Guillermo del Toro Reveals the Stephen King Adaptation He Would Want to Make

By Patrick Cavanaugh

Both author Stephen King and filmmaker Guillermo del Toro are considered masterful genre storytellers, so it would only make sense to see the visionaries cross paths at some point, and while there's not currently any plans for such a project, del Toro recently revealed that he would be interested in adapting King's Pet Sematary for a project. With fans having already been given two different feature-film adaptations of the novel, del Toro isn't expecting such an adaptation to ever happen, but he also admitted that he felt like he couldn't rule out the opportunity at some point.

"You know the novel that I would have killed to adapt, and I know there's two versions of it, and I still think maybe in a deranged universe I get to do it again one day is Pet Sematary," del Toro shared with The Kingcast. "Because it not only has the very best final couple of lines, but it scared me when I was a young man. As a father, I now understand it better than I ever would have, and it scares me. A hundred times more."

The first film came from director Mary Lambert in 1989, which earned a sequel in 1992. Back in 2019, directors Dennis Widmyer and Kevin Kölsch brought the novel to life, offering a few key differences on the well-known narrative.

While details that work in a novel don't always translate well to live-action, del Toro noted there was one specific element he wanted to honor more faithfully from the book for a film.

"For me, the best scene in that book is when [Louis] opens Gage's coffin, and for a second he thinks the head is gone, because this black fungi from the grave has grown like a fuzz over the kid's face. ... I think you cannot spare those details and think that you're honoring that book," the filmmaker admitted. "One of the things I thought about Pet Sematary that we would do in post is when the dead return, when Gage returns, I'd spend an inordinate amount of money taking out the sheen from his eyes. So that the eyes are dull."

While the latest take on the material might not have been a major critical or financial hit, it has inspired an all-new prequel to be developed, which is expected to head to Paramount+.

Stay tuned for details on the future of Stephen King adaptations.

Would you like to see del Toro adapt the novel? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

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