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Dozens of Stephen King's literary works have received movie and TV adaptations, but modern horror master Mike Flanagan (The Haunting of Hill House) recently highlighted an oft-overlooked adaptation that definitely deserves more attention in Christine. King has produced well over 100 novels, collections, screenplays, and other assorted works, and some have been adapted into all-time great movies, like The Shawshank Redemption or The Green Mile. Others have been complete misfires, like Silver Bullet or Firestarter. Still others have been reappraised recently and are evolving into cult classics.

Mike Flanagan recently spoke about King's most underrated adaptations, and highlighted four very specific choices, some of which make more sense than others. Flanagan's opinion on the matter certainly means something, given that he has produced some incredible King adaptations himself, including Doctor Sleep, Gerald's Game, and the upcoming Life of Chuck. Of the four choices he gave, one really stands out as...

This article contains mention of abuse.

Stephen King is the master of writing disturbing moments that continue to scare years later, including those that terrified me when I read them. Many of his works have become staples of the horror genre between the original source material and the many movie and television series adaptations that came later. Stephen King's books tap into the universal fear of the unknown as he builds an unparalleled sense of suspense and dread. This buildup pays off with supernatural and real-world horrors that range from the demonic entity known as It to abusive parents.

While I do not get easily scared by fictional stories, King has written several moments that remain genuinely terrifying. Many of these moments are impactful not just because of the monsters or the gore involved, but because of how they play on real-life fears and a sense of existential hopelessness. This...

Haunted houses have always been a staple of horror, and TV has delivered some of the creepiest ones you’ll ever see.

From eerie mansions with dark secrets to ghost-filled homes that trap anyone who enters, these haunted houses will make your skin crawl.

Whether they’re filled with malevolent spirits, supernatural forces, or just the unsettling unknown, these TV haunts take terror to a whole new level.

(Steve Dietl/Netflix)

So, grab a flashlight, lock your doors, and get ready to explore the creepiest haunted houses ever seen on TV.

The Three Sisters House — Knots Landing Season 3 Episode 10, “The Three Sisters” (YouTube Screenshot)

In this soap opera’s twist on the haunted house trope, Karen Mackenzie gets more than she bargained for when she becomes obsessed with an old house haunted by three grief-stricken sisters.

What starts as simple curiosity turns into a nightmarish experience as Karen and her...

The eerie town of Jerusalem’s Lot comes back to life in 2024 as Salem’s Lot, Stephen King’s classic vampire tale, gets a fresh adaptation. Directed by Gary Dauberman, known for his work on Annabelle Comes Home and It, this new version of Salem’s Lot weaves together the familiar elements of horror with a stellar cast of seasoned actors. Streaming exclusively on Max, this film plunges into the supernatural horrors hidden in the small town as a writer returns home, only to find something sinister lurking beneath the surface.

Here’s a rundown of the cast and the characters they bring to life in this chilling adaptation:

Salem’s Lot Main Cast & Characters Lewis Pullman as Ben Mears

At the heart of the story is Ben Mears, portrayed by Lewis Pullman. Ben, a writer, returns to Jerusalem’s Lot, hoping to gather inspiration for his next novel. Instead, he discovers his...

Three years before the most recent Salem's Lot adaptation arrived, horror master Mike Flanagan created Midnight Mass, a spiritual successor to Salem's Lot that earned an impressive 87% on Rotten Tomatoes. Although Midnight Mass is an original story by Flanagan, who previously adapted The Haunting of Hill House and The Haunting of Bly Manor, the Netflix show has a lot in common with Stephen King's Salem's Lot. In essence, Midnight Mass is the greatest Salem's Lot-like remake in decades, especially since the latest disappointing Salem's Lot movie falls short of greatness.

Originally a 1975 horror novel by King, Salem's Lot centers on writer Ben Mears, who returns to his hometown of Jerusalem's Lot, Maine. Unfortunately for Ben, a lot has changed over the years. Namely, the residents of Jerusalem's Lot are becoming vampires. The town's eeriest house was purchased by Austrian immigrant Kurt Barlow, who winds up being an ancient...

The following contains discussions of child abuse, sexual assault and animal cruelty that some readers might find disturbing.

The King of Horror doesn't sugarcoat his stories. Many of Stephen King's books include disturbing scenes. While some are well-justified for the purpose they serve in character building, others can feel random.

Kings books, often being very intense, include things from child orgies to animal cruelty. Film and television tend to have a different standard in terms of censorship than books, and what might be acceptable in a book may not be fit to view on screen.

Salem's Lot Has Abusive Parent Scenes That Might Upset Readers

Certain scenes are better left off of the big screen. This particular scene isn't in any of the Salem's Lot adaptations. The depiction of abusive parents can be very upsetting, and it's truly disturbing when such scenes involve an infant. While Salem's Lot is a book about vampires,...

This article contains mention of suicide.

Warning: This article contains spoilers from Salem's Lot and The Dark Tower series.

