Mike Flanagan's Next Stephen King Show After Carrie Marks The End Of An Era

Published Oct 18, 2026, 9:30 AM EDT Adrienne Tyler is a movies & TV features writer, with a focus on horror. She has written for Netflix, FanSided, & more. She was a regular guest on the Netfreaks podcast and was a YouTuber at some point. Guillermo del Toro said “hi” to her once. Mike Flanagan continues his successful TV streak with Carrie, but his next Stephen King TV show will mark the end of an era. Thanks to his work on film and TV, Mike Flanagan has become one of the modern masters of horror, and he has found great success with adaptations of Stephen King’s works. On TV, Flanagan has succeeded with shows like The Haunting of Hill House and Midnight Mass, and his latest hit is the first TV adaptation of Carrie. Prime Video’s Carrie is a reimagining of King’s 1974 novel, and as such, it follows teenager Carrie White (Summer H. Howell). Carrie had been homeschooled and isolated her entire life, and after the sudden death of her father, she’s forced to attend high school, while her mother, Margaret (Samantha Sloyan), must get a job. Although Carrie is open to the high school experience and excited about it, a bullying scandal that gets out of hand changes her perspective and awakens her telekinetic powers. Carrie has been a success with critics and general audiences, quickly climbing Prime Video’s Top 10 and leaving viewers wondering if a second season will happen. Meanwhile, Flanagan already has his next Stephen King show lined up, though exactly when it will happen remains to be seen. In December 2022, it was announced that Flanagan had acquired the rights to a Dark Tower TV adaptation, which, like Carrie, would be released on Prime Video – and with it, Flanagan would be ending an era in his TV career. Mike Flanagan’s The Dark Tower Would Be His First Fantasy & Sci-Fi TV Show The Dark Tower is a novel series formed by eight books, and it features one of the most complex worlds in the Stephen King universe. The Dark Tower takes the audience to Mid-World and follows Roland Deschain, a gunslinger and the last of the line of “Arthur Eld.” Roland is on a quest to find the Dark Tower, a building said to be the nexus of all universes – this means that, if the tower were to fall, all existence would collapse into chaos. As Roland’s journey continues throughout the novels, his motives, goals, and other details about him become clearer, and connections to other Stephen King stories also emerge. Thanks to this, The Dark Tower is one of the most important series in the Stephen King universe, and as such, it’s not an easy one to adapt to other media. The Dark Tower was adapted to film in 2017 and didn’t succeed, but a TV show could be the best way to do justice to the books. Mike Flanagan’s style, writing, direction, and his excellent track record with Stephen King adaptations make him the best option to bring The Dark Tower to life, and this would mark a new era in his career as his first fantasy and sci-fi TV show. So far, Flanagan’s TV shows have been horror ones, exploring different types and subgenres, and while The Dark Tower has horror elements, it’s mostly a sci-fi, fantasy, and Western story. The Dark Tower Can Make a Mike Flanagan/Stephen King Universe A Reality Thanks to its connections to and expansion of the Stephen King universe, Mike Flanagan’s The Dark Tower could confirm the existence of a Flanagan Stephen King universe. As mentioned above, Flanagan has directed some of the best Stephen King adaptations in recent years, such as the movies Doctor Sleep and The Life of Chuck. However, it’s thanks to Carrie that theories about a connected universe of Flanagan King adaptations have gained force. “The shine”, from the world of The Shining and Doctor Sleep, is mentioned in the finale of Carrie, thus creating a connection between these stories, and with Flanagan behind Doctor Sleep and Carrie, it has led to theories about Carrie and Abra Stone possibly meeting in future seasons. In addition to that, there’s a subtle but brilliant reference to The Dark Tower in Carrie, and Flanagan has said he believes his adaptation of Carrie takes place “on a certain level of the Tower.” Mike Flanagan’s The Dark Tower TV show, then, can confirm that Carrie, Doctor Sleep, and maybe other adaptations by him live in the same universe, but, on the other hand, it could also debunk all those theories. Birthdate May 20, 1978 Birthplace Salem, Massachusetts, United States Notable Projects Hush, Doctor Sleep, Gerald's Game Height 6 feet 0 inches Professions Filmmaker, Director, Screenwriter, Producer, Editor