A Perfect Stephen King Thriller Is Getting A Surprising Remake
An ending that can’t be mist.
Mike Flanagan is the undisputed champ of adaptations. Whether it’s Edgar Allan Poe, Shirley Jackson, or Christopher Pike, if there’s a story that’s vaguely creepy, he can bring it to life. But there’s one particular writer who trusts him so much that their relationship could best be described as a bromance: Stephen King.
Flanagan has already directed feature adaptations of three King books: Gerald’s Game, Doctor Sleep, and The Life of Chuck. He’s also making a miniseries version of horror classic Carrie, and an ambitious, long-term TV adaptation of King’s sprawling sci-fi series, The Dark Tower. Now, another film adaptation is in the works, this time of a novella that’s already been adapted twice. Can Flanagan find something new to say?
Mike Flanagan and Stephen King have a long history of creative partnership.
According to Deadline, Flanagan is set to write and adapt a new film adaptation of The Mist, Stephen King’s 1980 novella. The story follows a group of people trapped in a small-town grocery store when a mysterious mist rolls in, bringing with it monsters and doom.
The Mist has been adapted twice already. In 2007, Frank Darabont, another serial King adapter, wrote and directed a feature film starring Thomas Jane and Marcia Gay Harden. Then, in 2017, Spike aired a TV series adaptation of the story starring Morgan Spector and Alyssa Sutherland.
While the TV series veered away from the source material to poor reviews, the changes the movie made were acclaimed, with even King himself praising its new ending. The book ends with a handful of survivors venturing into the mist; protagonist David Drayton escapes with his son, but can’t tell if his wife survived back at home. In the story’s final moments, David hears another survivor on the radio, providing a glimmer of hope.
The 2017 Mist movie gave the story an even darker ending.
The movie, on the other hand, ends with David realizing his wife didn’t survive and deciding there’s no hope for anyone. He shoots the remaining survivors, including his son, to give them a merciful end. Then, with no bullet left for himself, he surrenders to the mist, only for rescue to arrive just seconds too late.
It’s a bleak ending to a bleak story, but the change elevated the film from just another adaptation to a shocking movie that used viewers’ knowledge of the original novella to lull them into a false sense of security. This raises an obvious question: which ending will Flanagan’s version use? The dark-but-hopeful book ending, the Twilight-Zone-esque movie ending, or something else entirely? There’s no way to tell with Mike Flanagan, but fans should take comfort in knowing he would never do anything that King himself wouldn’t approve of.
