Carrie: Summer H. Howell in talks to star in Mike Flanagan’s Stephen King Prime Video series (2025)

Carrie, the subject of author Stephen King’s first published novel and one of the greatest female icons in the horror genre, is coming back – and this time Mike Flanagan is the one taking her to prom. It was announced last October that Flanagan was working with King to turn the story ofCarrieinto an eight episode series that will be released through Amazon’s Prime Video service. Flanagan is executive producing the series with Trevor Macy. Deadline noted at the time, “They’re opening a writer’s room, so this one’s happening quickly.” And now, Variety reports that the series has found its lead, as Summer H. Howell is in negotiations to play the title character.

Last week, we heard that Milly Shapiro, who is best known for her role inHereditaryand was recently in the cast of the Peacock seriesHysteria!, was in talks to play Carrie White in the series. But if Shapiro was in the running, it looks like Howell has passed her at the finish line.

As Variety points out, Howell already has plenty of horror cred. Her credits include Curse of Chucky, Cult of Chucky, Hunter Hunter, Spirit in the Blood, Time Cut, Harland Manor, and multiple episodes of the anthology series Channel Zero.

Flanagan has previously directed film adaptations of the King novelsGerald’s GameandDoctor Sleep. His upcoming filmThe Life of Chuckis another King adaptation – and he’s also known to be developing the author’sDark Towersaga as a Prime Video series.

Published in 1974, King’s novelCarrieserved as the inspiration for the classic1976 filmdirected by Brian De Palma. The concept then sat dormant for a couple of decades, until the sequelThe Rage: Carrie 2came along in 1999. That was quickly followed by a made-for-TVCarrieremake in 2002, and thenCarriegot a big screen remake in 2013. The character was played by Sissy Spacek in ’76, Angela Bettis in ’02, and Chloe Grace Moretz in ’13. Back in 2019, it wasrumoredthat a limited series adaptation was in development at FX, but that project (if it existed) didn’t go anywhere.

King’s novel has the following description:Unpopular at school and subjected to her mother’s religious fanaticism at home,CarrieWhite does not have it easy.But while shemay be picked on by her classmates, she has a gift she’s kept secret since she was a little girl: she can move things with her mind. Doors lock. Candles fall. Her ability has been both a power and a problem. And when she finds herself the recipient of a sudden act of kindness,Carriefeels like she’s finally been given a chance to be normal. She hopes that the nightmare of her classmates’ vicious taunts is over . . . but an unexpected and cruel prank turns her gift into a weapon of horror so destructive that the town may never recover. Here’s the logline for Flanagan’s series: A bold and timely reimagining of the story of misfit high-schooler Carrie White (Howell), who has spent her life in seclusion with her domineering mother. After her father’s sudden and untimely death, Carrie finds herself contending with the alien landscape of public High School, a bullying scandal that shatters her community, and the emergence of mysterious telekinetic powers.

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