‘Castle Rock’ Showrunners Say the Scariest Part of Stephen King’s World Is ‘the Monsters Are Human’
King luminaries Sissy Spacek and Bill Skarsgard star in Hulu series that’s set in a very familiar place
Tim Baysinger | July 24, 2018 @ 11:40 AM
Last Updated: July 24, 2018 @ 12:00 PM
Hulu
It may be Stephen King’s world, but “Castle Rock” showrunners Dustin Thomason and Sam Shaw are more than happy to live in it.
“The things that are the most enduringly disturbing about [King’s books] are that the monsters are human,” Shaw told TheWrap. “The monsters may be the protagonist.”
The setting for Hulu’s drama is Castle Rock, Maine, a place where monsters a-plenty have roamed around in King’s works. The fictional town sits at the center of the King universe, appearing in numerous books including “Cujo,” “The Dead Zone,” and “The Body” (the novella that “Stand By Me” was based on).
“It took a big leap of faith to even approach him with the idea of coming back to Castle Rock,” said Thomason. “We took some pretty big swings in this first season with some of his cherished stories, locations and even characters.” The showrunners said they were “terrified” of King’s opinion on the finished product, but J.J. Abrams, who’s Bad Robot produces the show with Warner Bros., forwarded an email from King giving them his approval. “About as good a vote of confidence as we could have gotten,” said Shaw.
The series centers on Henry Deaver (Andre Holland), a death-row attorney who returns to the eponymous town years after a tragic accident killed his father, for which he is blamed. “Castle Rock” also stars King veterans Sissy Spacek, who plays Henry’s dementia-stricken adopted mother, and Bill Skarsgard as a feral inmate who’s found in the bowels of Shawshank State Penitentiary (yes, that Shawshank). Scott Glenn plays Alan Pangborn, the now-retired Castle Rock sheriff, who has been portrayed in films “The Dark Half” and “Needful Things” by Michael Rooker and Ed Harris.
Though not technically a King character, Jane Levy plays “Jackie Torrence,” a clear nod to Jack Nicholson’s Jack Torrence from “The Shining.” The series premieres Wednesday with the first three episodes.
“It can seem like we assembled an Avengers of Stephen King,” said Shaw. Though they had no idea just how big Skarsgard’s turn as Pennywise the Clown would be, which helped “It” storm the box office to a tune of more $700 million worldwide last fall. “When we cast Bill, ‘It’ had not come out yet.”
There have been roughly 90 different TV and film adaptations of King’s works, to varying degrees of success. Self-described “lifelong” King fans, Shaw and Thomason said the trap that many of the lesser adaptations fall into is “this temptation to fixate on all the scares.” Arguing that King invented the character-driven horror genre, they say the scariest part of his works is the terrifying decisions that normal people make, rather than the supernatural monsters.
“‘The Shining’ is terrifying to me because it’s a story of a father who’s taken to this place where he could harm the people he’s supposed to be protecting,” said Shaw. “You’re trying to compact [a novel] into the three-act structure of a 90 minute or two-hour movie, what gets jettisoned is the depth of character.” And some of King’s novels can run over 1,000 pages.
But with “Castle Rock” they get to empty King’s toy chest and create a story designed for the medium of television. “It’s a new story in the key of Stephen King,” says Thomason.
This included using Shawshank in a very different way than the 1994 film. “The story of Shawshank is so specific to Andy Fufresne and Red, and to that story that happens in that time,” said Thomason. “We were really interested in the idea that Shawshank kind of loomed over the town of Castle Rock.”
How Streaming Networks Invaded the Emmys: From 'House of Cards' to 'Handmaid's Tale' (Photos)
The streaming services are taking over the Emmys. Four years after "House of Cards" opened up the major categories to online content providers with three wins, Netflix, Hulu and Amazon have hit an all-time high with a combined total of 126 nominations. But how did we get here?
"House of Cards" The political thriller became the first streaming-only original series to get nominated in major Emmy categories in 2013. It won three that year, including Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series and Outstanding Casting. The show has been nominated for 53 Emmys in total, six of which turned into major category wins.
Netflix
"Orange is the New Black" Netflix seemed to be on a critical roll after "Orange is the New Black" debuted in 2014. It was nominated for 12 awards, including five in acting categories. Uzo Aduba, who plays Suzanne Warren, won for Guest Actress in a Comedy Series. She won a second time in 2015.
Netflix
"The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" The Tina Fey-produced comedy was called the "first great sitcom of the streaming era" and the Emmy voters seem to agree. Since premiering in 2015, the show has garnered 16 nominations.
Netflix
"Transparent" "Transparent" was -- and still is -- Amazon Prime's flagship show. In 2015, following its debut season, it won an unprecedented five Emmy awards, including Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series for Jill Soloway and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy for Jeffrey Tambor. The show has been a continuous staple at the Emmys since.
"Grace and Frankie" 2015 was a big year for streaming services at the Emmys. "Grace and Frankie" was yet another Netflix series that earned nominations in major categories. The show has continued to be a consistent presence at the awards ever since -- specifically in acting categories.
Netflix
"Jessica Jones" The Marvel Netflix show became the first of the Defenders universe to get an Emmy win, for Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music.
Netflix/Marvel
"Master of None" The big addition at the 2016 Emmys was the Aziz Ansari-led comedy "Master of None." The Netflix series earned Ansari nominations for acting, writing and directing -- and a win for writing with his colleague Alan Yang. He'll get another shot in 2017 with more nominations in the same categories, including Outstanding Comedy Series.
TheWrap
"Stranger Things" 2017 is a huge year for Netflix, with 91 nominations for the streaming giant overall. And sleeper hit "Stranger Things,"created by relative newcomers Matt and Ross Duffer, earned a staggering 18 of them, including Outstanding Drama Series. For a genre show released with little marketing, this is quite a feat.
Netflix
"The Crown" The hugely popular (and acclaimed) period drama about the life of Queen Elizabeth II earned Netflix five Emmy nominations this year.
Netflix
"Handmaid's Tale" In 2017, Hulu established itself as a serious original programming contender with this adaptation of Margaret Atwood's seminal novel. The highly acclaimed series not only became arguably the defining political commentary of the early Trump-Era, it also went on to make history for Hulu with 13 nominations.
Hulu
"The Beatles: Eight Days a Week" Hulu didn't stop with "The Handmaid's Tale." This documentary about the Beatles earned five nominations.
Getty Images
"Black Mirror" The anthology series didn't qualify for the main Emmys until the third season arrived on Netflix. It got three nominations in 2017, including two for the episode "San Junipero" -- which was nominated for Outstanding Television Movie, despite being a part of an anthology.
Netflix
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Netflix, Hulu and Amazon have a combined 126 nominations this year
The streaming services are taking over the Emmys. Four years after "House of Cards" opened up the major categories to online content providers with three wins, Netflix, Hulu and Amazon have hit an all-time high with a combined total of 126 nominations. But how did we get here?