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Mike Flanagan’s ‘Carrie’ series reveals first look as Stephen King horror classic heads to Prime Video

Summer H. Howell stars as Carrie White in an eight-episode update centered on public school, viral bullying, and telekinesis.

Prime Video has released the first images from Mike Flanagan’s eight-episode ‘Carrie’ series, with Summer H. Howell taking on the role of Carrie White. The adaptation of Stephen King’s 1974 novel is set to premiere on the streaming service this fall, though an exact release date has not been announced. Samantha Sloyan plays Carrie’s mother, Margaret White, while the photos also introduce several students and staff members from the public high school Carrie attends. The series reimagines the story in the present day and follows Carrie as she enters public high school after spending most of her life at home.

The official logline says Carrie’s life changes after her father’s sudden death forces her into the public school system. She soon becomes the center of a viral bullying scandal while dealing with the pressure of social media and the start of her telekinetic powers. This gives the series a contemporary setting compared with earlier adaptations of the book while keeping Carrie’s school experience and abilities at the center of the story. 

Flanagan said the longer format required him to expand a story that has usually been told as a film. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, he said, “The only way to approach it was to build something new out of the ingredients of Carrie.” He added that Brian De Palma’s 1976 film had already adapted the novel in a way that made another direct retelling unnecessary for him. Flanagan’s earlier television work includes ‘The Haunting of Hill House’, ‘Midnight Mass,’ and ‘The Fall of the House of Usher.’ The new version also changes the relationship between Carrie and Margaret.

Flanagan told EW that Margaret believes isolating Carrie from the outside world is the only way to protect her. He wrote the role for Sloyan, who previously worked with him on ‘Midnight Mass’ and ‘The Fall of the House of Usher.’ Howell, meanwhile, was chosen after the production considered more than 1,000 actresses for the role of Carrie. The show will still include parts of the novel that viewers associate with Carrie’s story, including the high school bathroom incident and the prom.

However, Flanagan said the series will reach the prom through a different chain of events and that the sequence itself will change. The adaptation will also explore the novel’s references to the science behind telekinesis and Carrie’s place among other women with similar abilities. Beginning with episode two, each episode will open with the story of another woman, somewhere else in the world and at another point in time, as she discovers her own abilities. The cast includes Siena Agudong as Sue Snell, Alison Thornton as Chris Hargensen, and Joel Oulette as Tommy Ross. Arthur Conti plays Billy, Josie Totah plays Tina, and Thalia Dudek appears as a new character named Emaline. Amber Midthunder plays Miss Desjardin, while Matthew Lillard takes on the role of Principal Grayle.

Flanagan serves as writer, showrunner, and executive producer, and he directed four of the eight episodes. King also serves as an executive producer on the Amazon MGM Studios production. The project marks the first television series based on ‘Carrie,’ following screen adaptations released in 1976, 2002, and 2013, as well as the 1999 sequel ‘The Rage: Carrie 2.’ The series also continues Flanagan’s work adapting King’s books after ‘Gerald’s Game,’ ‘Doctor Sleep,’ and ‘The Life of Chuck.’