There are plenty of adaptations for Stephen King fans to choose from, but one of the best TV shows based on his work is the impressiveCastle Rock, which serves as the perfect binge-watch.Stephen King’s worksare incredibly influential, especially when it comes to adaptations, andCastle Rockproves why.
The show’s story is unique, yetCastle Rock’s horrifying happenings fit perfectly within the author’s literary universe, combining aspects from many other works. EvenKing himself praisedCastle Rockafter its ending, solidifying that every horror fan should watch the outstanding series.
Castle Rock Is Set Squarely In The Stephen King Multiverse
Any fan of King’s work likely knows that many of his stories feature overlap in locations or characters, and one of those connections is the town of Castle Rock itself.Castle Rock serves as the setting for numerous stories, andit is mentioned by characters in many other short stories and novels.
The seriesCastle Rockis not based on a King story, despite focusing on a regular location. Instead, the show creates its own narrative with some recognizable characters.Castle Rockwas created by Sam Shaw and Dustin Thomason, but King himself served as an executive producer (as does J.J. Abrams), so audiences can be sure the series gets King’s tone right.
The small fictional town is moody and holds its own fair share of secrets, as doCastle Rock’s characters. The series' two seasons are each self-contained, telling their own horrifying stories connecting the town’s past and present. In other words,Castle Rockexcels at crafting the compelling, ominous tension of King’s work.
Season 1 brings audiences into a 27-year-long mystery concerning the identity of a mysterious prisoner in Shawshank State Prison(tying the series to yet another part of King’s literary universe). As violent acts begin to increase, Castle Rock’s inhabitants are forced to look into the past for answers.
While season 1 ofCastle Rockfeatures some great connections to King’s written works, season 2 arguably takes that even further.The season centers on King’s famous unstable nurse, Annie Wilkes, who gets stuck in Castle Rock. The season also includes Jerusalem’s Lot and the Marsten House as locations and contains nods to other King stories.
No Other Stephen King Series Has A Cast As Good As Castle Rock’s
The creative premise ofCastle Rockshould be enough to sell most Stephen King fans on the series, but if not, the cast certainly will. Because the two seasons of the show have distinct narratives, this also means thatthe cast is twice as large and twice as impressive.
Castle Rock’s cast features several veteran King adaptation actors, as well as recognizable horror and mystery actors more generally.Castle Rockseason 1’s cast is led byBill Skarsgård as the mysterious prisoner, The Kid. He is joined by André Holland (Moonlight), Melanie Lynskey (Yellowjackets), Sissy Spacek (Carrie), and Jane Levy (Evil Dead).
Season 2’s cast is equally impressive. Annie Wilkes is played by Lizzy Caplan (Mean Girls), with Tim Robbins (The Shawshank Redemption), Barkhad Abdi (Captain Phillips), Paul Sparks (Boardwalk Empire), and more. Unsurprisingly,Castle Rockfeatures great performancesacross both seasons.
Needless to say,Castle Rockhas a pretty great horror and drama pedigree. This even extends beyond its main cast to its recurring and guest characters. Across its two seasons, audiences can enjoy performances from Scott Glenn (The Leftovers), Terry O’Quinn (Lost), Rory Culkin (Scream 4), Robin Weigert (Deadwood), and many more.
Why Castle Rock Ended After Just Two Seasons
BecauseCastle Rockwas based on the fictional town that connects many of King’s works rather than on one particular work,there were many stories and characters that the series could have gone on to cover. Sadly, Hulu announced in 2020 that the series had been canceled after two seasons.
Castle Rock’s cancellationcame as a surprise to some fans of the series, since both seasons had earned positive reviews from critics and King himself was in favor of its continuation. Ultimately, though, it seems thatHulu was always planning on ending the series after season 2.
The show’s cancellation allowed Hulu to focus on other series and partnerships that could have been more lucrative. Luckily, the anthology nature of the show’s seasons means thatnew audiences don’t have to worry about being disappointed by an unresolved ending, as all the threads are tied up.
Castle Rock Is The Perfect Weekend Binge
Despite being disappointing to fans at the time,Castle Rock’s cancellation now means that the series is the perfect length to binge-watch over the weekend.The horror show’s two seasons are made up of 10 episodes each. The individual episodes each run around 50 minutes, though the shortest is a mere 35 minutes and the longest is one hour.
Across the show’s 20 episodes,the total runtime for the series is around 16.5 hours. While this might be too much to finish in just one day,Castle Rock’s length is perfect to split over a weekend. Especially considering the two seasons have very little overlap, there is also a natural stopping point between the two.
The length of the show is the perfect amount of time to develop its strange characters without losing momentum. Horror fans will not want to look away fromCastle Rock. What’s more, the unsettling mysteries at the heart of the town in both seasons are such that audiences will be too intrigued to turnCastle Rockoff.
