There are several TV shows in development based on Stephen King stories, and here's all of them. Having written over 60 full-length novellas and over 200 short stories, King is not only one of the most popular and well-known authors of all time, but he's also one of the most prolific. Many jokes have been made about how fast King pumps out new work, but that's never been an issue for Hollywood, who, outside of a few slow periods, has usually seemed willing to turn whatever King produces into movies or TV shows.
King saw his first movie adaptation get made much faster than many authors, with Carrie becoming a legendary horror movie from director Brian De Palma a mere two years after the book was published in 1974. At this point, dozens of multi-part miniseries, TV shows, and movies have been made adapting King's work, and it's a testament to just how much there is of it that Hollywood isn't even close to adapting all of it. The fact that they're also adapting lots of King's books more than once is certainly helping in that.
At the time of writing, there are eleven different TV shows based on Stephen King's books currently in some stage of confirmed development. Some are headed to streaming, some to cable channels, and some even to regular old broadcast TV. For all of King's constant watchers, here's every Stephen King TV show in development.
Billy Summers
The most recently announced TV show based on a Stephen King book is Billy Summers, produced by J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot company. Bad Robot previously handled TV adaptations of 11/22/63, Lisey's Story, and the original King-inspired show Castle Rock. Billy Summers focuses on the titular hitman, who infiltrates a small town as part of his last big job, only to grow disillusioned with his task.
Carrie
Carrie, King's first published novel, is also set to become the first of his books to be adapted four different times, assuming an in-development limited series by FX comes to pass. The project was announced in late 2019, and little is known about it, outside of a reported desire to cast a trans woman or woman of color in the lead role. One wonders what another version could possibly add, but time will tell. That said, Carrie was previously adapted into movies in 1976, 2002 (for TV), and 2013.
The Institute
Released in fall 2019, Stephen King's novel The Institute was almost immediately optioned by Hollywood for adaptation. Spyglass Media Group is in charge of the project, with the team of David E. Kelley and Jack Bender on board to write and direct, respectively. They also worked on the acclaimed TV series version of King's Mr. Mercedes. The book is a blend of Firestarter and IT, and features kids with powers being abducted and taken to the titular place.
The Jaunt
Stephen King doesn't often enter the realm of sci-fi, but one of his best blends of sci-fi and horror is the short story The Jaunt, found in the Skeleton Crew collection. It takes place in a future where teleportation technology allows instantaneous space travel for the general public. That is unless the safety rules aren't followed. Fear the Walking Dead co-creator Dave Erickson is developing the adaptation as of 2021, but it remains to be seen how the quite brief story will be expanded to series length.
Joyland
Cable channel Freeform is developing Joyland, an adaptation of King's 2013 murder mystery novel blending horror with crime. The status of the theme park-set project is currently unclear, as development was announced in 2018, with a pilot script commissioned. Joyland may have slipped into development hell, but that could still change.
Later
King's 2021 novel Later is being adapted for TV by Blumhouse Television, although a network or streaming outlet isn't yet attached. Lucy Liu is set to star as Tia, owner of a literary agency and mother to a son who possesses the gift of communicating with the dead, a power soon used for questionable means by Tia's police detective girlfriend. Emmy-nominated True Blood writer Raelle Tucker is scripting the pilot.
Overlook
Overlook, another King TV project that's status seems to be in flux, is a spinoff of King's classic novel The Shining, telling previously untold stories set at the titular hotel. The show, produced by Bad Robot, was originally developed for HBO Max, but Warner Bros. ended up passing on Overlook in 2021. However, Bad Robot is now shopping Overlook around to other outlets, and prospects seem good it'll find a home.
Revelations
In the works at The CW, Revelations is an adaptation of the King short story "The Revelations of Becka Paulson," also from the Skeleton Crew collection. The story was previously adapted fairly closely into an episode of the 1990s Outer Limits. This new project will differ greatly, with the new Becka accidentally shooting herself in the head, then being recruited by a frustrated Jesus to possibly stop the apocalypse.
Sleeping Beauties
In development at AMC is Sleeping Beauties, an adaptation of a 2017 novel written by Stephen King and his son Owen. The book takes place in a world where when women go to sleep, they become encased in cocoons, and if disturbed, they react with violence. This essentially leaves men in the world alone. The status of this project is a bit unclear, as AMC commissioned Owen to write a pilot script in 2019, but no updates have been forthcoming since then.
The Talisman
Various producers, studios, and directors have been trying to get an adaptation of King and Peter Straub's joint novel The Talisman made for years, but as of 2021, that finally seems to be happening. Netflix is developing a TV show adaptation of The Talisman, with both Stranger Things creators The Duffer Brothers and Steven Spielberg on board as executive producers. It remains to be seen how close King and Straub's epic tale about a young boy named Jack on a quest to save his dying mother will be adhered to.
The Ten O'Clock People
Bearing a noticeable resemblance to John Carpenter's They Live, The Ten O'Clock People is a short story from Stephen King's Nightmares and Dreamscapes collection that focuses on a Boston man suddenly able to see that many powerful people are actually terrifying monsters in disguise. Little is known about the TV adaptation, which was announced in 2021 and is still in the early stages.