Mike Flanagan, Summer H. Howell, and Samantha Sloyan Reinvent ‘Carrie’

Mike Flanagan is a master of horror and adaptation. He has reinvented the works of Edgar Allan Poe, Shirley Jackson, and, of course, Stephen King in ways that are faithful to their source materials, but with so much humanity and personality that make these stories feel new. In short, he makes stories like Doctor Sleep, Gerald’s Game, The Fall of the House of Usher, and The Haunting of Hill House feel like his own. Now, with Prime Video’s Carrie, Flanagan has teamed up with stars Summer H. Howell and Samantha Sloyan to add his personal touch to one of the greatest horror stories of all time.

It has been a personal dream of mine to speak with Flanagan about his work. I’ve been a great admirer of his films and series since Occulus and Hush, and watching his career skyrocket following his excellent adaptation of Hill House has been so rewarding. The passion and reverence he holds for Stephen King’s works is present in every script of every King story he has adapted, from Gerald’s Game to The Life of Chuck, and now Carrie. With his words and masterful understanding of the source material, Flanagan finds the humanity in each of his characters, loving each of them regardless of their flaws, and working hard to give them meaning, purpose, motivation, and sympathy or empathy that feels so authentically human, we end up seeing a reflection of ourselves (both the positive and negative aspects of ourselves) in them.

For Carrie, that meant finding clever ways to contemporize the story, which King originally set in the ’70s. Flanagan takes the core themes about the struggle to maintain kindness in an increasingly hostile environment and intentionally sets them during the current social media generation. He also cleverly expands on the mythology by introducing new ideas and twists into this adaptation.

It’s a tough line to walk to ensure these ideas are conveyed with pure honesty and pathos, and as such, it became imperative to find the perfect actors to bring the subtle humanity of his characters to life. Luckily, Flanagan was able to find breakout star Howell and reunite with Sloyan to inhabit the iconic roles of Carrie and Margaret White.

Here’s what Flanagan, Sloyan, and Howell had to say about adapting one of King’s most treasured novels:

Stay tuned to The Nerds of Color this week for more from the cast of Carrie.

All episodes of Carrie are now streaming on Prime Video.