Summary
WhileStephen Kinghas been honest in the past about the movie adaptations that didn’t excite him, he seems to bepleased with the versions of his stories that have come out so far in 2025.The author likesThe Institute, the MGM+ series based on his 2019 book about Luke Ellis, who is brought by his abductors to a terrifying place for children who have telekinetic powers. Hecomplimented Mike Flanagan’sThe Life of Chuckand also recentlyposted about the upcomingThe Long Walkadaptationon his Threads account.
But, although King seems happy with the filmmakers and showrunners adapting his work right now, that hasn’t always been the case. In one interview, the author, known for supernatural horror stories likeCarrieandThe Dead Zone, compared a movie adaptation to “cafeteria mashed potatoes” and explained the reasons why.
Stephen King Once Shared His True Feelings About The 1984 Movie Adaptation Of His Novel Firestarter
In a 1986 interview withAmerican Film,Stephen King shared how much he disliked the movie adaptation of his 1980 novelFirestarter. He said:
“Firestarteris one of the worst of the bunch, even though in terms of story it’s very close to the original. But it’s flavorless; it’s like cafeteria mashed potatoes.”
Although King has talked about several movies that he thinks fall short, includingQuentin Tarantino’s popular action filmKill Bill, he was particularly harsh aboutFirestarter. He continued that the film has some perplexing moments and said:
“There are things that happen in terms of special effects in that movie that make no sense to me whatsoever.Why this kid’s hair blows every time she starts fires is totally beyond my understanding. I never got a satisfactory answer when I saw the rough cut. By that time, Dino [De Laurentis] was regularly asking me for input. Sometimes he’d take it. In that case…”
David Keith starred in the film as Andy McGee, the father of young Charlie McGee (Drew Barrymore), who has pyrokinesis.While King praised the movie’s “great actors,” he was critical of Keith and said he didn’t think he “was very good.” Other characters include Captain James Hollister (Martin Sheen), Charlie’s mother, Vicky Tomlinson McGee (Heather Locklear), and Dr. Joseph Wanless (Freddie Jones).
Firestarterdidn’t fare any better with audiences or critics.The movie has a 40% Rotten Tomatoes rating and only 52% on the Popcornmeter. However, while it’s notone of King’s better adaptations, it’s fun to watch a young Drew Barrymore at the beginning of her impressive career. She gave the performance her all and was compelling and endearing as a child who is terrified of the powers she has.
Giventhe strong premise of King’s impressive novel, it’s a shame that the movie adaptation wasn’t more logical and compelling. Likemany of his popular books, the source material has all the necessary elements for a good film, from a quirky and endearing main character to a huge problem that needs to be solved.King criticizedThe Shiningfor not giving Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) enough character development, and the same thing can be said here. Ufortunately,Firestarterfocuses too much on flashy, fiery effects and not enough on Charlie’s character.
The 2022 Firestarter Remake Has Only 10% On Rotten Tomatoes
If the originalFirestarterhad a low Rotten Tomatoes rating, the 2022 Blumhouse remake was even less popular.It only has 10% on Rotten Tomatoes and 47% on the Popcornmeter. AlthoughBlumhouse has released some genuinely unnerving and interesting remakes, such asSpeak No Evil,Firestarterisn’t very engaging.
Ryan Kiera Armstrong, who isplaying the main character in theBuffy the Vampire Slayerreboot, starred as Charlie McGee, and Zac Efron played her father, Andy. According toBox Office Mojo, the remake had a budget of $12 million and only grossed just over $15 million worldwide. Hopefully,the upcoming remake of Stephen King’sThe Running Manwill fare much better.
