Mike Flanagan Is Directing Another Stephen King Movie, But A Perfect Version Already Exists

Darkstar Pictures

We know Mike Flanagan loves himself some Stephen King, but this might be pushing it. The storyteller behind Netflix's "The Haunting" anthology series has already brought several stories by the world's foremost authority on horror to the screen, starting with "Gerald's Game" and continuing on to "Doctor Sleep" and, most recently, "The Life of Chuck." He's even currently in the process of re-imagining "Carrie" as a streaming series, with plans to do the same for "The Dark Tower" sometime after that. Now, Flanagan is gearing up to put his spin on yet another King work, in a format that the story has already been adapted to — and to widely celebrated effect.

According to Deadline, Flanagan has plans to write and direct a movie version of "The Mist" for Warner Bros. Pictures, drawing from King's novella of the same name (which was first published in 1980 as part of the horror anthology book "Dark Forces: New Stories of Suspense and Supernatural Horror"). It would make sense creatively for Flanagan to take on this movie, too (as we'll be getting into momentarily), if it weren't for one small hiccup. And by that, of course, I'm referring to filmmaker Frank Darabont having already famously brought "The Mist" to the big screen in 2007, the result of which was not just an all-time great Stephen King film (remember: we're talking about the same guy who directed "The Shawshank Redemption") but also one with an altered ending so devastatingly brutal that it even blew King away.

Dimension Films

Did someone mention a story about a small town beset by a seemingly supernatural phenomena that wreaks havoc on the locals, with some embracing religious fanaticism while others struggle to maintain a level head and stay alive without compromising their morals? That's more or less what "The Mist" is about, though that description could just as easily be applied to the often brilliant tale of faith, horror, and social mayhem that is Mike Flanagan's Netflix series "Midnight Mass." It's not hard to see, then, why Flanagan would be keen to adapt this particular Stephen King story.

In his defense, Flanagan's track record is pretty spotless when it comes to his previous screen takes on the author's literature. His "Gerald's Game" film adaptation manages to transform one of King's most purely psychological narratives into a riveting cinematic drama (complete with some gnarly climactic imagery to rival that of any other horror title out there), while his "Doctor Sleep" movie was able to do the near-impossible and mostly reconcile the conflicting views of King's original "Shining" novel and Stanley Kubrick's celebrated film interpretation. Even Flanagan's comparatively less appreciated "The Life of Chuck" avoids reducing King's tricky source material to the fantastical movie drama full of greeting card-style platitudes that it easily could've been in favor of something more challenging and thoughtful.

Still, as unwise as it might be to bet against Flanagan when it comes to adapting King at this stage, the Frank Darabont-directed "The Mist" just doesn't leave much (if any) ground for Flanagan to cover better than that movie (even as its plot and themes have only grown more uncomfortably relevant with time). We'll just have to wait and see if he can surprise us.