Summary
Known as the King of the horror genre, authorStephen Kinghas shared his number one scary movie of all time that left him in “helpless terror” when he first saw it, but surprisingly, it’s not a film he penned himself. AlthoughStephen Kingneeds little introduction, as many horror fans will already know a lot about the legendary author,The Shiningwriter didn’t always indulge in the spookier side of life, with many other genres explored, which included suspense, crime, science-fiction, fantasy and mystery, too.
Born in Maine, where many of his novels take place, like the horrifying location ofPennywise the Clown inIT, King started his interest in writing as a young child by copying panels out of comic books, but was told by his mother that he could do much better and should write some of his own. Needless to say, the rest is history, with King becoming one of the biggest and most important authors in the past 50 years. Stephen King’s incredible line-up of books has sold over 400 million copies, with many getting turned into films, TV shows and even graphic novels. With his mind almost constantly in the world of terrifying creatures and unspeakable monsters, it’s hard to imagine King ever getting scared, but there is one movie that does fill him with fear.
Stephen King’s Favorite Horror Movie Is a Low-Budget 1968 Classic
As part ofVariety’s latest horror writeup, Stephen King has written a short essay in which he explains what his favorite horror film is of all time and why it scared the life out of him so much. King expressed that even though he has naturally seen some of the best and maybe theworst horror moviesthroughout his 77 years, his number one scariest film as an adult was watching George A. Romero’s low-budget creation,Night of the Living Dead. King recalls the scene in which Barbara locks herself in her car, realizing that her brother still has the keys as a reanimated corpse tries to kill her, as something that filled him with sheer panic.
“As an adult, it was “The Blair Witch Project,” with that building sense of doom and those truly horrible last 35 seconds. But overall, I’d have to say “Night of the Living Dead,” George A. Romero’s low-budget masterpiece.”…“I still remember the helpless terror I felt when I first saw it.”
King also said that when he was 16-years-old, Robert Wise’s 1963 movieThe Hauntingwas the scariest film at the time and also mentioned the intensity and doom ofThe Blair Witch’s opening scene. He also thought that there were similarities betweenBlair WitchandThe Haunting, due to both having very little music, unlike many big productionmovies with high-budget soundtracks.
Earlier this month,A24 and Stephen King joined forces in a 10-episode seriesbased on the fantasy novel,Fairy Tale. One script has already been written by Paul Greengrass, who previously directed three entries in theBourneaction-thriller film series. WhileFringe’s J.H. Wyman will direct the film, Greengrass will also direct a few ofFairy Tale’s episodes.
Stephen King
Stephen King is one of the most prolific living authors. A master of horror, King’s classic works include The Shining, Carrie, Cujo, It, and the Dark Tower series. Many of his books and short stories have been adapted to film and television, including The Shawshank Redemption, Lisey’s Story, 1408, Secret Window, and The Stand.
