Carrie – Fantastic Fest

Stephen King’s novel Carrie has been adapted to death. The first screen adaptation, directed by Brian De Palma, debuted in 1976 and remains the golden standard. Since then, there have been too many attempts to recapture that magical “good for her” moment. The sequel The Rage: Carrie 2 (1999), the made-for-TV version (2002), another remake Carrie (2013), and even a musical stage adaptation have kept this IP going fairly regularly. So, it was only a matter of time before a show that no one asked for would be made. Some people held out hope that this Carrie series would surprise them because genre staple Mike Flanagan was developing it. Sadly, the first two episodes premiered at Fantastic Fest and proved it’s time to let Carrie rest once and for all.

The series introduces Carrie White (Summer H. Howell) as a hostage in her overly religious family. The girl has never been socialized or allowed to engage with the world at large. She and her mother, Margaret (Samantha Sloyan), are only forced to become members of society because Mr. White dies at work. People didn’t even know he lived with anyone, let alone had a daughter as a prisoner. We suspend disbelief, and Carrie is immediately thrown into school without therapy, time, etc. She’s also naive because her parents raised her to be obedient without question. However, she’s not even as awkward as most homeschool kids who have to adapt to the real world. A journey I know way too well!

Carrie meets the usual cast of characters we have seen a few times now. However, Flanagan’s penchant for uncovering how monsters get made attempts to soften the blow. Chris Hargensen (Alison Thornton) is defanged as her parents are getting divorced, and that’s supposed to elicit empathy for her tormenting our lead. This misses the mark for so many reasons, as part of the appeal of Carrie is that bullies get dealt with. These long, drawn-out scenes watching Chris learn that her parents aren’t who she thought they were are annoying. Because this version of the mean girl feels like the safest one yet, the beginning of her redemption arc is a reminder this show didn’t need to happen.

Sue Snell (Siena Agudong), the girl who feels guilty for her part in bullying the new girl, is told to be nice from the start and might be the only kid with a conscience in her school. Gym teacher Rita Desjardin (Amber Midthunder) is doing her part in trying to make sure someone cares for Carrie in the locker room and the hallways. Agudong and Midthunder are two of the actors doing the best they can with what they’ve been given in this Carrie situation. However, they also highlight one of the many issues the series runs into by defaulting to another thin white lead in this story. In 2026, we’re still getting white leads being protected by women of color willing to risk everything for them. This would be less cringy if the industry would make space for more WOC leads, but that is one of the ways this show refuses to break the mold. 

Carrie falls into the same traps as the previous adaptations by ignoring that our lead should be fat. We get yet another cutie we’re supposed to believe is getting pig blood dumped on her because it’s simply convenient. This ignores the book and is a constant reminder that this industry doesn’t even want fat characters to be fat on screen. We also seem stuck on the fact that after 100 Carrie Whites, we still have to make this character white because intersectional leads just can’t exist for some reason. Howell does everything she can with what she is given, and I concede it’s very hard to play the perfect wide-eyed victim. However, it’s also hard to watch two episodes of a show that defangs all of the brilliant women villains and seems to not want to push Carrie herself to the good for her moment we all come to this story for.

Sloyan gives one of the best performances of the first two episodes as Margaret White. Sadly, in the rush to defang all of the women we love to hate, she’s seemingly softer than we have ever seen her before. She’s still responsible for sheltering Carrie and laying the foundation for religious trauma. However, her conservative views sometimes put her on the right side, and that’s possibly the most disturbing thing about this series. Watching Margaret stick up for her daughter (after admittedly making her the way she is) might seem like a cool way to make the character more complex. That also minimizes the true villain of the story, though, and removes the unfortunately relatable mother-daughter dynamic. 

Too many of us realize at an early age that our mothers will not protect us, and they are lowkey our first bullies. Which is why Carrie’s showdown with her mother in previous adaptations is the true end of the story, as Margaret is the final boss battle. Knowing she takes her down while also dying is what makes the earlier versions true tragedies. Again, we only saw the first two episodes at Fantastic Fest, so the show could somehow stick this landing. However, at the moment it seems more intent on reminding us that people contain multitudes and the internet is bad. Flanagan and crew seem to want to use the source material without ever getting to the meat of it. While adaptations don’t need to be completely faithful, they should understand why people flock to the work.

These first two episodes do not instill a lot of confidence and felt too long due to their pacing problems. A lot of actors we love get moments that remind us they have the goods. However, because the scenes typically linger for so long, it makes it hard to appreciate that at times. The first episode was penned by Flanagan (who also directed both of them), and the second episode was written by Elizabeth Padden. They both seem lovely, and I truly hope these two episodes are the prologue to way better television. I would love to eat crow this time because Carrie White means a lot to horror fans (my homeschooled self included). So, while no one asked for this series, it doesn’t mean we can’t hope it magically sticks the landing. In 2026, quite a few of us need a “good for her” moment where the bullies get what’s coming to them.

All eight episodes of Carrie arrive on Prime Video on October 7.