The Kingcast

Mike Flanagan's adaptation of The Life of Chuck starts hitting screens this weekend. It's about a lot of things: the end of the world, the impact a single person can have on the universe, the importance of math, and the joy of dancing. It's hard to explain what this movie is, but it is large and, much like the title character, contains multitudes. 

The Outsider is the book where King's current obsession, Holly Gibney, takes a full step to the forefront as she helps investigate a particularly interesting case where a man arrested for the brutal killing of a child has proof that he wasn't anywhere near the scene of the crime despite a mountain of eye-witness, surveillance, and DNA evidence to the contrary. Is there something deeper at play here? Perhaps something supernatural? 

Rose Red is the rare mini-series that Stephen King wrote directly for the screen and is essentially his stab at playing in Shirley Jackson's Hill House sandbox. With a wild cast that includes both Nancy Travis and Julian Sands and Melanie Lynskey and a story that feels like a Greatest Stephen King Hits compilation, Rose Red is a fascinating one to look back on.

"A Death" is a lesser-known Stephen King short story from The Bizarre of Bad Dreams. Set in the Old West times, a young girl is killed and the town rounds up a likely suspect who proclaims his innocence upon deaf ears. Is this man a murderer or is he innocent, like he claims? 

Larry Hama not only worked on GI Joe, he also dabbled with Wolverine, Nth Man, and Elektra. His work on Joe didn't end with the comics, either. He also penned the majority of the dossier files on the back of all the toys. 

Both The Mist and our guest's latest film, Drop, are contained pot-boilers as a small group of people share the same small common area as wild stuff is happening outside. One involves creepy cell phone drops, the other tentacled monsters, but go with us with this comparison.

Carrie is the novel that started everything for Stephen King, a runaway success that set him up to be the master of horror for going on 5 decades now. It tells the story of a sheltered, awkward girl who just so happens to be telekinetic and when she's pushed too far... well, she makes her wrath known to the entire town.

Christine tells the story of Arnie Cunningham and his disturbingly close relationship with his car. What does this story have to say about toxic masculinity? How hard is it to film automotive mayhem? And what's with all the wiener grabbing? All these questions and more are asked and answered in today's episode.

Eyes of the Dragon sees a small kingdom completely upturned thanks to the murder of their King. An innocent prince is framed for his father's murder and is locked away in a tower while his younger brother takes the thrown, the unwitting lapdog of the evil wizard Randall Flagg. Thanks to our sponsors this week: Lumi Gummies and A24's Opus

Director Osgood Perkins is most famous for the recent genre smash, Longlegs, and he brings his unique point of view to The Monkey, which is out in theaters now from Neon and James Wan's Atomic Monster. Make sure to check out the movie and read Kingcast co-host Anthony Breznican's wonderful Vanity Fair profile on Osgood Perkins.

James Wan is famous for Saw, Insidious, The Conjuring, and Aquaman, but he's also produced a few Stephen King adaptations, including The Monkey, which is being released February 21st. We talk a lot about working with Osgood Perkins, how perfectly horror and comedy can work together if crafted correctly, his version of The Tommyknockers which never made it off the ground, and his love of Stephen King's It.

King drops some news about his current novel, The Talisman 3, and fields a variety of questions ranging from the adaptations of his work (stuff like the upcoming The Life of Chuck, The Long Walk, and The Monkey, and classics like Cujo and Maximum Overdrive) to nerdy deep dives into his craft, his relationship with Tabby, the new Holly Gibney novel coming this May called Never Flinch, Mike Flanagan, and just what the hell is up with all the corn in his work. This episode is sponsored by Neon's The Monkey, an adaptation of King's short story of the same name directed by Osgood Perkins (Longlegs), and starring Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, and Elijah Wood, coming to theaters February 21st.

The Kingcast returns from hiatus next Wednesday, January 29th, with a brand new permanent co-host. Anthony Breznican has signed up for this new tour of duty for the show and before we hit the ground running next week I figured I would post this episode where you can get to know Brez a little bit.  This episode was previously only available on The Kingcast Patreon (www.patreon.com/thekingcast, sign up now!).

Chaos reigns as Bill Skarsgard and Willem Dafoe talk with Vespe about their current flick Nosferatu as well as all their favorite Stephen King things. Both actors have King connections. Bill's is obvious, Willem will be a deep cut for King nerds. 

