The fact that one of the bestselling authors of all time,Stephen King, is a horror novelist, can’t be a coincidence. People love his work, the adaptations of his work, and everything that stems from everything he’s done. He’s the most important author in horror popular culture because his work encompasses the very definition of American culture and how it’s progressed throughout history. Of course, always in fictional and horror terms.
Naturally, King’s relationship with cinema is pretty close. You don’t even have to stay withinthe limited boundaries of his adaptations, because the man seems to be a fan of just about every genre out there. you may go to his Twitter/X account and witness his statements about every film or TV show he watches, and yes, horror is a huge part of this catalog. Considering how important his tweets are for exposing films that deserve a look, we decided to compile the recent horror movies that Stephen King has praised.
The following list may contain minor spoilers.
10Late Night With the Devil (2024)
Late Night With the Devil
Read our Review
InLate Night with the Devil, the producers of a show called “Night Owls with Jack Delroy” decide they need to boost their ratings if they want to compete against the far superior show led by Johnny Carson. The host, Jack Delroy, has been going through something rough: he recently lost his wife to cancer. Deciding he will use his show as a platform to deal with the grief, Jack decides to go along with the producers' latest idea: a Halloween-themed live episode in which they will feature an allegedly possessed girl.
Late Night with the Devil Is “Absolutely Brilliant”
Late Night with the Devilhas been in everyone’s mouths recently, for good and bad reasons. When thedirectors admitted the use of AI in the film, the movie suffered the consequences. However, this shouldn’t be a reason for not enjoying what is genuinely good, original horror. Stephen King claimed in a tweet that “It’s absolutely brilliant. I couldn’t take my eyes off it. Your results may vary, as they say, but I urge you to watch it when you can.“You can streamLate Night with the Devilon Shudder.
9Barbarian (2022)
Zach Cregger’sBarbarianfollows Tess Marshall, a woman who arrives in Detroit late at night for an interview she will have the next day. She was only able to find a rental home in a shady part of town. The problem is that someone else also booked it: a man by the name of Keith Toshko. He invites her in, and after thinking about it, she decides to give it a try and not pay attention to the red flags. As it turns out, Keith is actually a kind dude, who even makes her some tea and with whom she makes a connection. The very next day, the interview goes great, and when Tess comes back to the house to pick up her stuff, she realizes Keith has found a door in the basement. A door that leads into… the improbable.
Stephen King Says Barbarian Is “Crazy GOOD!”
The film’s remarkable narrative shift is only one of several reasons whyBarbarianis one of the best horror films of 2022.It’s very scary, very well-acted, and features body horror like you haven’t seen in modern horror. Considering it was Cregger’s solo writing and directorial debut, we can’t help but praise the film for being so original when delivering its premise. Stephen King was also vocal in X about the film: “Yeah, that movie blew me away. It was crazy! Crazy GOOD!”
Ti West’sX, part of the trilogy withPearland the upcomingMaXXXine, tells the story of an adult film crew who decide to go on the road to find a location to shoot their latest film. The year is 1979, and the crew arrives at a farm where an elderly couple allows them to do whatever they want in the guesthouse they rented. The problem is that the old lady, Pearl, doesn’t exactly agree with the kind of movie they’re making and also aims at getting love for herself. She turns into a homicidal maniac, and Maxine, the film’s star, decides to fight back.
Stephen King Calls X “An Extremely Good Horror Movie”
Part original horror and part homage,Xwas a well-written horror film that also gave everyone something to talk about in 2022. Starring Mia Goth inone of her best roles,Xproved rules are actually just a suggestion in the world of horror, and it was successful enough for A24 to start a whole franchise. Stephen King was very clear when tweeting about the film: “X is an extremely good horror movie. Scary, smart, knowing. Oh. And entertaining.”
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7No One Will Save You (2023)
No One Will Save You
InNo One Will Save You, by writer/director Brian Duffield, Brynn is a young woman living by herself in a remote area near her hometown. For some reason, she’s been completely excommunicated from her community. But things change when, one night, Brynn realizes there’s an alien invasion taking place. Able to kill one of the creatures, Brynn decides she will try to seek help, but it may turn out to be too late, as the little green men have found a way into the town.
No One Will Save You Is “Truly Unique”
No One Will Save Youwas a very nice direct-to-streaming surprise that made many heads turn when it presented people with the idea of a sci-fi horror film with only five spoken words throughout the entire film. Kaitlyn Dever, the film star playing Brynn, is marvelous in the film. Stephen King was pretty vocal about the movie on his social media account: “NO ONE WILL SAVE YOU: Brilliant, daring, involving, scary. You have to go back over 60 years to a TWILIGHT ZONE episode called ‘The Invaders,’ to find anything remotely like it. Truly unique.”
Evil Dead Rise
InEvil Dead Rise, sisters reunite in an apartment building in Los Angeles. Beth finds out she’s pregnant, and she seeks support from Ellie, who lives with her kids in a rundown apartment complex. After an earthquake gives them access to an underground chamber, Danny plays one of the records he finds and unleashes demons in the apartment. Ellie becomes the first to be possessed and goes on a rampage to basically murder and possess everybody.
Evil Dead Risewas one of the films of 2023 that gave everyone something to talk about in horror circles. It managed to stay close to Fede Álvarez’s remake of 2013 andbrought back faith into the franchiseof deadites created by Sam Raimi. To call it a gory film is a simple understatement. Stephen King seems to have loved the film as well. Per his tweet: “While I’m busy promoting, how about EVIL DEAD RISE? It’s gruesome, it’s bloody, it’s even got an elevator vomiting blood. Not to mention chainsaw-fu.”