The 2024 adaptation of Salem's Lot makes a significant change that ruins its most compelling connection to Mike Flanagan's The Dark Tower series. When it was published in 1975, Stephen King's novel about vampires in the town of Jerusalem's Lot was meant to be a standalone story. While Salem's Lot still largely works as its own story, it is also connected to King's The Dark Tower series, which sees many familiar characters, locations, and references from King's works appearing across the multiverse. Indeed, Salem's Lot 2024 has plenty of Stephen King Easter eggs sprinkled throughout.

The Dark Tower was adapted into a 2017 movie starring Idris Elba and Matthew McConaughey as Roland Deschain and the Man in Black, the latter of whom is also known as Randall Flagg, the main antagonist in King's novel The Stand.

The new film version of Stephen King’s 1975 novel “Salem’s Lot” arrived on streaming platforms this year. While staying true to the basic premise of a vampire invading a small Maine town, the movie diverges quite a bit from King’s original story.

At its core, both the novel and movie tell the story of Ben Mears returning to his hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot and discovering the town is falling prey to the vampire Kurt Barlow. Mears joins a small group trying to save the townspeople from Barlow’s growing army of the undead. But the film introduces several changes to characters, plot points, and themes.

Perhaps the most notable difference is the treatment of Father Callahan. In the book, Callahan survives an encounter with Barlow but is forever changed, leading to a complex character arc. The movie gives Callahan a quicker ending, removing his deeper story of lost faith.

The 2024 remake of Stephen Kings iconic vampire story Salems Lot made some major changes to Stephen King's book, and one of the most impactful alterations surrounded the movies handling of the character of Father Callahan. The new remake that went straight to streaming after years of delays acts as a streamlined version of the original source material; the 1979 adaptation was a three-hour-long miniseries, for comparison. Given the shorter overall runtime, characters arcs were either shortened or cut completely, and Father Callahan was one of the primary examples.

In Salems Lot 2024, Father Callahan (John Benjamin Hickey) is shown to be an alcoholic, just as his counterpart in King's original novel is. Father Callahan features in one of the key interactions in the narrative: a one-on-one face-off with Type One vampire Kurt Barlow. He fails to subdue the vampire despite his status as a holy man, and is killed outright by...

The following reveals major spoilers for Salem's Lot, now streaming on Max.

Stephen King's novel 'Salem's Lot not only ranks among the very best of the author's work, but among the very best vampire novels of the 20th Century. His homage to Bram Stoker's Dracula finds a vampire settling in a small Maine town, transforming its residents into creatures of the night and setting up a personal fiefdom in what was then the modern world. It proved every bit as terrifying as its predecessor Carrie, and helped pave the way for the likes of Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire.

It's curious, then, that for such a memorable vampire story its vampire would be so forgettable. Though terrifying as a threat, Kurt Barlow struggles to make an impression as a personality, coming across as quite generic for much of the novel's length. The various adaptations of...

Warning: The following contains major spoilers for Salem’s Lot (2024).

In the world of horror, it doesn’t get much scarier than vampires. There’s just something so creepy about a malevolent night creature lurking outside your window in the dead of night, persuading you to let him come in. One of the most unnerving examples of this horrific trope occurs in Tobe Hooper’s Salem’s Lot.

Adapted from Stephen King’s sophomore novel, the 1979 TV miniseries explores an idyllic Maine town as it falls into the clutches of a powerful vampire. One of the first to transition into a bloodsucking fiend, young Ralphie Glick (Ronnie Scribner) hovers outside his brother’s moonlit bedroom window with glowing and strangely persuasive eyes. It’s an iconic image that still has the power to petrify four decades later.

Gary Dauberman’s new adaptation remakes Hooper’s film with nods to King’s original text.

The following reveals spoilers for Salem's Lot, now screening on Max.

Stephen King's 'Salem's Lot is as much social commentary as it is a vampire story, with its titular village representing a slice-of-American-life in bad ways as well as good. Ancient bloodsucker Kurt Barlow arrives to set up his own private barony in rural Maine, using the flawed but oh-so-human residents as his undead minions. Their petty needs and selfish squabbles make the perfect breeding ground for what he has in mind. While a few realize what's going on and fight back, most slip into supernatural evil almost effortlessly, as little sins give way to monstrous ones.

Chief among them is Larry Crockett, 'Salem's Lot's big real-estate agent and self-styled wheeler dealer. He facilitates Barlow's entry into the town by engaging in the kind of petty corruption he's practiced all his life, and never thinks...

Legendary author Stephen King’s vampire novel Salem’s Lot (buy a copy of the novel Here) has received three direct adaptations over the decades. The first was the 1979 mini-series directed by Tobe Hooper, which had a running time of 183 minutes. A mini-series directed by Mikael Salomon followed in 2004, and that one had a 181 minute running time. So when it was announced that Gary Dauberman was going to write and direct an adaptation that would try to fit the story into a single feature, fans wondered how Dauberman would accomplish that… and how long this single feature would be. Dauberman’s Salem’s Lot was finally released through the Max streaming service last week (you can read our review Here), and the filmmaker has said he whittled the story down to a 113 minute film by focusing on the core group of characters and dropping subplots with side characters. Still, turning Salem’s Lot...

