Summary
Mike Flanagan has given fans an insight into the exhausting casting process for his Stephen King adaptation of theCarriePrime Videoseries, while also teasing a “new take” from its lead actor. With a host of adaptations that include the in-developmentThe Dark Tower, the soon-to-be-releasedThe Life of Chuck, and the currently untitledThe Exorcistmovie, Mike Flanagan is one of the busiest filmmakers around at the moment. Even though the director boasts a list of impressive adaptations, it’s King’s classic 1974 novel,Carrie, that many horror fans are looking forward to witnessing most on the small screen.
Published in 1974,CarriewasStephen King’s very first novelthat was published and then later turned into a movie starring Sissy Spacek in 1976, which told the story of an introverted teenager with unbelievable psychic powers, brought to the surface due to a series of humiliating events. Thedirector of the originalCarriemovie, Brian De Palma, toned down some of the scenes from the book, in particular the moment where Carrie kills her mother by stomping on her heart, which was replaced by the troubled teen stopping her mothers heart with her powers instead, due to De Palma believing it wouldn’t translate well on screen. To get into the role ofCarriefor her audition, Spacek made herself look pretty terrible, wearing an old, tattered dress and not brushing her teeth beforehand. The movie’s makeup staff even tried to fix her up because they didn’t realize Spacek actually did it deliberately. Thankfully, her forward-thinking landed her the lead part, leading the actor to be nominated for six Oscars.
Talking in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter (viaScreenRant),Mike Flanagan discussed the process ofcasting theCarrieTV show’s lead actorand how the team had to go through 1,800 different auditions for the role.However, Flanagan revealed that even though it was a lengthy endeavor, in the end, he was very happy that they had found their star in Summer H. Howell. The director also disclosed to eager fans that Howell’s performance would be “unlike anything that anyone’s ever done with the part before,” stating that he was excited for fans to finally be able to see it.
“I think we looked at 1,800 different candidates for that role. It was an exhaustive process. Ultimately, I think we ended up with the right actor for the part. It took a long time to find her, and I can’t wait for people to see what she’s doing, because it’s unlike anything that anyone’s ever done with the part before.”
Along with Howell, theCarrieadaptation will also star Samantha Sloyan as Carrie’s religious fanatic mother, Margaret White, Alison Thornton as Chris Hargensen, Thalia Dudek as Emaline, Siena Agudong as Sue Snell, Amber Midthunder as Miss Desjardin, Josie Totah as Tina, Arthur Conti as Billy, Joel Oulette as Tommy, andScreamstar Matthew Lillard as Principal Grayle.Carrie’sdebut on Prime Video is expected to be released next year in 2026, and having such a brilliant line-up of actors should prove this time around to be compelling viewing, especially given Flanagan’s previous success with projects likeThe Haunting of Hill House,Midnight Mass,andDoctor Sleep.
Currently,Carriedoes not yet have a premiere window, but when it does release, it will stream exclusively on Prime Video.
