Stephen King TV adaptations to stream in Australia

Prepare yourself. It’s Stephen King time once again. When is the Supernatural prequel? Him: Welcome to Derry The series, which will premiere on October 26, will be the latest in a long line of big screen adaptations derived from the horror genre’s most successful writer. Prolific to say the least, King has been writing bestsellers for 50 years, and for much of that time television has been reimagining his vivid prose and nightmarish revelations. The quality of these shows may vary; so as a guide, here are 11 adaptations available for release in Australia.

11/22/63

A science fiction thriller with both historical and temporal threat, this 2016 limited series stars James Franco as Jake Epping, a teacher who is given the opportunity to travel back in time to 1960 by a dying friend. The goal is to prevent the supposed assassination of President John F. Kennedy, but the more Jake becomes attached to the past and its people, the more challenging his mission becomes. This is a richly detailed production, but it’s beside the point; The story, like Jake, keeps getting sidetracked. And Franco’s performance can waver at times. Realm

reptile show

Sometimes a little Stephen King goes a long way. Conceived as a sequel to the successful 1982 film of the same name written by King, this 2019 horror anthology consists of almost 50 episodes (distributed as a pair per episode), but only two of them directly relate to King. 1973 short story Gray Matter adapted for the first episode, while the 1982 short story Survivor Type It is the opening part of an animated episode. For completionists, they’re pretty good. AMC+

Dead Zone

Another fact about Stephen King adaptations: A book can first be turned into a movie and then into a television series. King’s 1979 novel and David Cronenberg’s 1983 film were a thriller about Johnny Smith, a teacher with psychic powers who realizes that a future U.S. president will start a nuclear war. The series, which has aired for six seasons since 2002, has shifted to the case-of-the-week genre, starring primarily adult Anthony Michael Hall (Breakfast Club) stars as Johnny, who uses his advanced abilities to solve crimes and prevent future wrongdoings. 7 plus

Heaven

Indirectly based on the author’s 2005 mystery novel Colorado BoyThis supernatural drama from 2010 is one of the loosest Stephen King adaptations going around. When Audrey Parker (Emily Rose), an FBI agent, is sent to another fictional Maine town, she becomes involved in a battle against an otherworldly “Troubles” dividing the town’s residents. What begins as a spooky procedural adds up to significant world-building as Audrey begins to suspect that the town has an ulterior motive and that its mysterious empty past is connected to it. 7 plus

Institute

The latest to hit the market, this grim 2025 horror series follows Luke Ellis (Joe Freeman), a bright kid with extrasensory abilities who is kidnapped and taken to a secret facility where Mary-Louise Parker’s restless warden studies unique young inmates. If this sounds like an homage to the Eleven series from the show’s first season Stranger ThingsA show inspired in part by King’s early works and adaptations, then you get the cyclical appeal of the concept. Could the app be better? Yes. Is the second season already on the service? Also yes. Stan*

Him: Welcome to Derry

This is Stephen King’s prequel IT It’s been officially confirmed by the King of Horror, and fans of the book and subsequent film adaptations won’t be disappointed. Nine-episode series expands scope IT Set in 1962, the previous Pennywise “cycle” in which the original story is set, the universe features both central teenage characters (many relatives of the original characters) and adults, and an intriguing origin story.
And things were no less dire in the early 60s; The gore is even more noticeable and will probably shock/impress horror buffs in the first few scenes. HBO Maximum

Lisey’s Story

Why is the most prestigious Stephen King television series starring Julianne Moore and Clive Owen, with all eight episodes directed by Pablo Larrain (Jackie) – so rarely appreciated? The answer, in my opinion, is that King’s screenplay, adapted from his 2006 novel, is too slow and reverent. Moore plays the widow of Owen’s famous novelist, who, besieged by hungry scholars and a violently obsessed admirer, moves from the figurative to the literal in her quest to understand her husband’s otherworldly journey. Consider this 2021 series a missed opportunity. AppleTV+

Mr Mercedes

Adapted from King’s trilogy of crime novels published in 2014 and 2015, the three seasons of this 2017 psychological thriller follow retired but troubled police detective Bill Hodges (Brendan Gleeson) as he embarks on an obsessive cat-and-mouse chase with budding young psychopath Brady Hartsfield (Harry Treadaway). Creator David E. Kelley (Big Little Lies, Innocent Default) has crafted a sharp show about emotionally faltering people, with the two leads giving convincing performances of their flawed humanity. It remains an underrated series. Amazon Prime Video, Binge and Stan

Foreign

Starring Ben Mendelsohn as Georgia police detective Ralph Anderson, the angry but dogged hero of the story, this slow-burning mystery begins as a tense crime thriller that forces the characters and the audience to consider supernatural possibilities when conflicting evidence turns a gruesome open-cover child murder into an inexplicable event. The 2020 limited series stands out for its empathetic, engaging writing and engaging additions. Bad‘S. Cynthia Erivo enters the story as a talented private investigator who brings a fresh perspective. Foreign The best show on this list. HBO Maximum

stand

One of King’s signature works, stand As a post-apocalyptic limited series, it went through two trajectories. The first, from 1994, is not currently available, but the second is a comprehensive, albeit overlong, evocation of good versus evil. The talented cast, led by James Marsden, stars as Americans who survive a world-ending pandemic and turn to the saintly Mother Abigail (Whoopi Goldberg) or the evil Randall Flagg (Alexander Skarsgard). The series aired in 2020, when the world was dealing with a real (albeit much less deadly) pandemic, which didn’t help but fundamentally lacked a galvanizing impact. Amazon Prime Video

The X-Files

Stephen King has always been a demanding fan; When he likes someone else’s work, he announces it to the world. In the 1990s, he went one step further and volunteered to write an episode of the series. The X-FilesPopular science fiction drama that stars Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny as paranormal FBI investigators Dana Scully and Fox Mulder. The X-Files creator Chris Carter is credited with rewrites, but “Chinga,” a standalone episode about a 1998 Scully vacation-turned-work-in-Maine vacation, still packs plenty of King’s creepiness as a demonic doll wreaks havoc. Paramount+

What’s your favorite Stephen King TV adaptation? We’d love to hear about it in the comments below.