Stephen King's The Mist is a novella about the residents of a small Maine town stuck in a grocery store as an unnatural mist rolls into town concealing all sorts of Lovecraftian horrors. Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile) made a very divisive, but hugely effective, adaptation in 2007.

Originally published by Cavalier in 1972 and re-published in King's 1993 short story collection Nightmares and Dreamscapes, Suffer the Little Children is one of his nastier tales about an old schoolmarm who is becoming convinced her 3rd grade class is slowly being taken over by mischievous dopplegangers. 

Silver Bullet focuses on young Marty Coslaw (Corey Haim), a boy in a wheelchair who is the first to figure out that the mysterious deaths in his small town are the work of a rogue werewolf. Based on a novella by King, illustrated by the late, great Bernie Wrightson, this '80s movie is one that holds up more than a lot of its contemporaries.

This one is a little more of a nerdy deep dive into King's overall body of work, but we do talk a bit about Different Seasons, Cycle of the Werewolf, One for the Road, Dreamcatcher, Storm of the Century, If It Bleeds, The Stand, Dark Tower, and The Shining, all of which give some kind of passing nod to widely celebrated holidays or at least the bone-chilling horror of New England winters.

Young George is left alone with his ailing Gramma and starts to piece together that she's may be a legit danger to him. What's up with all those occult books, Gramma? This creepy King short story was published in Skeleton Crew and has been on the minds of King readers ever since.

Based on King's novella Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, Frank Darabont's adaptation is commonly thought of as one of the all-time great movies. It focuses on a wrongfully imprisoned man and his decades long bid for freedom and all the folks he impacts along the way.

This live recording of The Kingcast was done last week in Las Vegas at KingCon in a room full of Stephen King super fans. Thankfully, Tom Jane proves his King credentials as this deep dive chat covers King's books, short stories, and the adaptations that Jane has had a chance to partake in. Yes, including Dreamcatcher. Maybe especially Dreamcatcher.

Revival is King's underappreciated masterpiece about seeking for the truth behind the afterlife. The story follows a young man from childhood into adulthood as a he keeps encountering his small town preacher who is becoming more and more obsessed with piercing the veil through his experiments with secret electricity.

The Mist is Stephen King's stab at Lord of the Flies as he explores the microcosms that form when a group of small town strangers are trapped in a small grocery store while a supernatural mist hides deadly creatures just outside the doors. 

What if the distance between two points could be manipulated? How aggressive can a single person be about shaving a little driving time off her commute? Turns out anything is possible in Stephen King's brain as this small town, deeply Maine, story unfolds and includes possible folding of time and space. 

Whelan is the recipient of 15 Hugo awards for his work illustrating for the most popular names in genre storytelling, including Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Robert A. Heinlein, Brandon Sanderson, and, of course, Stephen King.

What began as a weird short story with mythological overtones about an absurdly large man who eats a ton of lawn clippings ended up as a movie about a mentally challenged lawnmower who becomes VR Hitler thanks to Pierce Brosnan with an earring. This is the movie so radically different from the source material that it inspired not just one, but two different lawsuits from Stephen King. 

Romance writer Paul Sheldon is in a catastrophic car accident and that's only the beginning of his troubles as his rescuer turns out to be a psychotic fan who has some very strong opinions on the direction of his recent work. 

You can always count on Kate Siegel to keep things chaotic and Emily V. Gordon to bring her psychology degree to the table when analyzing King's work. Be prepared for lots of talk about "that scene" from IT and to desperately want a tee-shirt with the slogan "Stank Some Os" by the time this chat wraps up.

The Life of Chuck is a recent King novella published in If It Bleeds, a standout story about finding joy in life, even if that means dancing your ass off in front of complete strangers. The odd feel good story about a world falling apart that has been adapted into a wonderful new film from Mike Flanagan.

Revival is the story of a nice guy preacher who suffers great personal tragedy, loses his faith, and seeks for answers about the afterlife that he, and us, the constant readers, aren't ready to face. Released in 2014, this book still has yet to be adapted, even though folks like Mike Flanagan have tried. 