Salem's Lot is widely regarded as one of Stephen King's best - and perhaps more importantly, most terrifying - novels, which is why the new adaptation currently streaming on Max simply didn't cut it for the majority of fans and critics.

The movie follows the basic premise, but does not flesh out the main characters enough and is seriously lacking in scares and gore (pretty much every kill takes place off-screen) despite the R rating. It also leaves out some major story elements, including Ben Mears' childhood connection to the Marsten House.

In the book, this haunted house is almost a character in its own right, and is the source of evil in the town of Jerusalem's Lot that attracts Kurt Barlow and Richard Straker in the first place. Ben is left traumatized after sneaking into the house as a child, and returns to "The Lot" to confront his...

With the long-awaited adaptation of 'Salem's Lot finally hitting Max, it's gotten audiences wondering how the story of the book and the town itself, Jerusalem's Lot, ties into other Stephen King stories. The story of 'Salem's Lot, which has been adapted for TV and now a movie, follows protagonist Ben Mears, a writer who returns to his once-childhood home of the oddly-named Jerusalem's Lot to fight some personal demons and get inspiration for his current book. When he meets Susan Norton and there's an instant spark, things seem to look up, until they and a few of the townsfolk find themselves confronting an ancient evil that is slowly taking over the town.

'Salem's Lot is the first novel where Stephen King tackled vampires, but it certainly wouldn't be his last. While the 1975 novel was originally meant to be King's answer to Dracula, over time, the in-universe lore...

Rebooting classic horror movies has almost always invited extremely divisive reception, ranging from being appreciated like the Evil Dead reboots to getting hated on like the Halloween sequels. As a seminal piece of horror media, Salem’s Lot‘s TV series adaptation is still held in great regard, and as the recently released cinematic adaptation of the novel is streaming on Max, a comparative discussion involving these two ventures is inevitable. While the movie doesn’t hold a candle to the series, for better or worse, it follows the novel more closely. Both the adaptations take certain liberties when it comes to a number of crucial moments in the narrative, which either works or doesn’t, depending on the perspective of the viewers.

Spoilers Ahead

Ben’s Trauma and Marsten House’s Significance

Writer Ben Mears and his connection with Marsten House were pivotal in both the original novel and TV series adaptation,...

The new movie version of Stephen King’s classic vampire novel “Salem’s Lot” remains largely faithful to the original story, but leaves out one major plot element from the book.

Released in 2024 by Max, the “Salem’s Lot” movie follows Ben Mears and Mark Petrie as they battle the vampire Kurt Barlow and his followers who have invaded the town of Jerusalem’s Lot, Maine. In the film, Ben and Mark successfully defeat Barlow and escape the vampire-infested town alive.

However, King’s 1975 novel includes an epilogue that reveals more of Ben and Mark’s story. One year after the initial vampire outbreak, the pair return to Salem’s Lot with a bold plan. They start a large brush fire in the surrounding woods, intending to draw the remaining vampires out into the sunlight where they can be destroyed.

This daring epilogue was omitted from the new movie adaptation. Without it,...

The new movie version of Stephen King’s classic vampire novel “Salem’s Lot” remains largely faithful to the original story, but leaves out one major plot element from the book.

Released in 2024 by Max, the “Salem’s Lot” movie follows Ben Mears and Mark Petrie as they battle the vampire Kurt Barlow and his followers who have invaded the town of Jerusalem’s Lot, Maine. In the film, Ben and Mark successfully defeat Barlow and escape the vampire-infested town alive.

However, King’s 1975 novel includes an epilogue that reveals more of Ben and Mark’s story. One year after the initial vampire outbreak, the pair return to Salem’s Lot with a bold plan. They start a large brush fire in the surrounding woods, intending to draw the remaining vampires out into the sunlight where they can be destroyed.

This daring epilogue was omitted from the new movie adaptation. Without it,...

Warning! This article contains major Spoilers for Salem's Lot (2024)!Maxs new movie adaptation of Salems Lot is largely faithful to Stephen Kings 1975 book of the same name, but happens to leave out the most shocking reveals from the novels epilogue. Following the 1979 miniseries, 1987 film sequel, and 2004 miniseries, the cast of the 2024 Salems Lot movie reintroduces the classic Stephen King vampire story and characters on-screen to a new generation. However, with only a two-hour movie instead of a miniseries to tackle the harrowing tale of the titular town, it was inevitable that some key details would be cut or changed from the original book.

The 2024 Salems Lot movie ends with Mark Petrie and Ben Mears killing Kurt Barlow, the lead vampire who turned the majority of Jerusalems Lot into creatures of the night. After the deaths of Susan, Father Callahan, Marks parents, and Matt Burke, Ben and Mark are forced to...

