the Lot as the writer of It (2017) and the creator of The Conjuring franchise present us with a terrifying new take on the undead source material. Follow our guide below to watch Salem’s Lot online – and exclusively on Max in the US.

Published in 1975, Salem’s Lot was just the second novel from prolific author King, but it’s one of his most enduring. A chilling tale about an author returning to his childhood home, only to face an ancient evil that causes a vampiric plague to run rampant through the town of Jerusalem’s Lot, the story has maintained a sturdy foothold in the popular imagination.

That’s partly thanks to Hooper’s iconic 1979 version. Yes, there was the 2004 miniseries with Rob Lowe and one critically-panned theatrical sequel. But neither grabbed viewers by the throat as forcibly as Hooper’s, with its spooky, thick-as-fog atmosphere and plethora of shriek-inducing jump scares. Remember the levitating boy at the windowpane? The hideous visage of “the master”? Of course you do! They’re the stuff of nightmares.

It's no surprise, then, that hopes were high for this return to Salem’s Lot. This first-ever feature-film adaptation features Lewis Pullman (Bad Times at the El Royale) as Ben Mears, and Jordan Preston Carter (Ms. Marvel, The Haves and the Have Nots) as horror-movie enthusiast Mark Petrie, who join forces to defeat the evil residing within the infamous Marsten House. The cast also boasts Golden Globe winner Alfre Woodard as Dr. Cody, and Pilou Asbæk (Game of Thrones) as the town’s latest interloper, the suave but sinister Richard Straker.

It's been a long wait for fans of Kings seminal book, with the film delayed nearly two years, but with producer James Wan and writer-director Gary Dauberman, both of who have worked their magic with The Conjuring universe, at the helm, expectations were high. Reaction at this stage is mixed, though the film is yet to receive its cinematic bow in the UK, but William Bibbiani of The Wrap called the modern reimagining a “popcorn-spilling, shriek-inducing, tricky little treat” while radio Times said it "offers some edge-of-the-seat thrills."

Ready to sink your teeth into this brand-new King adaptation? Then read on as we explain how to watch Salem’s Lot (2024) online, and from anywhere in the world with a VPN.

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Watch Salem’s Lot online in the US

US viewers can watch Salem’s Lot online exclusively on streaming service Max. The movie landed on the platform on October 3, so get streaming now. But remember: “You can do nothing against The Master!”

A Max subscription is available from $9.99 a month. There are a number of membership options too, so if you want to skip commercials and download shows to watch on the go, you can opt for the $16.99 a month plan instead. Max has also introduced a more premium tier which throws in 4K streaming too at $20.99 a month.

Alternatively, save up to 20% by signing up to its annual rates ($99.99/$169.99/$209.99 a year respectively).

You can also now get Max as a part of a Disney Plus bundle, with prices starting from £16.99 a month.

How to watch Salem’s Lot from anywhere

If you're a US citizen on vacation or working overseas, you can still watch Salem’s Lot online just as you would at home.

While services like Max block access from IP addresses outside of the US, there's a handy piece of software called a VPN that can change your IP address to make it look like you're accessing streaming services from any country in the world.

For example, US citizens overseas can subscribe to a VPN, join a US-based server and access their subscription from anywhere in the world, just like they would back home.

How to use a VPN to unblock streaming services:

1. Choose your ideal VPN and install – our go-to recommendation for unblocking is NordVPN, costing from $3.99 a month with its 2-year plan

2. Connect to a server – for Max, for example, you'll want to connect to a server based in the US

3. Go to the stream you wish to access - for Salem's Lot, head to Max.

Watch Salem’s Lot online in Canada

Got an insatiable thirst for great entertainment? Canadians will want to head to Crave to watch Salem’s Lot (2024) online, where the horror movie landed on Thursday, October 3 and is available to stream right now.

And if you’re new to the platform, there’s a 7-day free trial up for grabs; you will, however, need to provide a Canadian phone number and your credit card details.

Customers have a choice of three plans to subscribe to. Basic is Crave’s cheapest plan at CA$9.99 a month (+tax), but you're limited to a HD stream on one device. The Standard plan costs CA$14.99 a month (+tax) with top resolutions and the ability to watch across four devices, while the Premium option is ad-free, includes offline downloads and live channels, and costs CA$22 per month.

Can I watch Salem’s Lot online in the UK?

It might suck, but UK viewers can’t stream Salem’s Lot online just yet, and its future streaming home is yet to be announced too. It’s bound to be available online in a few months’ time, though, once its theatrical release window comes to an end.

However, unlike US viewers, UK fright fans can enjoy Salem’s Lot (2024) on the big screen. The supernatural horror film is coming to UK cinemas from Friday, October 11 – a spooky treat leading up to Halloween.

A US viewer abroad in the UK? If you want to connect to a streaming service like Max while out of the country, simply download a VPN and get access to the same great content you’d watch back home.

How to watch Salem’s Lot in Australia

The master is coming…to Binge, if you’re based Down Under. Salem’s Lot premiered Thursday, October 3 for Australian viewers and can now be watched via the popular streaming platform. New subscribers can try out the service with its 7-day free trial, after which subscriptions begin from as little as AU$10 a month.

Away from home? Simply purchase a VPN to connect to your streaming service of choice and watch your favorite TV shows and movies from anywhere.

Salem’s Lot (2024) Trailer

Who Is The Cast Of Salem’s Lot (2024)?

• Lewis Pullman as Ben Mears
• Makenzie Leigh as Susan Norton
• Alfre Woodard as Dr. Cody
• William Sadler as Parkins Gillespie
• Bill Camp as Matthew Burke
• Pilou Asbæk as Richard Straker
• John Benjamin Hickey as Father Callahan
• Jordan Preston Carter as Mark Petrie
• Spencer Treat Clark as Mike Ryerson
• Nicholas Crovetti as Danny Glick
• Cade Woodward as Ralph Glick
• Alexander Ward as Kurt Barlow

This year, Stephen King fans around the world celebrated the 50th anniversary of Carrie, which is notably the first novel that the author had published – but Constant Readers will note that it wasn’t his first piece of published fiction. Instead, that superlative belongs to “I Was A Teenage Grave Robber,” which King wrote in high school and was included in a 1965 issue of the fanzine Comics Review. Because of the short story, that publication is a pretty important part of literary history… and it also has a fun place in the history of the new adaptation of Salem’s Lot.

With the upcoming horror film set to arrive for Max subscribers on October 3, I had the chance to interview Salem’s Lot writer/director Gary Dauberman earlier this month, and it was at the very end of our conversation that I learned a wonderful bit of trivia about the movie. While discussing Stephen King’s remarkable literary legacy, the filmmaker told me that there is a deleted scene from the new adaptation that features the aforementioned issue of Comics Review. Said Dauberman,

For the uninitiated, Ben Mears (played by Lewis Pullman in the film), is the protagonist of Salem’s Lot – an author who returns to his hometown while hoping to find inspiration for his next book. Mark Petrie (Jordan Preston Carter) is a young resident of the town who also happens to be an expert in regards to all things monster related. They end up becoming close allies as Jerusalem’s Lot, Maine is engulfed by a plague of vampires.

It was in part a general passion for the work of Stephen King that led Gary Dauberman to adapt and direct Salem’s Lot (he previously wrote the screenplays for both IT and IT: Chapter Two), and when he had the opportunity to hold the zine that included the author’s first published short story, it actually overwhelmed him emotionally. With a touch of embarrassment instantly replaced by a bold “whatever” attitude, Dauberman continued,

If you have the money to get a copy of “I Was A Teenage Grave Robber,” it is truly a treasure in the history of Stephen King that would be a gem for any collection – but very few have that kind of disposable income.

As for whether or not fans will ever get to see the scene discussed here... that remains an open question. Hopefully the film will eventually get a physical home video release that includes a litany of special features, including deleted scenes.

Co-starring Makenzie Leigh, Bill Camp, Pilou Asbæk, Alfre Woodard, John Benjamin Hickey and William Sadler in addition to the aforementioned Lewis Pullman and Jordan Preston Carter, Salem’s Lot arrives just in time for the heart of spooky season this Thursday, October 3 and we've all the info on how to watch right here. Stay tuned here on CinemaBlend in the coming days for more from my interview with Gary Dauberman as well as the new streaming film’s stars, and check out our Upcoming Stephen King Movies & TV guide to learn about all of the adaptations currently in the works.

September comes to an end and October now begins. Anybody who hasn’t gotten into the spooky season yet is probably ready now, and all the best streaming services are here to help. A lot of great horror content is on the way, but that’s far from all.

With so much content changing joining, and leaving, streaming services with the first of the month, it can be extra difficult to find the good stuff. There’s so much new on Netflix that digging through it all can be a chore. With something new on Hulu every day, how do you decide what’s worth watching? Here are a few suggestions.

New TV

Love is Blind (Season 7) - October 2 (Netflix)

In an era where dozens of dramatic streaming shows get canceled after only a couple of seasons, reality shows have found much more success and are a great reason to have a Netflix subscription. Love is Blind has been one of Netflix’s most consistent hits over the years, seeing multiple spinoffs in other countries, but the U.S. version is back this week for Season 7.

The Simpsons (Season 35) - October 2 (Disney+)

While Disney, and therefore Disney+ are known as animation powerhouses, it was only with the purchase of Fox that one of the most popular animated series ever became part of the Disney family. For three and a half decades The Simpsons has been part of our lives, and the most recent season joins the other 34 this week for everybody with a Disney+ subscription.

Unsolved Mysteries (Volume 5) - October 2 (Netflix)

While true crime is an incredibly popular genre now, before it took over podcasts, there was Unsolved Mysteries. The series ran for years on network TV and it has proven to be as popular today since the show was brought back by Netflix. A new batch of episodes drops this week that will likely get people playing amateur detective once again.

The Franchise - October 6 (Max)

Everybody loves superhero movies, but how often do we really think about what goes on behind the scenes? The Franchise debuts on HBO and Max this week with what looks to be a very humorous take on the production of a superhero franchise movie. It’s got a great cast including Daniel Brühl and Richard E. Grant and should be lots of fun.

New Movies

Salem’s Lot - October 3 (Max)

Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot has been adapted for the screen more than once, but most King fans would likely argue that the previous versions have never quite captured the magic of King’s vampire tale. After a very long process and multiple delays, a new adaptation of Salem’s Lot will finally drop, as long as you have a Max subscription.

As October continues and we get closer to Halloween there will be even more great spooky content coming to streaming services. We’ll also see new seasons of hit shows like The Lincoln Lawyer and a new Tomb Raider animated series that fans are looking forward to seeing.

While the majority of filmmakers who make Stephen King movies have a history of being one and done, there is a special list of names who have had much more significant impacts on the history of adaptations. This is a list that includes George A. Romero, Mick Garris, Rob Reiner, Frank Darabont, and Mike Flanagan, and now it also includes Gary Dauberman – who has gone from writing the screenplays for the blockbuster hits IT and IT: Chapter Two to helming the new movie Salem’s Lot.

So how did Dauberman carve out this path for himself? That’s the main story of this week’s fresh edition of The King Beat – which also includes a full update on casting for the developing TV adaptation of The Institute and a new recommendation from the author to watch an upcoming horror film that he is calling one of the best movies he has seen this year. Let’s dig in!

How Gary Dauberman's Approach To Salem’s Lot Was Helped Following His Experience Making IT

Every Constant Reader has their own special Stephen King origin story. For example, my personal fascination with the author dates back to watching director Mary Lambert’s Pet Sematary at too-young an age and being wowed by the sight of Gage Creed taking a bit out of Jud Crandall's Adam’s apple. For Gary Dauberman, his personal journey was launched by love for the original miniseries adaptations of IT and Salem’s Lot – and years later, that love would see him make his own versions of both those classic stories.

I had the terrific opportunity to interview the filmmaker at the end of last week to discuss his experience making his new Stephen King adaptation (which will be made available for Max subscribers on October 3), and the opening subject of our conversation concerned his going from writing IT and IT: Chapter Two to Salem’s Lot. He began by explaining how the small screen adaptations of the King titles were foundational in his love of both the author’s work and the horror genre in general, saying,

As for how adapting a remake of one Stephen King novel led to remaking another, the journey was rather simple for Gary Dauberman. In the aftermath of IT: Chapter Two’s blockbuster success, the filmmaker learned that Warner Bros. held the rights to King’s beloved novel about bloodsuckers, and there were plans to make a new adaptation as a TV series (what would have been the third small iteration of the story following Tobe Hooper’s 1979 miniseries and the 2004 version from Mikael Salomon). Having had the experience of making his directorial debut under his belt – 2019’s underrated Annabelle Comes Home – Dauberman convinced the studio to go in a different direction with the material:

The conversation to get the green light for Salem’s Lot may have been easy, but actually crafting the adaptation was a different story. Despite the novel’s setting being wholly limited to a small town in Maine, the scope of the book is significant, and Gary Dauberman was faced with a significant task. While the previous miniseries versions of the book each had about three hours of runtime to work with, the writer/director of the new version had far less real estate to work with in making the tome into feature.

It was here where Dauberman’s experience making IT was helpful. In writing the scripts for the Andy Muschietti-directed duology, he gained an understanding that even the most devout Stephen King fans will be forgiving when it comes to material being cut or changed when being brought to a new medium. Said the filmmaker,

Leaning on his past experience, Gary Dauberman felt a reduced anxiety going into the making of Salem’s Lot – though he also stressed that he still holds the source material in the highest esteem:

Starring Lewis Pullman, Makenzie Leigh, Bill Camp, Pilou Asbæk, Alfre Woodard, and William Sadler, Salem’s Lot arrives on Max next week, and I’ll have plenty more stories from my interview with Gary Dauberman here for you on CinemaBlend in the coming days.

The Institute Cast Has Filled Out In Advance Of Its Start Of Production Later This Year

While we are now just a little over a week away from the streaming debut of Salem’s Lot, it’s far from the only upcoming Stephen King project that has been earning anticipation from Constant Readers. Among these titles is The Institute – a brand new television series based on the King novel of the same name that is currently in the works as an MGM+ original. In recent weeks, the show has been expanding its cast, first signing stars Mary Louise-Parker and Ben Barnes before adding Simone Miller and Jason Diaz in key parts, and now it appears that the casting for the production is complete

The Institute is planning to start filming before the end of the year up in Canada (specifically in Nova Scotia), and Deadline got word this week of 11 new actors joining the cast. The list includes the following:

• Joe Freeman (Doctors)
• Fionn Laird (Under the Banner of Heaven)
• Hannah Galway (Under the Banner of Heaven)
• Julian Richings (Beau Is Afraid)
• Robert Joy (Julia)
• Viggo Hanvelt (Our Christmas Mural)
• Arlen So (Something Rotten)
• Birva Pandya (The Umbrella Academy)
• Dan Beirne (Ginny & Georgia)
• Martin Roach (Suits)
• Jane Luk (Streams Flow From A River)

The majority of these stars are new to the world of Stephen King movies and TV, but veteran character actors Julian Richings and Robert Joy are exceptions. The former’s credits include roles in the TV series Chapelwaite and Kingdom Hospital as well as the miniseries Bag Of Bones, while the latter previously had a supporting part in director George A. Romero’s The Dark Half.

Joe Freeman will play Luke Ellis, the series lead in The Institute. Luke is a gifted pre-teen who wakes up one morning to discover that he has been abducted and brought to a secluded, high security facility where he is experimented on as a means of expanding his potential for telekinesis. Fionn Laird, Viggo Hanvelt, Arlen So, and Birva Pandya will play fellow young inmates at the titular Institute while Robert Joy, Julian Richings and Jane Luk will portray various members of the administration.

Produced by Jack Bender (Mr. Mercedes) and Benjamin Cavell (The Stand), the first season run of The Institute will be eight episodes, but a release date has not yet been announced.

Stephen King Dubs The Rule Of Jenny Pen To Be One Of The Best Movies Of 2024

Stephen King has been a font for great movie recommendations in 2024, from hyping Late Night With Devil starring David Dastmalchian to promoting the spider-centric terror of Infested, and this week, the author has identified another title that all horror fans should be putting on their radar: The Rule Of Jenny Pen. The film just had its world premiere this month at Fantastic Fest, and the legendary author says it’s one of the best things he’s seen all year.

As per usual, this new recommendation comes via Stephen King’s Twitter feed. He got an early look at the upcoming scary movie starring John Lithgow and Geoffrey Rush, and he very clearly got a kick out of it:

Directed and co-written by James Ashcroft, The Rule Of Jenny Pen centers on a judge (Geoffrey Rush) who is trapped within his body following a stroke but must do everything he can to try and stop the actions of a lunatic (John Lithgow) who is abusing fellow residents at the rest home where he lives. The movie won two high profile awards at Fantastic Fest, including Best Director for Ashcroft and Best Actor for Rush.

News about wider distribution for The Rule Of Jenny Pen is currently limited, as while we know it has been acquired by Shudder, the only thing we know about release plans is that it will be part of the streamer’s library at some point in 2025. Stay tuned for more news about the movie as we get closer to the new year, however.

That brings this edition of The King Beat to a close, but I’ll be back next week with another new roundup of all the big news from the world of Stephen King. Be sure to head back here every Thursday for my latest column, and in the meantime, you can learn about the full history of King movies and TV shows with my series Adapting Stephen King.

There are always plenty of upcoming Stephen King movies and miniseries for fans to look forward to, but one in particular has been anticipated for a couple of years now. Salem’s Lot was filmed back in 2021, but its release was delayed. Ultimately it landed on the 2024 movie calendar, with Warner Bros. making the choice to release Salem’s Lot straight to streaming, and ahead of that October 3 premiere date, critics have gotten the opportunity to screen the film. Stephen King has already shared his opinion of the movie, so what are the critics saying?

Adapted from the novel released in 1975, Salem’s Lot stars Lewis Pullman as Ben Mears, a writer who returns to his childhood home in Jerusalem’s Lot to discover the town is being overtaken by vampires. In CinemaBlend’s review of Salem’s Lot, Eric Eisenberg says Gary Dauberman’s movie ranks in the middle of the pack of Stephen King movies, obviously condensed but sustained by its characters and scares. He rates the movie 3.5 stars out of 5, writing:

Fred Topel of UPI agrees that while this may not be the best Stephen King adaptation, the director is pretty successful at streamlining the story into a product fit for the spooky season. Topel writes:

William Bibbiani of The Wrap has an even higher opinion, saying Salem’s Lot raises the bar and may be the only Stephen King remake to get it right. Bibbiani calls the flick “a scream, with shockingly good jump scares, rousing heroics, and laugh-out-loud jokes.” This upcoming horror movie definitely deserved its day on the big screen, the critic says, continuing:

Tom Jorgensen of IGN, meanwhile, doesn’t agree, saying that while the movie kicks off well enough with a strong sense of identity, it slowly gives way to nonsense when the monsters are introduced, leading to a frustrating experience overall. Jorgensen rates the movie a “Mediocre” 5 out of 10, saying:

Jacob Oller of AV Club appears to concur, grading the movie a D+. In the process of streamlining the novel for the screen, Gary Dauberman has delivered a “scareless, slick, vampire-slaying horror, robbed of its small-town drama.” More from the critic:

Anytime a Stephen King book is adapted into a movie, characters and/or plot have to be cut, and we already know about two major changes from the novel. However, the critics aren’t in agreement over whether the director created a fun, character-driven scary movie or something with a little less soul.

If you’d like to check this out and form your own opinion about the Stephen King project, you can fire up that Max subscription starting Thursday, October 3.

When Stephen King novels get adapted as feature films, the name of the game is always compression. Even the longest of the long King movies (Frank Darabont’s 189 minute adaptation of The Green Mile and Mike Flanagan’s 180 minute director’s cut of Doctor Sleep) feature composite characters and skip over subplots from their source material. As cinematic as the books are, this is a reflection of the author’s style: his fiction creates not just lives but worlds.

The way in which many filmmakers have circumvented this obstacle in the past is by not adapting the books as features but instead as miniseries, and Salem’s Lot is a prime example. The novel (which is the second King had published) is not one of the writer’s longest tomes, but it has twice found a more comfortable home with the expanded real estate available on the small screen – first in director Tobe Hooper’s adaptation from 1979 and then again in 2004 with director Mikael Salomon at the helm. A standout part of the experience of the book is witnessing the creeping vampire infestation engulf the abbreviated titular town, and unfolding as a two-part series on television allowed that.

This history in mind, writer/director Gary Dauberman has defied convention with his new adaptation of Salem’s Lot, and the medium, as expected, does have an outsized impact. Its runtime is over an hour shorter than the combined episodes of the respective miniseries, and it means that it has a very different pacing and energy. It thusly requires an expectation adjustment from King’s dedicated Constant Readers, but what’s most important is that the core of the novel remains: an exciting tale of vampire-centric terror with a collection of compelling characters fighting against the monstrous forces of evil.

Lewis Pullman stars as Ben Mears, a novelist who travels to his hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot, Maine with the hopes of reconnecting with his past while working on his next book. His return comes shortly after the arrival of Richard Straker (Pilou Asbæk), a new resident who owns an antique store with his never-seen business partner Kurt Barlow (Alexander Ward), and also shortly before successive horrors start to hit the town. It starts with the disappearance of a young boy named Ralph Glick (Cade Woodward), who goes missing when he and his brother Danny (Nicholas Crovetti) are walking home from a friend’s house, but death then starts spreading like a cancer.

Though Ben himself is initially seen as a suspect by the town because he’s viewed as an outsider, he begins to understand the reality of what’s going on after friendly English teacher Matthew Burke (Bill Camp) survives an attack. Together with Matthew, the lovely and ambitious Susan Norton (Makenzie Leigh), local physician Dr. Cody (Alfre Woodard), alcoholic priest Father Callahan (John Benjamin Hickey) and brave young monster expert Mark Petrie (Jordan Preston Carter), Ben tries to save Salem’s Lot by destroying the evil at its source.

Salem’s Lot is missing the scope of Stephen King’s book, but it has a lot of good ideas.

After initially being set for theatrical release in 2022 and then sitting on a shelf for an extended period, the streaming arrival of Salem’s Lot may come with concern that the delay was reflective of quality shortcomings, but that’s far from the case. It’s a horror movie that makes time to develop the personalities of the characters and their bonds amid a time of extreme crisis (a specialty of Stephen King’s writing), and while it feels rushed in sections and lacks the scope of the source material, it balances the scales with smart story and style ideas.

Rather than complicating everything with the existence of cell phones, the film smartly maintains the novel’s mid-1970s time period, and where is deference demonstrated to Tobe Hooper’s beloved Salem’s Lot adaptation in certain choices (the most prominent being the monstrous appearance of Kurt Barlow), it’s still effectively scary while playing with the familiar and exercises its own creativity. Everyone aware of the book/miniseries knows to brace themselves for Danny Glick floating outside Mark Petrie’s window, but Dauberman still successfully makes you jump with the moment. The director and cinematographer Michael Burgess make exceptional use of silhouette in the haunting scene where Ralph is abducted (leading to a freaky first person perspective sequence in the moments leading up to his death), and while I won’t say too much as to avoid spoilers, the movie deviates from the novel making inventive use of a drive-in theater as key setting.

The film brings together a great cast to play the personality-filled ensemble of heroes.

Some cuts are more surprising and disappointing than others – like Ben Mears’ traumatic personal history at the Marsten House where Straker and Barlow live and the episodic instances of locals being attacked – but the movie does still effectively breathe life into the characters with dedicated time and wonderful performances. Lewis Pullman has a unassuming charm that is well-suited for the main protagonist in search of his next chapter, and the actor has terrific chemistry with co-star Makenzie Leigh, whose sweet bright-eyed Susan is filled with ambition and thrilled at the prospect of leaving The Lot.

Salem’s Lot does right by Mark Petrie, with Jordan Preston Carter infusing him with a powerful defiance who takes no guff from bullies; Bill Camp has the perfect level of gravitas for Matthew Burke to sell the others on the very real presence of the supernatural in the Maine town; and both Alfre Woodard and William Sadler are scene-stealers – the former playing a woman of science who finds herself enraged in the face of real monsters, and the latter playing a man of the law who is very upfront about not giving a shit.

In the long, long legacy of Stephen King movies (there are over 50 to date), Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot is a title that ranks toward the middle of the pack – not bad, but also not exceptional. It’s a shame that it’s not getting a theatrical release, but it will certainly make for entertaining streaming viewing during Spooky Season 2024 and it beats the film getting deleted so that the studio could get a tax break.

Stephen King fans have been waiting a long, long time for writer/director Gary Dauberman's Salem's Lot. This is a feature that went into production all the way back in 2021 in advance of a set September 9, 2022 release date... but plans were changed in summer 2022, and after a temporary push to April 2023, the film was taken off the calendar completely.

Hope was restored that the adaptation wouldn't simply be deleted by Warner Bros. when a pivot to streaming was announced earlier this year, but only now do we finally have our first public look at the upcoming Stephen King movie, as seen above.

It was all the way back in spring 2022 that footage from Salem's Lot was first debuted at CinemaCon, but now everybody can enjoy a preview of the new horror film, which will be made available for anyone with a Max subscription on October 3. It's the first feature adaptation of what was Stephen King's second published novel, with two previous efforts turning the source material into TV miniseries.

Emmy nominee Lewis Pullman (Top Gun: Maverick, Lessons In Chemistry) stars as Ben Mears, an author who hopes to explore the greatest trauma from his childhood by writing a new book. When he returns to his hometown of Jerusalem's Lot, Maine, however, he discovers that the house he wants to rent (the setting of the aforementioned trauma) is being occupied by mysterious new tenants.

As Ben settles into town, he gets to know people in the community, but he also comes to recognize that the little hamlet has been plagued by a vampire infestation, and he and his friends must do everything in their power to stop it before it's too late.

In addition to Pullman, the talented cast also includes Makenzie Leigh, Alfre Woodard, Bill Camp, Pilou Asbæk, John Benjamin Hickey, Jordan Preston Carter, Spencer Treat Clark, and William Sadler.

While we've been waiting ages to see Salem's Lot, it's worth noting that Stephen King has had the opportunity to see the movie, and he has given it his stamp of approval. Earlier this year, he posted about it on his personal Twitter account, writing,

Salem's Lot is set to be part of a spooky season that includes a number of exciting upcoming horror movies, including the Christmas-themed return of Art The Clown in Terrifier 3 and the extreme insanity of The Substance, but Gary Dauberman's film is a special title as the first Stephen King adaptation of the year.

Stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for more updates about the title as we get closer to its streaming premiere, and for a full look at everything on the way to the big screen and subscription services in the months ahead, head over to our 2024 Movie Release Calendar.

For vampire fanatics missing the monsters’ cinematic heyday, one of the most hype-worthy upcoming horror movies is a new Stephen King adaptation in the form of Gary Dauberman’s ‘Salem’s Lot. For studio-related reasons, the project’s fate went unconfirmed for ages before its initial theatrical plans were flipped to make it streaming exclusive on Max earlier this year. Now, the flick finally revealed its premiere date, and the filmmaker expressed appreciation for King’s support in making sure its release happened.

When is 'Salem's Lot Debuting?

This release update might incense certain fans, as it includes not only the date to stream it with a Max subscription, but also the theatrical date for UK cinema-goers. They're noted below:

• Salem's Lot U.S. streaming premiere date on Max: October 3, 2004
• Salem's Lot UK theatrical release date: October 11

While the streaming era has definitely changed up the world of movie promotions, with Netflix bypassing lengthy marketing campaigns for the majority of its projects, it’s still absolutely bonkers that Warner Bros. waited until the eleventh hour to go public with this announcement. I mean, fans are going to watch no matter when it comes out, even if it's not hitting theaters in 2024, but casual horror viewers may still not even have any idea this thing exists.

