Meddling with classics is tricky. At the same time, fans like the idea of experiencing their favorite stories once again, but remakes always have the risk of quickly becoming irrelevant if they add nothing to a story that people already know. InCarrie’s case,Mike Flanagan(The Fall of the House of Usher) will be touching on two classics at once: the best-selling novel byStephen Kingand the horror classic byBrian De Palma. The series iscoming to Prime Video, and cast memberMatthew Lillard(Scream 7) talked about Flanagan’s approach to the material.
Lillard — who will play Principal Grayle — spoke aboutCarrieduring a participation onThe Kingcast, a podcast that centers around all the stories created by the famous author. He was promotingLife of Chuck, which is anotherStephen King story adapted by Flanagan, soCarriewas a natural segue for the conversation. The actor talked about the script and how he thinks that Flanagan is angling to make the story relevant for newer generations. He stated:
“I read all eight episodes, which never happens. You never get to read everything upfront, but it’s all written. And I think that what Mike’s done again is taken the core of what Steve has written when he wrote ‘Carrie,’ and adapted it in a way that honors what Stephen was going for early, and now he’s making it relevant for kids today. I don’t think that he would have done it if Mike didn’t have a really clear, concise, direct refocus of what ‘Carrie’ is. And nobody needs to see ‘Carrie’ again. Mike sort of cracked the code, how it’s relevant now. The shot for shot ‘Psycho’ [remake]…why would you do that? Just watch the original.”
Why Is ‘Carrie’ Getting Another Remake?
If done right, aCarrieupdate would be welcomed with open arms by fans of the classic. The original story’s setting is the late 70s, and, needless to say, the world has changed a lot since then.The 1976 movie got two remakes: the 2002 version withAngela Bettis(May) had a dismal reception with a 20% score onRotten Tomatoes, while the 2013 version withChloë Grace Moretz(The Peripheral) andJulianne Moore(Sirens) fared only slightly better, with a 51% score. So far, the Brian De Palma classic withSissy Spacek(Die My Love) is still consideredthe definitive adaptation of the story.
The new adaptation might earn a spot in fans' hearts, though, because Flanagan has two distinct things going for him. The first is that the story will be told in series' format, which might explore Carrie’s relationship with heroverbearing mothera lot more. Additionally, Flanagan is considered one of the best and most creative voices of thehorror genre of the last decade, so fans are eager to see what he does with the material.
The new Carrie will be played bySummer Howell(Curse of Chucky), and Prime Video is yet to announce a release window for the series.
Source:The Kingcast
