(Image courtesy of IMDb. “’Carrie’ adopts its source material from a horror novel written by Stephen King.”)

Jesse Nguyen
Connector Editor

In spirit of Halloween, the iconic telekinetic phenom Carrie is brought to home screens through this character’s first ever miniseries, simply titled “Carrie.” The 8-episode miniseries, directed by Mike Flanagan, released on Oct. 7, 2026, on Amazon Prime Video, imagines the Stephen King novel character in the modern era, with humanities current problems and tribulations. While the show packs its own punch, the way it serves as a “Carrie” show is questionable.  

“Carrie” follows the same major plot line as every other cinematic entry to the “Carrie” series as well as the books. Carrietta White, a young girl raised by a fanatical religious mother, gets humiliated for unexpectedly experiencing her period in school, which starts to unlock her latent telekinetic powers. As she tries to adapt to school life and normalcy, it all comes crashing down at prom, where one last prank brings her to the point of no return.  

What elevates this show to incredible heights and separates it from other “Carrie” media is the acting and characterization of characters that could have been otherwise forgettable. The main bully of Carrie, Chris Hargensen, played by actress Alison Thornton, plays a version of Chris that is so pathetic and evil that it is bound to make viewers feel visceral rage towards the pain she inflicts upon Carrie. The show adds additional depth to Chris’ character as well, showing how her father enabled her to be the way she is.  

Tommy Ross, played Joel Oulette, perfectly encapsulates a man that is simply pure of heart and wanted the best for Carrie, which makes the final moments of the show even more emotional. A standout performance is Carrie’s mother, Margaret White, played by actress Samantha Sloyan, who showcases how complex Carrie’s mother is. Throughout the show, her body language and expressions convey an internal battle with herself; she deeply loves her daughter but is so driven by fear and paranoia that she cannot love her in a healthy way. When she isn’t going on a religious rant or forcing Carrie to pray in the closet, she genuinely tries to help her in the way she knows, and it is uncomfortable how real the tension feels between the mother-daughter duo.  

As a show centered on Carrie though, there are some changes that are downright questionable, and oftentimes offensive to the source material. Carrie in the books is presented as a zealot; she is not easy to like as she’s presented as off-putting and extremely religious like her mother. Carrie in the 2026 miniseries is innocent and, quite frankly, way too normal for the bullying enacted upon her to be taken seriously. Played by Summer H. Howell, miniseries Carrie is simply sheltered. She doesn’t know much about anything due to being homeschooled, but that’s about it. She’s not unattractive, nor is she overbearing to others in religious rants. As a result, Carrie is only really bullied by Chris and her small crew. In fact, everyone in the show gets bullied the whole time by other people, so the attention gets a little drawn away from Carrie herself. When Carrie does get bullied though, it’s cruel and deeply upsetting, because of how pure and kind this version of Carrie is.  

And the biggest problem with the show quite frankly is the finale and infamous prom scene. This is a spoiler-free review, but to put it quite simply, it is clear that Flanagan plans on making Carrie not a standalone series, but to tie it in with all other Stephen King shows and films in a sort of Marvel Cinematic Universe fashion. This decision definitely shows itself in the finale and throughout the show and seriously dulls Carrie’s character and strips away her agency as she is groomed by another new character to act in a way that is out of her control. 

All in all, despite “Carrie” being enjoyable to watch, fans of the novel will almost certainly raise an eyebrow or simply be frustrated with the version of “Carrie.” Messy plot aside, it stands as a clearly high-quality show with memorable actors that still deserves a watch.  

Grade: B- or C for avid “Carrie” fans