Because, you know, it also doesn’t even have an official trailer out there yet, although at least a clip or two have been released. Sigh. But the silver-plated lining here is that it IS coming out, so we'll be counting those lucky stars while waiting on a preview.

Gary Dauberman Shares Appreciation For Stephen King

Speaking with Total Film about bringing new versions of Ben Mears and Kurt Barlow to fans 45 years after the TV miniseries, writer/director Gary Dauberman expressed his gratitude for Stephen King being a key factor in 'Salem's Lot making it through the long journey to its release. That said, he chose not to dig into the details at this point, and he kept things cordial by saying:

Though fans may never know if anything specific went on behind the scenes, the King of Horror has shared support for the film on social media. But perhaps more importantly, King expressed confusion over why WB and Max weren't more forthcoming with release plans, which is where a lot of fans likely learned that there were issues in the first place.

Below are a pair of X posts that specifically called out the inexplicable nature of a good horror film being held from horror-loving audiences.

• The Warner Bros remake of SALEM'S LOT, currently shelved, is muscular and involving. It has the feel of 'Old Hollywood,' when a film was given a chance to draw a breath before getting to business. When attention spans were longer, in other words. - November 1, 2023
• Between you and me, Twitter, I've seen the new SALEM'S LOT and it's quite good. Old-school horror filmmaking: slow build, big payoff. Not sure why WB is holding it back; not like it's embarrassing, or anything. Who knows. I just write the fucking things. - February 19, 2024

Max is also where the Stephen King prequel series IT: Welcome to Derry was set before it was shifted over to becoming an HBO exclusive. So perhaps someone at the streaming platform just doesn't like releasing projects that feature some of the scariest creatures in all of literature and cinema.

But now we know Kurt Barlow will run amok on streaming audiences when 'Salem's Lot hits Max on Thursday, October 3.

There are many upcoming Stephen King Movie adaptations and TV miniseries for fans of horror movies to be excited about. Still, one in particular has had my attention for over two years–Salem’s Lot. Initially slated for 2022, the upcoming Salem’s Lot faced delay after delay and then was removed from any release schedule. I was sure the movie would never be released, but now, the flick is headed to streaming exclusively to all with a Max subscription. One of the film’s stars opened up in a recent interview about some significant changes from the original novel, and I’m already questioning why on earth this happened.

In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Makenzie Leigh, who plays Susan Norton in the upcoming page-to-screen adaptation, shared some insights into these significant departures from King’s original 1975 classic and how they freed her up for her performance. The actress explained:

According to EW, perhaps the most jarring of the changes in this reimagining is a swapped ending that exchanges the novel's iconic climax for a high-octane set piece set at a drive-in. The Slap star discussed what it was like to take on such a physically demanding ending and the excitement she and fellow Salem’s Lot cast mate Lewis Pullman felt getting to learn stunts for the sequence. Leigh shared:

Okay, I will try to maintain an open mind, but as someone who has been reading King for a long time, I'm a bit puzzled by this change. Spoiler alert for a 50-year-old novel: In the original book, Susan becomes a vampire before the final act, which is a tragic development for her character. Then, Ben Mears and Matt return to the “Lot” to burn it down and smoke the remaining vampires. It may not be the most action-packed ending for a movie, but for the book, it's very gothic and befitting of the time of the book's release. This change by the director has me wondering if this film reinterprets her journey—especially with hints that her fate might not align with the source material.

If Dauberman's Salem's Lot changes the trajectory of such a beloved character, it will surely spark debate among die-hard fans. Making Susan a more complex and proactive figure could be a positive shift, but for purists, these changes might not sit well. Of course, this could all be a big misunderstanding, and perhaps Susan is a vampire during this drive-in sequence, which could bring a bit more thrills to the screen than is present in the original book.

It’s still unclear whether these changes will enhance the experience or take away from King’s original chilling story. The 1975 novel is beloved for its slow-building tension and psychological horror, but the new adaptation seems to favor a more action-packed, adrenaline-fueled approach. As the release date nears, it remains to be seen if the film can capture the novel's eerie, small-town atmosphere while making these bold creative changes. Only time will tell if these deviations will pay off, but one thing is sure: this 'Salem's Lot won't be a faithful, shot-for-shot remake.

'Salem's Lot is set to premiere on Max this October, just in time for Halloween. Be sure to check out our upcoming horror movie list to see what other spooky films are slated for the 2024 release schedule and beyond.

When you look back on the best movies of the 1970s, what kinds of characters come to mind first? We are willing to bet it is not the good guys, but the bad buys you remember the most fondly. Let's take a menacing walk down memory lane with some of the most iconic '70s movie villains.

Michael Myers (Halloween)

The masked killer from John Carpenter's horror movie classic, Halloween, is, arguably,  the scariest slasher of all time, and not just because he is one of the first of his kind. In the 1978 original, Michael Myers has no apparent motive to stalk Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) and other Haddonfield babysitters, save an unsatiable, natural-born bloodlust that makes him the embodiment of evil.

Sheriff Buford T. Justice (Smokey And The Bandit)

The only thing in the way of The Bandit (Burt Reynolds) getting his black T-top Trans Am — one of the coolest cars in cinematic history — across state lines is Sheriff Buford T. Justice. Comedy legend Jackie Gleason steals the show in 1977's Smokey and the Bandit as the relentless lawman who becomes The Bandit's pursuer after Carrie (Sally Field) leaves his son at the altar.

Xenomorph (Alien)

Has there ever been a scarier cinematic creature than H.R. Giger's design of the Xenomorph in Alien? The bloodthirsty extraterrestrial proves to be a little more than a thorn in the side of the crew of the Nostromo in the masterfully suspenseful, 1979 sci-fi movie classic from director Ridley Scott.

Lex Luthor (Superman: The Movie)

The Man of Steel has the ability to do things no human being can, and yet his archenemy is a mere mortal of immense power and intelligence named Lex Luthor. Academy Award winner Gene Hackman's performance in one of the best superhero movies, 1978's Superman: The Movie (also starring Christopher Reeve in the title role), has since become the definitive live-action portrayal of the DC villain.

Dr. Christian Szell (Marathon Man)

If going to the dentist was not already nerve-racking enough for some people, director John Schlesinger's 1976 thriller Marathon Man made the idea seem anything but safe. Sir Laurence Olivier gives a brilliant, chilling, Oscar-nominated performance as Dr. Christian Szell — a Nazi war criminal and diamond smuggler who tortures his victims with painful oral surgeries.

Nurse Mildred Ratched (One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest)

While One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is praised as one of the most honest movies about mental illness, one thing about the 1975 classic that we would hope is exaggerated is how Mildred Ratched treats patients. Louise Fletcher earned a well-deserved Oscar for portraying the abusive, self-righteous mental nurse with a severe lack of humanity. 

Pazuzu (The Exorcist)

Regan MacNeill (legendary horror movie Scream Queen Linda Blair) often shows up on many all-time best horror movie villain lists, but she is the victim here. The true antagonist of 1973's The Exorcist is the demonic force possessing the 12-year-old girl known as Pazuzu.

Scorpio (Dirty Harry)

Only a cop as tough and rebellious as Det. Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood) could take down a psychopathic murderer as cunning and unpredictable as the mysterious "Scorpio." Andrew Robinson is unplugged as the out-of-control antagonist of 1971's Dirty Harry, whose penchant for toying with the authorities through ransom notes was loosely inspired by the real-life Zodiac Killer.

Alex DeLarge (A Clockwork Orange)

Sometimes the protagonist of a story counts as its villain and such is certainly the case for Stanley Kubrick's classic film adaptation of Anthony Burgess' A Clockwork Orange. Malcolm McDowell stars in the controversial 1971 thriller as sadistic criminal Alex DeLarge, who undergoes an experimental program that intends to correct violent people.

Darth Vader (Star Wars)

Easily the most recognizable character from the entire Star Wars franchise is Darth Vader and it is easy to see why. Voiced by James Earl Jones and originally portrayed in person by David Prowse in the 1977 original, the Sith Lord's ominous baritone, striking helmet design, and ruthless devotion to the Dark Side make him an intimidating force in any galaxy.

Col. Walter E. Kurtz (Apocalypse Now)

Capt. Benjamin L. Willard certainly experiences great "horror" in Francis Ford Coppola's 1979 war movie masterpiece, Apocalypse Now, at the hands of Col. Walter E. Kurtz. Inspired by a 19th-century ivory trader from Joseph Conrad's 1899 novella Heart of Darkness, Oscar-winning Marlon Brando's role is an unhinged sadist who will go to unimaginable lengths to win the Vietnam War his own way, no matter who has to kill or torture.

Margaret White (Carrie)

Her telepathic powers may have sealed the doom of many people, but the titular teen from Brian De Palma's 1976 adaptation of Stephen King's Carrie (played by Sissy Spacek) is anything but an antagonist. She is a victim of intense emotional and physical abuse by her own religious fanatic mother (and one of the all-time best female horror movie villains) Margaret White (Academy Award nominee Piper Laurie).

Alain Charnier (The French Connection)

Gene Hackman leads William Friedkin's 1971 Best Picture Oscar winner The French Connection as Popeye Doyle, who is the unique kind of cop who knows how to think like a criminal. However, even he struggles to stay one step ahead of Alain Charnier (Fernando Rey), who is the elusive, Marsaille-based leader of a crime operation in New York.

Leatherface (The Texas Chain Saw Massacre)

There really is no slasher in horror movie history quite like the flagship antagonist of Tobe Hooper's relentless nightmare transferred to celluloid, 1974's The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Being a cannibal who wears his victim's faces as a mask makes Leatherface (Gunner Hansen) bad enough but chasing people around with a bladed power tool is pure insanity.

Apollo Creed (Rocky)

In the original sports movie classic, 1976's Rocky, all we want is to see Sylvester Stallone's titular rookie take down the arrogant boxing champion, Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers), which he finally manages to do in the 1979 sequel. Of course, all of that would change in 1982's Rocky III when the rivals formed a friendship that ended with Apollo's tragic death in the ring in the fourth film.

Kurt Barlow (Salem’s Lot)

One of the most terrifying vampires to ever grace the small screen was Kurt Barlow (Reggie Nalder). Director Tobe Hooper's two-part, made-for-TV 1979 adaptation of Stephen King's Salem's Lot offers a wildly different interpretation from the novel's bloodsucking nobleman, his more creature-esque appearance, arguably, made for a more memorably creepy portrayal.

Dean Vernon Wormer (National Lampoon's Animal House)

If there is anything more important to the college experience than education, it must be a student's success in maintaining a social life, sometimes if that means indulging in debaucherous acts with fellow Greek life members. However, John Vernon's Dean Womer from the 1978 comedy classic National Lampoon's Animal House does not share this philosophy and, as a result, wishes to extract the rowdy Delta Tau Chi from Faber College.

Evelyn Draper (Play Misty for Me)

Clint Eastwood made his directorial debut with the 1971 thriller Play Misty for Me, in which he also stars as a radio DJ who crosses paths with Evelyn (Jessica Walter), a frequent caller who particularly favors an Erroll Garner classic. What starts off as a casual romantic encounter proves to have deadly consequences for Eastwood's Dave Garver as Evelyn forcibly inserts herself into his life.

Grand Moff Tarkin (Star Wars)

Of course, the most memorable villain from the original Star Wars is Darth Vader, but many fans might claim that the film's more formidable threat is the Sith Lord's right-hand man. Horror legend Peter Cushing stars as Tarkin, whose devotion to the Empire leads him to commit horrific acts, such as destroying Princess Leia's home planet, Alderaan.

Emilio Barzini (The Godfather)

There are not many "good guys" in Francis Ford Coppola's 1972 adaptation of Mario Puzo's The Godfather, but one of the absolute worst is Emilio Barzini. Richard Conte's crime boss proves to be the greatest foil to the Corleone Family.

Kananga/Mr. Big (Live And Let Die)

Yaphet Kotto gives a wonderfully charming, but also menacing, performance as one of the best James Bond villains of the 1970s, Dr. Kananga, in Live and Let Die. The most fascinating aspect of the politician, whom Roger Moore's 007 takes on, is his double life as a peddler called Mr. Big.

Han (Enter the Dragon)

Even a martial arts master like Bruce Lee had his fair share of challenging onscreen foes, especially in the 1973 kung fu movie masterpiece, Enter the Dragon. Lee (also the actor's character) is enlisted to investigate Han (Kien Shih), who is a shady former monk with a bladed left hand that makes him a horrifying opponent in combat.

Luther (The Warriors)

Actor David Patrick Kelly performs one of the most iconic improvised movie moments in Walter Hill's 1979 thriller, The Warriors, as Luther. The menacing gang leader tries to entice his titular rivals by clinking three glass bottles together and serenading them to "come out to play."

Mayor Larry Vaughn (Jaws)

We would call the shark from Jaws a type of horror movie villain with understandable motivations (considering the animal has no real violent ambitions and just wants to eat), but we believe does not really deserve that label. As far as we are concerned, the true antagonist of director Steven Spielberg's 1975 blockbuster is Mayor Larry Vaughn (Murray Hamilton), who greedily ignores any warnings of the aquatic apex predator and decides to keep Amity Island's beach open, leading to more bloodshed.

Toecutter (Mad Max)

Years before George Miller brought him back to play Immortan Joe in 2015's Mad Max: Fury Road, the Australian actor starred in the 1979 original Mad Max movie as its main antagonist, Toecutter. The sadistic criminal is not only a pivotal force in the fall of society, but you could also say he is the creator of the Wasteland's savior as it is his gang that killed Max Rockantansky's (Mel Gibson) wife and child, transforming the once devoted cop into a hardened road warrior.

Damien Thorn (The Omen)

What better representative of villainy could there be than the literal embodiment of evil? Harvey Stephens gives a chilling performance in 1976's The Omen as young Damien Thorn, whose parents Robert (Gregory Peck) and Katherine (Lee Remick), make the terrifying discovery that he is the Antichrist.

The Tall Man (Phantasm)

Jebediah Morningside (better known as The Tall Man) is the best-known role of actor Angus Schrimm, who was hired for the part in Phantasm based on his naturally unsettling appearance. Don Coscarelli's cult favorite 1979 supernatural thriller follows two young brothers who suspect the strange man is robbing from graves and sets out to figure out the shocking truth behind it.

Billy (Black Christmas)

There is very little known about the killer from one of the greatest holiday horror movies, Black Christmas, such as his true name, his actual appearance, and his reason for stalking and killing members of Pi Kappa Sigma. That is precisely what makes the villain of director Bob Clark's influential slasher such a hauntingly unsettling presence.

The Mutants (The Hills Have Eyes)

One of the earliest Wes Craven movies sees a vacationing family fall prey to another family of vicious, savage mutants when an accident leaves them stranded in a deserted area where nuclear testing once took place. The most iconic villainous cavedweller from the 1977 original The Hills Have Eyes is, easily, Michael Berryman as Pluto.

Lord Summerisle (The Wicker Man)

The character that made Christopher Lee a horror movie icon would have to be Hammer's iteration of Dracula, but the British actor brought an even more unique level of deceptive charm to his performance in 1973's The Wicker Man. He plays Lord Summerisle, who is the leader of an island community whose customs clash wildly so with Sgt. Howie (Edward Woodward) as he searches the land for a missing little girl.

General Woundwort (Watership Down)

In the 1978 adaptation of Richard Adams's novel, Watership Down — an animated film primarily for adults — the rabbits' main obstacle is human land developers destroying their home. However, they also come at odds with one of their own kind named Gen. Woundwort (Harry Andrews), who became a violent and erratic creature due to a brutal upbringing.

Dr. Phibes (The Abominable Dr. Phibes)

One of the most underrated roles on Vincent Price's prolific resume is the widowed Anton Phibes. The 1971 release of The Abominable Dr. Phibes sees him seeking to punish the physicians who were accidentally responsible for his wife's tragic death.

Last week was a fun trip for Stephen King fans. In addition to a bunch of anniversaries, Heather Langenkamp sharing her personal history with Pet Sematary, and the adaptation of The Long Walk adding its first two stars, we also learned that a TV show based on The Institute is officially a go as an MGM+ original. There was a lot to be excited about… and this past week hasn’t been so bad either.

This new edition of The King Beat is packed with goodies, as there are not only a couple of new anniversaries to celebrate/reflect on, but there is also some awesome news about Mike Flanagan’s The Life Of Chuck to digest. Without any further ado, let’s dig in!

Mike Flanagan’s The Life Of Chuck Is Set To Premiere At The Toronto International Film Festival, And I’m Raising My Hopes For Oscar Glory

Despite the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences traditionally demonstrating a bias against the horror genre, Stephen King adaptations have a long history with the Oscars. The very first King movie, Brian De Palma’s Carrie, received two standout nominations (Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress); Raynold Gideon and Bruce A. Evans got a Best Adapted Screenplay nod for Rob Reiner's Stand By Me; Kathy Bates won Hollywood’s highest honor for her work in Reiner’s Misery; and Frank Darabont’s The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile were collectively up for 11 trophies in their respective years of qualification.

Unfortunately, there has been a bit of an awards drought for King movies recently, as no title has been nominated for a prize in about 25 years, but it appears now as though Mike Flanagan’s The Life Of Chuck is being set up to be the title that ends that negative streak. It was officially announced this week that Flanagan’s feature follow up to 2019’s Doctor Sleep is going to have a standout fall festival premiere, as the work has been selected as one of the titles that will play at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. Nothing is guaranteed, but the news means that the movie is now set up to make a potential run during the upcoming awards season.

A specific date for the world premiere has not yet been set, but as you can see above, the news of the TIFF acceptance came with a first look at the movie. Those who have read the novella on which The Life Of Chuck is based will recognize the image as being a billboard from the first section of the story, which centers on a man named Marty Anderson as he goes about his daily life and starts seeing advertising everywhere that reads “Charles Krantz: 39 Great Years! Thanks Chuck!” It’s ultimately revealed that Marty isn’t real, and instead is part of an internalized world in the titular Chuck’s mind – which is slowly fading away as Chuck dies from a brain tumor at the age of 39.

Based on everything we’ve heard about The Life Of Chuck, it certainly sounds like the project will be right up the Academy’s alley. When CinemaBlend spoke with star Tom Hiddleston about the project late last year, he made a direct comparison between the movie and The Shawshank Redemption, which memorably earned seven Oscar nominations in 1995 despite practically no one having seen the movie in theaters. Karen Gillan has also spoken about the work, and she said that seeing an early cut left her “crying for days.”

Sadly, The Life Of Chuck has not announced a distributor yet, which means that we don’t yet know if the film will get a theatrical and/or streaming release date before the end of the year, but King fans everywhere are certainly keeping fingers crossed. The Toronto International Film Festival will run this year from September 5-15, and we’ll keep you up to date here on CinemaBlend with all of the latest news about the premiere of the new Mike Flanagan movie.

On The 20th Anniversary Of The Salem's Lot Miniseries Remake, I Formally Ask For A Blu-ray Release

Later this year, Stephen King fans will finally get their opportunity to see writer/director Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot. While the movie doesn’t have an official release date set up just yet, it has been confirmed that it will be arriving for people with a Max subscription later this year. Fingers are crossed that it will live up to the highest hopes of Constant Readers – but while we wait for that film, I want to take a minute to celebrate the previous remake of Salem’s Lot.

I’m talking about the Salem’s Lot miniseries that aired on TNT back in 2004 – the first episode premiering exactly 20 year ago today (June 20). The adaptation doesn’t receive nearly as much love as director Tobe Hooper’s version from 1979, but it’s an underrated work, and I’m choosing to keep my fingers crossed that it will join the HD age of physical media in the near future with a proper Blu-ray release.

Directed by Mikael Salomon and featuring a stellar cast that includes Rob Lowe, Andre Braugher, Rutger Hauer, Samantha Mathis, and James Cromwell, 2004’s Salem’s Lot is far from a perfect miniseries (it falls short of being called one of the best Stephen King TV projects), but it’s successful at pulling off moves that were impossible to make on 1970s television – including adapting some of the scariest sequences from the book. It does make some choices that are a tad too dark, impacting the audience’s appreciation for the characters, but it makes some bold swings with the material that end up being successful.

To date, the only physical media version of 2004’s Salem’s Lot is on DVD, but it is worth noting that Stephen King fans can watch the miniseries in HD via digital rental/purchase on Amazon Prime Video and Apple. So why no Blu-ray yet? Scream Factory notably did a fantastic job earlier this year putting out a restored version of Mick Garris’ remake of The Shining, and I’m hoping that they or another boutique label – be it Kino Lorber or Vinegar Syndrome – can get the rights and put out a disc that can be added to my Ultimate Stephen King Collection.

Reflecting On The 25th Anniversary Of Stephen King’s Near Fatal Accident

June 19, 1999 was a fateful day that Stephen King fans will never forget. While out for a walk on a quiet stretch of highway near his lake home in Maine, King was struck by a van that swerved off the road when the driver got distracted by his dog. As recounted in the 2000 book On Writing: A Memoir Of The Craft, the author was able to react to the vehicle, but he was unable to dodge it, and he ended up suffering devastating injuries. Twenty-five years ago, one of the greatest, most popular writers of all time was nearly killed.

Reflecting on this event a quarter-century later, we can not only be grateful that Stephen King survived, but that he continued to produce incredible books. Not only did he spend years channeling his trauma through his writing (key elements of Dreamcatcher, From A Buick 8, Lisey’s Story and Duma Key all tie back to the near fatal incident), but he also completed his epic Dark Tower series and reinvented himself as a mystery writer guided by his fictional muse: offbeat detective Holly Gibney. Some of his greatest novels, including Revival, 11.22.63, and Under The Dome have been published in the 21st century, and it’s scary to think how close the world came to being deprived of all that brilliant work.

This week, fans the world over should express gratitude that Stephen King is still with us, and I’ll let the writer himself have the final word on the matter:

Recommendation Of The Week: “The Answer Man”

It’s now been almost a full month since the release of You Like It Darker, but I am far from done recommending stories from its pages. In recent weeks, I’ve been using this section of The King Beat to highlight my favorite titles from the new collection, including “Two Talented Bastids,” “The Dreamers, “Danny Coughlin’s Bad Dream” and “Rattlesnakes,” and now it’s time to sing the praises of “The Answer Man.”

As I noted a few weeks ago in this column, “The Answer Man” is a story that took Stephen King nearly 50 years to finish, as he started it back in the 1970s, forgot about it, and only rediscovered it recently. In it, we are introduced to protagonist Phil Parker as he deals with a serious conundrum: a promising young lawyer, he is given the opportunity to join his family’s prestigious Boston law firm, but his true desire is to move to a small town and hang out his own shingle. He’s scared that his choice could ruin his life and the life of the woman he loves – but everything changes when he is driving around one day and comes upon a stranger at a roadside table who proclaims himself as The Answer Man.

For a modest price, The Answer Man is willing to answer Phil’s most pressing questions for a limited amount of time… but does anyone really want to know cold, hard truths about their own future? That’s a question that Stephen King addresses in devastating fashion.

That wraps up this week’s edition of The King Beat, but I’ll be back next Thursday with a brand new column here on CinemaBlend. In the meantime, you can read about all of the King projects that are currently in the works for both the big and small screens with our Upcoming Stephen King Movies and TV guide.

It was 20 years ago this week that fans first got to see Johnny Depp star in a Stephen King adaptation – playing mentally disturbed writer Mort Rainey in David Koepp’s Secret Window – but there’s no time to get lost in discussion of anniversaries in this week’s edition of The King Beat. There is far too much else to touch on!

In the past seven days, an ancient giant turtle was named after one of Stephen King’s characters, and the author shared a bizarre take on one of 2024’s first horror movies, but before I dig into those stories and my new Recommendation Of The Week, I first want to discuss the biggest recent King-related news: the long awaited release of Salem’s Lot.

I’m Glad Salem’s Lot Is Heading To Max, But That’s Mostly Because Streaming Is Better Than Deletion

Around this time one year ago, I was psyched about the changed distribution plans for Rob Savage’s The Boogeyman. The adaptation of the Stephen King story of the same name went through development and production planned as a Hulu exclusive, but everything changed when test screenings started. The movie freaked people out, and it inspired King to question why it wasn’t being given the chance to work its scary magic in theaters. Discussions were had, a pivot was made, and the feature ended its big screen run more than doubling the project’s reported budget.

This week, Constant Readers had to witness the exact opposite happen with Gary Dauberman’s upcoming film Salem’s Lot. After originally being planned as a theatrical release and sitting on a shelf for years, it’s now been confirmed that it will get distribution in 2024 as a Max exclusive. When the news broke on Tuesday, I was excited, as it was nice to finally hear about a positive update about the film instead of more rumors and speculation… but that excitement in hindsight feels a little wrong. In short, it sucks that we have to settle for the movie being a streaming title and be happy that it’s getting released at all.

In recent months, the idea of Salem’s Lot never getting to see the light of day felt like a real possibility. The film is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, which is notably the same company that decided to take a tax break and cancel the releases of both the superhero film Batgirl and the animated Scoob!: Holiday Haunt (and it’s looking like Coyote vs. Acme may be the next title to face that same fate). From a fan perspective, the Stephen King adaptation has been held hostage since it completed production back in late 2021, and we’re happy to see it released needing medical care instead of being outright murdered.

We can hope that Max will give Salem’s Lot a good push when we get closer to its release and that it will get the attention it deserves (with further boosting from Stephen King). The truth, however, is that the movie won’t get the same attention it would have if it were heading to theaters, and it feels like there is a very real danger that it will suffer the same fate as most streaming titles and be obscured by algorithms and ultimately buried in the library.

Salem’s Lot doesn’t currently have a specific release date, but stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for all of the latest updates about the film.

A New Species Of Giant Turtle Has Been Discovered, And It’s Been Named After Stephen King’s Maturin

There are great forces of evil in the works of Stephen King, but balancing them out are great forces of good, and there is perhaps none greater than Maturin The Turtle. The immense cosmic amphibian is said to have emerged from his shell with a stomach ache and vomited out the universe, and he is the true foe of the titular entity in IT and is one of the 12 Guardians of the Beam in The Dark Tower books. He is an important figure in King lore – which is why it was amazing to learn this week that a new species of giant turtle has been discovered and named after him.

A research team led by Dr. Gabriel S. Ferreira of the Senckenberg Center for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment at the University of Tübingen has published an article in the journal Biology Letters detailing the unearthing of a never-before seen fossil from the late Pleistocene era, and it has been named Peltocephalus maturin. According to the research, the amphibian is “among the largest freshwater turtles ever found,” with a carapace length of 71 inches (though that doesn’t seem quite large enough for it to hold the Earth upon its shell, as written by Stephen King).

In case you were wondering if this was merely a coincidence, it definitely is not. It’s specifically written in an “Etymology” section in the article that “Maturin refers to the giant turtle that vomited out the universe in Stephen King’s stories.” Phys.org has a quote from Dr. Ferreira, who is very clearly a Constant Reader:

Surely there are a lot of Stephen King fans out there who have named their pets after animals from the author’s books (be it Church from Pet Sematary or Cujo from Cujo), but this is pretty special. King has already made an indelible mark in the history of literature, cinema, television and pop culture in general, but now he has officially made an impact in the world of biology as well.

