Entertainment

'Castle Rock' Trailer: One Famous King Story Is Just the Beginning

"I got a call from Shawshank..."

by James Grebey

Last year might’ve been a huge year for Stephen King fans, with tons of movies and TV shows, including It, but the horror won’t stop in 2018. On Thursday, Hulu released a new trailer for its upcoming series that’s based on several of the horror legend’s books and stories, all set in the fictional Maine town of Castle Rock. Looks like the trouble all starts at Shawshank, but that’s just the beginning.

The 30-second spot opens with Andre Holland’s character Henry, described as “a death row attorney with a unique and complicated history in Castle Rock, Maine,” returning to the town after receiving a call from Shawshank, the prison made famous in The Shawshank Redemption. Who called him, well, that’s a mystery, and based on what follows, it’s a creepy one.

The first trailer for the series, which came out almost a year ago, made allusions to Salem’s Lot, Needful Things, Annie Wilkes from Misery, Pennywise from It, and Danny Torrance from The Shining. There are lots of creepy flashes in the new trailer, but none instantly bring to mind a past King work that might be folded into the story. One shot — a German Shepard sitting ominously on an older woman’s bed — has shades of Cujo, even though that killer dog was a totally different breed.

How, exactly, Stephen King’s tangled web of horror will be stitched together for Castle Rock remains to be seen.

In addition to Holland, Castle Rock also stars Carrie actress Sissy Spacek and Bill Skarsgård, who portrayed Pennywise in the new It movie. However, neither actor appears to be playing a character related to their big screen King roles.

Castle Rock will premiere on Hulu this summer.

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