Salem's Lot (2024) writer-director Gary Dauberman reveals the original runtime for his version of the Stephen King novel adaptation. The latest remake takes a retro approach to Salem's Lot, staying faithful to King's novel. The official runtime released for Max is only one hour and 55 minutes, but according to the director, he initially had a way longer runtime.

Dauberman told Den of Geek that he had to "weed out" a lot of "great stuff" due to audiences' limited attention span. In order to focus on the "core group of heroes," he had no choice but to cut many "great side stories and B-stories." The director revealed that the original runtime for his Salem's Lot remake was "about three hours", with the first draft of the script being "180-odd pages." He initially included Ben sneaking into the Marsten House and encountering Hubert's ghost, but later took it out of the film to...

Max has just launched 'Salem's Lot, an all-new adaptation of the original Stephen King story from 1975. Making the new vampire film was not without its challenges, particularly when it came to filming with real morgue equipment.

In an interview with Horror Geek Life, some of the stars of the new 'Salem's Lot addressed the authenticity of the props used for the morgue scene. Alfre Woodard (Dr. Cody) shared that she was creeped out by filming with genuine equipment which had previously been used by a real morgue. She also commented on how it was tough filming her vampire fight scene with such a strong co-star on a hard, wet floor.

Related Glen Powell's Reboot of Stephen King's The Running Man Sets Release Date

Paramount announces the official release date for Edgar Wright and Glen Powell's The Running Man remake.

"It was fun sometimes. It was painful physically sometimes,...

Warning: spoilers for 2024s Salems Lot.

Salems Lot takes viewers to the title town as it becomes the target of a thirsty vampire, who arrives in town with his mysterious companion, Richard Straker (Pilou Asbk). In 1975, Stephen King introduced readers to his style of vampires in Salems Lot, his second published novel. Salems Lot is one of Kings most successful and beloved works, and its popularity has led it to be adapted into a two-part miniseries in 1979 (directed by Tobe Hooper) and a TV miniseries in 2004. Now, after many obstacles and delays, Salems Lot has gotten its first feature film adaptation.

Directed by Gary Dauberman, Salems Lot takes the audience back to the 1970s to meet writer Ben Mears (Lewis Pullman), who returns to his hometown of Salems Lot looking for inspiration for his next book. His arrival coincides with the disappearance of a young boy, but subsequent mysterious events...

Warning! This article contains major Spoilers for Salem's Lot (2024)!The 2024 adaptation of Salems Lot leaves out some crucial details about Ben Mears story from Stephen Kings original book, as well as some revelations about his life from the authors related novellas. The cast of Salems Lot (2024) is led by Lewis Pullman as Ben Mears, an author who returns to his childhood home to research the sinister Marsten House and discover more about the tragedies from his youth. However, Ben arrives at Jerusalems Lot at the same time that a mysterious new resident has moved into the Marsten House, which culminates in the titular town being overrun by vampires.

Maxs Salems Lot movie ends with Ben Mears and Mark Petrie killing the lead vampire Kurt Barlow, hoping to end the chaos in town. Unfortunately, killing Barlow proves ineffective in destroying the other creatures of the night, with the final moments of...

Warning: major spoilers for 2024s Salems Lot.

Salems Lot sees the title town being haunted by the presence of a thirsty vampire named Barlow (Alexander Ward), and the result is many deaths, with most victims returning as vampires. In 1975, Stephen Kings second published novel, Salems Lot, arrived to introduce readers to Kings style of vampires. Salems Lot was a success with critics and readers, and is now one of Kings most popular and beloved works, so much so that it has gotten different adaptations. After two adaptations into TV miniseries in 1979 and 2004, Salems Lot got its first feature film adaptation in 2024.

Directed by Gary Dauberman, Salems Lot follows writer Ben Mears (Lewis Pullman), who returns to his hometown of Salems Lot looking for inspiration for his next book. Mears arrival coincides with the disappearance of a young boy, but subsequent mysterious and tragic events lead Mears and other town residents...

A new film adaptation of Stephen King’s famous vampire novel “Salem’s Lot” debuted on Max streaming service this month. Directed by Gary Dauberman, the movie brings the classic story to life while remaining true to King’s original vision.

The film centers around writer Ben Mears, played by Lewis Pullman, who returns to his childhood hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot, Maine. Once there, strange things start happening to the town’s residents. People go missing or act strangely. Mears works to investigate and save the town from this mysterious threat.

That threat comes from the ancient vampire Kurt Barlow, portrayed in a terrifying way by Alexander Ward. Barlow differs from other vampires in both his appearance and abilities. With pale skin, yellow eyes, and sharp fangs, he resembles the iconic vampire Count Orlok. The film also draws from King’s “Dark Tower” books, identifying Barlow as a rare and powerful “Type One” vampire.

