What does Stephen King think of new Pet Sematary’s big plot twist?

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Last week we shared with you guys the news that author Stephen King says that STARRY EYES directing duo Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer's upcoming remake of his novel PET SEMATARY "is a scary movie. Be warned." And "You might consider skipping this movie if you have heart trouble." Sounds good to us! 

But what does King think of the big (SPOILER ALERT?) Elle Creed twist this new version is presenting, meaning it's Elle Creed that gets the Orinoco truck to the face instead of little Gage Creed. Well, it turns out the King supports the idea. That is if you believe new Louis Creed, Jason Clarke who recently spoke about the twist saying:

It’s pretty easy to justify [the change]. You can’t play that movie with a three-year-old boy. You end up with a doll or some animated thing. So you’re going to get a much deeper, richer story by swapping for a seven-year-old or nine-year-old girl. The reward will come. People who are upset will hopefully see the benefit of it. But a lot of people didn’t have an issue. 

He then adds:

Stephen King didn’t have an issue with it.

Personally, at this point in time, I don't think it's the right choice. It feels, for lack of a nicer term, scared to face the true horror of King's novel. Plus, we've seen creepy little girls in horror movies by the (no pun intended) truckload. Do we really need to change out one of the best aspects of King's novel in favor of a genre cliche? That's like replacing Zelda with a monologuing masked killer.

Sorry, I'm ranting. I'm just going to wait and see the finished film before I start going all out on my opinion. Sounds fair to me. What do YOU think? Let us know below.

Directed by Kolsch and Widmyer, PET SEMATARY stars Jason Clarke as Louis Creed, Amy Seimetz as Rachel Creed, Hugo and Lucas Lavoie as Gage Creed, Jeté Laurence as Ellie Creed, Obssa Ahmed as Victor Pascow, Alyssa Brooke Levine as Zelda, and Lithgow as Jud. 

Dr. Louis Creed, who, after relocating with his wife Rachel (Seimetz) and their two young children from Boston to rural Maine, discovers a mysterious burial ground hidden deep in the woods near the family’s new home. When tragedy strikes, Louis turns to his unusual neighbor, Jud Crandall, setting off a perilous chain reaction that unleashes an unfathomable evil with horrific consequences.

King wrote the screenplay adaptation for the '89 film himself. This time the script was written by Jeff Buhler, who previously wrote the Clive Barker adaptation THE MIDNIGHT MEAT TRAIN, developed the George R.R. Martin story Nightflyers into a television series, and wrote a remake of JACOB'S LADDER that has yet to be released. We'll let you know once we hear more on the remake but until then let us know what you think thus far below!

PET SEMATARY hits theaters April 5, 2019. Don't forget to check out our set visit HERE.