Stephen King Apparently Loves Night Swim… And I Just Have To Totally Disagree With Him Here

My personal tastes in fiction very often overlap with Stephen King’s – which isn’t exactly surprising given how much I love his books. Like King, I am a big fan of television shows like Fargo and Yellowjackets, and I totally agree with him about movies like the upcoming horror film Late Night With The Devil (which pull-quoted him in its first trailer and is headed to theaters next week). I generally love seeing him Tweet about what he’s watching because it provides wide exposure to terrific work… but his latest recommendation leaves me a bit baffled.

Writer/director Bryce McGuire’s Night Swim arrived in theaters earlier at the start of this year, and while it was bludgeoned by critics (evidenced by its 22 percent Rotten Tomatoes score) and mostly dismissed by audiences (making just $53.5 million during its worldwide theatrical run), it has found a fan in Stephen King. The author apparently missed the movie during its time playing on the big screen, but he caught up with it now that it’s available on PVOD, and he has a lot of affection for it. This past Monday, he posted on Twitter:

I’ll be frank here: I have no goddamn clue what Stephen King is talking about here, and I find myself wondering if the version of the movie that’s been made available digitally is different than the one that was in theaters. The film that I watched back in January was a mess that was more unintentionally funny than scary – though, as I note in my 1.5-star Night Swim CinemaBlend review, I went into it with higher-than-recommended expectations courtesy of M3GAN being such a big hit in the same release window in 2023.

I have no interest in beating up on the film a la the critics of The Marvels that Stephen King chastised late last year, so I’ll instead choose to chalk this one up to the mysteries of subjectivity. Every movie is somebody’s favorite movie; a work that is dismissed by one person can connect with another on a deep level. I found next to nothing to appreciate in Night Swim, but King clearly found a whole lot.

If you find yourself curious as to which side of the fence you’ll personally land on with the 2024 feature, it’s very easy to do so – and one of the positives I’ll highlight is that it will only take 98 minutes of your life to watch it. As specifically noted by Stephen King, you can watch it on Amazon Prime Video, but it’s also available from Google Play and Fandango At Home (formally known as Vudu).

Recommendation Of The Week: “The Monkey”

Acknowledging Stephen King’s appreciation for Night Swim, I decided to try and pick a short story for my Recommendation Of The Week that features some parallels. Digging around, I can’t say that swimming pools have ever been a big focus of his work, but when it comes to evil water, “The Monkey” fits the bill quite nicely.

Featured in the 1985 collection Skeleton Crew (though first published in a 1980 issue of Gallery), “The Monkey” spins the haunting tale of a father who is horrified when his two sons discover a cymbal-banging monkey when they are digging around the attic of their deceased great uncle. His horror stems from childhood memories and reflections on the toy being cursed: whenever it bangs its cymbals together, somebody dies. The bit about evil water admittedly doesn’t come into play until the end of the story, but I won’t spoil it all for you here and instead just encourage you to seek it out.

That wraps up this edition of The King Beat, but a fresh column will be waiting for you here on CinemaBlend next Thursday. Meanwhile you can learn about all of the King projects in the works with our Upcoming Stephen King Movies and TV guide and learn how to build the Ultimate Stephen King Collection.

Stephen King fans have been waiting a long time for Gary Dauberman's Salem's Lot. The movie was shot all the way back in fall 2021, but it has been stuck on a shelf for years as executives at Warner Bros. have tried to decide to release it. There have been many non-committal updates in recent months, but now the film is finally on the way: it has been officially announced that it will be released exclusively for Max subscribers later this year.

A press release from the Warner Bros. Discovery-owned streaming service was released this morning revealing the new distribution plans (when originally developed, it was going to be a theatrical release, but behind-the-scenes conversations have apparently altered strategy). Unfortunately, we do not yet know exactly when the film will be made available, as there is no official date announced, but we can keep our fingers crossed that it will arrive just in time for spooky season.

The new film marks the third time that Salem's Lot has been adapted, but this is its first time it's been made into a movie – with the two previous versions having been miniseries (first in 1979 and then again in 2004). The project follows Gary Dauberman's work writing the screenplays for both IT: Chapter One and IT: Chapter Two, and it's his second directorial effort following the underrated Annabelle Comes Home from 2019. The talented ensemble cast in the new horror movie includes Lewis Pullman, Alfre Woodard, Makenzie Leigh, Bill Camp, Spencer Treat Clark, Pilou Asbæk, and John Benjamin Hickey, and the story centers on a writer named Ben Mears who returns to his small Maine hometown after years of estrangement and finds himself trying to stop a plague of vampires from infecting the entire populace.

It was on Halloween last year that we first learned that Salem's Lot was possibly going to pivot to a streaming release, but only now has that been confirmed. Having had the chance to see it already, Stephen King has hyped up the film, and he also expressed confusion about why it has been sitting on a shelf for so long. He has called it "muscular and involving" and an example of "old-school horror filmmaking." Fingers are crossed that it will eventually be a title ranked among the best King movies of all time.

If it isn't clear, there is extreme hunger on our end for more updates about Salem's Lot, so be sure to stay tuned here on CinemaBlend in the coming months for more specific information about its release. To keep track of all the King projects that are presently in the works, all you need is our Upcoming Stephen King Movies and TV guide.

Few things in the world are guarantees beyond death, taxes, and movies based on Stephen King's books. There have been so many adaptations of Stephen King’s work over the years, that several of his most famous works have been adapted multiple times. Our own Eric Eisenberg has an entire Stephen King series that will likely never be finished. There are always plenty of upcoming movies based on Stephen King stories Not all of them are good but King says the most recent take on Salem’s Lot is solid, even if it is just sitting on a shelf right now. 

The third adaptation of Salem’s Lot was in production back in 2021, and as far as we know the movie has been complete for well over a year at this point. The last release date the film officially had was April 2023, but since then the movie has been on the shelf, and it’s been unclear why it hasn’t been released. Don’t ask Stephen King. He said on Twtter that he doesn’t know either. According to him, it’s not because the studio is trying to bury a bad movie. King said… 

This is certainly music to the ears of any Stephen King fan. A lot of Stephen King adaptations have been pretty bad, so getting the stamp of approval from the author himself is great news for any film, especially on one of his own stories. But if WB isn’t afraid of releasing a subpar movie, then what exactly is the problem?

It’s certainly a tenuous place to be for fans who want to see this film. WB is, of course, the studio that didn’t bring you Batgirl or Coyote vs. Acme. In the former case, it was allegedly because Batgirl wasn’t good, but all reports are that Coyote vs. Acme was solid at worst, so apparently being a good movie won’t save a film from becoming a tax break.

But if that was going to happen, we’d honestly expect it to have happened by now. Instead of shelving Salem’s Lot, the movie has remained in limbo for months on end, only leading to more questions about just what is going on with it. 

This isn’t the first time that King has talked about the quality of Salem’s Lot while questioning the movie’s lack of release. It seems like the author may be trying to draw attention to the issue and force the studio to respond with some sort of information or a release plan.  

Maybe Salem's Lot will be among the best Stephen King movies, maybe it won't, but it certainly doesn't sound like a bad movie. Hopefully, we'll get a chance to confirm, that at some point.

It can be said that 2023’s days are numbered, as we have just a little over two weeks until we ring in the new year, but the ever-active world of Stephen King isn’t falling asleep as we creep closer to the holiday season, and there’s still plenty to discuss in this week’s The King Beat.

In this seventeenth edition of the column, there is a lot to celebrate: Stephen King’s latest book has won the Best Horror prize from the GoodReads Choice Awards, John Carpenter’s Christine has turned 40, and I reflect on the King adaptations featuring the great Andre Braugher. Let’s dig in!

Holly Wins The 2023 Goodreads Choice Award For Best Horror Novel

Stephen King’s Holly is a great novel. It’s been amazing to watch the transformation of titular protagonist Holly Gibney since she was first introduced nearly a decade ago in the 2014 novel Mr. Mercedes, and her latest adventure is both thrilling and refreshing. Her mysteries have been tilting toward the supernatural since End Of Watch, and King masterfully uses that trend to play with expectations as Holly hunts down clues leading her to the vicious and cannibalistic Emily and Rodney Harris.

All of this is to say that I am not surprised in the slightest that the book has won the 2023 GoodReads Choice Award for Best Horror novel.

From the total 295,053 votes cast, Holly got some competition from Grady Hendrix’s How To Sell A Haunted House (47,851 votes) and T. Kingfisher’s House With Good Bones (22,580 votes), but the new Stephen King book won with an impressive 77,993 ballots cast in its favor.

It’s not altogether surprising to see the author take the award given his impressive decade-plus history with the voting body of GoodReads. He has won 10 awards, including Best Horror five times (Doctor Sleep, Sleeping Beauties, Elevation, The Institute and Holly), Best Mystery & Thriller three times (Mr. Mercedes, End of Watch, The Outsider) and Best Science Fiction (11.22.63) and Best Fantasy (The Dark Tower: The Wind Through the Keyhole) once each. Constant Readers clearly activate for this polling.

Only Rick Riordan has won more GoodReads Choice awards, as he took home the prize for Best Children's & Middle Grade book 11 times between 2011 and 2021. Unfortunately, Stephen King may not have a chance to tie the record next year, as there is no category for Best Collection, and the only work the author has coming out in 2024 is his new short story omnibus You Like It Darker.

Holly is best enjoyed if you’ve read the previous Holly Gibney books before it (including the novella “If It Bleeds” in Stephen King’s eponymous 2020 collection), as that’s how you’ll recognize just how much Holly has grown since her introduction, but it’s also perfectly accessible for newcomers who just want to read an exciting mystery that sports some extra sharp teeth. You can purchase the book in multiple formats, including hardcover, paperback and on Kindle, but I would personally also recommend purchasing the audiobook. Justine Lupe, who played Holly on the television series Mr. Mercedes, does the read, and it makes it oh so easy to imagine a fourth season of that fantastic show (which is available to stream if you have a Peacock subscription).

John Carpenter’s Christine Celebrated Its 40th Anniversary This Week, And It Remains One Of The All-Time Great Stephen King Adaptations

Looking back at the full history of Stephen King in Hollywood, one could make the argument that 1983 was the best year ever for the creative partnership. The span of just a few months saw three of the greatest King adaptations of all time arrive in theaters. First, there was the rabid canine terror of Lewis Teague’s Cujo in August; then, David Cronenberg’s The Dead Zone unleashed terrifying premonitions that October. Lastly, closing out the year, there was John Carpenter’s Christine – and of the three tremendous horror classics, it stands out as the best.

The classic killer car movie celebrated its 40th anniversary this past Saturday, and its legacy starts with the fact that it wasn’t Carpenter’s first choice as a King adaptation. The filmmaker was originally set up to make a big screen version of the 1980 novel Firestarter, but his vision was shut down when it was deemed too expensive following the box office flop of The Thing. A potential pivot was presented when he got his hands on a pre-publication manuscript for Christine, and when he and screenwriter Bill Phillips settled on a big screen vision, the production started up exceptionally fast. The novel arrived in book stores in April 1983, and audiences were buying tickets to see the adaptation less than eight month later.

There are some major deviations from the source material, including the nature of the evil that possesses the iconic 1958 Plymouth Fury, but it’s nonetheless a brilliant translation of the spooky coming of age story. There is a clear understanding from Carpenter that there is something a touch silly about a dorky teen becoming infatuated with a haunted automobile, and the filmmaker successfully leans into that in standout moments (See: “Ok… show me.”) But he is also able to effectively make any and all laughter stop.

Christine, covered in flames, hunting down Buddy Repperton (William Ostrander) on an empty road is ironically chilling, and witnessing Alexandra Paul’s Leigh choking while drowning in the car’s white hot interior light is intense enough to stop your breath. And let’s not ignore the cinematic magic that is seeing the eponymous antagonist rebuild herself.

The world will forever wonder what John Carpenter’s Firestarter may have been (it would have been vastly different from Mark L. Lester’s 1984 adaptation), but Christine is phenomenal and stands among the filmmaker’s best works. I’m personally excited to see the remake that is in the works from writer/director Bryan Fuller, but the 1983 film will always hold a special place in horror history – and that’s very clear with 40 years of perspective.

Christine isn’t presently available to stream on any subscription services, but it’s available to watch with ads on Pluto TV. If you’re a physical media fan aiming to build the Ultimate Stephen King Collection, the 4K UHD that was made for the 35th anniversary is a must-own.

Reflecting On Andre Braugher’s Two Memorable Stephen King Projects: 2004’s Salem’s Lot And The Mist

In the last couple months, the community of actors who have starred in Stephen King adaptations has suffered some sad losses. In mid-October, Oscar-nominated Carrie star Piper Laurie passed away at the age of 91, and it was reported late last month that Misery’s Frances Sternhagen died at the age of 93. This week, more horrible news was delivered, as it was confirmed that Andre Braugher has left us at the age of 61.

Braugher is remembered by many fans for his years playing a police officer on the small screen – first as Detective Frank Pembleton on Homicide: Life On The Street and then as Captain Raymond Holt on Brooklyn Nine-Nine – but the actor also has two Stephen King adaptations on his celebrated filmography. In 2004, he took on the key role of English teacher Matt Burke in the underrated miniseries remake of Salem’s Lot, and three years later, he played antagonistic neighbor Brent Norton in Frank Darabont’s much-celebrated The Mist.

Matt Burke is a key character in Salem’s Lot as a paternal figure and ally to protagonist Ben Mears as he discovers the vampire plot slowly destroying the town of Jerusalem’s Lot – and Andre Braugher has the precise warmth that the character requires. In deviation from the source material, Burke is portrayed as being gay, and it’s an aspect of the 2004 miniseries that hasn’t aged particularly well, but Braugher nonetheless does terrific work.

It’s actually funny that he went on to play Brent Norton in The Mist, as that’s a character with an energy completely opposite of what Braugher delivers in Salem’s Lot – but it’s a testament to his phenomenal skills as a performer that he pulls it off equally well. His early established conflict with Tom Jane’s David Drayon is a preview of the neighbor vs. neighbor horror that follows once they and other members of their community find themselves trapped in a grocery store by monsters from another dimension, and the antagonistic attitude Braugher offers in the film’s first act ultimately echo throughout the entire movie.

The world lost an incredible talent in Andre Braugher this week, and my condolences go out to his family, friends, and fellow fans.

Recommendation Of The Week: “Gray Matter”

As we get deeper into December, it feels fitting to start recommending some of Stephen King’s chillier stories that plunge readers into the cold of winter – and “Gray Matter” feels like as good a place to start as any. After all, the tale begins in the midst of a horrible snowstorm causing the city of Bangor, Maine to all but totally shut down.

A group of townies are collected at a local convenience store and they all become deeply troubled when the son of local drunk Richie Grenadine enters the establishment petrified with fear. He explains that something is seriously wrong with his father and getting worse, and the issues trace back to him drinking a mold-infected beer. The townies brave the blizzard to go check in on Richie and see if he needs to be taken for help, but they are horrified to discover that the man is no longer a man and is instead a monster that is getting exponentially more dangerous.

Though first published in the October 1973 issue of Cavalier magazine, Constant Readers can find the terror of “Gray Matter” in the pages of the classic 1978 Stephen King collection Night Shift.

That brings this week’s edition of The King Beat to a close, but I’ll have a new column brimming with Stephen King goodies next Thursday, and in the meantime you can explore my Adapting Stephen King series, digging into the full history of King in film and television.

On December 12, 2023, it was reported that Andre Braugher passed away the day before at the age of 61 after a short illness. The two-time Emmy winner — for the ‘90s crime procedural Homicide: Life on the Street (unfortunately unavailable to stream) as Det. Frank Pembleton and leading the 2006 FX miniseries, Thief — was best known in more recent years for his much-nominated performance in Brooklyn Nine-Nine. That long-running sitcom is where we will start our tribute to this talented thespian by listing some of the best Andre Braugher movies and TV shows available to stream.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2013-2021)

A mismatched group of New York police officers — some overtly goofy, some hilariously over-serious — are put in the care of a new captain with a tough exterior (played by Andre Braugher).

Why it is one of the best Andre Braugher TV shows: Years after playing a cop on a serious drama like Homicide: Life on the Street, Andre Braugher showed his funny bone (while still brilliantly maintaining a no-nonsense demeanor) for his four-time Emmy-nominated performance as Ray Holt alongside the Brooklyn Nine-Nine cast, who took to social media to mourn the loss of their captain.

Stream Brooklyn Nine-Nine on Peacock.
Buy Brooklyn Nine-Nine on Amazon.

Glory (1989)

The first all-volunteer company of Black soldiers struggles with discrimination from their Confederate enemies and from their own fellow Union officers during the United States Civil War. 

Why it is one of the best Andre Braugher movies: Braugher made his theatrically released feature film debut alongside actors like Denzel Washington and Morgan Freeman in one of the most powerful and simply best war movies, director Edward Zwick’s Glory, as Cpl. Thomas Searles.

Stream Glory on Pluto TV.
Rent or buy Glory on Amazon.

The Tuskegee Airmen (1995)

A special project to employ Black men into the United States Army Air Corps results in one of the most renowned fighter pilot crews during World War II.

Why it is one of the best Andre Braugher movies: Years after Glory, Braugher explored another important time in both Black history and combat history by starring in the HBO original movie, The Tuskegee Airmen, as Benjamin O. David Jr. — the role that earned him his first Emmy nomination.

Stream The Tuskegee Airmen on Max.
Rent or buy The Tuskegee Airmen on Amazon.

Primal Fear (1996)

After coming to the defense of an altar boy (played by Edward Norton) on trial for killing a priest, a hotshot lawyer (played by Richard Gere) learns of a shocking truth behind the case.

Why it is one of the best Andre Braugher movies: While Braugher was still playing a detective on Homicide: Life on the Street, he explored another career of the justice system by playing Tommy Goodman, an investigator working for Gere’s character, in the classic courtroom drama, Primal Fear.

Stream Primal Fear on Paramount+.
Rent or buy Primal Fear on Amazon.

City Of Angels (1998)

An angel (played by Nicolas Cage) falls for a mortal woman from Los Angeles (played by Meg Ryan) and wishes to be with her on Earth.

Why it is one of the best Andre Braugher movies: In director Brad Silberling’s romantic fantasy drama, City of Angels, Braugher stars as Cassiel — a spirit who actually originates from lore of various faiths.

Rent or buy City Of Angels on Amazon.

Frequency (2000)

A police officer from 1999 (played by Jim Caviezel) is somehow able to communicate with his late father (Dennis Quaid) in 1969 by using his vintage HAM radio, but the reunion has unforeseen consequences.

Why it is one of the best Andre Braugher movies: Another one of Braugher’s most notable cop roles comes from a sort-of time travel movie called Frequency, in which he plays Satch — a friend of Quaid’s character who becomes a colleague of Caviezel’s character.

Rent or buy Frequency on Amazon.

Salem's Lot (2004)

A writer (played by Rob Lowe) returns to his hometown, where he begins to uncover the horrifying reason behind several disappearances and strange behaviors of the locals.

Why it is one of the best Andre Braugher TV shows: In the underrated, second miniseries adaptation of Salem’s Lot — which originally aired on TNT and is inspired by Stephen King’s classic vampire story of the same name — Braugher stars in the star-studded ensemble cast as a high school teacher named Matt Burke.

Rent or buy Salem's Lot on Amazon.

The Mist (2007)

Citizens of a small town take refuge from the otherworldly dangers lurking behind a dense fog in their local grocery store, but struggling to survive one another proves to be its own challenge.

Why it is one of the best Andre Braugher movies: Just three years after Salem’s Lot, Braugher starred in another Stephen King adaptation — writer and director Frank Darabont’s shocking take on The Mist — as the skeptical Brent Norton.

Rent or buy The Mist on Amazon.

Men Of A Certain Age (2009-2011)

Three former college buddies (played by Ray Romano, Scott Bakula, and Andre Braugher) maintain their friendship while dealing with the stressful circumstances that come with being in their late 40s.

Why it is one of the best Andre Braugher TV shows: Braugher received two Emmy nominations for playing Owen Thoreau Jr. — who reluctantly works at a car dealership owned by his father — on TNT’s short-lived dramedy Men of a Certain Age, which Romano actually co-created with Mike Royce.

Stream Men Of A Certain Age on Max.
Buy Men Of A Certain Age on Amazon.

Superman/Batman: Apocalypse (2010) 

Bruce Wayne (the late Kevin Conroy) and Clark Kent (Tim Daly) team-up to protect the latter’s teenage cousin, Kara (Summer Glau), from an evil otherworldly tyrant.

Why it is one of the best Andre Braugher movies: One of the most essential reasons why Superman/Batman: Apocalypse is one of the most underrated Batman movies is Braugher’s chilling performance as the voice of the godly villain called Darkseid.

Stream Superman/Batman: Apocalypse on Max.
Rent or buy Superman/Batman: Apocalypse on Amazon.

She Said (2022)

New York Times reporters Jodi Kantor (Zoe Kazan) and Megan Twohey (Carey Mulligan) collaborate on a revolutionary story involving the sexual crimes of powerful movie producer Harvey Weinstein.

Why it is one of the best Andre Braugher movies: Braugher portrays The New York Times executive editor Dean Baquet (circa 2017) in director Maria Schrader’s startling, fact-based journalism drama, She Said — based on the book of the same name by Kantor and Twohey.

Stream She Said on Amazon Prime.

These are merely a handful of the notable films and series that were only made better by Andre Braugher’s presence. The actor will be greatly missed.

In the world of Stephen King this past week, writer/director Mike Flanagan has remained busy down in Alabama shooting the upcoming adaptation of The Life Of Chuck, and some notable anniversaries were celebrated – with the novel Dolores Claiborne having been released 31 years ago this month and the short 2018 novel Elevation turning five.  

There are other headlines to focus on for this week’s edition of The King Beat, however, including a long-awaited update about Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot (which Stephen King has seen and praised), exciting new home video release announcements, and a special tour of Stephen King’s personal library. Let’s dig in!

Amid Streaming Talks, It’s Unfortunate That Salem’s Lot Didn’t Drop As A Surprise Max Exclusive On Halloween

It has been more than a year since the original release date for writer/director Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot, and what has made the wait for the film all the more interminable has been the lack of updates. Warner Bros. took the anticipated Stephen King adaptation off the release schedule in the middle of 2022, and the first update we got about the project in nearly a year only came this past week when it was announced that the studio was considering a pivot in distribution strategy: instead of going to the big screen, it’s possible that a drought in Max exclusive projects may see the movie become a streaming-only release.

I’d personally be disappointed to see Salem’s Lot not get a shot in theaters – partially because it would further make it a totally different experience than the previous two adaptations of Stephen King’s book – but if it does end up only going to streaming, it’s a shame that Warner Bros. didn’t just opt to give it a surprise release in time for Halloween 2023.

This line of thinking is in part brought to you by fond memories of the Super Bowl in 2018 that have nothing to do with football. While watching the NFL championship game five years ago, it came as a big shock to cinephiles not only that Paramount Pictures had made a deal with Netflix to release The Cloverfield Paradox, but that the movie would be available to stream on the subscription platform that very night. The film didn’t turn out to be very good, but the surprise factor in its distribution certainly makes it memorable.

It feels like Warner Bros. missed out on doing something similar with Salem’s Lot for Spooky Season 2023. One obviously can’t ignore the impact of the Super Bowl on the decisions behind The Cloverfield Paradox, as the broadcast of the game provided the release with one hell of a bullhorn to make up for otherwise nonexistent advertising and marketing, but the strategy for the Stephen King movie didn’t have to match up exactly. If the studio had made an unexpected announcement on October 15 that Salem’s Lot was getting an exclusive release on Max timed for Halloween, enough word of mouth could have spread to try and turn it into must-watch viewing during the holiday.

Instead, Halloween was merely the day that we got the trade report about Salem’s Lot potentially moving from theaters to streaming – with word from the studio saying that no final decisions have been made. It’s nice that hope is being kept alive for a theatrical release (again, this is definitely the most preferred outcome), but now I just find myself cynically anticipating the film hitting Max at some point in mid-winter with minimal fanfare. If the movie does end up only getting a digital release in the coming months, it will be frustrating to know that the studio could have attempted something special and failed to even try.

Shout! Factory Announces Thinner As The Latest Stephen King Movie To Get A Special Collector’s Edition And New Special Features For Silver Bullet On 4K UHD

In the home video market, no boutique label has been a better friend to Constant Readers. In the last few years, the company has acquired rights to a number of major Stephen King adaptations and put together some major releases – including not only beautiful restorations of the films themselves, but also excellent assortments of special features. There are a number of cool 4K UHD releases in the works, including David Cronenberg’s The Dead Zone, John Harrison’s Tales From The Darkside: The Movie, and Daniel Attias’ Silver Bullet, and it was announced this week that there is now a new Blu-ray edition in the works for Tom Holland’s Thinner.

It should be noted that this doesn’t mark the first time that Thinner will be made available in HD, as Olive Films put out a Blu-ray in 2012, but that release had no extras and doesn’t even have a surround sound audio mix. The specs have not yet been announced for what Shout! Factory is putting together, but their prior history and the use of the “Collector’s Edition” designation suggests that the package will be much more substantial.

Pre-orders for Thinner are open now on the official website, and 18”x24” posters will be mailed with orders as long as supplies last. The Blu-ray’s street date is January 23, 2024.

Set to arrive much sooner than that is the aforementioned 4K UHD Collector’s Edition of Silver Bullet. The new Shout! Factory release will be on store shelves in just a little over a month (on December 5), and the full specs have been announced. If you’re like me and purchased the Blu-ray version of the movie that the company released in December 2019, you’ll be pleased to learn that this new packaging is packed with plenty of new in addition to everything old.

In addition to the existing multiple commentary tracks and interviews with cast and filmmakers, there is also a new commentary with Kingcast hosts Eric Vespe and Scott Wampler, and there is an original transfer of the feature film included that is restored from the original camera negative. Needless to say, I definitely plan to make it a part of my ever-growing Ultimate Stephen King collection.

Stephen King Has Provided The World With An Inside Look At His Personal Library

“If you don't have time to read, you don't have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.”

That’s one of the many, many memorable insights that Stephen King offers readers in his 2000 non-fiction book On Writing, and the author is the antithesis of a hypocrite when it comes to taking that message personally. King is known as an endless well of imagination and for being advanced levels of productive when putting words on a page, but he is also a voracious reader. He finds time to watch a lot of movies and TV shows, but his personal library is massive, and The Washington Post recently got a special inside look at his shelves.

As part of a series for the newspaper called Book Tour, writer John Williams and photographer Tristan Spinski recently visited Stephen King’s former home in Bangor, Maine – now the Stephen & Tabitha King Foundation – to take a look at his collection of books. It’s spellbinding.

Many of the tomes on the shelves were gifts to Stephen King from Tabitha King (his wife and fellow author), and the library is a special home for the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs, Ed McBain (a.k.a. Evan Hunter), H.P. Lovecraft, Robert Bloch, Cormac McCarthy and members of his family – including Tabitha and King’s two sons, Joe Hill and Owen King. He remarks that he isn’t big on original editions and signed copies ("They’re not prized possessions or anything like that"), but he makes a point of collecting hardcovers in response to his childhood experience:

Recommendation Of The Week: Cycle Of The Werewolf

In addition to Dolores Claiborne and Elevation, another memorable title celebrating an anniversary in November 2023 is “Cycle Of The Werewolf” – which was actually the source material for the aforementioned film Silver Bullet. The novella first arrived in store shelves in November 1983, making it now 40 years old, and it’s the subject of my Recommendation Of the Week in recognition of that significant birthday.

