WARNING: Spoilers ahead for The Stand.
CBS's The Stand miniseries ended with the shocking revelation that Randall Flagg is still alive, but what does this mean for the future of Stephen King's story? And, will there be a season 2? Here's everything we know about The Stand's future so far.
Stephen King's The Stand has been adapted into a made for TV miniseries twice in its approximately 40 years of existence. Out of King's many novels - not including his short story collections - it remains the longest, exceeding It by 14 pages, as well as one of his most cherished stories to date. It focuses on the classic battle between good and evil, which comes in the form of Mother Abagail and Randall Flagg. Given the length of the book, it's obvious that numerous elements of the original text would be excluded for the sake of time, pacing, and character development. Based on this fact, there are several paths filmmakers can take when they take on the task of transforming The Stand from novel to movie; thus, leading to ample opportunity to adapt it for years to come.
Nearly every Stephen King novel has multiple adaptations, whether in the form of miniseries such as Salem's Lot or two-part feature-length movies like IT: Chapter One and IT: Chapter Two. In the case of The Stand, the CBS miniseries may be the last adaptation audiences see for at least 10 years, as season 2 may be incredibly unlikely and the overwhelming mixed reviews impacted its overall reception. However, the future could be filled with The Stand features in the form of feature-length movies and possibly another miniseries adaptation.
Will The Stand Season 2 Ever Happen?
Due to the fact that The Stand is a miniseries, it is highly unlikely season 2 will ever happen. However, The Stand did end with the perfect set-up for a follow-up, as Randall Flagg is still alive and will undoubtedly wreak havoc across the world once more. There is only one known Stephen King miniseries that warranted a season 2, The Outsider. Despite the fact that King stated that he was interested in seeing it expand, it was canceled by HBO in November 2020. Therefore, statistics show that series based on his works are not the easiest to continue. Even the Hulu horror anthology Castle Rock was cancelled after season 2, despite having a wealth of content to work off of. As of this writing, The Stand will not continue.
The Stand Movie Plans
Prior to the premiere of CBS's miniseries, Warner Bros was developing a movie adaptation of The Stand for several years. Ultimately, it was reworked in order to create the current iteration that concluded this year. It is unlikely that a movie adaptation will happen in the near future. If The Stand does become a movie, it won't happen for years, as filmmakers must be mindful of the proximity and timeline of these releases. It is common for a 20-30 year separation between them, such as the IT miniseries and Andy Muschietti's movie series. Currently, there are no known announcements regarding a The Stand movie.
Another Miniseries On The Stand?
When Warner Bros underwent the process of developing The Stand into a movie, they started in January 2011. It took approximately 10 years to see their project come to life in the form of a miniseries. Prior to the 2020-2021 The Stand, the 1994 version released, which had an even lengthier history of development. Initially, George Romero was set to direct The Stand with Stephen King as its screenwriter. Their talks began in the early 1980s, but the story never saw the light of day until the author was approached with the opportunity to make it a made for TV miniseries. Therefore, it took approximately 14 years from the moment of conception to its release to create a The Stand miniseries. Based on this pattern, it is likely there won't be another The Stand miniseries and, if there is, it is possible it won't see the light of day for another 10-15 years.