1408 is about a skeptical writer who is in search of ghosts. He stays at all the most famous haunted places without ever stumbling across anything supernatural... until, that is, he stays in room 1408 at the Dolphin Hotel in New York City. 

Edgar Freemantle travels to Duma Key, Florida for a little R&R after a horrible accident took his right arm and permanently damaged his marriage. He picks up a paintbrush and starts churning out amazing paintings that might have a sinister supernatural side to them.

Based on the Richard Bachman book of the same name, 1987's The Running Man is a cheesy action spectacular with some of the all-timer Arnold Schwarzenegger one-liners. The movie bears very little resemblance to the book, however it remains one of the more prescient movies of the '80s.

Maximum Overdrive is King's one and only outing as director and is based on his short story "Trucks," a much bleaker and meaner tale of mankind's machines turning against their makers. 

The Long Walk is set in an Authoritarian future where the masses are entertained by a competition where 100 of America's youth start in one spot and have to keep walking until there is only one walker remaining. Those who fall during the walk don't just lose out on the grand prize, but are executed right there in broad daylight. 100 boys enter and only one will win. 

King's latest short story collection, You Like It Darker, is a showcase of the master hitting all his best notes, from crime fiction to straight horror. From angry alligators to creepy aliens that grant wishes to terrifying ghost toddlers and dream doorways that should absolutely, positively never be opened, this one's a banger.

The Shining was released in 1980 to tepid critical response and weak financial success, but it has aged like a fine wine and is now considered a genre masterpiece. It's hard to deny that the movie's iconography is even stronger today than it was upon release, and that's thanks in no small part to young Danny Lloyd's central performance.

Based on the novella Rita Hayworth and The Shawshank Redemption, Frank Darabont's adaptation has become one of the most beloved films ever made, thanks in no small part to the villainous performance of today's guest. 

The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill is all about a lunkhead rural farmer who discovers a meteor that crashed on his land. He thinks he has hit the jackpot, his luck finally turning around, but all that happens is a strange moss grows out of the meteor and all over this poor guy. Based on King's previously published short story "Weeds."

Night Shift is King's first short story collection, published in 1978 and compiling a ton of his nudie magazine stories published before he hit fame and fortune. Night Surf is the standout for our guest and that one is more of a chill story about a group of friends hanging out on the beach as a super flu spreads across the world, taking humanity out person by person.

Pet Sematary follows a young doctor and his family who move into a small Maine town with a terribly busy road that likes to claim the lives of pets and small little boys chasing kites. Beyond the Pet Sematary is a deadfall that conceals a sour plot of land that might help you bring a loved one back, but at a cost. 

Holly follows one of King's favorite characters, Holly Gibney, as she's faced with a monstrous duo who are snatching people for horrific reasons. It's up to Holly to honor their victims and stop them from hurting more as she slowly uncovers the truth behind these disappearances. And Creepshow is King and George A. Romero teaming up for a loving EC Comics tribute anthology film that contains pissed off undead father's wanting their damn cake, a man just itching to off his horrible wife, a dude that probably shouldn't have touched the meteor that fell into his backyard, and a jealous husband torturing his unfaithful wife and her lover.

Scott Wampler passed away Friday afternoon from natural causes. Aside from being the dedicated co-host of this show, he was a certifiable smart-ass on social media, a bully to bullies and those who abused power, and champion of all the people and art that touched him. This emotional conversation pulls back the curtain on Scott as a person and what's in store for the shows that he was so passionate about.

Tim Curry scarred a whole generation as Pennywise The Dancing Clown in Stephen King's IT and Brian De Palma's Carrie inspired a whole generation of genre filmmakers. Both are classics of the respective forms and both have proven to be hugely important in keeping King in the cultural zeitgeist.

One For Road is Stephen King's short story sequel to 'Salem's Lot in which a family man runs out of gas in the middle of a snowstorm, leaves his family in the car while he goes to look for help, and then wanders into a bar where the locals pretty much tell him he broke down in the wrong place and there are vampires around. Scary, tense, and with a final couple of pages that will stick with you long after reading.

The Shining is one of the most hotly debated Stephen King adaptations. Did Kubrick screw up King's book? Is all that talk overblown? It always serves as a good backdrop to a conversation, especially when your guest is as fun to talk to as our guest this week.