IDW Publishing today announced the early 2020 launch of Sleeping Beauties, a new comic book series based on the bestselling novel by Stephen King and Owen King. Author Rio Youers (The Forgotten Girl) and artist Alison Sampson (Winnebago Graveyard) will adapt the rich narrative of Sleeping Beauties to a ten-issue limited series under the watch of the Kings. IDW, of course, already had an existing relationship with King’s other son, writer Joe Hill, whose Locke and Key was published there and is being adapted into a TV series for Hulu.
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“We are so excited about Rio and Alison’s vision for Sleeping Beauties,” Owen King said in a statement. “We’ve been fans of Rio’s for years and Alison’s artwork is simply extraordinary. IDW couldn’t have found a better pairing.”
Stephen King added, “We’re looking forward to seeing our work in this exciting format.”
Sleeping Beauties explores a world where women have sunken into a deep, cocooned slumber, their dreams taking them to an idyllic other place. They can only wake if disturbed, which results in violent, feral behavior. Meanwhile, the men have inherited the Earth, their society devolving into barbarism. Provocative and absorbing, Sleeping Beauties is a gripping dark fantasy of gender dynamics, individuality, and toxic masculinity.
“To work on anything with the King name attached is surreal, dizzying, and somewhat terrifying,” said Youers. “As soon as my feet touch terra firma, I will focus on my goal: to stay true to the novel’s spirit, and to deliver a page-turning, visually impacting experience that will appeal to readers of both Stephen and Owen King’s fiction, and to comics fans the world over.”
“I’m thrilled to be able to work on Sleeping Beauties,” said Sampson. “The story is very suggestive for interesting art, with magical themes interwoven through a very real place setting in Appalachia, and the opportunity to draw some truly diverse people. Places, spaces, gender, bodies, character, relationships, political themes, emotions, a challenging (and almost certainly innovative) design job, and a great story – it’s all here. I cannot wait to share what we are making.”
“There was something magical about the combination of Stephen King’s and Owen King’s specific skills on the pages of the Sleeping Beauties novel, an alchemy that resulted in a story so of the moment and yet so timeless,” said IDW President & Publisher, Chris Ryall. “Rio and Allison are fashioning a graphic retelling that synthesizes that same sense of wonder while very much making the comic its own thing entirely. We’re ecstatic to be doing this with all involved.”
For information on how to pre-order your copy of Sleeping Beauties, contact your local comic shop or visit www.comicshoplocator.com to find a store near you.
