For any big adaptation project, especially in the science fiction, fantasy, and horror genres, one of the biggest things any creator tends to focus on is expanding upon and developing the lore of the world they are trying to capture. Whether that includes the mysteries of the Force inStar Warsor the power behind artifacts suchas the Infinity Gauntlet in theMCU, these objects, forces of nature, and even at times deities can become as important as the characters and the story being told. In the grand scheme of Stephen King’sThe Dark Towerseries, a figure has emerged that is on par with the importance and power of the Dark Tower itself. That figure is the deity GAN.
Essentially theDark Towerequivalent to a god, GAN is a powerful figure that has ties to many of the events of the series. This includes the driving force behind Roland’s mission to find and protect the Dark Towerfrom the dangers of the Crimson King. To fully capture the scope of Stephen King’s vision in this series, creator and horror icon Mike Flanagan will need to take time to flesh out the mythos surrounding GAN and this figure’s impact on Mid-World as a whole. to do that, viewers will need to understand who GAN is and how he became part of Roland’s story.
The Deity GAN, Explained
The start of the universe is a story that has been told and retoldtime and time again in Mid-World, and the details always change. Yet the bottom line in every iteration is that at the beginning, there was the PRIM. This was the primordial chaos that figures such as GAN and Maerlyn rose from, as well as the beams that GAN would use to hold the Dark Tower in place. The PRIM also allowed for the rise of the many demons and monsters that plague the multiverse as well, including the likes of Pennywise the Dancing Clown and so many more.
GAN is said to have risen from the PRIM, and spun the multiverse of the Dark Tower from himself. He connected all of these various realities, dimensions, and worlds together, with the Dark Tower serving as the axis on which all reality, sometimes known as Ka’s Wheel, turns. While GAN always existed in Roland’s world, he wasn’t even name-dropped in the series until Book Six,Song of Susannah. The story featured Roland and Eddie Dean traveling to a version of our world to meet a young Stephen King. (Yes, the author wrote a fictionalized version of himself into the story.) Roland theorized that he was either the embodiment of GAN in that world, or was an avatar for GAN, which allowed him to write about Roland’s life, much like the Prophetsfeatured onSupernatural.
Gan is also referred to as The White, the powerful force for good that Roland serves and works to protect on his journey to The Dark Tower. GAN is also theforce directly opposing the Red, fueled by Maerlyn and later The Crimson King. They seek to destroy the Dark Tower that GAN protects, with the goal of allowing the PRIM to rise again and bring reality into endless chaos as it was before. It is essentially GAN himself that Roland and his allies fight to protect. Many believe the Dark Tower is a physical embodiment of the deity as well, serving as the lynchpin to which all reality is tied.
GAN’s Importance To The Dark Tower Series
Establishing these powerful and elemental forces of nature and mythology into a show as big asThe Dark Toweraims to be is crucial to the overarching story being told. Without the Force,Star Warswould not have the profound philosophical and moral themesbetween the Sith and the Jedi. Similarly, GAN serves as the driving force for Roland and his allies against the Crimson King and his forces. The novels and the upcoming adaptation play well into the theme of good versus evil, with many subtle nuances taking place in the gray areas of life as well. That moral complexity for Roland is critical to his relationship with the White or GAN later on in the series.
While he may have never been seen physically, GAN’s presence in the series is a true driving force, with close ties to guardians like the turtle Maturin or even the Dark Tower itself. Itspresence is felt in the work of Stephen King’sfictional doppleganger, or in the fictional corporation Roland establishes on Earth later in the series as they protect that world’s connection to the Dark Tower, the Rose. GAN is both a deity and a force of nature. It needs to have its presence established to give Roland’s journey a more cosmic, all-powerful destiny throughout theDark Towerseries in the future.
