Mike Flanagan on remixing Stephen King's Carrie for Prime Video

Right · 1Mike Flanagan's Carrie, an eight-episode adaptation of Stephen King's 1974 debut novel, is streaming on Prime Video, and Flanagan wrote it and directed four of the episodes. 1 Mixed · 2Flanagan said they went to King before starting and would not proceed without King's "express blessing"; King asked why, since the story had been done before, and became excited once Flanagan outlined "pretty fundamental changes". The National Post says King is an executive producer. 2 1 Mixed · 2The story has been adapted often, including Brian De Palma's 1976 film, a 2013 remake with Chloë Grace Moretz, a sequel and a 1988 Broadway musical. Den of Geek says Flanagan, working under an overall deal with Amazon MGM Studios, initially balked before deciding the only way to remake it was to remix it, as with Flanagan's Netflix shows based on Shirley Jackson, Henry James and Edgar Allan Poe. 2 1

Mixed · 2The series is set in a contemporary environment. Carrie White (Summer H. Howell), previously kept at home by her mother Margaret (Samantha Sloyan), is made to attend high school after her father's death. She meets modern threats, including an active shooter drill and bullying amplified by social media; in Den of Geek's account, a classmate launches an "@CarrieRed_" Instagram account. 1 2 Centre · 1Den of Geek reports that this Carrie is more hopeful and optimistic than the book's, and that the show explores other carriers of the "TK gene". Flanagan said the book's tragedy is that Carrie never learns of a larger community, which the series changes. 2 Centre · 1Flanagan said the themes of cruelty and empathy feel more relevant now than 50 years ago. Flanagan has a child in high school, and in Den of Geek's account invited teenagers into the writers' room for input on the modern school setting. 2

Right · 1Speaking to the National Post, Flanagan tied the changes to dropping children at US schools with metal detectors and active shooter drills, and said school is dangerous emotionally because of social media. Flanagan called it "the reason to tell this story now". 1 Mixed · 2Flanagan, who premiered the first two episodes at the Toronto International Film Festival, said they became a permanent resident of British Columbia last year and have shot five series in Vancouver. The school set was filmed in a real, out-of-use Vancouver high school. 1 2 Centre · 1Den of Geek says Howell was chosen after more than 1,400 young actors were screened, and that Flanagan wanted Samantha Sloyan, who played Bev Keane in Midnight Mass, as Margaret without considering anyone else. The cast also includes Matthew Lillard, Amber Midthunder, Rahul Kohli, Siena Agudong, Alison Thornton and Joel Oulette. 2