There’s a lot going on in the Stephen King Universe in the next six or seven months, so you should get a calendar and fill in all the important dates. Or you could just refer to all the information in this column, which has you covered!
We’re a little over a month from the publication date of Never Flinch, which comes out on May 27. We’ve already seen one excerpt from the book courtesy of Entertainment Weekly. Later this week, on April 24 at 4 p.m. Eastern time, Stephen King will read from the novel live on YouTube. He will also take readers behind the scenes, explaining his love of Holly and how this new “whodunnit” came to be.
I’ll have more to say about Never Flinch closer to publication date, but Publishers Weekly says, “Elegantly structured and sharply written, this moody mystery from the master of horror is a must-read.”
The Monkey is now available to rent on various streaming platforms. The reviews have been all over the map, but there’s no question that the adaptation is a financial success given that its production budget was a mere $10 million. Various reports call it one of the highest-grossing King adaptations of all time.
Next up, we have the highly anticipated The Life of Chuck, written and directed by Mike Flanagan, which will be in theaters on June 6. The trailer dropped this week and, boy, does it look great. Hodder & Stoughton will release a standalone edition of the story on June 17.
The anthology The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King’s The Stand comes out on August 19.
September 2 is the day when Hansel and Gretel by Stephen King and Maurice Sendak lands in bookshops.
Next up comes The Long Walk on September 12. While a trailer hasn’t been widely released yet, one was shown at CinemaCon recently and it blew these guys’ minds! Cinemablend says the trailer makes the movie look just like the book. Eric Eisenberg writes, “I’m now girding myself for the film to be one of the most tense and emotionally fraught pieces of cinema that arrives on the big screen in 2025.”
First we walk, then we run…I’m not sure I’ve ever seen the original adaptation of The Running Man. In fact, I’m pretty sure I haven’t, although it’s now streaming on Peacock+ so I may rectify that oversight. The remake is scheduled to hit theaters on November 7. Again, no trailer has been released but footage was shown at Cinemacon that featured game show host Bobby Thompson (played by Colman Domingo), along with shots of Glen Powell running away from pursuing hunters.
The premiere dates have yet to be announced for Welcome to Derry and The Institute. Three seasons are planned for the It prequel, which is based on the novel’s interludes. The first season is set in 1962, the second season in 1935, and the third season in 1908. A trailer for The Institute was shown at Content London a few months ago.
We won’t likely see Mike Flanagan’s remake of Carrie this year, but production is supposed to begin in Vancouver this summer, and the eight-episode series has a green light from Prime Video. Summer H. Howell will likely play the title character, with Siena Agudong reportedly being cast as Sue Snell.
Netflix has made a deal to turn Cujo into a new feature film. Roy Lee is producing, and they will go out to writers immediately. Darren Aronofsky will direct.
Filmmaker James Ashcroft (The Rule of Jenny Pen) reportedly acquired the rights to adapt “Danny Coughlin’s Bad Dream” for $1.
Signed copies of Stephen King: A Complete Exploration of His Work, Life, and Influences are still available from Village Books in The Woodlands. Be sure to specify if you’d like a dedication and/or inscription on the order form. A new edition, Stephen King: His Life, Work, and Influences (Young Readers’ Edition), came out last September, which you can also order from Village Books.
Keep an eye out on the Lividian Publications patreon for news of another King-related chapbook..