Stephen King's iconic 1975 foray into vampire lore received a makeover with 2024's 'Salem's Lot, as did the narrative's main antagonist, the purely evil vampire Kurt Barlow. The original novel is widely considered to be one of King's scariest stories, and it has acted as a foundational building block for the rest of his interconnected literary universe. Barlow is played by Alexander Ward in 'Salem's Lot, and his incarnation sticks closely to the version seen in Tobe Hooper's 1979 miniseries.

The ending of 'Salem's Lot in 2024 is vastly different from the 1979 version, and more different still than King's original novel. Both versions of 'Salem's Lot make changes from the book, but none is more significant than their changes to the appearance of Kurt Barlow. Most of the vampires in 'Salem's Lot have the typical vampire characteristics and tropes, including long fangs, glowing eyes, flight, and needing to be invited inside.

The new HBO Max original supernatural horror film Salem’s Lot brings Stephen King’s popular novel to the movie screen for the first time, although there have been TV adaptations before. The plot is centered around a writer by the name of Ben Mears, who returns to his hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot, many years after a tragic incident had taken him away from the place. But this homecoming is far from ideal, as Ben quickly realizes that the town is being haunted by a beastly vampire, which he must defeat to stop its killing spree. Although Salem’s Lot feels a bit too rushed and, therefore, incomplete at times, it still makes for a fairly entertaining watch, especially for those who are unacquainted with the original work and its previous adaptations.

Spoiler Alert

What is the film about?

Salem’s Lot begins inside an antique store in the small American town of Jerusalem’s Lot,...

The newest adaptation of Stephen King's 'Salem's Lot has dropped on Max, and it's chock-full of Easter eggs and nods, both to the King of Horror and to the horror genre in general. The long-gestating adaptation was a victim of the Covid-19 pandemic and then the writer's strike, taking years to get to the screen. It adapts one of Stephen King's most beloved novels, and his first foray into the vampire genre, telling his own version of the Dracula story. The 2024 'Salem's Lot movie changes the book in significant ways but remains faithful to the spirit of the story.

Written and directed by Gary Dauberman, the new movie assembles a strong cast of character actors: Lewis Pullman (Ben Mears), Makenzie Leigh (Susan Norton), Jordan Preston Carter (Mark Petrie), Alfre Woodard (Dr. Cody), Bill Camp (Matt Burke), John Benjamin Hickey (Father Callahan), Nicholas Crovetti (Danny Glick), Spencer Treat Clark...

Includes Spoilers for Salem's Lot (2024)The vampire movie Salem's Lot sees Ralph Glick as the first of the townsfolk to go missing, and there's a particular reason why. The 2024 movie is an adaptation of one of Stephen King's best books, the 1975 classic of the same name. It's a beloved horror story about an author, Ben Mears, returning to his old hometown of Jerusalem's Lot. This coincides with the arrival of a vampire, Kurt Barlow, and the vampire's assistant, Richard Straker, who purchase the old Marsten House and set up an antique shop in town, beginning their conquest.

The Salem's Lot cast is composed of an ensemble of various townsfolk, many of whom begin to get killed off or transformed into vampires as the film progresses. This includes protagonists like Susan (Mackenzie Leigh) and Matthew Burke (Bill Camp). But the first character to be killed, Ralphie Glick, is kidnapped first,...

The long-awaited movie adaptation of Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot from director Gary Dauberman (Annabelle Comes Home) is now available to stream on Max, unleashing a stylish vampire outbreak without much in the way of story. It turns out that there was a much longer cut of the film that Dauberman ultimately trimmed down for a leaner runtime.

The filmmaker revealed in a recent interview with Den of Geek, “My first cut was about three hours. There’s a lot left out. My first draft of the script is 180-odd pages or something because you’re trying to include everything. And a lot of it has to do with a lot of the secondary characters and stuff that I spoke about. So it was sad to see that stuff go, but it’s like a necessary evil.”

One of the key scenes trimmed? Ben Mears’ chilling encounter with Depression-era hitman...

Stephen King's Salem's Lot centers on a fictional Maine town that seems to attract evil, but the story's primary setting has a dark history that dates back to the 1700s. Before Max released a live-action adaptation of the horror tale, the story inspired two miniseries based on the 1975 novel. Many of Salem's Lot's characters remain the same within the movie and miniseries, in addition to Jerusalem's Lot being the setting of the vampire conflict. Town history may have been one of the changes in the Salem's Lot 2024 remake, but the book provides the town with an intriguing backstory.

"Salem's Lot" is another name for Jerusalem's Lot, with the residents commonly using the shortened version or simply referring to it as "the Lot." The Max remake even makes a clever nod to the name preference by showing dirt and grime covering up a part of the town's welcome sign so...

