The Kingcast

This episode has everything: Bill Hader talking about working on It, a constantly shifting conversation that never stays on a single topic for more than 5 minutes, casual mentions of some really big name Stephen King fans, what reading King at a young age can mean to a creative kid and MTV's Dan Cortese.

The Man in the Black Suit was something of a turning point for Stephen King. Published in The New Yorker in 1994, this short story went on to win many prestigious awards, including the O. Henry Award for short fiction and seemed to singlehandedly turn critical perception of the best selling author around.

In the late '90s the great character actor Miguel Ferrer starred in an HBO Original Movie adaptation of Stephen King's The Night Flier as a sleazy tabloid reporter on the trail of a Cessna pilot who also happens to be a vampire and it has become a favorite of the Kingcast boys.

Michael Whelan's paintings and illustrations have graced the covers and interior pages of the best genre authors. We're talking Ray Bradbury, Harlan Ellison, Edgar Rice Burroughs, HP Lovecraft and, yes, Mr. Stephen King.

A finger pops out of a bathroom sink's drain and drives the poor bastard who lives in that apartment out of his mind. That is the topic in today's surprise bonus episode drop.

The little town of Desperation, Nevada has fallen on hard times and that was before an ancient evil decided to take over the body of the town's gentle giant cop. Today's topic is Desperation, with a little talk about its twinner book, The Regulators, for good measure.

One of the rare Stephen King books that hasn't been adapted, Joyland is a quick, breezy read about a broken-hearted teenager who works at a dilapidated (and haunted) amusement park where he finds new love and even a ghost or two.

Children of the Corn follows a couple as they investigate a small, isolated Nebraska town and find that it has been taken over by a murderous cult of corn-monster worshipping children. It has many Stephen King benchmarks, like creepy kids and... well, corn-based horror. 

Ready to take a stroll through one of Stephen King's most f*cked up short stories with The Kingcast boys and one of the funniest comedians working today? If your answer's yes then, boy, do we have some good news for you.

The Kingcast has been going strong for nearly two years, bringing in some amazing guests to break down the work of one of our top living authors. It's about time Vespe and Wampler go straight to the horse's mouth, don't you think?

Dreamcatcher is one of Stephen King's least favorite of his own novels, but how does it stack up with the co-hosts of a very popular film podcast? This story of a group of childhood friends battling an extra-terrestrial menace with psychic powers and a little help from their deeply problematic friend, Duddits, should have been a non-stop pinata party, but there are some surprise fans in the mix fo...

Stephen King's first full-blown masterpiece, and the novel that moved him firmly to the top of the best seller list, is front and center once more. The topic: The Shining. The guest... well, someone comfortable wearing some really short shorts.

Did you know they made a sequel to The Mangler that doesn't involve a haunted laundry press at all? Well, now you do. Instead of an evil laundry machine the sequel takes the absolutely bonkers step of making it an evil computer virus that takes over a boarding school run by Lance Henriksen and boy is it a crazy watch.

Way back in the halcyon year of 2014, Warner Bros attempted a prequel to The Shining and one man rose to the challenge, crafting a truly messed up screenplay called The Overlook Hotel which tells the story of the family that built the dastardly hotel. Things didn't turn out too well for them. They ended up not making the movie, but now...

Way back in the mystical time known as the late 1990s there was a feminist horror script about a goth girl taking down rapey dude-bros at her school. They decided to take that script and force it to be a Carrie sequel and the result is The Rage: Carrie 2.

Maximum Overdrive is a film that requires a lot of silliness when trying to discuss it, so it's no coincidence that the boys have brought in a heavy hitter to look at Stephen King's one and only directorial outing.

A charming statesman rolls into the sleepy town of Castle Rock and all hell breaks loose in his wake. Today's topic is Needful Things and the Ed Harris/Max Von Sydow movie that was made from it.

King's story about a mysterious car that is somehow a portal to another dimension and the cops who sit around and drink coffee while talking about it a lot is divisive. It has even turned the hosts of The Kingcast against each other.

The Kingcast's journey along the path of the beam continues with Dark Tower Book 3, The Waste Lands, which sees everybody's favorite grouchy gunslinger finally gathers his ka-tet, fights a giant robot bear, some rapey pirates and a suicidal locomotive who just happens to love riddles.

Doctor Sleep is the story of young Danny Torrance all grown up after his traumatic experience at the Overlook Hotel and his relationship with a young girl powerful with the shining. 

Back in 1984 Stephen King and Peter Straub teamed up for a fantasy adventure story called The Talisman about a young boy named Jack Sawyer who traverses not only our world but a parallel world called the Territories on a quest to save his dying mother. Despite being a childhood favorite of both of your humble hosts, we have yet to tackle this title on The Kingcast. Until now.

That's right, the Corn Boys have returned and this time they're moving on up to the Big City, but don't worry. He Who Walks Behind the Rows is along for the ride.

We've done episodes that focus on the Arnold Schwarzenegger '80s cheeseball classic adaption of The Running Man, so it's about time we buckle down and focus a little more on King's more nihilistic, complex novel, written under the Richard Bachman pseudonym.

The Oscar-winning director of The Shape of Water, Pan's Labyrinth, Hellboy 1 and 2, The Devil's Backbone and the upcoming Nightmare Alley makes his Kingcast debut to talk about evil clowns and the legacy of one Mr. Stephen King.

Well, we finally got him. The Pinch has come to the Kingcast, at long last, and boy did he come in loaded for bear.