Veteran Stephen King Producer Provides An Update On Where Things Stand With 4 Developing Adaptations

If you’re a fan of Stephen King, Roy Lee is a name that you should know. In 2001, he co-founded Vertigo Entertainment, and while the shingle got its start producing remakes of Japanese horror movies – including The Ring and The Grudge – King adaptations have become a big part of the business since the company co-produced Andy Muschietti’s IT in 2017. Since then, Lee has been a key figure in the making of Mike Flanagan’s Doctor Sleep, Gary Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot, Francis Lawrence’s The Long Walk, and The Stand limited series (not to mention IT: Chapter 2 and the prequel series IT: Welcome To Derry)... and there’s plenty more on the way.

For this week’s edition of The King Beat, I have a bit of a special treat, as I had the chance to sit down with Lee in the last few days and got a quick update on where things stand with a number of Stephen King projects that Vertigo Entertainment currently has in the works. But that’s not all, as there is also news to share about a release window for the upcoming Carrie miniseries heading to Amazon Prime later this year. There’s a lot to discuss, so without further ado, let’s dig in!

Producer Roy Lee Offers An Update On Cujo, The Jaunt, The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon And The Tommyknockers Adaptations

Anyone who even casually follows entertainment industry news knows that film development is tricky business. There are exactly zero guarantees that any given project will make it to the production stage, as there are innumerable hurdles that may cause a movie to either get cancelled or stuck in limbo for an eternity. When regular updates aren’t provided, it can be extremely difficult to gauge a title’s progress – which is why I was really excited this week to ask Roy Lee about all of the upcoming King adaptations that Vertigo Entertainment has in the works.

I spoke with the filmmaker on Wednesday during the virtual press day for his new film Psycho Killer (which arrives in theaters everywhere on Friday), and we immediately got on the subject of Stephen King adaptations after I thanked him for his contributions to the canon. He specifically mentioned Cujo and The Jaunt as projects he is now working on, and I followed up by asking about where things are at with other titles he’s been linked to – including The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon and the long-in-the-works The Tommyknockers. Lee explained that they are all titles that are presently at various stages, and their progress is ultimately determined by a mix of getting a proper script and timing. He said,

Of the projects, The Tommyknockers has been developing the longest, as it was in early 2018 that Roy Lee became attached as a producer alongside James Wan. The book, which centers on a town that finds itself under the thrall of an exposed extraterrestrial presence, isn’t one of the most beloved in the Stephen King bibliography, and it’s easy to understand why it’s been difficult to contain the sprawling narrative as a movie.

The Jaunt, based on the short story of the same name, has been in the works since 2021 as a television series with Fear The Walking Dead co-creator Dave Erickson attached. The source material (which can be found collected in 1985’s Skeleton Crew) takes place in a distant future where a teleportation technology called “the jaunt” has been created. The invention is key in helping the human race colonize the solar system, but it has serious consequences if a person is not properly prepped for the experience.

Both Cujo and The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon are projects that were first announced to be in development last year. The former, the iconic horror tale of a woman and child under siege by a rabid Saint Bernard, is in the works at Netflix, and it will reportedly be directed by Darren Aronofsky. The latter, the story of a 9-year-old who gets lost in the vastness of the Appalachian trail while hiking with her mother and brother, is currently set up at Lionsgate (which has a first-look deal with Vertigo Entertainment) and has The Long Walk screenwriter JT Mollner set to both write and direct.

If you think Roy Lee is stopping with those Stephen King projects, however, you’d be wrong. There are plenty of King books that have not yet been adapted, and the filmmaker caught sight of one while looking at my King library in my background:

Insomnia is certainly one of the most challenging books to adapt (following an elderly protagonist who gains an extra level of perception when dealing with the titular sleep disorder), but given Lee’s track record including IT, Doctor Sleep and The Long Walk, he’s a filmmaker I’d trust to make it happen.

Katee Sackhoff Teases That Mike Flanagan’s Carrie Will Be Arriving In Time For Halloween 2026

Up until last year, Mike Flanagan had one hell of a production streak going. For nearly an entire decade, the filmmaker delivered a new fall release every single year, including 2016’s Ouija: Origin Of Evil, 2017’s Gerald’s Game, 2018’s The Haunting Of Hill House, 2019’s Doctor Sleep, 2020’s The Haunting Of Bly Manor, 2021’s Midnight Mass, 2022’s The Midnight Club, 2023’s The Fall Of The House Of Usher and the 2024 TIFF premiere of The Life Of Chuck (which got a theatrical release last spring). That streak is now over – but the good news is that it seems as though Flanagan will be back to entertain audiences for Halloween 2026, as that’s apparently the release window for his upcoming Carrie miniseries.

Amazon Prime Video has not yet announced an official date for the new horror show, but Katee Sackhoff let details slip last weekend during a panel at Fan Expo Vancouver (via The Direct).The project marks the first time that the actress has worked with Flanagan since they made 2013’s Oculus together, and while briefly discussing the series, she offered a hint at distribution plans:

October is now set to be a very rich month for King fans, as it was also announced last week that the month will feature the release of the author’s latest book: Other Worlds Than These (which will be in stores on October 6 and is now available for pre-order).

This is an intriguing tease… but the actress wouldn’t spill more than that in talking about the show. We don’t yet know anything about the role that Sackhoff will be playing, and she wasn’t exactly forthcoming with any spoilers or big revelations. That being said, she did tease that fans will be getting at least two classic elements of Stephen King’s seminal novel”:

She is not alone in the effort to keep lips tightly sealed about the project, as the Carrie limited series has been shrouded in secrecy. One thing we do know about the adaptation is that it will be changing up one specific detail from the source material – specifically that it will feature a larger role for Carrie White’s dad, whose death is reportedly going to be a catalyst for the story.

Summer H. Howell, whose genre credits include Curse Of Chucky, Cult Of Chucky and episodes of the series Channel Zero, is starring as the titular Carrie, and the cast also includes Samantha Sloyan as Margaret White, Siena Agudong as Sue Snell, Alison Thornton as Chris Hargensen, Amber Midthunder as gym teacher Rita Desjardin and Matthew Lillard as Principal Henry Grayle. In addition to Katee Sackhoff, other notable members of the FlanaFamily set to be on the show include Kate Siegel, Michael Trucco, and Rahul Kohli.

The only real bad news about a fall release for Carrie is that this probably means that fans are going to have to exhibit some patience waiting for a proper first-look/trailer for the show, as the promotional campaign probably won’t be kicking off until summer. That being said, as more big and cool information comes to light about the show in coming months, you’ll be able to read about it here on CinemaBlend.

That brings this edition of The King Beat to a conclusion, but because there is perpetually new Stephen King news and information to write about, you can be sure that I’ll be back here on the site next Thursday with a brand new column digging into all of it.