Originally commissioned to be a short story that would be included with a special calendar, “Cycle Of The Werewolf” is an example of Stephen King’s imagination running away from him, as what he wrote ended up being far too long. The tale – featuring original artwork from the great Bernie Wrightson – takes place over the course of a year and recounts what occurs during the full moon in the fictional town of Tarker’s Mills, Maine. During this time, a werewolf runs rampant and kills innocent civilians, and it ends up being the responsibility of 10-year-old boy named Marty Coslaw to stop the monster.

The quick read isn’t published as part of any collection, but it’s available in paperback and as an eBook.

That does it for this week’s edition of The King Beat, but I’ll be back with a new Stephen King news roundup next Thursday here on CinemaBlend, and for more reading in the meantime, check out our Upcoming Stephen King Movies and TV guide as well as my previous King column, Adapting Stephen King.

It seems like there’s never a shortage of upcoming Stephen King movies and TV shows, but for one of these projects, we’ll apparently need to adjust our viewing plans for it. It was reported earlier this week that Warner Bros. Pictures intends to release the Salem’s Lot remake as a Max exclusive now rather than in theaters. Fresh off that news, King himself is now hyping the upcoming remake of his 1975 novel, which, among other things, he described as “faithful.”

Just so we’re all on the same page, it hasn’t been officially confirmed that Salem’s Lot will go straight to streaming, only that as of this writing, it remains delayed and without a specific release date. But as one shouldn’t be surprised, King is has already seen the movie and shared his thoughts about it on X (formerly known as Twitter), starting with the following:

There was a time when Salem’s Lot was supposed to be released on April 21, 2023, but Warner Bros. ended up moving it out of that spot and slotted in Evil Dead Rise instead. So although there’s word that the studio wants to send it to Max subscribers (which is apparently motivated by the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike), “shelved” isn’t a bad description for that project currently. Still, Stephen King is clearly impressed by what he saw and is eager for the public to experience it too, even if he doesn’t approve of certain creative decisions. He continued in a separate X post:

Stephen King added in separate posts that the “best scene” in the Salem’s Lot remake is “Danny Glick in the hospital, trying to claw down a blood bag,” which he said “could have been directed by John Carpenter in his prime.” This will be the second time the original novel has been adapted in live-action, the first time being for a 1979 TV miniseries. However, this world was briefly explored on the big screen in 1987’s A Return to Salem’s Lot, which was a sequel to the miniseries.

As far as this new adaptation goes, the Salem’s Lot cast includes Lewis Pullman as Ben Mears, Makenzie Leigh as Susan Norton, Alfre Woodard as Dr. Cody, Bill Camp as Matthew Burke and Pilou Asbæk as Richard Straker, among others. Gary Dauberman, who has prior Stephen King experience from writing the IT movies, both penned and directed this feature. Ironically, if this Max plan ends up being implemented for Salem’s Lot, it’ll be the opposite of what was done for the last King film adaptation, The Boogeyman, which was given a theatrical rollout after initially being intended exclusively for people with a Hulu subscription.

Whether it first plays on a big screen or will only be available streaming, let’s hope Salem’s Lot scores a new release date so fans can know when they’ll get to witness all the compelling material that Stephen King has teased. Until then, keep track of what movies are definitely coming out in the near future with our 2023 release schedule and 2024 release schedule.

It's been a minute since we last heard anything about writer/director Gary Dauberman's remake of Salem's Lot. The film was originally scheduled by Warner Bros. to be released in theaters for Spooky Season 2022, but it was pushed it to 2023 that summer, and it was then taken off the release calendar completely. Stephen King fans have been left wondering for months when we might actually get to see the movie... and while we don't yet have news of a release date, there is a new report today saying that the studio is considering pivoting the distribution plan for the feature and making it a Max exclusive.  

Word of this behind-the-scenes development comes from Variety, which notably says that the decision has nothing to do with the quality of the film. Instead, the call is apparently being motivated by the on-going SAG-AFTRA strike. Because of work stoppages, there is a growing need for exclusives to put on Warner Discovery's proprietary subscription streaming service, and Salem's Lot, having spent many, many months on the shelf, is being seen as an option.

What's interesting about this potential change is that it's the antithesis of what happened at the start of the year with 2023's biggest new Stephen King adaptation: director Rob Savage's The Boogeyman. Through its development, The Boogeyman was planned as a Hulu exclusive, but things changed when the studio did test screenings. King personally questioned why the film wasn't getting a shot on the big screen, and it led to 20th Century Studios altering strategy. The feature played in theaters this past summer and arrived on Hulu/home video earlier this month just in time for Halloween. It was a win/win.

Gary Dauberman's Salem's Lot, starring Lewis Pullman, Makenzie Leigh, Bill Camp, Pilou Asbæk, Alfre Woodard, and William Sadler, went through principal photography back in 2021, and it was reported in summer 2022 that the project was dealing with COVID-related issues in post-production. It is the third adaptation of Stephen King's book, but this marks the first time that it was been made as a feature. Director Tobe Hooper first made Salem's Lot as a miniseries back in 1979 and Mikael Salomon helmed a small screen remake in 2004 starring Rob Lowe. 

A statement from a Warner Bros. spokesperson says that no final decision has yet been made about distribution plans for Salem's Lot, but hopefully the studio will come up with a strategy soon. The footage that was shown at CinemaCon 2022 was terrifically exciting and Gary Dauberman has earned the trust of Stephen King fans thanks to his screenplay work for IT and IT: Chapter Two (plus, his directorial debut, Annabelle Comes Home, is extremely underrated).

Stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for more updates about Salem's Lot, and if you're a Stephen King fan, be sure to head back here to the site every Thursday for a new edition of my news roundup column The King Beat.

If you visited your local bookstore on August 2, 2022, and wandered into the horror section, you would have come across a gleaming new movie tie-in edition of Salem's Lot, specifically tailored for the upcoming horror movie. The cover, adorned with a captivating glimpse into Stephen King's latest big-screen adaptation, would have beckoned you with its chilling allure. Against a backdrop of deep blue fog, the Salem's Lot cast stood transfixed before the foreboding Marsten house, setting the stage for an eerie cinematic rendition of a tale that has graced the small screen twice before, in the form of TV miniseries, but never on the silver screen. Emblazoned at the top of the book were those fateful words that now send shivers down my spine: "Now a Major Motion Picture." 

Fast forward to June 2023, after multiple delays and a scarcity of updates since the end of last year, the question lingers: What exactly is happening with Warner Bros.' oft-delayed Salem's Lot? It's time to delve deep and dissect the twists and turns that have befallen this much-anticipated project.

A Return To Jerusalem’s Lot: A Production History

Stephen King's 'Salem's Lot, a 1975 horror novel and his second published work, tells the story of writer Ben Mears, who returns to his childhood town only to discover the residents turning into vampires. The novel received nominations for the World Fantasy Award and the Locus Award. King has expressed his fondness for the story, considering it his favorite. The story of a small town facing a big threat has previously been adapted into a two-part miniseries in 1979 and an underrated television miniseries in 2004.

On April 23, 2019, James Wan and Gary Dauberman announced their collaboration to bring Salem's Lot to cinemas. Dauberman would serve as the scriptwriter and executive producer, joined by Wan, Roy Lee, and Mark Wolper as producers. While no director was attached when the project was announced, In April 2020, the Annablle Comes Home filmmaker was officially named the director.

In August 2021, Lewis Pullman, son of Bill Pullman, was cast as the lead, Ben Mears. The Assistant star Makenzie Leigh joined the cast as Susan Norton, Ben's love interest, alongside Bill Camp and Spencer Treat Clark. Pilou Asbæk, known for his role in Game of Thrones, joined the production, rounding out the stacked cast as Richard Straker, the vampire Barlow's familiar. Production began in September 2021, documented by Pilou Asbæk on Instagram, which you can view below:

Production on the film passed mostly without any major news, wrapping production in November of 2021. According to the studio and reported by Deadline, a few Covid-related delays caused the film to move dates to accommodate additional photography during the summer of 2022. Reshoots are not uncommon for big-budget films, so a new release date wasn't initially a cause for concern. You can see one of the stars, Mackenzie Leigh’s, production wrap photo, which she posted on Instagram, below:

Footage of the classic vampire tale was previewed in April 2022 at CinemaCon. The first look was allegedly eerie, effective, and very well-received. Entertainment reporter Jeff Schneider, who was in attendance, wrote on Twitter that the trailer was reminiscent of the original Conjuring movie’s first trailer. He wrote:

In July 2022, the film faced its first delay, with its original Post-Labor Day 2022 release changing to April 21, 2023. Merely a few months later, that date would be lost too, and another WB horror flick, Evil Dead Rise, would fill the opening.  Then, the flick was eventually wholly removed from Warner Bros' 2023 movie release schedule. This disappointment came soon after the studio announced plans to scrap projects like Batgirl and Scoob 2. The decision not to release Batgirl was attributed to a strategic shift concerning the DC universe and HBO Max, according to a statement from a studio representative. This decision only fueled fan speculation about Salem’s Lot’s fate.

Alleged film previews took place on September 9, 2022, with social media posts and online reviews (like this Youtube video from McCord Movies with over 12k views) surfacing from those allegedly in attendance, claiming mild disappointment with the movie. On November 16, 2022, Salem's Lot received an official R rating from the MPAA for "bloody violence and language" indicating the movie was officially finished and in the can. Additionally, the movie's runtime was subsequently revealed, but no further updates have been provided since the end of 2022.  

Will The Vampires Of Salem’s Lot Ever See The Light Of Day? 

Horror enthusiasts fear Salem's Lot may never be released, joining the ranks of infamous permanently shelved films like Jerry Lewis's The Day the Clown Cried or Empires of the Deep, a Chinese Avatar clone. While Warner Bros has made curious decisions under David Zaslav's leadership, I believe the studio's actions indicate that Salem's Lot will eventually see the light of day.

Reports and rumors of bad test screenings have led some to speculate that the studio is dissatisfied with the film's quality and plans to shelve it indefinitely. However, I don't see this happening.

There has been a long history of King adaptations because they are lucrative, even if they don't reach the ranks of the best horror movies of all time. While box office hits like Misery or It Chapters 1 & 2 receive critical acclaim, there are also less successful ones like Cell. 

This 2016 adaptation of King's 2006 novel, directed by Tod Williams and starring John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson, faced production troubles and spent over two years in limbo before finding distribution. Despite being crushed critically and receiving a limited theatrical release in just 15 markets with minimal promotion, the film grossed over a million dollars. It also generated more than 2 million dollars in video sales, as per Box Office Mojo. 

Movies based on Stephen King's books, even imperfect ones, tend to lean towards being financially successful. That's why I find it unlikely that Warner Bros. would bury the IP based solely on a few negative test screenings -- if they indeed occurred.

When Will Salem's Lot Likely Release?

Timing is crucial for theatrical releases, and WB Discovery is likely strategizing to find the optimal date for Salem's Lot. The Halloween season is a logical choice for the horror genre, but a fall 2023 theatrical release seems less and less likely as we're only three months away from the post-Labor Day weekend, and there has been no promotion for the movie.

Considering WB's potential reservations about the film, a fall streaming release on Max (formerly HBO Max) could be a smart move to leverage the spooky season. We've witnessed the success of streaming horror movies, such as Hulu's Prey (a Predator prequel) and the Hellraiser reboot, which performed remarkably well last year with a similar release date. The Clive Barker property reboot also generated considerable hype, despite dropping its official trailer just fifteen days before release. If I were a company hesitant to invest in promoting a film I had reservations about, this streaming route would be a favorable choice.

Regardless of the release date, it's likely that Salem's Lot will reach King fans sooner or later. However, since WB Discovery has shown a focus on theatrical releases, it's possible the movie might not find its way to audiences until 2024 or later, once a good theatrical window presents itself. Still, with the involvement of talented individuals and the power of the established brand, it would be absurd for WB Discovery to let this project languish on the shelf, gathering dust like some old haunted house. 

I guess for now, I’ll have to be content with revising my worn-out VHS copy of director Tobe Hooper's version of the material and pondering these other upcoming Stephen King movies and TV releases.

Some of the best movies of all time – including Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining and Rob Reiner’s Misery – are Stephen King adaptations, but not to be undersold is the author’s legacy on the small screen. Early on, King projects made for the small screen came few and far between, with the author never comfortable with the idea of censorship and commercial breaks interrupting his stories, but everything changed in the 1990s, and now shows, miniseries, and TV movies are considered an important part of King’s pop culture impact.

But of the dozens of projects that have been made, which stand out as the best of the best? This feature is my personal answer to that question. I’ve previously ranked the greatest Stephen King films of all time, but this was a special challenge that forced me to get picky. Kingdom Hospital, The Langoliers, and the 2004 miniseries remake of Salem’s Lot didn’t quite make the cut because there are 10 other titles that beat them out.

10. It (1990)

Original Air Date: November 18, 1990

Tim Curry. If you need any justification for calling the 1990 IT miniseries one of the best small screen Stephen King adaptations, that name alone fits the bill. When the actor was first approached about the project, he was reticent to sign on, as he had his fill of prosthetics and heavy makeup in the making of Ridley Scott’s Legend, but he was convinced to take part, and now his turn as Pennywise The Dancing Clown is regarded as a treasured moment of horror history.

The legacy of the Tommy Lee Wallace-directed IT is tarnished by its conclusion, featuring an underwhelming confrontation with a fake-looking giant spider, but everything before that point is beloved for a reason. Both the kid and adult iterations of The Losers Club are wonderful and well-cast, and it’s impressive how faithful to the book it manages to be given the restrictions and censorship of network television at the time. It’s also an important part of Stephen King adaptation history, as it opened the author’s eyes to the immense potential of TV miniseries, which in turn led to the creation of…

9. The Stand (1994)

Original Air Date: May 8, 1994

Stephen King and George A. Romero spent years unsuccessfully trying to figure out a way to turn the apocalyptic epic The Stand into a movie, but everything changed in the 1990s. King couldn’t sell the idea of adapting the novel as two films (a strategy that would be used decades later for Andy Muschietti’s IT), and there was no way the scope of the story could fit into a single feature – but it was recognized that a miniseries’ runtime real estate would be perfect. Writing the teleplays himself, the author reteamed with director Mick Garris (with whom he worked on 1992’s Sleepwalkers), and what they created for ABC is an impressive achievement for 1990s television.

Budget restraints are apparent in the finished work, but Stephen King does a brilliant job translating the full breadth of the journey from the book, and there are some wonderful and memorable performances, the standouts being Gary Sinise, Bill Fagerbakke, Ruby Dee, and Matt Frewer.

8. The Outsider (2020)

Original Air Date: January 12, 2020

Miniseries were a revelation for Stephen King adaptations around the turn of the century, but the modern golden age of television now allows for whole novels to be made as full seasons of TV shows – and The Outsider is an excellent example of just how great that evolution is. The HBO series premiered just a year-and-a-half after the book that it’s based on was published, and the excitement about the material that speed indicates is apparent in the work. It’s a fantastic and eerie translation of a dark detective story that shows that King very much still has the capacity to horrify.

Developed by Richard Price, The Outsider unfolds as a slow burn mystery at the start – questioning how a child killer could leave excessive amounts of DNA at a crime scene while also having an airtight alibi – but it turns into an intense nail-biter when the protagonists start to realize that what they are dealing with comes from the realm of the supernatural.

Stream The Outsider on Max

7. Castle Rock (2018-2019)

Original Air Date: July 25, 2018

Created by Sam Shaw and Dustin Thomason, Hulu’s Castle Rock is a love letter to the works of Stephen King, but that’s not why it’s ranked in this feature. It’s because it’s a love letter that very much understands the vibe and purpose of King’s work, and it uses that understanding to create two thrilling and exciting seasons of television.

If you’re a Stephen King fan, watching Castle Rock is a delightful Easter egg hunt that will see fans smile at references to Jack Torrance and scenes set in the bar known as The Mellow Tiger, but there is also a pair of compelling narratives that play out in each season that most definitely encourage binge watching. The cast is full of Stephen King adaptation veterans who deliver standout performances, including Sissy Spacek, Tim Robbins, and Bill Skarsgård, and by the time you get to the end of Season 2 there is most definitely an intense regret that Season 3 never got made.

Stream Castle Rock on Hulu

6. Lisey's Story (2021)

Original Air Date: June 4, 2021

Given the fact that Stephen King has called Lisey’s Story his favorite novel that he has written, it’s far from surprising that the author took it upon himself to adapt it – and in doing so, he created the best miniseries that he himself has made in his long career. Teaming up with director Pablo Larraín and working with a brilliant cast including Julianne Moore, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Joan Allen, Clive Owen, and Dane DeHaan, the eight episode streaming series for Apple TV+ is a haunting, shocking, and emotional examination of death, mourning, and memory.

While capturing what’s tremendous about the book, Stephen King builds on the text in impressive ways – most notably with enhancements to antagonist Jim Dooley (DeHaan) that make him an even greater terror than he is in the novel. Thanks to Larraín’s work, his collaboration with cinematographer Darius Khondji, and contributions from all departments, Lisey’s Story also has the distinction of being one of the most beautiful King adaptations.

Stream Lisey’s Story On AppleTV+

5. Nightmares & Dreamscapes (2006)

Original Air Date: July 12, 2006

If there’s any Stephen King show that I wish could have gone on indefinitely, it’s Nightmares & Dreamscapes – but alas, the series only lasted for one eight-episode season. It’s sad, because the series demonstrated the remarkable potential in an anthology series solely based on King’s short stories, and produced a number of terrific adaptations.

I think it’s fitting that Nightmares & Dreamscapes occupies the middle spot of this list given that there is definitely a wide range when it comes to quality overall, but when it’s good, it’s great. The episodes based on “Battleground,” “Umney’s Last Case” “Autopsy Room Four” and “The End Of The Whole Mess” are all superlative interpretations of their respective source materials, and are as good or better than what’s in classic feature anthologies including Creepshow and Cat’s Eye.

4. Salem's Lot (1979)

Original Air Date: November 17, 1979

Tobe Hooper’s two-episode miniseries Salem’s Lot was the first Stephen King adaptation made directly for television, but that legacy has less to do with its ranking here than the fact that it holds up surprisingly well. The Nosferatu-take on ancient vampire Kurt Barlow may not be book-accurate, but it is iconic – and that’s in spite of the fact that he only shows up in a few scenes. And the terror hardly stops there, with the visage of Ronnie Scribner’s Ralphie Glick floating in a bedroom window tattooed on the minds of many Constant Readers.

A superb acting ensemble including Bonnie Bedelia, David Soul, James Mason, Kenneth McMillan, and the late Lance Kerwin bring to life Stephen King’s memorable cast of characters from the novel, and despite the limitations of television as a medium in the 1970s, it’s still able to remain faithful to the terror of the book.

3. 11.22.63 (2016)

Original Air Date: February 15, 2016

As indicated by sections above, the streaming era has been great for Stephen King adaptations – both for streaming and features. On the movie side, the best to be made to date by a subscription service is Mike Flanagan’s Gerald’s Game, and when it comes to episodic content, the crown goes to Bridget Carpenter’s 11.22.63 on Hulu.

Those who have read the book will miss the wonderful qualities of the story that make it a tribute to the teaching profession, but the miniseries certainly keeps to the core of the book – which is a gripping tale about time travel and trying to change history by stopping the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. It creates marvelous moments of fear and sweetness in its eight episode run covering the full breadth of the novel, and what the show does as far as expanding the role of Bill Turcotte (as portrayed by George MacKay) is one of the best major changes we’ve seen in any modern Stephen King adaptation.

Stream 11.22.63 on Hulu

2. Mr. Mercedes (2017-2019)

Original Air Date: August 9, 2017

Between 2014 and 2016, Stephen King did a head-first dive into the world of detective fiction with the Bill Hodges trilogy: the tale of a retired cop on the hunt for a psychotic mass murderer. One year after it ended, the series got the best possible adaptation that it could have gotten. Developed by David E. Kelley, Mr. Mercedes covered each of the three novels in its three seasons airing on Audience, and while it does end up getting pretty far away from the source material by the end, its fundamental excellence is in its ensemble of characters.

Brendan Gleeson was an inspired and perfect choice for the role of Bill Hodges, and Harry Treadaway is a truly scary sonofabitch as homicidal maniac Brady Hartsfield, but it’s Justine Lupe’s Holly Gibney that makes Mr. Mercedes special. Amazing as Cynthia Erivo is in The Outsider, Lupe’s version is the far more book-accurate interpretation of the character, and it’s simply impossible not to fall for the sweet and strange detective over the course of the show.

Stream Mr. Mercedes on Peacock

1. Storm Of The Century (1999)

Original Air Date: February 14, 1999

The best Stephen King TV project isn’t an adaptation; it’s an original creation. In 1999, the author collaborated with director Craig R. Baxley on Storm Of The Century – a three-episode miniseries written directly for television that aired on ABC – and it is nothing short of phenomenal. As the villainous/demonic André Linoge, Colm Feore plays one of the scariest antagonists that King has ever imagined, and the escalation in the story is genius.

It feels like things are horrible enough when the fictional Little Tall Island gets hit by a dangerous blizzard and Linoge is discovered at the scene of a vicious murder, but things only get worse after the locals take shelter in the town hall and the villain is incarcerated. The magic that Linoge weaves from his jail cell is gruesome and shocking… but that’s nothing compared to the offer he makes to everyone to make him go away. All of it leads to one of the best endings that Stephen King has ever written – which is a big reason why Storm Of The Century sits at #1 in this ranking.

Stream Storm Of The Century on Hulu

This is certainly a mutable ranking and may potentially change as new Stephen King projects arrive on the small screen. To keep track of everything that is in the works in all mediums, check out my Upcoming Stephen King Movies guide. You can also learn about the full history of the author’s history with Hollywood via my Adapting Stephen King series, and head back here to CinemaBlend every Thursday for The King Beat – my weekly roundup of all the big news out of the world of Stephen King.

Lance Kerwin, who began his performing career on the small screen as a child actor in the 1970s, has passed away at the age of 62. His career included appearing in a number of memorable TV shows, including the starring role in 1977's James At 15, but he is perhaps best remembered for his role in Tobe Hooper's 1979 miniseries adaptation of Stephen King's Salem's Lot. 

News of Kerwin's death comes from The Hollywood Reporter, who received confirmation from the his daughter, Savanah. The actor passed away on Tuesday morning, though the cause of death was not revealed to the trade. He is survived by his wife Yvonne and five children.

Born in Newport Beach, California on November 6, 1960, Lance Kerwin was the youngest of five brothers and he made his on screen debut at the age of 14 – appearing as "Wheeler Boy" in the third season of the medical drama Emergency! That role was followed by single episode appearances in shows such as Shazam!, Gunsmoke, Wonder Woman, and The Bionic Woman.

In 1976 he starred in writer/director Michael Landon's made-for-TV movie The Lonliest Runner, and soon after he won the titular role in the series James At 15: a coming-of-age drama centering on a boy whose family moves from their home in Oregon to Massachusetts (the show changed its title to James At 16 when the character had a birthday). It ran for 21 episodes between 1977 and 1978.

It was about a year after the show concluded that Kerwin became a part of horror history with his role in Salem's Lot. In the two-episode miniseries, he played the role of Mark Petrie – a young monster-obsessive who ends up teaming up with protagonist Ben Mears (David Soul) when it's discovered that the eponymous town is slowly being taken over by vampires. At the end of the story, Mark and Ben end up being the only survivors. The adaptation is a favorite among Stephen King fans (it was only the second one made following the success of Brian De Palma's Carrie), and Mark is a beloved character. It was a hit that earned three Emmy nominations.

In the 1980s, he continued to make regular appearances on hit television show, including Trapper John, M.D., Simon & Simon, and Murder, She Wrote.

In 1995 he made what was for a long time his last acting appearance, playing a mercenary in virus-centric thriller Outbreak, starring Dustin Hoffman, Rene Russo, Morgan Freeman, Donald Sutherland, and Patrick Dempsey. He became a pastor working in Hawaii, but in 2022, Lance Kerwin made his return to acting with a supporting part in David L. Cunningham's historical drama The Wind & The Reckoning.

Our thoughts and condolences go out to Lance Kerwin's family – and in his memory, you can enjoy his wonderful working by renting/purchasing Salem's Lot on Amazon Prime Video, Vudu, or Apple.

It's an unfortunate state of affairs, but we don't presently know when we can expect to see writer/director Gary Dauberman's upcoming remake of Salem's Lot. The film has completed principal photography and is now in post-production, but Warner Bros. has not yet given it a date on the studio's release calendar. Sadly, this article features no update on that particular front, but we do know that when the film does arrive, it won't be skimping on the blood in order to try and get four quadrant appeal.

We know this because Salem's Lot has been given an official rating for domestic distribution by the Motion Picture Association's Classification and Rating Administration, and they have deemed it necessary to give the film an "R" for "bloody violence and language." In short, blood will flow as the evil of Kurt Barlow sets upon the small titular Maine town and creates a horde of vampires, and the characters trying to stop it won't be censoring their language in moments of panic and fear.

It's a particularly notable event when one considers the adaptation history of Stephen King's book. While Hollywood has brought the novel to life twice since it was first published in 1975, both times were projects developed for television: Tobe Hooper's made it as a miniseries for CBS in 1979, and Mikael Salomon directed the first remake as another miniseries for TNT in 2004. While the latter had a bit more content leeway as a basic cable production, we've never gotten to see a proper R-rated interpretation of the source material, and now one is on the way.

Salem's Lot is based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King and centers on Ben Mears (Lewis Pullman), a writer who returns to his hometown with the intention of writing a new book. It's his hope to stay in and write about the notorious Marsten House, the setting of an incident that traumatized him as a child, but he is surprised to discover that he has been beaten to the punch by Kurt Barlow and Richard Straker (Pilou Asbæk) – a vampire and his familiar who have plans to turn the entirety of the town into blood sucking monsters.

The impressive cast of Salem's Lot also includes Makenzie Leigh as college student Susan Norton, Bill Camp as teacher Matthew Burke, Alfre Woodard as Dr. Cody. John Benjamin Hickey as priest Father Callahan, and Jordan Preston Carter as young horror expert Mark Petrie.

The movie was originally supposed to be released this fall, but New Line made the call in July to push the film. The studio gave it a new April 2023 release date, but in August it was taken off the calendar completely. Fingers are tightly crossed that it will end up coming out in time for next year's spooky season, but we'll have to wait and see.

For more information about all of the Stephen King projects in the works for both the big and small screens, check out our Upcoming Stephen King Movies and TV guide. My Adapting Stephen King column provides a weekly dive into the long history of adaptations, and we also have a feature ranking the best Stephen King movies of all time.

Stephen King is having a bit of a renaissance of late. Some of the most high-profile upcoming horror movies are ones based on the writer's work. Thanks in part to the success of Andy Muschietti's brilliant first installment in his two-part IT adaptation in 2017, roughly three film or television projects based on the horror author's work have been released a year since. The next Stephen King movie headed to your local multiplex is a theatrical version of Salem's Lot. Of course, nothing upsets fans of the author's books more than an unfaithful adaptation, and one of the movie's stars, Lewis Pullman weighed in on how faithful the new movie, based on the famous vampire novel, will be.

The Top Gun: Maverick actor -- who is set to play the film's main protagonist, author Ben Mears -- revealed that Salem's Lot director Gary Dauberman is a big Stephen King fan and was interested in doing justice to the original book while keeping the movie's runtime in mind. Of course, there had to be a few compromises, as the star explained to ComicBook.com. In his own words:

Tobe Hooper's 1979 made-for-television Salem's Lot turned the nearly 400-page novel into a three-hour TV event that was released over two nights. Although the original production had to combine or cut characters, it is still considered one of the better King adaptations and one of the scariest horror movies of all time. Most readers will understand the need for the new film to change a few things as long as the story's heart remains intact. 

