Stephen King Reveals Why You Should Watch NOS4A2

Author Stephen King enjoys witnessing horrific stories unfold just as much as he enjoys creating them, regularly taking to social media to share his opinions on various programs. With the writer having a number of his own stories adapted into various formats, to say King knows a lot about the genre would be an understatement. The author most recently offered his support to the AMC series NOS4A2 for not only being a unique take on the vampire genre, but King pointed out that viewers should tune in to the program for the characters that are represented in the storyline and how he feels they are an often overlooked demographic.

“NOS4A2: Scary? Yes. Involving? Yes. But it’s also doing something network TV can’t or won’t do–showing working-class people doing their jobs and trying their damndest (sometimes failing) to be decent,” King tweeted. “The best horror stories are firmly wedded to real life.”

King might have another reason to support the series, which is that the novel was written by his son Joe Hill.

NOS4A2 introduces Vic McQueen (Ashleigh Cummings), a gifted young woman who discovers she has a supernatural ability to find lost things. This ability puts her on a collision course with the evil and immortal Charlie Manx (Zachary Quinto). Manx is a supernatural villain who feeds off the souls of children then deposits what remains of them into Christmasland – a twisted place of Manx’s imagination where every day is Christmas Day and unhappiness is against the law. Vic strives to defeat Manx and rescue his victims – without losing her mind or falling victim to him herself.

The series stars Emmy-nominated actor and producer Zachary Quinto (Star Trek, American Horror Story) and rising star Ashleigh Cummings (The Goldfinch). Emmy-nominated director Kari Skogland (The Handmaid’s Tale, Sons of Liberty) directed the first two episodes of the series. The cast also includes Olafur Darri Olafsson (Lady Dynamite) as Bing Partridge, Virginia Kull (The Looming Tower) as Linda McQueen, Ebon Moss-Bachrach (The Punisher) as Chris McQueen, and Jahkara Smith (aka Sailor J) as Maggie Leigh.

“When a writer talks about having their story adapted, they say the same cliche things,” Hill previously explained. “But it’s all true. It’s just incredibly thrilling to see all this stuff you lived with in your imagination suddenly set before you.”

Of course, a horror story needs to offer audiences not only a thrilling narrative, but also a human character for viewers to connect with.

“NOS4A2 introduces this world where there is a secret community of people who have unusual occult powers,” Hill noted. “It’s a kind of twisted vampire story set on America’s backroads. But also NOS4A2 is the story of a young woman named Vic McQueen who comes from a blue collar corner of Massachusetts and Vic has an impossible gift. An ability to find lost things.”

Tune in to new episodes of NOS4A2 on AMC on Sunday nights.

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