The sudden cancellations of The Revelations of Becka Paulson and The Talisman, two high-profile Stephen King adaptation projects, have highlighted ongoing issues surrounding the success of Stephen King adaptations. As networks and streaming platforms reassess the risks of adapting King’s works, these Stephen King adaptation cancellations reveal shifting attitudes within the entertainment industry.
Multiple King Projects Face Uncertain Futures as Cancellations Pile Up
With over 60 novels to his name, Stephen King remains one of the most adapted authors in the world, his stories stretching across both television and cinema for decades. Recently, interest in his work was reignited; projects like HBO Max’s Welcome to Derry and Glen Powell’s take on The Running Man contributed to a promising surge in Stephen King-related releases in 2025. However, hopes for more screen adaptations soon dimmed as news broke early in January 2026 that both The Talisman and The Revelations of Becka Paulson had been scrapped.
The Talisman, originally a collaborative fantasy novel between Stephen King and Peter Straub, had generated significant excitement when the Duffer Brothers, best known for Stranger Things, announced their involvement. Combining real-world drama with high fantasy, The Talisman follows twelve-year-old Jack Sawyer as he ventures between dimensions to find a cure for his ill mother, battling villains and encountering strange characters along the way. Despite a massive hit finale for Stranger Things on Netflix, the Duffer Brothers announced their departure from The Talisman adaptation soon after its release, leaving King fans disappointed as the project unraveled.
Similarly, The Revelations of Becka Paulson, based on King’s short story from Skeleton Crew, faced its own troubles. Originally revealed in 2020 as a CW project, the proposed adaptation was intriguing for its offbeat narrative about Becka Paulson, a woman who, after accidentally shooting herself, begins having disturbing visions of Jesus revealing her loved ones’ secrets and eventually plotting revenge. The show promised to expand on the dark, succinct source material, though its cancellation shortly after The Talisman’s demise worsened the blow to King’s audience and suggested a broader retreat from taking on riskier King projects.
Television Adaptations No Longer Come With a Stephen King Guarantee
The abrupt end to plans surrounding The Revelations of Becka Paulson underscored an emerging skepticism in King-related TV content. Within a week of The Talisman’s collapse, the news of Becka Paulson’s cancellation made it clear that network confidence was eroding. Mixed reviews and fluctuating viewership for recent King adaptations have signaled to producers and platforms that not all of the author’s stories are surefire bets, regardless of his legacy or the built-in fan base.
Historically, for every critical success in King-based television, such as 2020’s adaptation of The Outsider or the hit series Mr. Mercedes, there have also been expensive failures. The Mist in 2017 and CBS’s version of The Stand in 2020 both struggled significantly. The Stand, despite its relevance during the COVID-19 pandemic, suffered from jumbled storytelling, questionable casting choices, and radical departures from the original narrative. This reinforced that even King’s recognizable name does not reliably convert into ratings or acclaim, and highlighted the risks producers like tv producers now weigh more heavily.
Box Office Disappointments Compound the Loss of Faith in King Properties
While 2017 saw the success of It, a billion-dollar horror film that managed to adapt one of King’s most sprawling texts, other big-screen projects have not fared as well. The Stand, adapted for television, became even more complicated and inconsistent than the original novel, suggesting a growing struggle in translating King’s denser material for audiences.
Recent film adaptations have not alleviated these concerns. The Running Man, led by Glen Powell in 2025, failed to capture the audience despite positive critical reviews. The same year, Mike Flanagan’s The Life of Chuck suffered a similar fate, not finding commercial traction despite Flanagan’s pedigree within the horror genre. Notably, Francis Lawrence’s adaptation of The Long Walk managed to recoup its production budget, but it performed modestly compared to his earlier triumphs with The Hunger Games franchise and I Am Legend.
Adding to these woes, the 2024 adaptation of Salem’s Lot bypassed theaters entirely, premiering on streaming platforms, a move that further illustrated Hollywood’s waning assurance in major box office results from King adaptations. These outcomes make it less surprising that networks, including Netflix and the CW, are pulling back from deeper expansions into King’s expansive library.
Uncertain Prospects Ahead for Stephen King Adaptations
The string of Stephen King adaptation cancellations reflects an industry reckoning with the limitations of King’s work as a television and film commodity. The withdrawal of the Duffer Brothers from The Talisman, combined with the shelving of The Revelations of Becka Paulson at the CW, signals more cautious strategies from networks, producers, and streaming services alike when handling King properties.
For now, audiences may face fewer chances to see their favorite Stephen King stories brought to life, as recent cancellations serve as a warning to entertainment companies investing in large-scale adaptations. As the fate of future projects like Welcome to Derry or efforts from directors such as Mike Flanagan and Francis Lawrence await audience and financial verdicts, the once-certain appeal of King’s stories on screen grows increasingly uncertain. The outcome of this trend will shape how classic horror and fantasy works are handled going forward, with Stephen King’s adaptations standing at a crossroads.