5The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)
The Autopsy of Jane Doe
InThe Autopsy of Jane Doe, a pair of morticians, who are also father and son, are commissioned to perform an autopsy on a body found at a crime scene. The woman was found buried in the basement, there are no visible scars on her, and everyone else in the house was brutally killed. The Tildens decide to solve the mystery by opening her up, but after experiencing some strange phenomena, they realize this is not an ordinary corpse, and some questions are better left unanswered.
Stephen King Says to “Watch It, But Not Alone”
A greatfilm about witches,The Autopsy of Jane Doeis also one of the scariest movie experiences you can have today with a modern horror film. It’s also cleverly written and features two perfect leads with very interesting performances: Brian Cox and Emile Hirsch. Stephen King said the following about the film: “THE AUTOPSY OF JANE DOE: Visceral horror to rival ALIEN and early Cronenberg. Watch it, but not alone.“You can streamThe Autopsy of Jane Doeon Netflix.
4The Witch (2015)
The Witchtakes us to the 1600s in New England when English settlers had the liberty to settle themselves everywhere. William and his family have been excommunicated from their village, and the family is forced to settle in the middle of the forest. Their new home is plagued with spooky phenomena, and this especially affects the teenager, Thomasin. Her parents, who are extremely religious, take the events as signs of moral corruption, and Thomasin witnesses her family’s descent into a spiral while she also finds her true self.
Stephen King Calls The Witch “Tense and Thought-Provoking as Well as Visceral”
Robert Eggers' masterful exercise of horror is a daunting exploration of religion in the folklore version of America.The Witchisreligious horror in its best expression, seen through the eyes of one of modern horror’s signature exhibitors. Considering King’s direct relationship with showing the true side of American culture since its conception, he couldn’t have said it better: “The Witch scared the hell out of me. And it’s a real movie, tense and thought-provoking as well as visceral.”
3Crimson Peak (2015)
Crimson Peak
InCrimson Peak, Edith Cushing is a successful author who’s also quite lonely. The time is the early 1900s in New York, and Edith is the bachelorette everyone wants to conquer. Sir Thomas Sharpe instantly draws her attention, but Edith’s father sees his true intentions: he’s desperate for money. After her father is murdered, Edith is asked by Thomas to marry him, and so they move to their mansion, where Thomas' sister, Lucille, also lives. It doesn’t take long for Edith to start seeing ghosts in the hallways, and they hold the truth about the Sharpes.
Stephen King Says Crimson Peak Is “Gorgeous and Terrifying”
Guillermo del Toro’s Gothic horror masterpiece is one of the most underrated films to come in the last decade.Crimson Peakis a beautiful and classy exploration of the genre, led by great performers and featuring state-of-the-art special effects and great cinematography and score. We don’t see how it couldn’t affect the master of horror himself, Stephen King. Per his tweet, “I was treated to a screening of Guillermo del Toro’s new movie, CRIMSON PEAK, this weekend. Gorgeous and just f***** terrifying.”
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2The Black Phone (2021)
The Black Phone
Robert Cargill and Scott Derrickson adapt a script based on Joe Hill’s sory, The Black Phone. Ethan Hawke stars as a child killer whose latest abductee is receiving calls from dead victims.
In the late 1970s, Denver is being terrorized by a child abductor called The Grabber. Finney and Gwen are normal siblings who occasionally suffer the abuse of their violent father. One day, Finney falls into the hands of the kidnapper, and he’s locked in the basement of a home where no one can hear him. The monster usually shows up wearing creepy masks and taunting the boy to try to escape. What he doesn’t know is that Finney is getting some help from the other side: a black phone hangs from the wall, and ghosts from the dead children are able to help Finney.
Stephen King Calls The Black Phone “‘Stand By Me’ in Hell”
Thepretty intense film,The Black Phone, is based on a short story by Joe Hill, Stephen King’s son, who followed his father’s line of work and also became a successful author. And yes, the film has a Stephen King-like feel that’s hard to miss. The way the characters are built and how paranoia is part of the film’s background is a great example of what King has done in the past. Apparently, Hill showed an early version of the film to his dad, who said, “It’s ‘Stand By Me’ in hell.” That’s enough of a review.
1Malignant (2021)
InMalignant, Madison suffers an attack from her abusive boyfriend. During the attack, she suffered a miscarriage, but her boyfriend actually suffered a brutal death. She doesn’t know exactly how it all happened, but as she’s grieving, she starts having very realistic visions of murder. The problem is that the murders begin taking place in real life, and Madison suspects she may have something to do with them. And when she finds out, it’s campy horror heaven for everybody.
Stephen King Thinks Malignant Is “Brilliant”
James Wan’s last horror film,Malignant, is an outstanding example of original horror that complies with every rule in the book of slasher films that don’t exactly need to be… respectable. It’s campy, wild, and extremely violent, and Stephen King had a great time with it: “I watched MALIGNANT on HBO and thought it was brilliant.” For a film likeMalignantto be called “brilliant” is proof of Stephen King’s opinion of horror movies. It’s not a matter of logic or looking good. It’s about being effective and satisfying your target audience.
Let’s take a look at one of Stephen King’s most underrated adaptations,Storm of the Century:
