Mike Flanagan (Midnight Mass, The Haunting of Hill House) is set to re-team with Stephen King for a new small-screen adaptation of the legendary's author's first novel, Carrie, and the title role has now been cast.
Despite rumors that Hereditary star Milly Shapiro was in negotiations to play the lead, Variety is reporting that Summer H. Howell is "nearing a deal" to play troubled telekinetic teen Carrie White.
We had heard that Samantha Sloyan (Hush, Midnight Mass) was being eyed to play Carrie's mother, Margaret White, but there's no mention of the character at all in this report.
At 20 years old, Howell is already something of a horror vet, having appeared in Child’s Play franchise films Curse of Chucky and Cult of Chucky, as well as Hunter Hunter, Spirit in the Blood, Time Cut, and Harland Manor.
The synopsis for this new adaptation reads: "A bold and timely reimagining of the story of misfit high-schooler Carrie White (Howell), who has spent her life in seclusion with her domineering mother. After her father’s sudden and untimely death, Carrie finds herself contending with the alien landscape of public High School, a bullying scandal that shatters her community, and the emergence of mysterious telekinetic powers.”
Flanagan and King - who recently collaborated on the upcoming The Life of Chuck - are developing the supernatural coming-of-rage tale as an eight-episode series for Amazon, with Flanagan on board as showrunner and exec producer.
Brian De Palma's 1976 take on the book is widely viewed as one of the better King adaptations, with Sissy Spacek delivering a terrifying and tragic turn as the title character, who begins to manifest destructive telekinetic abilities after being relentlessly bullied by her classmates and tormented by her domineering religious fanatic mother. John Travolta, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving, Nancy Allen, Betty Buckley and William Katt also starred.
The movie's climactic bloodbath is often hailed as one of the most iconic scenes in cinema history.
2002 sequel, The Rage: Carrie 2, was not well-received, and the less said about the 2013 remake starring Chloë Grace Moretz and Julianne Moore the better.
King has several other feature adaptation of his work on the horizon, including The Long Walk, which the horror maestro wrote at age 19 under the pseudonym Richard Bachman; Jack Bender's The Institute, and Edgar Wright's new take on The Running Man with Glen Powell in the lead role. Josh Brolin, Lee Pace, Katy O’Brian, Karl Glusman and Daniel Ezra are also on board.
In addition, Paul Greegrass and JH Wyman are adapting King’s recent bestseller, Fairy Tale, into a series. The project was initially being developed as a feature at Universal.
Flanagan previously helmed King's The Shining sequel, Doctor Sleep, and Gerald’s Game. There are rumors that they are also discussing a new version of The Dark Tower.
What do you make of this casting news? Any interest in yet another adaptation of Carrie... even with Flanagan involved? Be sure to let us know in the comments section down below. You can also check out the trailer and synopsis for De Palma's movie.
"In this chilling adaptation of Stephen King's horror novel, withdrawn and sensitive teen Carrie White (Sissy Spacek) faces taunting from classmates at school and abuse from her fanatically pious mother (Piper Laurie) at home. When strange occurrences start happening around Carrie, she begins to suspect that she has supernatural powers. Invited to the prom by the empathetic Tommy Ross (William Katt), Carrie tries to let her guard down, but things eventually take a dark and violent turn."