In the same interview, Lewis Pullman went on to discuss his fear of taking on projects like remakes (such as Lot) and reboots (like Top Gun: Maverick). And just about anyone can probably understand his reasoning for this. The star continued:

Besides the quick things we know about the Salem's Lot adaptation, news and information surrounding the newest iteration of the story have been pretty scarce. With that, it's comforting to hear from a source so close to the project that the filmmakers set out to make a movie that's true to the original book and that they hope to do right by Stephen King. This should make every King constant reader very happy. I personally would love to see a more book-accurate take on the novel's big bad, Kurt Barlow. While he is barely present in the novel, the villain is described as a handsome Dracula type, but director Tobe Hooper opted for a Nosferatu-esque version in the '79 movie. 

The classic novel tells the story of writer Ben Mears, who returns to his childhood home of Jerusalem's Lot in search of inspiration for his latest work. Ben soon discovers his hometown is being preyed upon by a sinister vampire, leading him to form a group of individuals to fight the evil threat consuming his town. The movie stars Lewis Pullman, Mackenzie Leigh, Alfre Woodard, John Benjamin Hickey, Bill Camp, Jordan Preston Carter, Pilou Asbæk, and William Sadler. The cast and crew surely have a big task ahead of them, and one can only hope they succeed in making something that appeals to the fans and general movie lovers.

Having been delayed multiple times, it's hope that Salem's lot will be released as part of the schedule of 2023 new movie releases. In the meantime, Stephen King fans might be interested in this list for building the ultimate King collection.

SPOILERS ahead for Run Sweetheart Run, now streaming with an Amazon Prime subscription. 

The undead are alive and well in Hollywood, and Game of Thrones’ Pilou Asbæk is at the center of two recent projects all about vampires. The first is Run Sweetheart Run, a horror movie about a business meeting-turned-date-turned-overnight vampire hunt where Asbæk plays the predator and Charlie’s Angels’ Ella Balinska is the prey. As the Danish actor sinks his teeth into the world of bloodsuckers, he shared his favorite from the genre. 

Run Sweetheart Run flips typical vampire tropes on its head by making Pilou Asbæk’s vampire completely unromantic. As the movie’s writer/director Shana Feste told us as well, she sought to “demonize” vampires in Run Sweetheart Run after a history of toxic dynamics between the alive and undead. When CinemaBlend spoke to Pilou Asbæk about how his vampire fits into his perception of vampire lore in Hollywood, here’s what he said: 

Of course, Pilou Asbæk is referring to the 1992 film Bram Stoker’s Dracula starring Gary Oldman as Count Dracula, along with the likes of Winona Ryder, Keanu Reeves and Anthony Hopkins in the cast. The movie is among the actor’s most beloved movies about vampires, but for such a different vision, the actor had to take something specific from it. He implemented that yearning one feels for vampires while also playing a super monstrous and very evil take on the lore. Asbæk continued: 

Pilou Asbæk got into character for Ethan by toying with the idea of someone you were with suddenly wasn’t the person he showed you and the world; the idea that one day you could wake up next to a person you didn’t think would be a mark of a “true psychopath.” As Asbæk also shared in our interview, the presence of Ethan is something that a lot of women can relate to in terms of being the kind of figure they’d fear when going on a date. 

The movie produced by Blumhouse has been on the backburner for two years now, with its streaming announcement made back in 2020, hitting Amazon Prime over Halloweekend. Following this film, Pilou Asbæk is set to star in the Stephen King adaptation of Salem’s Lot, which is also all about vamps. In the movie, the actor will play Richard Straker, the “familiar” to the main antagonist and vampire villain of Salem’s Lot, Kurt Barlow. 

Salem’s Lot recently lost an official release date after a previous shakeup, but we’ll keep you updated about all the upcoming horror movies coming our way here on CinemaBlend.  

Typically, the summer blockbuster season is where we see the biggest movies of the year, both in terms of scope and box office returns. But, the fun at your local movie house doesn’t have to come to an end at the conclusion of Labor Day weekend. In fact, some of the biggest 2022 movie releases happen to be scheduled to premiere throughout the fall. 

If you are the type that likes to plan out your theater trips months in advance (or simply want to know what you can expect to see on the silver screen as the temps start dropping), you’ve come to the right place, because we are about to break down a couple dozen of the biggest fall 2022 movies that are coming to a movie house near you (as well as various streaming services) as well as those that have already been released. There’s a lot to take in, so let’s get this show on the road…

Pinocchio (September 8, 2022)

One of two movies based on the classic fairy tale scheduled for release in 2022, Robert Zemeckis’ long in the works Pinocchio follows the lonely toymaker Geppetto (Tom Hanks) as he builds and raises the wooden figure (Benjamin Evan Ainsworth) like a real boy. The live-action/animation hybrid landed September 8 on Disney+. Cynthia Erivo, Luke Evans, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt also appear on the Pinocchio cast

The Woman King (September 16, 2022)

Gina Prince-Bythewood’s upcoming historical epic, The Woman King, centers on Nanisca (Viola Davis), a Dahomey Amazon general as she and a new recruit named Nawi (Thuso Mbedu) set out to defend their kingdom’s honor and get revenge on those who brought pain, suffering, and loss to their kind. The movie made its theatrical debut on September 16.

Don’t Worry Darling (September 23, 2022)

Olivia Wilde’s psychological thriller, Don’t Worry Darling, centers on young married couple Alice (Florence Pugh) and Jack Chambers (Harry Styles), as they move to a seemingly idyllic company town in the 1950s. As the inquisitive Alice begins to find out, however, looks can be deceiving. The controversial movie landed in theaters on September 23.

Blonde (September 28, 2022)

The long-awaited Marilyn Monroe biographical drama Blonde premiered September 28 on Netflix  and welcomed audiences into the Hollywood icon’s short and tortured life. Ana de Armas led the star-studded Blonde cast which also featured Bobby Cannavale, Adrien Brody, and others playing fictionalized versions of those closest to her.

Bros (September 30, 2022)

On September 30, the Billy Eichner-led romantic comedy Bros opened in theaters. Despite not bringing in a ton of cash at the box office, the movie was nearly universally loved by critics and audiences alike with respective Rotten Tomatoes scores of 89% and 91% upon release.

Hocus Pocus 2 (September 30, 2022)

Nearly 30 years after they were defeated and locked away once again, the Sanderson Sisters (Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy) are out on the loose again in Hocus Pocus 2. The sequel, which also features Doug Jones, Tony Hale, Sam Richardson, and Ted Lasso’s Hannah Waddingham, debuted September 30 on Disney+. Talk about a way to kick off the Halloween season.

Amsterdam (October 7, 2022)

David O. Russell’s Amsterdam was at one point one of the biggest mystery projects in Hollywood, with the only revealed details being about its incredibly stacked cast, which includes Margot Robbie, Christian Bale, John David Washington, Robert De Niro, Taylor Swift, and more than a dozen others. The period drama following three friends as they are accused of committing a murder in 1930s Europe opened theatrically on October 7.

Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile (October 7, 2022)

The classic children’s book, Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile, got the big screen treatment when Will Speck and Josh Gordon’s live-action/animated comedy opened October 7. The movie, which features Shawn Mendes in the titular role, follows the fun-loving reptile as he attempts to get residents in his New York City neighborhood to see him as more than a singing croc with a mouth full of sharp teeth. Javier Bardem, Constance Wu, Scoot McNairy, and Stranger Things star Brett Gelman round out the cast of what looks to be an incredibly fun and wholesome time.

Hellraiser (October 7, 2022)

Clive Barker’s Hellraiser films will forever go down as some of the best horror movies of all time, and so it should come as no surprise that they are being remade. On October 7, the new Hellraiser debuted on Hulu and immediately became a hit with critics like CinemaBlend’s Eric Eisenberg, who gave the movie 4 out of 5 stars in his review of David Bruckner’s supernatural horror flick. 

Tár (October 7, 2022)

On October 7, Todd Field’s drama film Tár opened in theaters and told the story of orchestra conductor Lydia Tár (Cate Blanchett), as she becomes the first female chief conductor of a major orchestra in Germany, per Deadline. This intriguing film also stars Nina Hoss, Noémie Merlant, Sophie Kauer, and Mark Strong.

All Quiet On The Western Front (October 14, 2022)

On October 14, audiences in select theaters across the country will be able to witness the brutality of Edward Berger’s adaptation of All Quiet on the Western Front, a harrowing military drama set in the height of the “War to End All Wars.” The WWI movie will find its streaming home later in the month when it premieres October 28 on Netflix.

Halloween Ends (October 14, 2022)

On October 14, Blumhouse released Halloween Ends, the third and final chapter of the production company’s saga set in the iconic horror franchise. Although the future of the franchise is a little unclear right now, Halloween Ends will surely give longtime fans of the property something to look forward to this Halloween season.

Till (October 14, 2022)

The story of the Emmett Till is one of the most tragic in the American Civil Rights Movement, and it came to the big screen with Chinonye Chukwu’s biographical drama Till. Focusing both on the Chicago teenager who was brutally murdered in Mississippi in 1955 and his grieving mother, Mamie Till Mobley, who held an open-casket funeral so the world could see what was done to her son, the movie opened in theaters October 14.

The Banshees Of Inisherin (October 21, 2022)

Martin McDonagh released his upcoming drama film, The Banshees of Inisherin, in theaters on October 21. The movie, which has a cast featuring Brendan Gleeson, Colin Farrell, Barry Keoghan, and Kerry Condon, will tell the story of two longtime buddies whose friendship begins to break apart, causing a whole bevy of issues for themselves and others on their remote Irish island. 

Black Adam (October 21, 2022)

On October 21, the world finally got to see Dwayne Johnson go from successful wrestler-turned-actor to a comic book hero when Black Adam opens in theaters. The highly-anticipated movie about one of the comic world’s toughest anti-heroes has been hyped up by longtime fans, Warner Bros., and even The Rock himself, who just couldn’t help himself in the lead-up to the debut of the film’s first trailer.

My Policeman (October 21, 2022)

On October 21, My Policeman saw Harry Styles play Tom Burgess, a Brighton police officer in the 1950s with a secret that could ruin his marriage, career, and standing in the community. The movie, which also stars The Crown Season 4 star Emma Corrin and David Dawson will make its streaming debut just weeks later on November 4 on Prime Video.

Ticket To Paradise (October 21, 2022)

George Clooney and Julia Roberts teamed up for the sixth time in Ol Parker’s upcoming romantic comedy, Ticket to Paradise, which will see the Ocean’s Eleven cast members play a divorced couple who attempt to stop their daughter from making the same mistake they made all those years ago. The dynamic duo got back together on the big screen (and maybe in the story) on October 21.

Armageddon Time (October 28, 2022)

James Gray’s period drama Armageddon Time will follow a young boy named Paul Graff (Michael Banks Repeta) as he is forced to face identity, race, and coming of age after being sent to a prestigious preparatory academy. The movie, which also features Anne Hathaway, Anthony Hopkins, Jessica Chastain, and Jeremy Strong, saw a limited release on October 28 before going nationwide on November 4.

Weird: The Al Yankovic Story (November 4, 2022)

Weird: The Al Yankovic Story premiered at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival in September, where it became an “instant midnight classic” according to CinemaBlend’s Mike Reyes. On November 4, the movie about the iconic polka-turned-parody master landed on the Roku streaming channel with Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe portraying Weird Al.

Bardo, False Chronicle Of A Handful Of Truths (November 4, 2022)

Alejandro González Iñárritu won back-to-back Academy Awards for his decorated movies Birdman and The Revenant, and after a seven-year break, the Mexican filmmaker will soon try for his third Best Director Oscar with Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths. The movie, which follows a journalist and filmmaker embarks on an existential journey, opened for a limited theatrical release on November 4 before landing on Netflix on December 16.

Enola Holmes 2 (November 4, 2022)

Those who have been waiting anxiously for the next chapter in Enola Holmes’ journey will wait no more when Enola Holmes 2 premiered on November 4. The 2022 Netflix movie saw the return of Millie Bobby Brown’s titular heroine and Henry Cavill’s Sherlock Holmes, as well as several new characters.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (November 11, 2022)

Although there has yet to be a trailer, pictures, or release of plot details about one of the most anticipated upcoming Marvel movies, comic book film fans around the world are beyond excited for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. With so many questions surrounding the movie, like who will take on the Black Panther moniker following the death of Chadwick Boseman, it is easy to see why so many couldn't wait for the film’s November 11 release.

Spirited (November 11, 2022) 

There have been countless remakes and reimaginings of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, but having another adaptation won’t hurt anyone. On November 11, Spirited, a modern musical version of the holiday classic starring Ryan Reynolds, Will Ferrell, and others will land in theaters. The movie will became available for anyone with an Apple TV+ subscription starting November 18.

Disenchanted (November 18, 2022)

In November 2007, moviegoers fell in love with Giselle (Amy Adams), Robert Philip (Patrick Dempsey), and the rest of the Enchanted cast with its hilarious and heartfelt take on the fairy tale genre. The long-awaited sequel, Disenchanted premiered November 18 on Disney+, and took audiences back to the magical land of Andalasia once again.

The Menu (November 18, 2022)

Ralph Fiennes has largely shied away from playing creepy characters since he last portrayed Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter finale, but that will change with Mark Mylod’s upcoming dark comedy horror movie, The Menu. In the movie, Fiennes takes on the role of Chef Slowik, who specializes in a rather unique culinary experience that pushes boundaries for his wealthy guests. The unnerving movie, which also stars Anya Taylor-Joy and Nicholas Hoult, was first served up November 18.

She Said (November 18, 2022)

The Harvey Weinstein sexual abuse case was one of the biggest moments in the Me Too movement in 2017, and now the story of how the allegations surfaced and took down one of the biggest players in Hollywood is coming to the big screen. Directed by Mari Schrader, She Said will center on Jodi Kantor (Zoe Kazan) and Megan Twohey (Carey Mulligan) and how the New York Times reporters turned a story no one wanted to talk about into a story no one could not talk about. The film debuted November 18th.

Devotion (November 23, 2022)

J.D. Dillard’s action drama, Devotion, opened November 23, and tell the true story of American fighter pilots Jesse Brown (Jonathan Majors) and Tom Hudner (Glen Powell) whose actions during the Korean War helped turn them into two of the most highly decorated wingmen in U.S. military history.

The Fabelmans (November 23, 2022)

Steven Spielberg’s semi-autobiographical coming-of-age drama, The Fabelmans, debuted November 23 following a limited rollout in New York City and Los Angeles on November 11. The film will follow Sammy Fabelman (Gabriel LaBelle and Mateo Zoryna Francis-Deford), a young boy based on Spielberg, as he grows up in post World War II Arizona and dreams of becoming a filmmaker. 

Strange World (November 23, 2022)

On November 23, Walt Disney Animation Studios released Strange World, a science-fiction action spectacle starring Jake Gyllenhaal as Searcher Clade, an explorer who travels with his family to the far reaches of the galaxy where they uncover all sorts of fantastical and dangerous creatures and terrain. Trippy visuals, Jake Gyllenhaal, and a new Disney dog? What’s not to love?

Well, this should be more than enough to get you started on your fall moviegoing experience. Now all there is left to do is book a babysitter, buy your tickets, and take off to the world of cinema.

We have seen many Stephen King stories reimagined on screen for a new generation in recent years and Salem’s Lot is one of the most highly anticipated upcoming Stephen King adaptations on their way. In fact, fans were afraid this feature-length take on the story of a small town in Maine plagued by a sinister, nocturnal presence might never see the light of day.

Luckily, the release of the upcoming horror movie is finally upon us. So, when would it be a good time to grab a crucifix, a wooden stake, and some garlic? Let’s start there in our guide to everything you need to know about this new vampire flick.

What Is The Salem’s Lot Release Date?

For quite some time, the biggest mystery surrounding Salem’s Lot has been when it will come out but, fortunately, we now know that it will debut on October 3, 2024 on Max. The news came months after Variety reported that Warner Bros. discussed distributing it as a streaming exclusive, meaning it would be available with a Max subscription, which has now been confirmed as fact.

Max being one of the best streaming services to subscribe to notwithstanding, this was a most exciting development in the long delay for Salem’s Lot, which actually wrapped principal photography in November 2021, as star Makenzie Leigh confirmed in an Instagram post. King himself has even seen the film and praised it on X (formerly Twitter), calling it a “muscular…, involving… [and] faithful” adaptation of his story. This makes me happy to know that it has secured a spot on the upcoming 2024 movie schedule, even if that means skipping a theatrical release.

The Salem's Lot Trailer Is As Spooky As They Come

Finally, with less than a month before its Max premiere date, the first official Salem's Lot trailer has become available. We must admit, though, the promo was worth the wait. See what we mean by watching it here:

With the appropriate choice of Gordon Lightfoot's "Sundown" playing over the soundtrack, the clip teases some intense vampire attacks, such as young Mark Petrie narrowly avoiding one as he scrambles into his treehouse, or Ben Mears getting scooped up by one while outrunning a sneak horde. The trailer does not, however, reveal the face of the story's main antagonist, Kurt Barlow, but that may be for the best.

What Salem’s Lot Is About

The Stephen King multiverse is full of vampires, such as the nocturnal creatures a fan may find in short stories like “The Night Flier” – which inspired a mean made-for-TV creature feature in 1997 – and his series of Dark Tower novels, among others. However, the most famous bloodsucker of the author’s creation must be Kurt Barlow, who is the centuries-old antagonist of Salem’s Lot.

The 1975 novel (King’s second) gets its title from the shortened name of the town where it is set, Jerusalem’s Lot – the childhood home of writer Ben Mears. When he returns to the Maine community to research his next book, many locals start to disappear, die, or simply act strangely. Upon further investigation, Ben starts to believe this suspicious activity is the work of a creature of the night.

The New Salem’s Lot Cast

Something that many of the best Stephen King movies have in common is a talented ensemble and this upcoming film is no exception. The Salem’s Lot cast includes a few actors starring in an adaptation of the author’s work for the first time, as well as a couple who can call themselves Stephen King movie veterans. Let’s take a look at who they are, who they are playing, and what else you may know them from, one by one.

Lewis Pullman (Ben Mears)

Starring as the hero of Salem’s Lot, author Ben Mears, is Lewis Pullman. The son of Bill Pullman is no stranger to horror – having starred in The Strangers: Prey at Night – but is best known from the Top Gun: Maverick cast as Bob, or from Amazon Prime’s sci-fi Neo-Western series, Outer Range. He also recently received an Emmy nomination for Apple TV+’s Lessons in Chemistry and is about to join the MCU, starring in the upcoming Thunderbolts* movie as Sentry.

William Sadler (Constable Parkins Gillespie)

Starring as a local cop named Parkins Gillespie (according to Vanity Fair) is William Sadler, who is one of the aforementioned Stephen King movie veterans in the cast. The actor is known for playing Heywood in The Shawshank Redemption from 1994, Klaus Detterick in 1999’s The Green Mile, and Jim in the devastating 2007 creature feature, The Mist – all of which are written and directed by Frank Darabont.

Makenzie Leigh (Susan Norton)

Playing Ben’s love interest, Susan Norton, is Makenzie Leigh of Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk fame. However, many of her best known credits to date have come from the small screen – such as her brief stint in the Gotham cast and starring role in the NBC miniseries, The Slap, in 2015.  

Bill Camp (Matthew Burke)

One of Ben’s most trusted allies against the vampire invasion is Matthew Burke – previously played by Andre Braugher in TNT’s 2004 miniseries adaptation of Salem’s Lot. This new version of the school teacher is portrayed by fellow Stephen King adaptation veteran Bill Camp (he starred in one of the best horror TV shows on Max, The Outsider), who also has Best Picture Oscar winners like Birdman and 12 Years a Slave, an Emmy nomination for HBO’s The Night Before, and a role in Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit cast in his versatile filmography.

Spencer Treat Clark (Mike Ryerson)

A character who, unfortunately, falls prey to the vampire invasion is Mike Ryerson, played by Spencer Treat Clark. The actor already has plenty of horror experience – and even horror remake experience, having starred in 2009’s The Last House on the Left and The Town that Dreaded Sundown from 2014 – but is also best known for working with one of horror’s most prolific filmmakers, M. Night Shyamalan, on two of his less horror-centric titles: Unbreakable and Glass. Clark also starred on TNT’s Animal Kingdom, was in 2022’s Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, and portrayed Confederate soldier Louis Powell in Apple TV+’s Manhunt in 2024.

Pilou Asbæk (Richard Straker)

Salem’s Lot’s Richard Straker is merely the latest villain to be portrayed by Pilou Asbæk, who is best known from the Game of Thrones cast as Euron Greyjoy. He also played a genetically enhanced Nazi in Overlord, Ella Balinska’s deadly pursuer in Amazon Prime’s Run Sweetheart Run, and Kordax in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. He also voices Thor in co-creator Zack Snyder’s upcoming animated Netflix original fantasy series, Twilight of the Gods

John Benjamin Hickey (Father Donald Callahan)

A local priest named Father Donald Callahan is played by John Benjamin Hickey. The actor has a Tony award for his performance in The Normal Heart and an Emmy nomination for Showtime’s The Big C, but might also be recognized from the Pitch Perfect cast as Beca’s father. Hickey also stars in the upcoming biopic, Lilly.

Alfre Woodard (Dr. Cody)

Playing a gender-swapped version of a character named Dr. Cody is Alfre Woodard – known for her Academy Award-nominated performance in 1984’s Cross Creek and Emmy wins for Hill Street Blues, L.A. Law, Miss Evers’ Boys, and The Practice. Salem’s Lot marks her second collaboration with writer and director Gary Dauberman after starring in the 2014 Conjuring Universe spin-off, Annabelle, which he penned. Woodard can next be seen in Apple TV+’s upcoming drama series The Last Frontier and stars opposite Morgan Freeman in the upcoming music drama, Hate to See You Go.

Jordan Preston Carter (Mark Petrie)

One of the first to catch on the vampire invasion in Salem's Lot is Mark Petrie, who is played by Jordan Preston Carter, whose only real horror experience so far was an episode of Hulu's Kindred. The young actor is also known from creator Tyler Perry's soap opera, The Haves and the Have Nots, and another Max original: the Rosario Dawson-led, four-part post-apocalyptic miniseries, DMZ.

Salem’s Lot Is Rated R

The MPA gave Salem’s Lot an R rating for “bloody violence and language.” We would consider the former detail to be a requirement of the utmost importance for a film that involves bloodsucking creatures.

Salem’s Lot Is 113 Minutes

We also know from an exclusive by One Take News how long Salem’s Lot is. The film is one hour and 53 minutes, which is about half of the runtime of the novel’s two previous adaptations (more on them later).

It Writer Gary Dauberman Wrote And Directed Salem’s Lot

The person in charge of helming Salem’s Lot is certainly no stranger to the horror genre and is clearly a Stephen King fan. The film is both written and directed by Gary Dauberman, who is also known for writing both halves of Andy Muschietti’s theatrical It adaptation. He would make his directorial debut with Annabelle Comes Home in 2018 after penning the first two installments of the possessed doll’s own trilogy of spin-off movies and The Nun, making him a key component of the Conjuring movies Universe. 

Speaking of, the one who started that franchise, James Wan, is also joining Dauberman for this project. In April 2019, Wan’s involvement with Salem’s Lot was officially announced. The director of The Conjuring and its 2016 sequel shares a producing credit on the film with Dauberman and others, but it will not be the last King adaptation Wan is attached to. He will also produce The Tommyknockers, which is yet another theatrical update of a miniseries based on one of the author’s novels.

Salem’s Lot Is The Latest Of Several Movies And TV Shows Inspired By Stephen King’s Novel

Salem’s Lot follows in the footsteps of the It movies as a feature-length adaptation of the author’s work that was previously made for television as a limited series. However, the original two-part event directed by Tobe Hooper (creator of one of the best horror movies of all time, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre) is not the only time this vampire story came to the small screen.

The 1979 miniseries spawned a feature-length sequel called A Return to Salem’s Lot in 1987 and an aforementioned remake starring Rob Lowe that aired over two nights on TNT in 2004. While the plot of Salem’s Lot has nothing to do with the Hulu original series, Castle Rock, Jerusalem’s Lot was a prominent setting of its second season. King later wrote a short, 19th-Century-set prequel called “Jerusalem’s Lot,” which serves as the basis of the Adrien Brody-led series, Chapelwaite, which ran for one season on Epix.

How might this new adaptation of Salem’s Lot compare to its previous interpretations and other recent Stephen King films? Don’t lose sleep over that question, as there will surely be more for us to sink our teeth into as we wait for the film to drop.

After months of building anticipation, Gary Dauberman’s upcoming adaptation of Salem’s Lot is no longer going to be released in 2022. While Warner Bros. originally scheduled the film to be released on September 9 of this year, it was announced this morning that the studio has opted to alter the plans and have the movie come out in April 2023 instead. That leaves John Lee Hancock’s Mr. Harrigan’s Phone as the only upcoming Stephen King adaptation this year – and I’m experiencing some mixed emotions from the news.

There are ways in which I see the Salem’s Lot release date change as a good thing, and in other ways my reaction is disappointment. As a result, this feature is kind of like a pop culture therapy session as I talk through my feelings on the matter.

Our Wait For Salem’s Lot Just Went From Two Months Long To Nine Months Long

I’ll start by letting my Id have the floor, fueled by our culture of instant gratification: the decision to push Salem’s Lot means that our wait to see the finished film has nearly quintupled. Stephen King fans have been expecting the movie’s arrival at the very end of summer for a while now –with the teaser footage at this year’s CinemaCon further raising anticipation – but now we won’t actually get to see it until next spring.

To allow my Super Ego to get a word in edgewise, this move isn’t terribly surprising, as Salem’s Lot was supposed to come out in two months, and yet the studio has not yet released an official still from the movie, let alone a trailer. That’s a red flag suggesting a release date shifting that has been flapping in the wind for weeks now, but that no less makes it a bummer to see the suggestion become reality. I’m still keeping my fingers crossed that Constant Readers may get an early look at the movie during San Diego Comic-Con later this month, but I can’t say I’m over-the-moon optimistic about the possibility anymore.

More Post-Production Time Will Be Helpful With A Story This Complex

According to the report by Deadline, Salem’s Lot has been pushed “due to Covid-related delays in the post production realm,” and in addition to being happy that proper health and safety precautions are being made behind the scenes, I’m also glad to hear that delays aren’t forcing the filmmakers to try and hit an unreasonable deadline crafting a finished cut of the movie (which would have been created had the release date remained static). More post-production time is generally a positive thing for any production, but one would think that it’s going to be particularly helpful in the case of this project.

The reason why Salem’s Lot has only ever been adapted as a miniseries before is because Stephen King’s novel has remarkable scope for a story that is all but entirely set within the borders of a small town in Maine. The terror in the material comes from slowly witnessing the infestation of vampires that ultimately swallows the secluded titular village, and it’s going to take a lot of effort in the editing room to recreate that epic experience on the big screen. An extra wait is worth it to fans if it means that it gives the work the opportunity to be the best possible version of itself.

It Won’t Be Around For The “Halloween Season”

Being a horror fan means knowing that the “Halloween Season” is not merely limited to September/October, but instead is a year-round event – but I will admit that there is an extra level of spooky that exists in the fall. A regular chill rides on the air, shadows stretch a little further as the days get shorter and the nights get longer… and there’s the fact that Halloween is on October 31. And it saddens me that I won’t be able to celebrate the special holiday this year with a new Stephen King adaptation in theaters.