For horror fans, writer Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot and its 1979 TV series adaptation will always have a special place as one of the most influential pieces of modern-day vampire fiction, so naturally, a brand new cinematic entry based on the story seemed like the best way to kick off Spooktober this year. To my utter disappointment, not only did the cinematic adaptation turn out to be extremely generic, rushed, and all over the place, but it was extremely tough to keep track of events, as though the movie had been hacked to pieces while getting edited. The characters don’t gel with the audience, the dialogue feels less natural and more expository in nature, and even with contemporary CGI advancements, the horror vibe is nowhere near as good as the first TV series. While this adaptation of Salem’s Lot remains faithful to its source material in most cases, sometimes...

Plot: Author Ben Mears returns to his childhood home of Jerusalem’s Lot in search of inspiration for his next book only to discover his hometown is being preyed upon by a bloodthirsty vampire.

Review: I need to get it right out of the way that I’m not the biggest fan of the original 1979 Tobe Hooper version of Salem’s Lot. The story is interesting but I find it to be a 3-hour slog with about 15 minutes of cool moments. So I was ecstatic to see it finally get the remake treatment. Or rather, I was glad to see the book adapted another time, to try and get it right (they tried again in 2004 with another so-so miniseries). This would have been the first big-screen adaptation of the novel, but it was delayed for years, with Warner Bros eventually cancelling its theatrical release in favour of streaming release on Max.

After a series of lengthy delays, Warner Bros. and New Line's remake (or re-adaptation) of Stephen King's Salem's Lot is now streaming on Max, and a first look at this latest take on the novel's head vampire, Kurt Barlow, has leaked online.

In the book, Barlow was described as a fairly ordinary-looking middle-aged man, but the character was reimagined as a bald, pale Nosferatu-inspired monster for Tobe Hooper's '70s miniseries. Then, in the 2004 adaptation, the late Rutger Hauer played an interpretation of the evil vampire that was a lot more faithful to the source material.

As you can see from the image below, this new Barlow takes at least some inspiration from the creature we met in the original miniseries - though this version is even more monstrous-looking.

Barlow is utilized in much the same way as he is in Hooper's film, but does have...

This article contains mention of suicide.

Warning: This article contains spoilers from Salem's Lot.

Despite dying long before Salem's Lot begins, Hubert "Hubie" Marsten is integral to Stephen King's vampire story. Hubie lived in the Marsten House, which is where the Salem's Lot characters Kurt Barlow and Richard Straker take up residence after arriving in the town of Jerusalem's Lot. As an ancient vampire and his human familiar, Barlow and Straker should be the most evil individuals to have stepped foot in the Marsten House, but it already has a dark history due to Hubie's previous presence and the horrific deeds he committed there.

The Marsten House's origins are further developed in the source material by including important revelations about Hubie and his past. This backstory is almost entirely cut from the 2024 movie adaptation and is among the biggest changes from the Salem's Lot book. The movie only has...

At the heart of every cinematic re-adaptation is a question: Why? Gary Dauberman's Salem's Lot answers with a shrug, defined by disappointingly shallow storytelling and downgraded special effects. Tobe Hooper's 1979 miniseries isn't bulletproof, but neither is it as generic as Dauberman's take on Stephen King's northeastern vampire tale. It's not offensively terrible nor memorably inept, merely rudimentary in its vampiric lore and underwhelming compared to a billion other Count Dracula remixes we’ve endured over the decades. Dauberman's vanilla soft-serve of a King adaptation is begging for added flavors, hardly worth the wait as it crusted over in release-date purgatory.

Lewis Pullman plays a milquetoast Ben Mears, an author who returns to his Maine hometown of Salem’s Lot in search of closure. At the same time, conspicuous furniture seller Richard Straker (Pilou Asbæk) smuggles his vampire master — Kurt Barlow (Alexander Ward) — into a cursed manor that looms over Salem's Lot.

Includes Spoilers for Salem's Lot (2024)The latest Stephen King adaptation is Salem's Lot on Max, and the ending offers a lot of material to break down. Published in 1975, Salem's Lot is one of Stephen King's most beloved books, and the 2024 film is just the latest interpretation of the iconic vampire horror novel. Gary Dauberman, a writer on the It films, took over as the director for the new movie. Lewis Pullman leads the Salem's Lot cast, and he's joined by Makenzie Leigh, Pilou Asbk, Alfre Woodard, and more, putting together a small-town ensemble that's vital for the narrative.

Pullman plays Ben Mears, a man who returns to Jerusalem's Lot, the town of his childhood, to find it simultaneously being invaded by a vampire named Kurt Barlow. Ben and other townsfolk notice the chain of mysterious deaths happening in town, realizing that vampires are about. Throughout the film, many main characters' allies,...

Maxs 2024 adaptation of Salems Lot includes a terrifying slew of new vampires for the titular town to contend with, including the creatures horrifying leader, Kurt Barlow. The new Stephen King movie adaptation is based on his 1975 vampire novel of the same name, which introduced a terrifying villain who would later appear in some of the authors other stories. The 2024 Salems Lot movie is now the third time that an actor has taken on the role of Kurt Barlow on-screen, with the previous two iterations appearing in the 1979 and 2004 miniseries adaptations.

