Carrie White: Through Time and Terror

With IT: Welcome to Derry recently coming out on HBO Max, this feels like the perfect time to honor Stephen King's first novel: Carrie. A thriller about a bullied young teenage girl from a religiously abusive home who discovers she has telekinetic powers. The story begins where any horror film naturally would: a girls locker room. Slight spoliers for the begining of the story: the first scene is set as Carrie White is showering; she is paralyzed with fear when she gets her period for the first time. In the early 1970's when King was writing this first chapter of the novel, he felt lost. He realized he didn't have a clue what he was talking about – he had never been a teenage girl (and hopefully never even been in a girls' locker room). Feeling defeated, he chucked his manuscript into the trash. Luckily his wife, Tabitha King, pulled them out and gave them a once over, immediately encouraging him to get back to work and finish the novel. Just think, if she had just briskly taken out the trash that day we wouldn't have classics like The Shinning, It, Pet Sematary, and of course Carrie.

Carrie 1976

With the novels immediate success, a feature film was in order – and boy did they pump it out quick. Just two years after the novel's release in 1974, the 1976 film Carrie was released in theaters. It's main cast starred Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, and an at the time up and comer John Travolta. The film stayed relatively close to King's novel. The major difference is that the film is actually much more narrowed in on the perspective of Carrie White, whereas the book is much colder and is a mix of documents, newspaper clippings, and testimonies from after the disaster. It’s half horror story, half faux-true crime report – exploring how society failed her. Now here's something you don't see EVER: the book's author admitting that the movie was better?? King said he felt the film and the actress who played Carrie, Sissy Spacek, did a better job at highlighting the stories raw emotion. The film is a horror classic. Keep in mind, it was made in the 70's, so yes, you have to sit through some powerpoint slide style animations, and yes the photo quality looks like they forgot to wipe off the camera lens. BUT, it features fantastic acting performances and a chilling, one of a kind story. The film gave us iconic stills that are often replicated in marketing shoots/ads and the staple angry prom queen archetype. Despite its vintage quirks, the 1976 Carrie remains a landmark in horror cinema, proving that raw emotion and unforgettable storytelling can outshine even the pages it comes from.

Sequels and Remakes

The attempted sequel of Carrie came out in 1999 – though I use that term loosely because it was pretty much a sequel by name alone. Sure, I could change my name to Mathew McConaughey, but it still won't give me an Oscar. The Rage: Carrie 2 follows Rachel Lang, a high school student with telekinetic powers, who faces bullying and trauma similar to what Carrie White experienced. Rachel’s life spirals out of control after a prank at school leads her to unleash her powers in a violent, climactic act of revenge. The film explores themes of teen angst, social cruelty, and suppressed rage, echoing the original... but in a late-90s context. Carrie White is slightly referenced in the story but as many of us know, at the end of the original Carrie... everyone dies, the only linear character is Sue. Sadly, the movie was not well-received, criticized for being formulaic and failing to capture the emotional depth or tension of the 1976 original. It has, however, gained a small cult following among horror fans who appreciate it as a late-90s teen revenge thriller. Personally, I found that as a typical Y/A horror flick: it was done well and I recommend giving it a watch. However, it is incomparable to the original film so don't expect the same deep substance.

There have been 2 main remakes of the film. In 2002 we got the made for TV movie Carrie on ABC. Again, pretty closely followed the original story, with some minor updates for a modern audience. It was seen as a faithful but much less memorable retelling. Then, in 2013, we got the most modern version of Carrie we have to date. It was directed by Kimberly Peirce making it the first version of Carrie to be directed by a woman, interesting considering the story's strong feminist themes. She entirely modernized the story dropping us into a contemperary high school. It stars Julianne Moore, Chloë Grace Moretz, and Ansel Elgort. This film is much more visually polished but critiques (and I) feel it lacks the emotional integrity of the original film. However, it is one of the only adaptations of Carrie that includes Sue's pregnancy that is featured in the book's afterword. While both remakes bring fresh perspectives and modern updates, they still struggle to match the emotional impact and unforgettable intensity of the 1976 classic. They serve more as reinterpretations than replacements, reminding audiences why the original remains the definitive telling of Carrie’s story.

Coming Soon

So here's the inside scoop. Director Mike Flanagan is one of the few Hollywood directors that we trust today to truly deliver a divinely crafted horror film. His credits include King's Dr. Sleep 2019, The Haunting of Hill House 2018, and Oculus 2013. He has just wrapped an Amazon limited series adaptation of Carrie; we don't have an official release date yet but whisperings suggest it will release in 2026. Some of the main cast includes Summer H Howell as Carrie White, Matthew Lillard as Principal Grayle, and Samantha Sloyan as Margaret White. When posting on instagram for the shows wrap, Flanagan said this:

"Our last day of filming on CARRIE. This has been one of the best experiences of my career, one of the very best ensembles l've ever worked with, and already one of my favorite projects ever. Cannot wait for you guys to see what we made."

There you have it. Horror fans cannot wait to see what Flanagan is doing to this story. Am I bitter about not being in it you asked? Oh absolutely. But more importantly, I'm excited to see the impact this story has on a new generation and am dying to see how the adaptation turns out. One thing’s for sure — Carrie’s blood-stained legacy isn’t fading anytime soon, and Flanagan might just make us scream all over again.