Without advocating that Salem’s Lot be pushed to Halloween 2023 (see reasoning in the first section), it’s a shame that audiences won’t have the opportunity to walk out of a screening of this film on a dark fall evening and walk back to their cars with a cold wind licking their necks and fearing that a vampire might pop out of the shadows. You can’t really get that same effect with an April movie (in America, at least), and that’s a disappointment.

The New Release Date Shows Warner Bros. Still Has Confidence In The Film

When release date shifts happen, it’s often possible to pick up on warning signs about a movie based on the move. It’s typically not a great omen when a film is pushed to either January or August, as those have long been seen as months with low box office potential, and it suggests that a studio is giving up on a title when they make the decision to release it either the same week as a major blockbuster, or one week after. Neither of these circumstances are present in the move of Salem’s Lot to next April.

As far as competition goes, the Stephen King adaptation will be hitting theaters three weeks after Scream 6, and two weeks before Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which means that it should have a nice little bubble for box office dominance (or so Warner Bros. hopes). And in regards to Salem’s Lot coming out in the month of April, late spring has become a season with high potential for big screen success. There is no indication here that the film is being dumped; instead, it appears to be getting opportunity to succeed

Salem’s Lot – featuring a stellar cast including Lewis Pullman, Makenzie Leigh, Bill Camp, Alfre Woodard, Spencer Treat Clark, Pilou Asbæk, and William Sadler – will be in theaters on April 21, 2023. While Constant Readers wait for the anticipated feature’s arrival, you can explore my Adapting Stephen King columns about the two previous adaptations of the beloved book: the 1979 miniseries directed by Tobe Hooper, and the 2004 remake starring Rob Lowe.

The horror genre has been experiencing a thrilling renaissance for years now, to the joy of moviegoers. Some of the best horror movies have returned to theaters via sequels, while we've also seen some reboots from previous adaptations. Case in point: Andy Muschietti's pair of IT movies. The trend of Stephen King movies haven't slowed down, with Gary Dauberman's Salem's Lot movie originally expected to hit theaters this September. Unfortunately the Stephen King movie has been pushed back, but the reasoning makes complete sense.

The new Salem's Lot movie was set to help kick off the fall movie season, with an original release date of September 9th. But according to a new report by Deadline, the project has been delayed until April 21st, 2023. The reasoning given to the outlet is that a COVID-related delay happened in post-production. Considering the movie has to bring vampires to life, this process is understandably important. 

This delay in the release of Salem's Lot is sure to be a bummer for horror fans and cinephiles alike, who were hoping that the Stephen King adaptation might kick off the fall movie season. But those closely following production might not be all that surprised by this shake-up. Namely because there were reportedly a handful of delays related to photography on the movie six weeks ago. 

Information about the upcoming Salem's Lot movie is fairly limited, although folks can certainly look to Stephen King's novel for spoilers. And Director Gary Dauberman assembled a strong cast to bring his adaptation to life on the big screen. Some familiar faces include Top Gun: Maverick's Lewis Pullman, Glass actor Spencer Treat Clark, and the always iconic Alfre Woodard. 

The upcoming Salem's Lot flick marks the first time that Stephen King's novel of the same name has been made into a full fledged movie. Instead, there have been two television miniseries adaptation over the years. First there was a 1979 two-part TV event, followed by a 2004 miniseries starring Rob Lowe. We'll just have to wait and see how unique the story is when told in film form. 

As previously mentioned, the horror genre has been on fire for the last few years. While this is partly thanks to legacy-quels like Halloween and Scream, there have also been a number of new movie versions of Stephen King classics. Andy Muschietti's pair of IT movies were massively successful upon their release, while we also recently saw new versions of Firestarter and Pet Sematary. King has been terrifying audiences for decades on the page and screen, and smart money says that Salem's Lot is going to follow suit. Even if we're going to wait a few more months as a result of this recent delay.

Salem's Lot will hit theaters on April 21st, 2023, although hopefully this delay will result in great visual effects. In the meantime, check out the 2022 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience. 

One could make a strong argument that no single creator has made a greater contribution to pop culture in the last 50 years than Stephen King. It all began with Carrie, the book in 1974 and the movie in 1976, and the author since then has not only established himself as one of the most prolific professional writers alive, but a cross-medium legend. He puts out at least one new book (be it a novel, a collection of short stories, or non-fiction) annually, and it’s actually rare for a year to go by in the 21st century without seeing at least one adaptation premiere on either the big screen or on television.

Between Stephen King movies, books, and TV, his body of work also happens to be a wonderful playground for fans who see themselves as “collectors” – and if you’re one of those people, we’ve built this feature for you. I’ve personally spent years building my own perfect Stephen King collection, and knowing there is a wide world of Constant Readers out there I figured I’d lend a hand helping others do the same. From Carrie, to IT, to Holly, let’s dig in! 

Stephen King Books

It all starts with the books, so we’ll begin the collecting journey here. More advanced collectors (and those with the available disposable income) may be inclined to go the route of buying First Edition copies of each of the titles (most of which are hardcovers), but this is more of a starter guide that points towards the best commonly available editions of each one (which generally means that they are purchasable at a reasonable price).

Must-Own Stephen King Books

If you’re building a core Stephen King collection, it’s a must to start with the classics (Carrie, Firestarter, The Dead Zone), the series (The Dark Tower, The Bill Hodges Trilogy), and the epics (The Stand, IT). The novella collections are special, as are most of his short story omnibi.

• Carrie (1974) – Hardcover
• Salem's Lot (1975) – Hardcover
• The Shining (1977) – Hardcover
• Rage (1977)/The Long Walk (1979)/Roadwork (1981)/The Running Man (1982) – Hardcover (Out Of Print)
• Night Shift (1978) – Hardcover
• The Stand (1978) – Hardcover
• The Dead Zone (1979) – Hardcover
• Firestarter (1980) – Hardcover
• Danse Macabre (1981) – Hardcover
• Cujo (1981) – Hardcover
• The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger (1982) – Hardcover
• Different Seasons (1982) – Hardcover
• Christine (1983) – Hardcover
• Pet Sematary (1983) – Hardcover
• The Talisman (1984) – Hardcover
• Skeleton Crew (1985) – Hardcover
• IT (1986) – Hardcover
• The Dark Tower II: The Drawing Of The Three (1987) – Hardcover
• Misery (1987) – Hardcover
• The Dark Half (1989) – Hardcover
• Four Past Midnight (1990) – Hardcover
• Needful Things (1991) – Hardcover
• The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991) – Hardcover
• Gerald's Game (1992) – Hardcover
• Dolores Claiborne (1992) – Hardcover
• Nightmares & Dreamscapes (1993) – Hardcover
• The Green Mile (1996) – Hardcover
• Desperation (1996) – Hardcover
• The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997) – Hardcover
• The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon (1999) – Hardcover
• On Writing: A Memoir Of The Craft (2000) – Hardcover
• Black House (2001) – Hardcover
• The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla (2003) – Hardcover
• The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah (2004) – Hardcover
• The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower (2004) – Hardcover
• Lisey's Story (2006) – Hardcover
• Under The Dome (2009) – Hardcover
• Full Dark, No Stars (2010) – Hardcover
• 11.22.63 (2011) – Hardcover
• The Dark Tower: The Wind Through The Keyhole (2012) – Hardcover
• Doctor Sleep (2013) – Hardcover
• Mr. Mercedes (2014) – Hardcover
• Revival (2014) – Hardcover
• Finders Keepers (2015) – Hardcover
• End Of Watch (2016) – Hardcover
• Gwendy's Button Box (2017) – Hardcover
• The Outsider (2018) – Hardcover
• If It Bleeds (2020) – Hardcover
• Later (2021) – Paperback
• Billy Summers (2021) – Hardcover
• Gwendy’s Final Task (2022) – Hardcover
• Fairy Tale (2022) – Hardcover
• Holly (2023) - Hardcover
• You Like It Darker (2024) - Hardcover

Worth Checking Out

Once you have the essentials, you can expand from there. A number of these are great books – they just don’t have quite the same legacy as the best known titles in the Stephen King library. Some of them are also… bad (we’re being honest today).

• Cycle Of The Werewolf (1983) – Paperback
• Thinner (1984) – Hardcover
• The Eyes Of The Dragon (1984) – Hardcover
• The Tommyknockers (1987) – Hardcover
• Insomnia (1994) – Hardcover
• Rose Madder (1995) – Hardcover
• The Regulators (1996) – Hardcover
• Bag Of Bones (1998) – Hardcover
• Hearts In Atlantis (1999) – Hardcover
• Dreamcatcher (2001) – Hardcover
• Everything's Eventual (2002) – Hardcover
• From A Buick 8 (2002) – Hardcover
• The Colorado Kid (2005) – Paperback
• Cell (2006) – Hardcover
• Blaze (2007) – Hardcover
• Duma Key (2008) – Hardcover
• Just After Sunset (2008) – Hardcover
• Joyland (2013) – Hardcover
• The Bazaar Of Bad Dreams (2015) – Hardcover
• Sleeping Beauties (2017) – Hardcover
• Elevation (2018) – Hardcover
• The Institute (2019) – Hardcover

Optional

You may not feel that you need a coffee table book with Stephen King discussing the creepiness and legacy of gargoyles, but if you’re a completist, you’ll want to have these titles in your collection.They do make for nice additions to any Stephen King library.

• Nightmares In The Sky (1988) – Hardcover
• I Shudder At Your Touch (1991) – Hardcover (Note: Features the story “The Revelations Of Becka Paulson, which isn’t published in any other hardcover)
• Storm Of The Century (1999) – Hardcover
• Secret Windows: Essays And Fiction On The Craft Of Writing (2000) – Hardcover
• Faithful (2004) – Hardcover
• Blockade Billy (2010) – Hardcover
• Hearts In Suspension (2016) – Hardcover
• Flight Or Fright (2018) – Hardcover

Stephen King Movie Adaptations

Stephen King’s relationship with Hollywood is just about as long as his history as a published novelist, with Brian Da Palma’s Carrie having been released just two years after the novel it’s based on was first published. The author has an awesome big screen legacy, and thus there are a large number of titles to populate a collection.

Must-Own Stephen King Movies

Not only have some great movies been made based on Stephen King books, but there are some downright iconic ones too – and it’s primarily those titles we are calling essential for any collection. Some titles are considered among the best horror movies of all time… and considered among the best movies of all time period:

• Carrie (1976) – Collector’s Edition 4K UHD
• The Shining (1980) – 4K UHD
• Creepshow (1982) – Collector’s Edition 4K UHD
• Cujo (1983) – 4K UHD
• The Dead Zone (1983) – Collector's Edition 4K UHD
• Christine (1983) – 4K UHD
• Children Of The Corn (1984) – Special Edition 4K UHD
• Firestarter (1984) – Collector’s Edition Blu-ray
• Silver Bullet (1985) – Collector’s Edition 4K UHD
• Stand By Me (1986) – 4K UHD
• Maximum Overdrive (1986) – Blu-ray
• Pet Sematary (1989) – 4K UHD
• Misery (1990) – 4K UHD
• Tales From The Darkside: The Movie (1990) – Collector’s Edition 4K UHD
• Needful Things (1993) – 4K UHD
• The Shawshank Redemption (1994) – 4K UHD
• Dolores Claiborne (1995) – Blu-ray
• The Green Mile (1999) – 4K UHD
• The Mist (2007) – Collector's Edition 4K UHD
• IT (2017) – 4K UHD
• IT Chapter Two (2019) – 4K UHD
• Doctor Sleep (2019) – 4K UHD
• The Boogeyman (2023) – Blu-ray

Worth Checking Out

These Stephen King movies aren’t quite up to the high standard set by the brilliant adaptations above, and in some cases more liberties are taken with the source material, but there’s still plenty of good stuff, including a few solid anthology films.

• Cat's Eye (1985) – 4K UHD
• Creepshow 2 (1987) – Special Edition Blu-ray
• The Running Man (1987) – 4K UHD
• Sleepwalkers (1992) – Collector’s Edition Blu-ray
• The Dark Half (1993) – Blu-ray (Out Of Print)
• The Mangler (1995) – Blu-ray
• The Night Flier (1998) – DVD
• Apt Pupil (1998) – DVD
• Hearts In Atlantis (2001) – DVD
• 1408 (2007) – Blu-ray
• A Good Marriage (2014) – Blu-ray
• Pet Sematary (2019) – 4K UHD
• Firestarter (2022) – Blu-ray
• Pet Sematary: Bloodlines – 4K UHD

Optional

It’s tricky to recommend these Stephen King movies because they ride so low on the quality scale, but they exist for you to get if you’re a completist.

• Graveyard Shift (1990) – Blu-ray
• Thinner (1996) – Collector's Edition Blu-ray
• Carrie (2013) – Collector's Edition 4K UHD
• Dreamcatcher (2003) – Blu-ray
• Secret Window (2004) – Blu-ray
• Dolan's Cadillac (2009) – Blu-ray
• Riding The Bullet (2004) – DVD
• Mercy (2014) – DVD
• Cell (2016) – Blu-ray
• The Dark Tower (2017) – 4K UHD

Stephen King TV Adaptations

A huge part of what makes Stephen King’s books so great is their attention to detail – and while this typically means that the tomes wind up getting pretty damn heavy, it’s also an element of his style that has led to there being a great relationship between King and the TV world. These adaptations provide the runtime real estate that regularly let adaptations be remarkably faithful to their respective source material.

Must-Own Stephen King TV Adaptations

If you’re looking for the cream of the crop material when it comes to Stephen King’s history on the small screen, you’ll find it below. Admittedly the legacy isn’t quite as iconic as the theatrical material, but we’ve still seen some fantastic adaptations for the small screen.

• Salem's Lot (1979) – Blu-ray
• It (1990) – Blu-ray
• The Stand (1994) – Blu-ray
• The Langoliers (1995) – DVD
• The Shining (1997) – Blu-ray
• Storm Of The Century (1999) – DVD (Based on original script by Stephen King)
• The Dead Zone (2002) – DVD (Complete Series)
• Kingdom Hospital (2004) – DVD
• Salem's Lot (2004) – DVD (Best version in Triple Terror Collection)
• Nightmares & Dreamscapes (2006) – DVD
• Haven (2010) – DVD (Complete Series) (Note: Each season was released on Blu-rays, but copies of Season 4, Season 5, and Season 5.1 can be difficult to find)
• Under The Dome (2013) – Blu-ray (Season 1) & Blu-ray (Season 2) & Blu-ray (Season 3)
• 11.22.63 (2016) – Blu-ray
• Mr. Mercedes (2017) – Blu-ray (Note: Region-Free Complete Series)
• Castle Rock (2018) – 4K UHD (Season 1) & Blu-ray (Season 2)
• The Outsider (2020) – Blu-ray (Season 1)
• The Stand (2020) – Blu-ray (Complete Limited Series)
• Chapelwaite (2021) Blu-ray (Note: This a Region Free release from Australia)

Worth Checking Out

Quality-wise, these TV adaptations range between “middle of the road” and “downright awful. Some of them definitely have their redeeming qualities, and will certainly be of interest to any Stephen King collector who is also a completist.

• Sometimes They Come Back (1991) – Blu-ray
• Golden Years (1991) – DVD (Based on original script by Stephen King)
• The Tommyknockers (1993) – DVD
• Quicksilver Highway (1997) – DVD
• Trucks (1997) – DVD
• Rose Red (2002) – DVD (Based on original script by Stephen King)
• Carrie (2002) – Blu-ray (Out Of Print)
• Desperation (2006) – DVD
• Children Of The Corn (2009) – Blu-ray
• Bag Of Bones (2011) – DVD
• Big Driver (2014) – DVD

Optional

If you’re looking to get absolutely every Stephen King adaptation, including the anthology shows that turned the author’s works into single episodes, this section is for you:

• The Twilight Zone (1985) – DVD (Season 1) (Note: Episode “Gramma” based on the Stephen King story of the same name)
• Tales From The Darkside (1984) – DVD (Season 1) (Note: Episode “Word Processor Of The Gods” based on the Stephen King story of the same name) & DVD (Season 4) (Note: Stephen King wrote the episode “Sorry, Right Number”)
• Monsters (1988) - DVD (Complete Series) (Note: Out Of Print, Season 3 Episode “The Moving Finger” based on the Stephen King story of the same name)
• The Outer Limits (1997) – DVD (Season 3) (Note: Out Of Print; Episode “The Revelations Of ‘Becka Paulson” based on Stephen King’s short story of the same name)
• The X-Files (1998) – Blu-ray (Season 5) (Note: Stephen King wrote the episode “Chinga”)
• Creepshow (2019) – Blu-ray (Season 1 - Episode “Gray Matter” based on the Stephen King story of the same name) & Blu-ray (Season 2 - which includes the "Creepshow Animated Special," based on the Stephen King story “Survivor Type”)

As noted up top, there are always more Stephen King books being written and adaptations being made, so any collection of the author’s works is a fluid collection – but we’ll keep this list updated with all of the latest releases as they become available. For the latest news about new developments in the world of King physical media, check out my weekly column The King Beat, which goes live here on CinemaBlend every Thursday.

Note: This feature purposefully does not include sequels that are not based on pre-existing Stephen King works or written by King himself (i.e. the Children of the Corn sequels, Pet Sematary 2, The Rage: Carrie 2, etc.).

Additionally, Gerald's Game, In The Tall Grass, 1922, and Mr. Harrigan's Phone are notably absent from this list because they are not currently available on home video, and can only be watched on Netflix. The same is true for the series Lisey’s Story, which is an Apple TV+ exclusive.

Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot was first published nearly 50 years ago, but it says a lot about the work that it remains an all-time favorite for a great number of the author’s so-called Constant Readers. Like any great vampire tale, it slowly creeps before jamming its teeth into your throat, telling the story of how a small Maine town gets completely wiped off the map by a monstrous invasion. It delivers some of the best scares in any of King’s books – which is why writer/director Gary Dauberman has used it extensively as an invaluable resource as he has been working on bringing the story to the big screen.

The first ever footage from Salem’s Lot debuted last night during the Warner Bros. presentation at CinemaCon – the annual Las Vegas convention held for theater owners – but before the sizzle reel aired, Gary Dauberman took the stage to talk with host Aisha Tyler about his work on the movie. She asked the filmmaker about the building the horrific world audiences will discover in the upcoming feature, and Dauberman explained how Stephen King’s books were a key inspiration:

While Stephen King’s books most certainly do have a tendency to go to some extreme places (both figuratively and literally), the magic in the author’s writing is his ability to ensconce readers in detailed environments and craft characters that are beautifully rendered and multidimensional. He gets you to deeply care about the protagonists of his stories… and then when he sends them all to hell, you get to enjoy the emotional ride right alongside them.

This depth very much extends to monsters as well – and the vampires of Salem’s Lot are a perfect example. The soulless, bloodsucking creatures are an abomination because they are pure evil, but still look like your family, friends and neighbors. As Gary Dauberman put it,

Salem’s Lot tells the story of Ben Mears, an author who decides to confront a traumatic event from his childhood by returning to his hometown – Jerusalem’s Lot, Maine – so that he can write a book about where it happened: the dreadful Marsten House. Ben plans to take up residency in the place, but upon his arrival he discovers that it has already been rented by a strange couple of men named Kurt Barlow and Richard Straker. As it turns out, Barlow is an ancient vampire, and Straker is his devoted servant, and together they work to feast on the entirety of the secluded town.

Gary Dauberman has assembled a brilliant cast for Salem’s Lot, with the major roles played by terrific actors including Lewis Pullman, William Sadler, Pilou Asbæk, Alfre Woodard, Bill Camp, Makenzie Leigh, John Benjamin Hickey, and Jordan Preston Carter.

While on stage at CinemaCon, Gary Dauberman also explained why it was that he was passionate about making the Stephen King adaptation, having already contributed to the extensive canon by writing the screenplays for both IT and IT Chapter Two. The filmmaker explained that it came down to two things:

Salem’s Lot has been adapted twice previously, but as noted by Gary Dauberman, both were made as television productions. In 1979, director Tobe Hooper made a three-hour-long miniseries that aired across two nights on CBS, and in 2004, a remake of the same length was produced for TNT and directed by Mikael Salomon.

We still have a lot of questions about Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot – including about how the scope of Stephen King’s novel will be contained in a single feature film – but they only serve to inflame anticipation. Of course, all questions will be answered when the horror movie arrives in theaters on September 9.

Between now and then, be on the lookout here on CinemaBlend for the first Salem’s Lot trailer, and to keep track of all the Stephen King adaptations that are now in the works, head over to our Upcoming Stephen King Movies and TV guide.

At long last, Gary Dauberman's Salem's Lot is nearly here. It was almost exactly three years ago that the project was announced as being in development, and Stephen King fans around the world have been forced to exhibit a great deal of patience while waiting for the film to come together. Now, it's only a few months away from theatrical release – and while the first trailer for the movie evidently isn't ready to be shown off to the masses just yet, this evening we got a special early look at the adaptation that has us over-the-moon excited for the upcoming horror feature.

This evening, Warner Bros. hosted their studio presentation at CinemaCon – the annual convention held in Las Vegas for theater owners – and while showing off their impressive slate for the year, the studio showcase the first ever footage from Salem's Lot. We didn't get to see a full 15 minutes from the movie like with Bullet Train last night, but the sizzle reel that was projected did showcase some awesome, scary material, and perhaps the most exciting part of all of it was recognizing key scenes from the book that are being brought to the big screen.

Which key scenes in particular? I'm so glad you asked, as I've broken down three of the exciting moments below!

Mike Ryerson Gets Attacked In The Cemetery

Poor Mike Ryerson. In Jerusalem's Lot, Mike is known as a lowly simpleton who does odd jobs for people, and sadly he ends up being one of the first victims of the vampire plague that ends up engulfing the small titular Maine town. The scene where he is attacked and turned is definitely a scary one, and the CinemaCon footage offered a brief look at what to expect from the key moment in the upcoming film.

Working at the cemetery, Mike Ryerson (Spencer Treat Clark) is given the responsibility of filling the grave of Danny Glick (Nicholas Crovetti), who dies after a bout with what doctors can only identify as some kind of strange anemia (of course, the medical experts are unaware of the vampire scourge at the time). While shoveling dirt, Mike hears knocking... and then he realizes that the sound is coming from the coffin that he is burying. Before he even has a moment to be scared, Danny – sporting a new pair of glowing eyes – charges at him... and while we didn't see the aftermath in the footage, everyone who has read the Stephen King book knows what happens (and even if you haven't, you can probably guess).

There's A Vampire In Matthew Burke's House

Of course, just because Mike Ryerson gets attacked in the cemetery doesn't mean that he exits the plot of Salem's Lot from that point on; instead, he actually becomes a noteworthy antagonist. This distinction is appropriate primarily because of an encounter that he has with Matthew Burke (Bill Camp) – a high school English teacher who is one of the few characters to recognize the vampire onslaught in Jerusalem's Lot – and that moment was briefly featured in the footage shown at CinemaCon.

The clip from the film didn't show a lot (mostly Mathew Burke cowering away from the monster that has ended up in his home), but it was instantly recognizable as the scene from Stephen King's novel, and I'm instantly anticipating seeing the whole thing play out on the big screen later this year.

Father Callahan Faces Off With Evil

Father Callahan (who is being played by John Benjamin Hickey in Salem's Lot) has become a fan favorite character among Constant Readers – particularly because Stephen King included him as a key figure in his beloved Dark Tower series, first appearing in the fifth book in the saga, Wolves Of The Calla. This isn't to say, however, that Callahan doesn't have some spectacular moments in King's vampire epic – and one of those sequences was teased in the Salem's Lot CinemaCon footage.

While I won't get too far into details for those of you who have not yet read the book,  Father Callahan ends up having a key showdown in the third act of the story, and the first look at the movie seemingly showcased a notable shot from it – specifically one where Callahan is holding up a cross that is literally glowing in the presence of evil that is the vampire menace in Jerusalem's Lot. It's a powerful image, particularly when you know the upshot from the source material.

Being a ridiculously huge Stephen King fan, Salem's Lot was already extremely high on my list of most anticipated films coming out in 2022, but based on what was shown at CinemaCon, my excitement has discovered new altitude. The movie looks both faithful and riveting, and should be a wonderful treat for the Halloween season.

Salem's Lot features an outstanding cast including Lewis Pullman, William Sadler, Pilou Asbæk, Alfre Woodard, Bill Camp, Makenzie Leigh, John Benjamin Hickey, and Jordan Preston Carter, and it will arrive in theaters on September 9. To learn about the movie, be sure to check out our Salem's Lot Quick Things feature, and for updates about all of the Stephen King adaptations that are presently in the works, do yourself a favor and check out our Upcoming Stephen King Movies and TV guide.

Prior to 2004, every American Stephen King remake had one thing in common: a change in medium. Stories that were originally adapted as big screen movies were either remade as features for the small screen (Trucks and Carrie), turned into a miniseries (The Shining), or re-envisioned as an on-going show (The Dead Zone). On the whole, it’s a good thing, as the variation automatically provided differentiation between the respective cracks at the shared source material.  

This trend came to an end with the making of Mikael Salomon’s Salem’s Lot. According to Stephen King Films FAQ by Scott von Doviak, the project began development when Warner Bros. decided to once again try and turn Stephen King’s second novel into a theatrically released film, but just like what happened with Tobe Hooper’s Salem’s Lot from 1979, circumstances evolved and saw the remake move to television. Like its predecessor, it took the form of a two-part miniseries with a total runtime of just a little over three hours.

Of course, while both productions are part of the same medium on paper, there is a key difference between them. While Tobe Hooper’s version was made to air on network television (CBS, to be specific), Mikael Salomon was provided the freedom that came with making Salem’s Lot for basic cable – the adaptation airing on TNT consecutive nights in late June 2004.

With fewer restrictions on content, the first remake of Salem’s Lot is much darker and “edgier” than its predecessor, and it sports a stellar cast of fantastic actors… but does grittier material and a superior cast make for a superior interpretation of the book? This week’s Adapting Stephen King examines that question.

How Mikael Salomon’s Salem’s Lot Differs From Tobe Hooper’s Salem’s Lot

Written by Peter Filardi (who, 17 years later, would co-create the Stephen King series Chapelwaite), 2004’s Salem’s Lot makes considerable changes to the source material that will be discussed in the next section, but some of the most interesting faithful elements of the miniseries are details and events that were either altered or skipped by Tobe Hooper’s adaptation.

The most wide-sweeping of these is the remake’s more significant attempt at capturing the energy of Jerusalem’s Lot as a whole town experiencing a slow infestation. The original keeps a narrow focus on the principal vampire hunters and their respective arcs, but Mikael Salomon’s version makes a specific point to unearth the darkness sleeping under the calm, small town aesthetic – and thus makes time to include horrifying sequences like hateful bus driver Charlie Rhodes (Andy Anderson) being devoured by a pack of blood-sucking children and the dimwitted Dud Rogers (Brendan Cowell) being seduced by Kurt Barlow (Rutger Hauer) at the town dump.

Speaking of Kurt Barlow, the presentation of the king vampire in the 2004 miniseries is a much better representation of what Stephen King put on the page compared to Tobe Hooper’s – who brought the character to life as an homage to F. W. Murnau's Nosferatu. As originally written, Barlow appears to look like a fairly normal human with red eyes and sharp fangs, and that’s how he is played by Rutger Hauer.