Similar to horror movies like Jaws, Beetlejuice, or even Halloween, Salems Lot follows the tactic of reserving its main villain for opportune moments in the films more adrenaline-pumping story. Kurt Barlow has very little screen time in the latest adaptation, with the Max Original movie instead making the most of the terrifying moments when he does appear with the characters...

This article contains mention of suicide.

Warning: This article contains spoilers from Salem's Lot (2024).The Marsten House is an important location in Salem's Lot that has a dark past. For many years, it has loomed over the town of Jerusalem's Lot and been avoided as it is believed to be haunted and is a symbol of evil and corruption. It is purchased by the mysterious Richard Straker, who uses the house for Salem's Lot's formidable vampire, Kurt Barlow. Barlow seeks to transform all the town's denizens into vampires, which begins with his first victim being brought to the Marsten House.

The shadowy individual the Marsten House is named after, Hubert "Hubie" Marsten, never appears and is only briefly mentioned in the 2024 adaptation of Salem's Lot. When Barlow's coffin is delivered to the Marsten House, the men hired to do so by Straker debate whether the stories of Hubie worshiping Satan are true,...

Warning: Spoilers ahead for Max's Salem's Lot!After being in development for years, Salem's Lot has arrived on Max, but it's not without significant changes to Stephen King's 1975 horror novel. The movie by Gary Dauberman isn't the first adaptation of the Stephen King book; it's been turned into two miniseries, a radio drama, and an element in several other King-inspired spinoffs. Each version of Salem's Lot has its pros and cons, taking different approaches to King's story, but the foundation remains the same.

A man named Ben Mears returns to Jerusalem's Lot, Maine, a town with a history of dark secrets that becomes the site of more terror after the arrival of a vampire named Kurt Barlow and his human familiar, Richard Straker. Salem's Lot is one of Stephen King's best books and still holds up nearly 50 years later. With a runtime of less than two hours, the Max...

Imagine going back to your hometown only to realize a bloodthirsty vampire has been preying on the locals. Well, that’s the world the producing team from the hit franchises “It” and “The Conjuring” is going to transport you to in the Max original film, “Salem’s Lot” based on Stephen King’s 1975 bestselling novel of the same name. Gary Dauberman (“Annabelle Comes Home”), writes, directs, and executive produces the film for Max after a few years of delays. Watch “Salem’s Lot” on Thursday, Oct. 3 exclusively with a Subscription to Max.

How to Watch ‘Salem’s Lot’ Movie When: Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024 TV: Max Stream: Watch with a Subscription to Max. Sign Up $9.99+ / month max.com About ‘Salem’s Lot’ Movie

Max’s 2024 adaptation of “Salem’s Lot” brings Stephen King’s chilling vampire tale straight to the small screen with a fresh take. Directed by Gary Dauberman, this version promises to delve deeper into...

Long before “True Blood” or “Twilight” brought vampires to small-town America, horror writer Stephen King imagined the creatures invading his backyard in rural Maine. Until then, bloodsucking bat-men were something only Europeans had to worry about, as Dracula and his castle-dwelling kin preyed on hapless villagers half a world away. Then came “’Salem’s Lot,” King’s second novel, in which the man who’d made witches a modern-day concern with “Carrie” asked American readers: What if an outbreak of vampirism struck your community?

A tepid new feature version returns to that question a half-century later, offering flashes of style and a more satisfying finale in an otherwise weak take on its dated source material. Whereas King seemed to be kicking another stuffy old genre into the present, writer-director Gary Dauberman’s retro-minded adaptation goes in the opposite direction, embracing the pageboy haircuts, polyester-blend duds and don’t-trust-anyone paranoia of that era.

Stephen King loves a good vampire tale almost as much as the entertainment industry loves a good adaptation of his work, and Salem's Lot is here to offer both. Premiering October on Max, the movie follows author Ben Mears (played by Top Gun: Maverick's Lewis Pullman), who returns to his hometown in the hopes of finishing his novel with inspiration from the haunted Marsten House. What he finds instead is a vampiric creature who begins turning Jerusalem's Lot into a waking nightmare.

Written and directed by Gary Dauberman, Salem's Lot features an ensemble cast of top-tier talent in addition to Pullman. Cast members include Spencer Treat Clark, Pilou Asbk, William Sadler, Makenzie Leigh, and Alexander Ward as the the one and only Kurt Barlow. There have already been two miniseries that adapted Salem's Lot, in 1979 and 2004 respectively, but fans are eager to see how the most recent version stacks up.

The latest Salem's Lot adaptation, written and directed by Gary Dauberman, tackles Stephen King's sophomore novel as a movie rather than a television miniseries but that's not the only major change setting it apart. Starring Lewis Pullman as Ben Mears, the Max film follows the author's homecoming and sees his hopes to write about a haunted house turn into an escape from a vampire. Such a trajectory is familiar, but there is an interesting difference in how the new remake incorporates the character of Dr. Cody.

The 2004 miniseries featured The Matrix Reloaded's Robert Mammone in the role of the doctor, who is a male in King's book, but the 2024 Salem's Lot stars Alfre Woodard and revises the role to reflect her gender. The film also stars Spencer Treat Clark, Pilou Asbk, William Sadler, Makenzie Leigh, and Alexander Ward as the infamous Kurt Barlow. Given that fans have waited...

Warning: The following contains minor spoilers for various adaptations of Salem’s Lot.

In addition to character-driven novels and disturbing horror, Stephen King is known for writing folksy stories set in the rural Northeast. His bestselling It takes place in Derry, a close approximation to Bangor, Maine, and he’s been returning to Castle Rock, a town first introduced in his 1979 novel The Dead Zone, through forty years of bestselling horror.

But before both of these locations became literary institutions, there was Jerusalem’s Lot, a quaint Maine village with many dark secrets. For every kind and generous resident, there’s another sleeping with the phone repairman, peddling gossip over the register, or making lucrative real estate deals under the table. In his second novel, Salem’s Lot, King delights in uncovering the scandalous sins of this tiny burg before a powerful vampire enters the scene. Kurt Barlow and his familiar Richard Straker...

Isolated small-town horrors tend to offer some of the most captivating, thrilling narratives—a unique atmospheric charm, vivid characters and their belief system, the community spirit, and most importantly, the sensation created by a distinctively cloistered setting—a number of factors help in conjuring a bewitching spooky effect. Legendary horror novelist Stephen King has found tremendous success in this subgenre, and his extensive exploration in this route began with his second novel, Salem’s Lot, published in 1975, which is arguably at the top among his best works. Inspired by classics like Dracula and Nosferatu, King brought modern-day vampire fiction to life and set the story in an idyllic small town that is full of secrets of its own—of both virtues and vices. The result was a revival of vampire fiction in mainstream pop culture, and Salem’s Lot attained popularity of such magnitude that it endured the ravages of time by...

1974 was a big year for horror. In April, a young writer named Stephen King published his first novel, Carrie, kicking off five decades of bestselling fiction. In October, Tobe Hooper released The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, a chaotic nightmare centering a cannibalistic family in a bone-strewn home.

Both creators would go on to become titans of the genre, but in 1979, they were hungry creators, still cementing their legacy. Five years after releasing their breakthrough masterworks, these visionaries would combine forces to create a seminal text in the vampire sub genre.

Based on King’s second novel, Salem’s Lot is Hooper’s fourth full-length directorial outing, a TV miniseries filled with iconic imagery still influencing the genre to this day. Paul Monash’s screenplay is a relatively straightforward adaptation of King’s sprawling story with a few deviations along the way, but it’s in these changes that each creator’s intentions shine through.

Warner Bros. has been keeping writer/director Gary Dauberman‘s adaptation of the Stephen King novel Salem’s Lot (buy a copy of the novel Here) on the shelf for a long time – but they won’t be keeping it there for much longer. The movie, which was supposed to be given a theatrical release back in September of 2022, is now set to be released through the Max streaming service on October 3rd. During interviews with SFX magazine, Dauberman confessed that making this adaptation was more challenging than he expected it to be – and producer Michael Clear confirmed that there are elements that are purposely reminiscent of the Tobe Hooper-directed mini-series adaptation of King’s novel.

This is the third adaptation of Salem’s Lot. The previous two were both mini-series, which aired in 1979 and 2004. This new take on the concept is said to be set in 1975, the same year King’s novel was first published.

It's no secret that Stephen King has earned and carried the title of "Master of Horror" with precious few that could challenge him. From his timeless novels like The Shining and Carrie to movie adaptations that enhance the novel's terror, like It: Chapters 1 & 2 and Pet Sematary, there's almost nothing that Stephen King can't make terrifying in any medium. One of his most beloved vampire tales, Salem's Lot, has already been adapted into a miniseries by The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Poltergeist director Tobe Hooper. However, like many other iconic King tales, one adaptation wasn't enough, and now, the 1979 series is being reborn as a new film under writer and director Gary Dauberman.

Many may not recognize Dauberman's name at a glance, but fans of the DC TV series Swamp Thing may know that he was also the writer of the ill-fated series. Though Swamp Thing only lasted for one season,...

Stephen King has earned his moniker as the master of horror over five decades, penning some of the most frightening horror stories anyone anywhere has ever read. When you're capable of churning out some of the most terrifying story premises on the planet, it's only a matter of time until Hollywood comes calling, and at this point in his illustrious career, so many of his ideas have hit the big and small screen that Stephen King is more or less a genre onto himself.

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Of course, there's a catch-22 when it comes to this level of success like that. Although dozens of adaptations of Stephen King's stories have been produced over the years, not all of them in fact,...