We are in one of the greatest eras of Stephen King adaptations. In the past, it was usually the big screen adaptations of Stephen King’s books that managed to make their mark. The ones on the small screen barely lasted for a season or two before being completely forgotten. Now, however, this trend is finally starting to change, and Stephen King’s TV shows are showing incredible promise.
The new era’s inception was marked by MGM+’s The Institute. While The Institute is not among Stephen King’s most acclaimed adaptations, it proved to be a commercial success and is all set to return with another season on November 8, 2026. HBO’s It: Welcome to Derry proved to be another highly successful Stephen King series after it shattered streaming records and earned critical acclaim.
Mike Flanagan’s TV adaptation of Carrie has now continued the trend with its success on Prime Video, giving small screen takes on Stephen King’s works an even better reputation. Speaking of Mike Flanagan, his next big small screen TV adaptation could be based on Stephen King’s The Dark Tower. Interestingly, all three ongoing Stephen King TV shows quietly connect to Dark Tower‘s lore.
Carrie, It: Welcome To Derry & The Institute Subtly Tie Into Stephen King’s Dark Tower
In Stephen King’s The Dark Tower, especially in “The Wolves of Calla” and “Song for Susannah” arcs, the Crimson King abducts individuals with physical abilities. Referred to as the “Breakers,” these individuals use their telepathic powers to break down the Beams holding up the titular Towers.
The Institute seems to operate on the exact same story.
It centers on a titular shadow organization that abducts kids with telepathic and telekinetic abilities from their homes. These kids are then experimented upon and forced to use their powers to alter world events. Since both The Dark Tower and The Institute capture how cabals use “gifted” people to run evil operations, many have theorized that The Institute unfolds in the same universe as The Dark Tower.
When Stephen King’s wider lore is considered, telekinesis, telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition are all treated as manifestations of the “Shine.” Mike Flanagan’s Carrie even draws subtle references to The Shining, tying the show to the larger Stephen King universe. In The Dark Tower, volatile “shine” users like Carrie are targeted by the Can-toi (Low Men) to serve as Breakers.
In Carrie season 2 and his upcoming adaptation of The Dark Tower, Flanagan could leverage these subtle story connections and establish a clear tie between Carrie and The Dark Tower universe.
HBO’s It: Welcome to Derry not only introduces characters like Dick Hallorann who possess the “shine,” but also draws references to the Maturin and Pennywise’s “Deadlights” connection to Todash space. Even the rituals connected to containing Pennywise, including the Ritual of Chüd, tap directly into the power of Mind-Speech and the White from The Dark Tower.
Recent Success Of Stephen King Shows Prepares Us For Mike Flanagan’s Dark Tower Series
Considering how The Institute, Carrie, and It: Welcome to Derry are streaming on three different platforms, it seems unlikely that they will combine their overarching universes at some point. Carrie and It: Welcome to Derry will likely explore the overarching Stephen King universe and their potential Dark Tower ties in their upcoming seasons.
The Institute, however, will likely remain grounded and follow a more self-contained story.
Despite this, all three shows seem to set the perfect groundwork for Mike Flanagan’s upcoming take on The Dark Tower. It will be a while before The Dark Tower‘s highly-anticipated TV series sees the light of day. However, the subtle connections of all three shows to the overarching Stephen King horror universe warms viewers up for the most ambitious take on Stephen King’s works to date.
The three shows’ success also proves that Stephen King‘s books can work incredibly well on the small screen. If all three continue to perform well, they will effectively raise more hype for Mike Flanagan’s The Dark Tower adaptation.
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- Created by
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Stephen King
- First Film
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The Dark Tower
- Upcoming TV Shows
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The Dark Tower
- Cast
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Idris Elba, Matthew McConaughey, Tom Taylor, Dennis Haysbert, Claudia Kim, Fran Kranz, Abbey Lee, Jackie Earle Haley, Katheryn Winnick, Michael Barbieri
- Movie(s)
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The Dark Tower
- Character(s)
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Roland Deschain, The Man in Black, Jake Chambers, Eddie Dean, Susannah Dean, Oy, The Crimson King, Stephen Deschain, Sayre, Tirana
The Dark Tower is a multimedia franchise based on Stephen King’s epic series of eight novels. The story follows Roland Deschain, the last of the Gunslingers, as he embarks on a quest to reach the Dark Tower, a mystical structure that stands at the center of all worlds and realities. The series blends elements of dark fantasy, horror, science fiction, and Western genres. Over the years, the franchise has expanded beyond the original books to include a film, comic books, and upcoming TV adaptations, making it one of King’s most ambitious and interconnected works.