Another character “repaired” following alterations in the 1979 miniseries is Dr. James “Jimmy” Cody (Robert Mammone). As a kind of shortcut, the original adaptation combined characters from the novel – namely Dr. Cody and Susan Norton’s father – to create Dr. Bill Norton, but the remake makes him an independent player who organically becomes one of the heroes trying to stop the takeover of Jerusalem’s Lot while helping Matt Burke (Andre Braugher) recover from his heart attack.

There is a whole extra plot thread added to his story (more on that in a bit), but Dr. Cody also has a fate that is much closer to Stephen King’s novel than Tobe Hooper’s miniseries. In the 1979 iteration, Dr. Norton is murdered when Richard Straker picks him up and slams him against a wall covered in deer antlers. In the remake, his counterpart is the victim of a trap set for the heroes by the vampires, just as he is in the book, however, instead of falling through a set of stairs on to some arranged knives, he instead falls on an active table saw.

Lastly, there’s the fate of Father Donald Callahan (James Cromwell) – though this is a bit weird. Tobe Hooper’s miniseries never actually shows the fate of Father Callahan, presumably because you couldn’t show a priest drinking the blood of a vampire on network television in the late 1970s, but the remake goes there, so to speak.

That being said, the miniseries also deviates from Stephen King’s book by doing a heel turn with the character at the end of the story – and Constant Readers will note that it’s a development that is a bit funny when you consider the timing of the adaptation’s development. When Mikael Salomon was making his remake of King’s second novel, the author was preparing to publish The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla, which is a book that features Father Callahan in a prominent role and still a force on the side of good (despite his unholy encounter with Barlow).

It’s pretty clear that neither Mikael Salomon nor Peter Filardi got advanced notice of this – and if they did, they ignored it and proceeded with their own original take. In 2004’s Salem’s Lot, Callahan doesn’t get rejected by his church and decided to get on a bus to New York City, but instead becomes the leader of the vampires after author Ben Mears (Rob Lowe) successfully kills Kurt Barlow. Callahan himself is murdered in the final scenes of the miniseries, smothered with a pillow by young Mark Petrie (Dan Byrd) as Ben tells the story of Jerusalem’s Lot to his nurse (Christopher Kirby) while dying in a Detroit hospital.

How Mikael Salomon’s Salem’s Lot Differs From The Book

As noted, Mikael Salomon’s Salem’s Lot features a number of deviations from Stephen King’s book, and it makes sense to start with that Detroit hospital I mentioned. While the novel has a wraparound story that sees Ben Mears and Mark Petrie on the run in Mexico and eventually making their way back to Jerusalem’s Lot so that they can burn it to the ground, the remake switches things up. The miniseries starts with a flash-forward featuring Ben in Michigan hunting Father Callahan, the writer confronting the priest at a soup kitchen.

After a tussle sees them crash out of a third floor window, they are brought to the hospital, and it is there that Ben starts explaining his seemingly strange behavior to his nurse.

The Detroit-set bookends provide new introductions and endings to Ben Mears’ story, but there is also plenty of meat in the middle of the material for the character that is original as well. For example, his history with the Marsten House is rewritten so that he actually witnesses the deaths of criminal monsters Hubie Marsten and his wife instead of simply seeing Hubie’s ghost hanging from the rafters (which is what’s in the novel). Additionally, he has pervasive guilt throughout the series because he believes that he let the final victim of the Marstens’ die because he was paralyzed with fear, but this is ultimately proved to be a false conception.

It’s also eventually revealed as a minor twist that Ben has returned to Jerusalem’s Lot not to write a book about the pervasiveness of evil in the Marsten House, but instead about the underlying darkness in small town life, which is a metatextual reference to the same effort being made by the miniseries itself.

As for the changes made with Dr. Cody that I alluded to earlier, there is an original subplot that sees him sleep with the mother of a patient and then get blackmailed for it – which is meant to feed into that narrative of underlying darkness in small town life. Also seemingly part of the effort is making Matt Burke a gay character and having him express sexual urges towards Mike Ryerson (Christopher Morris), but it really just comes across as a tad homophobic.

While there are other notable changes, such as Mark Petrie being portrayed as a semi-rebellious teen instead of a young horror geek, and Susan (Samantha Mathis) approaching and having vague history with Ben Mears, the last one I’ll highlight is perhaps the greatest invention in the remake miniseries, which is the death of Floyd Tibbets (Todd MacDonald).

Like in Stephen King’s novel, Floyd is on the way to becoming a vampire when he attacks Ben Mears – having heard about his relationship with Susan – but then both are thrown in prison, and there is a legitimately freaky new sequence that plays out with Floyd jamming his body through a narrow ventilation system so that he can get to Ben in the neighboring cell. He is found dead the morning after this effort fails, having chewed his wrists open in a desperate attempt to drink his own blood.

Is It Worthy Of The King?

When you consider that nobody thinks of the 2004 remake when one mentions “the Salem’s Lot miniseries,” I think it’s fair to say that this is an underrated Stephen King adaptation. I am definitely not a fan of every change that it makes, but it is able to successfully make some big swings that ultimately don’t have the effect of moving too far away from the source material. It’s not as stylistic as Tobe Hooper’s take, but it’s arguably a better-rounded take on the book.

Its biggest flaw is arguably that it pushes the gas pedal on the darkness a bit too hard. Unveiling rot in small town life is a theme that is present in a lot of Stephen King’s books, but that’s easier subject matter to digest when you’re connected and invested in a story’s protagonists. That’s a bit of a challenge here.

While his book counterpart is a curious and genial person, Rob Lowe’s Ben Mears is made out to be an author who will unflinchingly sell out the people close to him in the aim of writing the book he’s working on. And while you love the innocent and monster-obsessed Mark Petrie in King’s novel, he’s made to be off-putting as an angst-y adolescent as played by Dan Byrd. The characterizations are over-swings that feel like they were in part of the project’s desire to take advantage of the basic cable release platform and lack of strict censorship, and the choices don’t totally work.

The legacy of the 2004 Salem’s Lot remake may very well change in just a few months, as later this year audiences will get to see a brand new adaptation of Stephen King’s beloved book, with writer/director Gary Dauberman finally bringing the text to the big screen. That project’s forthcoming arrival will hopefully spur interest in the TV versions of the past, and thus help enhance the production’s status in pop culture and in the King canon.

How To Watch Mikael Salomon’s Salem’s Lot

While Mikael Salomon’s Salem’s Lot isn’t presently available on any of the major subscription streaming services, it is available to be watched digitally, as you can rent or purchase an HD copy on Amazon Prime Video. That actually may be your best viewing option, even if you’re a physical media collector (like myself) trying to build the ultimate Stephen King collection. While we can keep our fingers crossed that one of the boutique Blu-ray distributors like Scream Factory, Arrow Video, or Olive Films someday gets the rights to the miniseries, as of right now the only existing home video release is a DVD.

For next week’s column, the work of Mick Garris while once again be under the microscope, as I’ll be doing a deep dive into the writer/director’s fifth Stephen King adaptation: the theatrically released 2004 feature film Riding The Bullet. Look for the feature here on CinemaBlend in our Movie section next Wednesday, and in the meantime you can explore all of my previous columns by clicking through the banners below.

Salem’s Lot was only the second novel that Stephen King got published, hitting bookstore shelves in 1975, but nearly half-a-century later it remains one of the most beloved books by the author. Because of this, there is a great deal of excitement surrounding the release of writer/director Gary Dauberman’s upcoming adaptation, and everything that we’ve heard about it has only served to enhance our anticipation.

Amidst that excitement about what we know, however, there is also a great deal of curiosity regarding what we don’t know – and it’s in an effort to expound upon that curiosity that I’ve put together this feature. You can read our Salem’s Lot cast list to find out who is in the movie, and learn details about the production via our Quick Things guide, but below are five burning questions we have about the upcoming remake.

What Will Be The Impact Of The Previous Two Adaptations?

To date, Carrie is the only Stephen King book that has been adapted three separate times for film and television, but Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot will see the vampire novel source material join that terrifically exclusive club. Tobe Hooper directed the classic two-part TV movie that debuted in 1979, and Mikael Salomon’s small-screen remake aired on TNT in 2004. Both have their own approaches to the book, and one wonders how those approaches will influence the 2022 version of the story.

Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot won’t have the same 180 minute-plus runtime real estate as the television adaptations (more on that in a second), and it will be inherently different than them because of that fact, but still one wonders how the prior live-action efforts will affect the remake. Will the film hone closer to the book specifically in places where the previous versions didn’t? Conversely, will “been there, done that” moments get changed to feel fresher? Either or both seem entirely possible, but it’s not something we presently know about the film.

What Will Be Cut To Make The Story Fit Movie Length?

At just under 440 pages, Salem’s Lot is not one of Stephen King’s longest novels (The Stand, IT, and Under The Dome are all well over 1,000 pages), but that says more about the general scale of King’s storytelling than anything else. The novel is an epic in its own right – chronicling a vampire infestation that starts slow but grows exponentially until the entire titular town is overrun. Because of the scope of the story, the TV miniseries route has been the preferred approach for adaptation – and thus one wonders what will have to change about the source material to make it all fit into standard feature length.

Even if Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot clocks in at two-and-a-half hours, that’s still more than 30 minutes shorter than both of the previous adaptations, and those TV movies each had to cut and condense quite a lot of material themselves in translating Stephen King’s book. Based on the cast list, it looks like all of the major characters in the novel will be represented – we’ll just have to wait and see how their arcs are manipulated and changed to fit the new medium.

Who Is Playing Kurt Barlow?

When casting got underway for Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot in fall 2021, it was an exciting time to be a Stephen King fan. Each of the actor announcements came with the news of who they were playing in the adaptation, so we all got to immediately start imagining Lewis Pullman as Ben Mears, Bill Camp as Matthew Burke, and Pilou Asbæk as Richard Straker. What’s particularly curious, however, is that while we know who is playing just about all of the principal roles in the film, we don’t yet know who is starring as the central villain: the head vampire, Kurt Barlow.

Right now, the smart money says that Barlow will be played by William Sadler, as he was the only actor revealed as part of the Salem’s Lot cast who wasn’t specifically identified with a role when his involvement with the production was announced (though admittedly he revealed the news himself instead of it coming out via the trades). Given his extensive history in Stephen King movies – having starred in The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, and The Mist – it would be totally appropriate, but there is still no official confirmation.

How Will Kurt Barlow Be Presented?

In depicting vampires in live-action, there are two directions in which filmmakers typically go. Sometimes they look like normal humans, but with massive fangs and strange eyes – and other times they appear as hideous, demon-like monsters. Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot describes Kurt Barlow as being in the former camp, but that has famously been changed in previous adaptations, leaving the approach to not be an obvious one for Gary Dauberman’s upcoming movie.

Rutger Hauer’s version of Kurt Barlow in the 2004 adaptation sticks closer to what Stephen King describes in the book, but the far more iconic version is the blue-skinned creature portrayed by Reggie Nalder in the 1979 TV movie. Given this history, it’s unlikely that going either route would earn any great deal of animosity or backlash from fans, so it will just be a matter of Dauberman’s preferences that determines the choice. We don’t know what his preference is presently, so how Barlow will be presented remains a mystery.

Will It At Least Hint At Connections To The Dark Tower Series?

While Stephen King has never written a direct sequel to Salem’s Lot, he did find a way to return to the story in 2003 with the publication of The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla. Not only does the book partially recount the events that transpire in King’s second published novel, but it features the return of Father Donald Callahan and reveals what happened to him following his shameful showdown with Kurt Barlow. Gary Dauberman’s movie will be the first adaptation of Salem’s Lot made in the aftermath of this development, so all Constant Readers have to wonder: will the new film possibly hint at his fate?

John Benjamin Hickey is playing the role of Father Callahan in Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot, so at the very least we know that he’ll be featured in the movie – but unfortunately that’s all that we presently know. Unlike some of the other questions presented in this feature, this is one that we might not have an answer for until the movie is actually out in theaters.

Salem’s Lot, starring Lewis Pullman, Makenzie Leigh, Bill Camp, Alfre Woodard, William Sadler, Pilou Asbæk, Spencer Treat Clark, and John Benjamin Hickey will be in theaters this fall, on September 9, 2022. For deep dives into the long history of Stephen King movies and TV, check out my Adapting Stephen King column, and to learn about all of the other live-action King projects in the works head on over to the Upcoming Stephen King guide.

There’s a different kind of experience that takes place when we watch a movie based on a book we’ve read. Spending time reading a book allows us to conjure up our own details and ideas about how a story unfolds in our heads and when we see it on film, it’s someone else’s version of that. This past year we saw Frank Herbert's Dune become a blockbuster, Ridley Scott adapt two true stories in The Last Duel and House of Gucci among other notable films. In the new year, there’s a new and massive stack of books to movies headed our way. 

Is this your 2022 reading list? Perhaps a checklist to see how many book-to-movie adaptations you’ve gotten to already on the page? You decide. Between thrilling romances, intense action, horror classics and historical fiction, there’s a lot of exciting titles going from shelf to screen this upcoming year. Let’s break them down:

Redeeming Love - January 21

A classic historical romance from the early ‘90s, Redeeming Love is finally being adapted to the big screen with a movie from Disturbia director D.J. Caruso. The movie starring Abigail Cowen, Famke Janssen, Nina Dobrev and Eric Dane is a retelling of the biblical book of Hosea, set during the California Gold Rush in 1850. It looks to be a sweeping romance with a western flair based on bestselling author Francine Rivers’ first novel. 

The Black Phone - February 4

Coming from the opposite side of the library is The Black Phone, an adaptation from a 2004 short story from the son of Stephen King, Joe Hill. The story is about a boy (Mason Thames) who is kidnapped by a serial killer (Ethan Hawke) and trapped inside a soundproof basement. The boy finds a disconnected phone that begins to ring and transmit the voices of the killer’s other victims. The movie was co-written/directed by Scott Derrickson, who famously helmed Sinister. 

Death On The Nile - February 11

Following Kenneth Branagh’s first Agatha Christie adaptation, 2017’s Murder on the Orient Express, the actor/director has continued his whodunnit anthology with Death On The Nile. The murder mystery has a stacked cast including Gal Gadot, Annette Bening, Letitia Wright and Russell Brand. The movie has been delayed multiple times, due to the pandemic, and amidst Armie Hammer’s cannibal sexting scandals. The movie follows Branagh’s Hercule Poirot as he investigates the murder of a young heiress while on vacation.

The Amazing Maurice - February 13 

On the children’s novel front, STX Entertainment is releasing an animated family film early this year called The Amazing Maurice. It’s based on the fantasy book The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett which is a new take on the classic fairy tale Pied Piper of Hamelin. The movie stars the voice talents of Hugh Laurie, Emilia Clarke, Himesh Patel and David Tennant. It follows Maurice the cat, who tricks a human boy to be his very own rat piper. 

Mothering Sunday - February 25 

Another romantic drama coming out in early 2022 is Mothering Sunday, starring Olivia Colman, Colin Firth, The Crown’s Josh O’Connor and newcomer Odessa Young. The movie is based on a 2016 novel set in 1924 about a maid as she visits her lover since childhood as he is getting ready to be married. The period romance is sure to be a sultry visit to the movies, and featuring some of the most beloved British talents.

The Unbreakable Boy - March 18 

The Unbreakable Boy: A Father’s Fear, A Son’s Courage, And A Story Of Unconditional Love hit bookshelves in 2017, and in 2022 the true story will be told with a movie. It follows a teen boy named Austin, who has a rare brittle-bone disease and is autistic. The book was co-written by Austin’s father, Scott, and the adaptation will see Zachary Levi taking on the role for the screen. The movie is set to be an empowering drama about a real family’s experiences. 

The Bad Guys - April 22 

Another movie coming off the pages of the children’s section is The Bad Guys. DreamWorks Animation is adapting Aaron Blabey’s best selling series of books about a group of misunderstood reformed criminal animals. The main characters are Mr. Wolf (voiced by Sam Rockwell), Mr. Piranha (Anthony Ramos), Mr. Snake (Marc Maron), Mr. Shark (Craig Robinson) and Ms. Tarantula (Awkwafina). The animated film will be a heist comedy that has the potential of beginning a franchise considering the series is fifteen stories in. 

Mrs Harris Goes To Paris - March 4 

Based on the beloved 1958 novel Mrs. ‘Arris Goes To Paris, by Paul Gallico, and following a 1992 TV movie adaptation starring Angela Lansbury, Diana Rigg and Omar Sharif, comes an upcoming remake, Mrs Harris Goes To Paris. This version starring Lesley Manville as the titular Mrs. Harris once again follows the story of a widowed cleaning lady in 1950s London who becomes obsessed with a couture Dior dress and goes off to Paris because of it. The movie also stars Jason Isaacs and Isabelle Huppert. 

Bullet Train - July 15 

After some time off the saddle, Brad Pitt is returning to the action genre for Bullet Train. The thriller directed by Deadpool 2 director David Leitch is about five assassins aboard a fast-moving bullet train who realize their individual assignments are interconnected. Bullet Train is based on the Japanese novel by Kōtarō Isaka and also stars Zazie Beetz, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Joey King, Michael Shannon, Logan Lerman, Hiroyuki Sanada, Brian Tyree Henry, Andrew Koji and Bad Bunny. We expect this one to be a summer hit! 

Where The Crawdads Sing - July 22

Delia Owens’ Where the Crawdads Sing has remained a big hit since the novel went straight to the bestseller list in 2018. The book is the latest to be picked up by Reese Witherspoon and her innovative production company Hello Sunshine for an adaptation. The coming-of-age story set on the North Carolina coast will star Normal People’s Daisy Edgar-Jones and unfold the mystery of how a woman who raises herself in the marshes of the deep South becomes a suspect in a murder. 

Dark Harvest - September 9

After a long time in the works, and previously set for last year, David Slade’s adaptation of Dark Harvest is expected to finally come out in 2022. Based on the book by Norman Partridge, the story follows a legendary monster called October Boy, who terrorizes residents with his butcher knife in a small midwestern town every Halloween. The Dark Harvest movie will star Elizabeth Reaser, Jeremy Davies and a primarily young cast, just in time for spooky season. 

Salem’s Lot - September 9 

Another horror story set to get a book adaptation is Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot, which was the author’s second book after Carrie. This story centers on a writer who goes to a town that he finds to have residents becoming vampires. The movie will be directed by Annabelle Comes Home’s Gary Dauberman and will star Lewis Pullman, William Sadler, Alfre Woodard, Spencer Treat Clark and Pilou Asbæk. 

She Said - November 18

Hollywood has discussed the #MeToo movement in a variety of ways over the years, and will continue to do so with an adaptation of She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite A Movement. Of course the story we’re talking about is regarding Harvey Weinstein, which was broken by reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey. In the upcoming movie adaptation, Zoe Kazan will play Kantor and Carey Mulligan will play Twohey and break down how it allegedly happened. 

All Quiet On The Western Front - TBD

Another classic novel getting the movie treatment in 2022 is Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet On The Western Front, which originally came out in 1928, in between WWI and WWII. This version is being produced for Netflix in a movie that will star Falcon and the Winter Soldier’s Daniel Brühl. The war movie classically takes us on a journey of a group of German soldiers’ tribulations during WWI as they return home from the western front. 

Argylle - TBD 

Henry Cavill has adapted many beloved characters such as Superman, The Witcher and Sherlock Holmes. Next up, he’ll play the “world’s greatest spy” for Apple film Argylle. The movie directed by Matthew Vaughn of the X-Men prequel and Kingsman from a book by Ellie Conway, except in an odd twist the book has yet to come out either. So this one has an asterisk to it but it seems the author and filmmakers are working together here. Argylle will also star Ariana DeBose, Catherine O’Hara, Bryce Dallas Howard, Sam Rockwell, John Cena and even Dua Lipa. 

Blonde - TBD 

Ana de Armas is set to play Marilyn Monroe in a Netflix adaptation of Joyce Carol Oates’ novel Blonde, which serves as a fictionalized chronicle of the late actress’ life. The movie is written and directed by Killing Them Softly’s Andrew Dominik and also includes Adrien Brody, Bobby Cannavale and Sara Paxton. 

Deep Water - TBD

Speaking of Ana de Armas, the No Time To Die actress is also the star of an adaptation of the thriller Deep Water, based on a book by Patricia Highsmith. The movie famously is the set where Ana de Armas met Ben Affleck, leading to them becoming a couple for some time. Deep Water is about a couple in a loveless marriage who become entangled in a murder. 

Killers Of The Flower Moon - TBD 

Martin Scorsese followup to The Irishman is Killers of the Flower Moon, which will be based on Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI. The bestseller tells one of the most “monstrous crimes in American history.” The movie will star Leo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Brendan Fraser and Jesse Plemons from a script by Eli Roth and land on AppleTV+. 

Mr. Malcolm’s List - TBD 

Another book adaptation of the period assortment is Mr. Malcolm’s List, which has enlisted the original author of its book Suzanne Allain for the script. The movie will star Freida Pinto, Theo James, Zaw Ashton and Oliver Jackson-Cohen. It’s about a young woman in 1800s England who enlists the help of her friend to get revenge on a suitor who rejected her for failing a requirement on his list. 

Persuasion - TBD

Jane Austen books continue to be fruitful to be revisited on film and Netflix is set to make a movie adaptation for her last work, Persuasion. This version will be led by Dakota Johnson, Henry Golding, Suki Waterhouse and Richard E. Grant. Persuasion follows Austen’s most adult heroine in Johnson’s Anne. We’ll be interested to see how this version compares with the two previous BBC versions. It seems as though this will be the first proper Hollywood telling of the story.

School for Good and Evil - TBD

Bridesmaids director Paul Feig is making an adaptation of a fantasy YA series The School for Good and Evil. The movie will be about an enchanted institution where children are trained in ways of becoming heroes and villains. The movie will be led by Charlize Theron as the Dean of the School of Evil and Kerry Washington as the Dean of the School of Good and also star Laurence Fishburne, Michelle Yeoh, among its packed cast. 

White Noise - TBD 

Award-winning Marriage Story and Frances Ha writer/director Noah Baumbach is back for an adaptation of the 1985 novel White Noise by Don DeLillo. The postmodern novel is about a professor who has made a name for himself by creating the field of Hitler studies. Adam Driver will play the lead role of Jack Gladney alongside Jodie Turner-Smith and Don Cheadle in the cast.  

That’s quite the shelf of titles to look forward to in 2022! Period pieces and movies based on books based on true stories seem to be the largest trend of adaptations coming out this coming year. There's a disappointing lack of science fiction following the success of Dune. Aside from the book-to-movie adaptations coming our way, check out CinemaBlend's full list upcoming of 2022 movies to look forward to this coming year. 

In the last month or so, Gary Dauberman's upcoming big screen adaptation of Salem's Lot has been hard at work assembling the vampire hunting team at the heart of the Stephen King story. First we learned about who will be playing Ben Mears – namely Top Gun: Maverick's Lewis Pullman – and since then we've learned that the ensemble will also include Makenzie Leigh as Susan Norton, Bill Camp as Matthew Burke, and Alfre Woodard as Dr. Cody. We're still waiting to learn who will be playing teenage monster expert/horror enthusiast Mark Petrie, but today we have the news that an actor has been selected to play the role of Father Donald Callahan.

There was a brief time when we wondered if William Sadler would be playing Callahan in Salem's Lot, as the actor didn't identify his role when he revealed his involvement with the project earlier this month, but that period has come to an end. According to Deadline, that particular role has gone to recent Tony nominee John Benjamin Hickey, and it will be his first experience making a Stephen King adaptation. The actor's previous credits include feature projects like Michael Bay's Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen and Clint Eastwood's Flags Of Our Fathers, but his recent Hollywood credits are mostly include small screen titles like the Marvel/Netflix series Jessica Jones and The Good Wife.

Fans have been particularly anticipating the casting of Father Callahan in the new film, as the character holds a special place in the Stephen King canon. He is not only at the heart of one of the most dramatic moments in Salem's Lot – one that challenges his faith in the presence of evil – but he is also a figure in the epic and beloved Dark Tower series.

While this adaptation of Salem's Lot is the first to be made for the big screen, the book has twice been adapted for television, and Father Callahan is included in both. In the 1979 version from director Tobe Hooper he is played by James Gallery, and in the 2004 remake miniseries the great James Cromwell has the part.

In addition to Lewis Pullman, Makenzie Leigh, Bill Camp, William Sadler, and Alfre Woodard, John Benjamin Hickey is joining a cast that also includes Spencer Treat Clark (as townie Mark Ryerson) and Pilou Asbæk (as the villainous Richard Straker).

Salem's Lot is now in production, and it is set to arrive in theaters less from a year from now on September 9, 2022. To learn about all of the Stephen King projects that are presently in the works, check out our Upcoming Stephen King Movies and TV guide, and if you're interested in the long history of adaptations check out my Adapting Stephen King column!

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SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains massive spoilers for Midnight Mass. If you have not yet watched all of the Netflix series, proceed at your own risk!

The new Netflix miniseries Midnight Mass is an original creation from the mind of writer/director Mike Flanagan, but there is also no denying the extreme Stephen King vibes that it gives off. It’s not exactly surprising when you consider that Flanagan has made two of the best King movies in recent memory – Gerald’s Game and Doctor Sleep – but that makes it no less wonderful to recognize the legendary author’s influence on the show’s setting, characters, and story. It’s not just a cool thing to pick up on for those who consider themselves Constant Readers, but it could also be an unconventional-albeit-great starting place for those who are looking for a way into the King canon.

It’s in consideration of the latter that I’ve put together this guide. Though it may not necessarily be purposeful in all cases, there are certain elements of Midnight Mass that tie back to some key Stephen King books, and those who enjoyed those elements of the Netflix miniseries may be interested in some further reading and exploration of themes/ideas. If that sounds like something that you might personally be interested in, dig into the six titles below!

Dolores Claiborne

Stories about city life, farm life, and suburban life are everywhere in pop culture, but few and far between are stories about island communities. Midnight Mass is an excellent one, as the isolation of Crockett Island in the miniseries creates a wonderful bubble in which the characters exist separate from the rest of the world – and it’s wonderfully reminiscent of Stephen King’s brilliant 1992 novel Dolores Claiborne, which is set on the fictional Little Tall Island off the coast of Maine. The actual narratives of the two works are totally different, as the book centers on a woman as she confesses to one murder and works to absolve herself of another, but both works are heavily impacted by the close-knit nature of their respective settings.

Bonus: it’s not a book, but the Stephen King miniseries Storm Of The Century is also set on Little Tall Island, and 20 years after its original airing it remains one of the best King’s most underappreciated works.

Revival

In 2020, there were reports that Mike Flanagan was developing an adaptation of Stephen King’s 2014 novel Revival. Sadly, that project ended up falling apart, but it’s hard not to wonder if his work on the would-be film ended up influencing the creation of Midnight Mass. Like the Netflix miniseries, the book also begins with the arrival of a mysterious religious figure in a small town, and it charts how the man comes in and out of the life of the life of the story’s protagonist, providing devastating consequences each time. The book provides readers with one of the darkest most twisted conclusions that has ever come out of King’s brain, so be prepared. (Fun fact: Henry Thomas' Ed Flynn can be seen reading Revival a couple times in the series).

Salem’s Lot

One can’t help but notice that the word “vampire” is never actually uttered throughout all seven episodes of Midnight Mass. At the same time, there is no denying that’s the monster at play in the story (as revealed in Episode 3), and with Stephen King on the brain one can’t help but be reminded of what was the second novel the author got published: Salem’s Lot. In the beloved book from 1975, the town of Jerusalem’s Lot, Maine is set upon by an ancient vampire by the name of Kurt Barlow, and as more and more locals get drained and turned into monsters, it becomes the responsibility of a writer named Ben Mears and some close associates to try and stop the evil spreading before it is too late.

