New TV version of horror classic Carrie is already annoying people
Oct 06, 2026
New York [US], October 5: Releasing next week, the latest take on Stephen King's novel has been criticised for its casting. The heroine is a softer, more conventional-looking character than in the book.
Mike Flanagan is the horror auteur behind such hit shows as Midnight Mass and The Haunting of Hill House. A new series from him would normally be a cause for celebration by fans of the genre. But when they were first released, the stills and trailer for his eight-part adaptation of Stephen King's 1974 classic Carrie did not meet with universal approval.
Some fans were disappointed, even angered. The reason for their annoyance? As with other screen versions, there seemed to be departures from the novel, which tells the story of a bullied teenager wreaking revenge on her high school - especially with regard to the way Carrie looks and behaves.
Various X users have pointed out that, as one of them put it, "everyone decides to cast her as a skinny, conventionally attractive girl" which is very different to how she is depicted in the book.
Another suggested that no adaptation "has ever captured the full extent of Carrie's novel characterisation. She's an incredibly angry girl, and is usually depicted as sad/naïve on screen". A third alleged that "Hollywood would never do the book version [of Carrie] in a million years".
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation
