Mike Flanagan's Carrie Series Is Here, and It's the Best Version Since 1976

Mike Flanagan has spent years proving he’s the best Stephen King adapter working today, and his new eight-episodeCarrieminiseries on Prime Video might be his strongest argument yet. The series moves King’s 1974 novel into the present day, swapping payphones for smartphones and hallway gossip for group-chat cruelty. Critics are calling it the second-bestCarrieadaptation ever, behind only Brian De Palma’s iconic 1976 film.

Summer H. Howell leads as Carrie White, with Samantha Sloyan as her terrifying mother Margaret. The expanded eight-episode format gives room for deeper backstories for Sue Snell and Christine Hargensen, plus the most explicitly feminist take on the story yet. Not everything lands though. The middle episodes reportedly drag, and one bold departure from the book is already dividing early viewers.

Flanagan has said he hopes to continue the series for two more seasons, which means this could become a full trilogy. With his track record onThe Haunting of Hill HouseandMidnight Mass, that’s a pretty exciting promise.

Are you watching the newCarrie? Tell us what you think in the comments.