The Tommyknockers

To be perfectly honest, Stephen King’s The Tommyknockers is not typically a book that I would recommend to anybody, as it’s very far from being an example of the author’s best work, but I do feel compelled to include it in this feature because I couldn’t help but recognize its reflection in Midnight Mass. One way in which the Netflix miniseries differs from Salem’s Lot is in the fact that the people of Crockett Island are revived and made healthier thanks to the spreading vampire influence, rather than becoming weak and anemic. This is similar to the events that transpire in The Tommyknockers, which is a book that sees an entire town become energized with big ideas following the unearthing of an alien spaceship in the ground. Of course, this extraterrestrial power winds up being far more detrimental than positive, and the same could be said of the “Angel’s” presence in the Mike Flanagan show.

The Mist

It’s always fun when a piece of pop culture introduces a character so hateful that you want to hiss every time they make an appearance, and that’s a wonderful achievement of Midnight Mass with the creation of Samantha Sloyan's Bev Keane. Her horrible presence over the course of the show serves to not only heighten the tension in the story, but also drive home the greater themes about faith, forgiveness, and acceptance. She is also greatly reminiscent of Mrs. Carmody, who Stephen King fans will remember as the main human antagonist in the novella “The Mist.” Like with Bev Keane, Carmody has a knack for wielding the words of God as a tool and as a weapon, and the influence that she has the ability to garner winds up being just as dangerous as the monsters that are lurking in a dense fog that overtakes the sleepy lake town of Bridgton, Maine.

Doctor Sleep

If you’re a fan of both Mike Flanagan and Stephen King, there’s probably a fairly good chance that you’ve already checked out Doctor Sleep thanks to Flanagan’s aforementioned adaptation – but if you haven’t, doing so after Midnight Mass is advisable. The big connection is primarily through Zach Gilford’s Riley Flynn, who has a few key things in common with King protagonist Dan Torrance: both characters are recovering alcoholics doing their best to conquer demons from their past who haunt them every day. Their journeys certainly differ from that starting place, but there is a kind of bond in their origins.

All seven episodes of Netflix’s Midnight Mass are now streaming on Netflix, and if you’re now excited about the prospect of picking up all of these books and more, do yourself a favor and head on over to our guide to creating the Ultimate Stephen King collection.

A number of upcoming Stephen King adaptations are on their way because, well, Stephen King. This includes a movie for the horror author’s second book, Salem’s Lot. Much of the cast has already been lined up. Lewis Pullman will lead a cast also including Spencer Treat Clark, Alfre Woodard and William Sadler. And as the movie begins production, Salem’s Lot has also recruited a Game of Thrones star, with Pilou Asbæk joining the cast.

Pilou Asbæk played Euron Greyjoy in the hit HBO series between Season 6 and the character's death in Season 8. In Salem’s Lot, the Danish actor will play Richard Straker, who is the “familiar” of the vampire that is haunting the town of Salem’s Lot throughout the story. Straker does a lot of evildoing in between the arrival of his master in the book. The casting information comes exclusively from The Hollywood Reporter.

In the 1979 miniseries adaptation of the Stephen King novel, James Mason portrayed Straker, and in the 2004 adaptation, Donald Sutherland took on the role. This Salem’s Lot version will be written and directed by Gary Dauberman, who penned the recent IT movies, along with directing 2019’s Annabelle Comes Home.

Salem’s Lot will be based on the 1975 horror novel that follows author Ben Mears, to be played by Lewis Pullman, and his return to his childhood home of Jerusalem’s Lot to get inspired for his next book. In the meantime, he learns that his hometown is being preyed on by a vampire, and he must then team up with some other townspeople to fight the disturbing presence.

Lewis Pullman is the son of Bill Pullman, known for his roles in Independence Day and Spaceballs. Mackenzie Leigh will play Mears’ small-town love interest Susan Norton, Bill Camp is participating as high school teacher Matthew Burke, Spencer Treat Clark will appear as Mike Ryerson, Alfre Woodard is gender-swapping the role of Dr. Cody and The Shawshank Redemption’s William Sadler is on board in an undisclosed role.

Aside from Salem’s Lot, Pilou Asbæk has been in a number big movies lately, including Ghost in the Shell with Scarlett Johansson, 2018’s underrated horror film Overlord and an upcoming Sylvester Stallone movie called Samaritan. He was also cast in the Aquaman sequel alongside another Game of Thrones alum, Jason Momoa.

For the moment, we don’t know who Pilou Asbæk will play in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, but that movie comes out in December 2022. Filming on Salem’s Lot can really get going with Richard Straker now among the cast. The Stephen King adaptation is expected to come out on September 9, 2022. Stay up to date on what upcoming horror movies are coming our way in between then here on CinemaBlend.

William Sadler has a phenomenal track record when it comes to Stephen King movies. Seemingly a good luck charm of sorts for director Frank Darabont, the actor has supporting roles in The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, and The Mist, and all three are considered to be among the greatest King adaptations of all time. Now it appears that writer/director Gary Dauberman is borrowing some of that magic for his upcoming take on Salem's Lot, as Sadler himself has confirmed that he has a part to play in the production.

In the last few weeks we've been hearing casting announcements about Salem's Lot via trade reports, but William Sadler has taken straight to social media with the news that he has joined the cast of the upcoming film. Teasing more updates to come, the actors wrote,

William Sadler is now one of two Stephen King adaptation veterans who are a part of the production on Salem's Lot. Gary Dauberman previously wrote the screenplays for both IT and IT: Chapter Two, and Bill Camp has signed on as a follow up to his role in the 2020 HBO miniseries The Outsider.

Based on what was Stephen King's second published novel, Salem's Lot tells the story of a young writer who returns to his hometown with the intention of writing a book inspired by a traumatizing event from his childhood. Instead what he comes face to face with is a vampire invasion that slowly starts to swallow the whole town. Lewis Pullman has been cast as the protagonist, Ben Mears, and in addition to William Sadler and Bill Camp the supporting cast includes Makenzie Leigh, Spencer Treat Clark, and Alfre Woodard.

What we sadly don't know right now is what role William Sadler will be playing in Salem's Lot, but there are some choice roles open that he would be a great fit for. One could easily see him playing either of the two primary antagonists in the story – the vampire Kurt Barlow or his human familiar Richard Straker – and it would also be amazing to see him play Father Callahan: a priest who sees his faith shaken by his town's new monstrous presence.

Salem's Lot is being developed by New Line, and while it sounds like cameras are already rolling on the production, what remains an unknown is when we might actually get to see it. When the studio does finally announce a release date, however, you can be sure that we'll have the news for you as soon as possible here on CinemaBlend. In the meantime, if you're curious about all of the Stephen King adaptations that are currently in the works, head on over to our Upcoming Stephen King Movies And TV guide.

Salem's Lot, first hitting shelves in 1975, was only the second Stephen King novel that was published, but to date it remains a favorite among Constant Readers. This being the case, it's little surprise that Hollywood has attempted to bring the story to life multiple times: the first being the two-part TV movie that came out in 1979, and the second being the exact same format and playing on the small screen in 2004. Now, writer/director Gary Dauberman is in the process of making the first ever big screen incarnation of the beloved book, and to help him do it he's started to put together an excellent ensemble.

Moving into production in the wake of the upcoming Firestarter remake completing production this past summer, Salem's Lot has been on a tear recently adding actors to play the key roles. It's still a work in progress, as we have not yet heard about performers being hired to play a few vital characters from the Stephen King story, but we will continue to update this feature in the coming weeks as announcements about new additions are made. For now, here are all of the stars we know about who are attached to the adaptation.

Lewis Pullman as Ben Mears

When a movie starts to put its cast together, it always makes sense to start with finding the proper actor to play the central protagonist, and that's exactly what Salem's Lot did bringing aboard Lewis Pullman to play Ben Mears in late August 2021. In Stephen King's book, Mears is an author who grew up in the titular-albeit-abbreviated town of Jerusalem's Lot, Maine, and he decides to return there when he formulates plans to write a book influenced by the most terrifying event of his childhood and the place where it happened: the incredibly spooky Marsten House. He plans on actually living for a spell in the haunting residence, but he is beaten to the punch by an enigmatic pair who wind up unleashing a vampiric plague – one that winds up being Mears' responsibility to stop.

Makenzie Leigh as Susan Norton

The first time that Ben Mears and Susan Norton come together is as sweet a meet cute as you'll find in the works of Stephen King, as the former finds the latter reading one of his books during a leisurely day in the park. It's a meeting that has all the making of a great romance... but obviously things then take a turn for the horrific thanks to the exponentially increasing number of blood suckers in town. Makenzie Leigh, who is best known for her work on television shows like Gotham and The Slap, has been selected by Gary Dauberman to play Susan in his adaptation, and it will be her biggest role in a feature film to date.

Bill Camp as Matthew Burke

Of those who signed on to star in the movie in its early weeks, Bill Camp was the only one who had previous Stephen King experience under his belt, though it was very recently. In early 2020 he played a key part in the excellent HBO miniseries adaptation of The Outsider, and now he is set to play Matthew Burke in Salem's Lot for Gary Dauberman. In the story, Burke is a high school English teacher who winds up becoming an important ally to Ben Mears, most especially because he actually believes the young writer about the vampire invasion. Camp recently had a high profile part on the exceptionally popular Netflix series The Queen's Gambit, and had a supporting role in Paul Greengrass' western News Of The World with Tom Hanks.

Spencer Treat Clark as Mike Ryerson

Thanks to his early roles in huge films like Gladiator, Unbreakable, and Mystic River, Spencer Treat Clark is an actor whom audiences have been watching on the big screen for more than two decades now, and while he has mostly been doing television work in the last few years, he is now set to return to the big screen for his first Stephen King adaptation. In Salem's Lot he will be playing Mike Ryerson, who is one of the key supporting characters in the story – albeit a bit of a bumpkin. He stands out primarily because he is one of the first residents of the titular town to be transformed into a vampire. The role was previously played by Geoffrey Lewis and Christopher Morris in the 1979 and 2004 adaptations, respectively.

Alfre Woodard as Dr. Cody

Dr. Jimmy Cody from Stephen King's Salem's Lot has had a bit of a funny history when it comes to adaptations of the story. While the part was traditionally portrayed in the 2004 TV movie by Robert Mammone, the role was combined with Susan Norton's father for the 1979 version to create Dr. Bill Norton (who was played by Ed Flanders). Now Dr. Cody is set to undergo another significant update, as Gary Dauberman has cast Alfre Woodard to play the character that King originally wrote as a white man. It's not only a smart move that adds much needed diversity to the ensemble, but it also allows Dauberman to collaborate for a second time with Woodard, as she previously starred in 2014's Annabelle, which the filmmaker scripted.

William Sadler as ?

While all of the early casting announcements for Salem's Lot came with the information regarding what role the actor would be playing in the movie, that wasn't the case for William Sadler, who personally announced his part in the film via social media in early September 2021. This will actually be the fourth time that Sadler has starred in a Stephen King adaptation, as he was a go-to guy for Frank Darabont in the making of The Shawshank Redemption, The Mist, and The Green Mile. He is an exceptionally talented actor, so hopefully he'll have a role worthy of his talent in the new feature.

Pilou Asbæk as Richard Straker

Be it in Game Of Thrones or the World War II zombie movie Overlord, Pilou Asbæk has firmly demonstrated a skill for playing villains, and Salem's Lot will give him the latest opportunity to do exactly that – albeit while still flexing different acting muscles. Unlike Euron Greyjoy or Wafner in the aforementioned projects, Richard Straker is a more mysterious kind of sinister, as he is basically the face of the operation who helps usher the vampiric plague into the film's setting.

John Benjamin Hickey as Father Donald Callahan

Every group of vampire hunters needs a religious figure to help stave back the evil forces, and in the case of Salem's Lot that role is filled by Father Donald Callahan. And in the case of Gary Dauberman's upcoming film adaptation, the part will be played by Jessica Jones and The Good Wife actor John Benjamin Hickey. This will be Hickey's first time appearing in a Stephen King adaptation, though it is certainly a plum role.

Jordan Preston Carter as Mark Petrie

While most of the adults in the town of Jerusalem's Lot are rather clueless about monsters, that is definitely not the case with Mark Petrie. He may just be a kid, but he is the dictionary definition of horror enthusiast, and his knowledge of vampire mythology. In Salem's Lot he will be played by Jordan Preston Carter, whose previous credits include the 2019 Shaft sequel and the Haves And The Have Nots series on OWN.

Nicholas Crovetti as Danny Glick

Throughout his career, Stephen King has firmly demonstrated that children in his stories are definitely not off limits as victims, as Danny Glick is a prime example as a young character who winds up meeting a grisly fate. I won't say more than that to protect those of you who haven't read the book, but audiences will see the character brought to life by Big Little Lies actor Nicholas Crovetti.

Cade Woodward as Ralph Glick

Despite his young age, Cade Woodward already has some notable experience in the field of playing a character at the center of a tragedy in a horror movie – having previously played the ill-fated Beau Abbot in John Krainski's A Quiet Place. Following his experience with sound-sensitive aliens he'll now go toe-to-toe with vampires in Gary Dauberman's Salem's Lot playing Ralph Glick, the brother of  Nicholas Crovetti's Danny Glick.

Having entered production in fall 2021, Salem's Lot is now on track to hit theaters just in time for Halloween 2022 – specifically on September 9, 2022. Stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for all of the latest updates about the project, and for a full lowdown on all of the Stephen King adaptations that are currently in the works be sure to check out our Upcoming Stephen King guide.

After being announced as being in development in spring 2020, Gary Dauberman's upcoming remake of Salem's Lot is now starting to come together rapidly. In just the past week the new movie has brought aboard actors to play a number of key roles – including protagonist Ben Mears – and the ensemble is shaping up incredibly well. Now the latest casting news has arrived, and it's particularly interesting both because it's a talented performer who has signed on, and because it's a case of a notable part being gender-swapped.

Alfre Woodard, according to Deadline, has come aboard the new Stephen King adaptation and will be playing the role of Dr. Cody. In the book, Cody is a rational and practical individual, but he winds up being unable to ignore all the evidence presented to him suggesting that the town of Jerusalem's Lot, Maine has been overrun by vampires. He becomes a key part of the team fighting back against the invasion – and because there's nothing about the character that is specifically gendered, it's hard to imagine that much about Cody will change for the film.

Despite the fact that this will be the third time that Salem's Lot has been brought into the live-action realm, it will only be the second time that Dr. Cody is featured as a primary character. In the 1979 miniseries version directed by Toby Hooper, the role was combined with another to create the amalgamation character Dr. Bill Norton, played by Ed Flanders. When a new television version was produced in 2004, the part was restored in the story and played by Robert Mammone.

Alfre Woodard joins an ensemble that includes Lewis Pullman as aforementioned protagonist Ben Mears; Makenzie Leigh as female lead Susan Norton; The Outsider's Bill Camp as Matthew Burke; and Spencer Treat Clark as Mike Ryerson. The primary villains of Salem's Lot – Richard Straker and Kurt Barlow – have not been cast yet, but it's only a matter of time before that news breaks.

This will be the first time that Alfre Woodard has been featured in a Stephen King adaptation, but the second time that she has collaborated with Gary Dauberman. She previously playd Evelyn in the 2014 Conjuring Universe film Annabelle, which was based on a script that Dauberman wrote.

Salem's Lot will be the second film directed by Gary Dauberman, who made 2019's excellent Annabelle Comes Home, and with casting news coming in as quickly as it is, it seems likely that production on the movie will begin soon. To learn about all of the upcoming Stephen King adaptations in the works, be sure to check out our Upcoming Stephen King Movies And Television guide – and check out my Adapting Stephen King column about the 1979 two-part TV movie to learn all about the origins of the story.

As has been the case for a long time, Stephen King fans haven’t been lacking lately for film and TV adaptations of the author’s work. This year has seen the release of the Lisey’s Story and Chapelwaite TV shows on Apple TV+ and Epix, respectively, and 2019 saw the release of Doctor Sleep in theaters. As far as upcoming cinematic King offerings go, a Salem’s Lot movie is on the way, and it’s been announced that a Top Gun: Maverick actor has been hired to lead the feature.

Lewis Pullman, son of Independence Day’s Bill Pullman, will star in the Salem’s Lot movie as writer Ben Mears, the main protagonist, as shared by THR. This is Pullman’s biggest cinematic role yet, having previously appeared in movies like Battle of the Sexes and Bad Times at the El Royale, and he’ll pop up later this year as Bob, a pilot trainee, in Top Gun: Maverick. Pullman also starred as Major Major Major Major in the Hulu miniseries Catch-22, and will appear alongside Josh Brolin in the upcoming Amazon series Outer Range.

For those unfamiliar with the original Salem’s Lot novel, which was released in 1975, the story sees Ben Mears returning to his childhood home of Jerusalem’s Lot, nicknamed Salem’s Lot by the locals, after more than two decades away to find inspiration for his next book. However, Ben soon discovers that the town’s residents are being preyed upon by vampires, leading to him allying with others to fight off these bloodthirsty creatures. Salem’s Lot was Stephen King’s second published novel, following 1974’s Carrie, and the author revisited the Jerusalem’s Lot town in the same-named short story published in 1978 in the Night Shift collection (the Chapelwaite TV series is based off that short story).

Salem’s Lot has previously been adapted in miniseries form in 1979 and 2004, and in 1987, Larry Cohen made the movie A Return to Salem’s Lot, which was a sequel to the 1979 miniseries. The short-lived Hulu series Castle Rock also featured a bus stop in Jerusalem’s Lot in the episode “Past Perfect.” Now the original Salem’s Lot tale is finally getting adapted for film for the first time, and casting Lewis Pullman as the lead marks yet another big step forward in its development.

It was announced in April 2019 that Salem’s Lot would be brought to the big screen, with modern horror icon James Wan producing and Gary Dauberman, who wrote both IT movies and numerous entries in the Conjuring franchise, penning the script. A year later, it was announced that Dauberman would also direct Salem’s Lot, and filming is expected to begin next month in Boston, Massachusetts.

We’ll keep you apprised on more details about Salem’s Lot as they trickle in, including when its release date is unveiled. For now, browse through our 2021 release schedule to learn what movies are arriving later this year, which includes Lewis Pullman starring opposite Tom Cruise in Top Gun: Maverick on November 19.

Stephen King is widely recognized as one of the most prolific popular writers in modernity, and that was a reputation that he earned early in his career. It was only a year-and-a-half after his first novel, Carrie, was published that the earliest Constant Readers had their second opportunity to experience King’s sophomore effort, the vampire throwback tale ‘Salem’s Lot. That, however, wasn’t the only onset pattern born in those early days, as just as it only took a short while for the telekinetic prom queen to get a live-action adaptation, it took no time at all for Hollywood to take an interest in King’s bloodsucker tale.

Its first half premiering on CBS the evening of November 17, 1979, Tobe Hooper’s Salem’s Lot was the first Stephen King adaptation to be developed as a television miniseries, airing as two hour-and-a-half broadcasts that played a week apart, and its success only further bolstered the author’s pop culture presence. It earned positive reviews, multiple technical Emmy nominations, and spawned an original sequel that debuted about eight years later. But how has it held up over the last 40-plus years?

Following my examination of Brian De Palma’s Carrie, this week’s Adapting Stephen King column reflects back on the original TV take on Salem’s Lot as well as the source material that inspired it – looking at them with fresh eyes and reexamining the former’s place in the long history between the legendary writer and Hollywood.

What Salem’s Lot Is About

Perfectly illustrated in his 1981 non-fiction book Danse Macabre, Stephen King is not just a horror fan, but a horror scholar, and ‘Salem’s Lot (originally titled Second Coming) is in a way an exercise in his grander appreciation for the genre. Not just another take on the nocturnal blood suckers, King designed the book as an homage to one of the greatest literary works of all time: Bram Stoker’s Dracula. The author has described it as a “game of literary racquet-ball,” where what he was creating was the ball and the classic tome was the wall. He’d take his own ideas, “hit it against” Stoker’s classic, see where it would bounce, and hit it again. Blended with 20th century ideas about the monsters, including the EC Comics he grew up with (like Tales From The Crypt), resulted in what is hailed as one of the great vampire novels.

As for the creation and destruction of the small town known as Jerusalem’s Lot, Stephen King has described his initial inspiration for the burb in the novel as coming to him during a dinner conversation with his wife Tabitha and friend Chris Chesley. In the essay “On Becoming A Brand Name,” King writes that discussion of how Dracula would fare in modern America made him reflect on the number of isolated, rural towns there are in Maine where “people could drop out of sight, disappear, perhaps even come back as the living dead.” The seed was planted.

The novel follows Ben Mears, one of Stephen King’s great novelist protagonists, who finds himself returning to his hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot, Maine with an idea for his latest book. As a child he experienced a terrifying episode at the notorious residence known as the Marsten House, and it’s his intention to write about it while actually staying there. Upon his arrival, however, he is surprised to discover that someone else has purchased the property – namely the mysterious Austrian immigrant Kurt Barlow.

Staying at a local boarding house instead, Ben reacquaints himself with the small New England town, finding himself falling for a young woman named Susan Norton after a chance encounter at the park, but his work doesn’t exactly progress as planned. This is primarily because of a string of tragic and inexplicable episodes that grip Jerusalem’s Lot, including the disappearance of a young boy and what appears to be a plague of anemia.

The reality of the situation becomes clear, and it is made apparent that the enigmatic Kurt Barlow and his associate, Richard Straker, at the heart of it. Ben, Susan, and those they can convince to believe them – including a horror-obsessed young boy, a high school teacher, a doctor, and a priest –find that they must personally put an end to the rise of vampirism in the town before it’s too late.

How Tobe Hooper’s Salem’s Lot Differs From Stephen King’s Book

One of the great strengths in the relationship between Stephen King and television miniseries is that the expanded format of the medium allows more from the source material to be directly translated instead of trimmed and compacted, which is key given the author’s verbose storytelling style. Even still, though, every adaptation still features some deviations and cuts, and Tobe Hooper’s Salem’s Lot is no exception. Even though it’s over three hours long in its totality, there are some major changes that were made bringing the story into live-action.

What could be called the most iconic difference between the book and the miniseries in the physical appearance of Kurt Barlow (Reggie Nalder) – whose appearance is put front and center whenever Salem’s Lot is brought up nowadays despite the fact that he has less than five minutes of actual screen time (clearly I’m demonstrating zero shame in my image choices for this column). The Emmy-nominated make-up takes clear inspiration from Count Orlok in F. W. Murnau’s 1922 classic Nosferatu, and is wonderfully scary, but it’s a step away from Stephen King’s work. In the novel, Barlow specifically doesn’t look like that kind of fanged monster – one of the many pages taken from the approach in Bram Stoker’s Dracula.

It’s illustrative of a number of changes that are made in the translation from book to screen, as Tobe Hooper’s version captures the larger substance of Stephen King’s novel, but also flips around details and compresses certain elements to fit the limitations of the new medium. The most significant in this regard is the combination of Susan Norton’s father, Ben, and Dr. Jimmy Cody, creating Dr. Ben Norton, but it also influences the greater depiction of the vampire plague hitting the town. An example of this is the mini-narrative played out by realtor Larry Crockett (Fred Willard), and married couple Cully (George Dzundza) and Bonnie Sawyer (Julie Cobb), which is a mishmash of different pieces from the source material.

Many of the best scenes from the book are maintained – such as young horror geek Mark Petrie (Lance Kerwin) resisting the calls of his undead classmate (Brad Savage) outside his window at night, and Father Callahan’s (James Gallery) battle with Kurt Barlow in the Petrie kitchen – but it also cuts out material like what actually happens to the priest in the aftermath of that showdown, which is something that ultimately tied into the larger world of Stephen King novels in the Dark Tower series.

Likewise, the fate of Susan Norton (pre-Die Hard Bonnie Bedelia) is maintained in its entirety, but it’s also restructured to be a part of the adaptation’s downer final note. The emotional climax of the story, Ben Mears (David Soul) being forced to stake the woman he loves, moves from being a key part of the final act to a part of the prologue – skipping over Ben and Mark’s return from Guatemala to Salem’s Lot so that they can burn the entire vampire nest to the ground (it’s not specifically shown, but there is a suggestion in the miniseries that the isolated Maine hamlet is still reduced to ash after the protagonists set the Marsten House on fire, as the wind is said to be blowing toward town).

Is It Worthy Of The King?

The greatest strength of Tobe Hooper’s Salem’s Lot is its ability to cleanly deliver Stephen King’s story as a character driven narrative – a quality that it shares in common with Brian De Palma’s Carrie. The important essences of the principal vampire hunters are mostly maintained in the medium change, with Mark’s horror nerdery delightful and essential, and the relationship between Ben and Susan sweetly constructed among the escalating terror. There are exceptions, as you do miss the book’s conclusion of Father Callahan’s arc, and Matt Burke (whose name is changed to Jason Burke for whatever reason) is basically written out of the action following his heart attack instead of becoming a key researcher.

The simplicity inherent in the mysterious antagonists certainly proves to an asset for the adaptation, as its treatment of both Kurt Barlow and the menacing Richard Straker is excellent. As mentioned, you may not see much of the former in the grand scheme, but the “less is more” approach only serves to raise tension and build up his first appearance – which makes one hell of an impact. With his raspy voice and sinister overtones, James Mason puts in what is ultimately the stand-out performance of the miniseries, and it’s punctuated with what is the TV version’s best original invention: Richard Straker killing Dr. Norton by ramming him into a wall decorated with mounted antlers.

What the miniseries lacks is the terrific scope of Stephen King’s novel – which presumably wasn’t feasible to capture with the resources allocated to a late-1970s TV miniseries. From dump custodian Dud Rodgers, to bus driver Charlie Rhodes, to abused infant Randy McDougall, there are mini stories of terror that play out all around Jerusalem's Lot in the book, but Tobe Hooper’s version doesn’t have the real estate available to let those stories be told. You still get a sense of the slow infestation of the entire burb as introduced characters talk about weird dreams and look tired and pale, but it doesn’t hit on anywhere near the same level.

Aesthetically, there’s also no getting around its made-for-TV presentation, even as home media versions have stitched the two halves together to create the semi-illusion of it being a three-hour feature. For a vampire movie, Salem’s Lot’s bloodlessness is certainly notable, as the most gore we see is in Dr. Norton’s death (pictured above), it's in a 4:3 aspect ratio, and it’s still readily apparent where the cuts for commercials are, not to mention the distinctive moment when Part 1 becomes Part 2. Those medium-centric shortcomings aside, however, it’s a faithful and impressive take on the material, as Stephen King himself recognized in a 1980 interview with Paul Gagné for “Famous Monsters of Filmland” (found in George Beahm’s The Stephen King Companion):

How To Watch Tobe Hooper’s Salem’s Lot

If you have three hours to spare and want to experience Stephen King’s brand of vampire terror, it’s pretty easy to do so thanks to modern home media. Salem’s Lot got its first Blu-ray release in 2016, and it’s not only a great restoration but also widely available for a low price. If physical media isn’t your thing, there are also plenty of digital options. It’s not presently available to stream on any of the major services, but you can purchase and/or rent it from major outlets including Amazon Prime, Google, Vudu, and iTunes.

The next time I dive into the long history of Stephen King adaptations will be for a discussion of what is one of the most controversial titles among Constant Readers: Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining. Stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for all of the latest news and updates about future live-action takes on King’s works, and get a rundown of everything in our Upcoming Stephen King Movies And TV guide.