New Stephen King Movie Returns Mike Flanagan To 1 Important Role Missing From His Last 6 Horror Films

Mike Flanagan’s next Stephen King adaptation will see him step back into a role he hasn’t taken since his directorial debut. Alongside filmmakers like James Wan, Flanagan has emerged as one of the best horror movie directors of his generation. Mike Flanagan’s movies and TV shows are often intensely emotional, but they always deliver on the scares too. He’s also noted for his love of Stephen King and managed the seemingly impossible when he turned the author’s “unfilmable” novel Gerald’s Game into an acclaimed Netflix movie.

Flanagan did the impossible again with The Shining sequel Doctor Sleep, which managed to combine King’s novel with Kubrick’s movie – which the author famously hated. Even Flanagan’s Midnight Mass miniseries owes a debt to King’s classic vampire book ‘Salem’s Lot. Flanagan’s next film The Life of Chuck will adapt the author’s short story of the same name and is described as closer to The Shawshank Redemption or Stand by Me in tone.

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The Life Of Chuck Is The First Movie Mike Flanagan Is Producing Since His 2011 Debut

Intriguingly, Life of Chuck is the first time Flanagan is producing one of his films since 2011’s Absentia. He’s served as executive producer and showrunner on much of his Netflix output like 2023’s The Fall of the House of Usher, but not on any of his subsequent films like Hush or Ouija: Origin of Evil. Alongside his supernatural thriller Before I Wake, Absentia tends to be lesser known among admirers of Flanagan’s filmography.

Producing Absentia was likely a necessity for Flanagan, with the film’s budget being a mere $70,000. Most of this sum was funded via Kickstarter, and in addition to directing, Flanagan also edited the movie. It’s a little rough around the edges due to the tiny budget, but it’s a prototype for the kind of work he would move onto, and is a must watch for those looking to dive into Flanagan’s CV.

Mike Flanagan’s Producer Return Is Even More Exciting After His 6 Hit Netflix Shows

One advantage Flanagan had with Absentia was total creative control, which appears to have extended to his Netflix shows too. While some of these miniseries were better than others, his creative stamp is on every one of them. Life of Chuck is exciting not only because he’s adapting King again, but because it’s an independent production where he’s producing once more.

Like Absentina, Flanagan is producing, directing, writing and editing Life of Chuck. It sounds like he’s truly returning to his roots with his next project, while also taking a welcome step outside full-blown horror. Retaining creative control of a movie is tougher than a TV series – especially outside of the Netflix umbrella – but Life of Chuck has the potential to be the most personal film from the director to date.