Prime Video has released the first official images from Carrie, offering a new look at Mike Flanagan’s upcoming television adaptation of Stephen King’s debut novel. Summer Howell stars as Carrie White, with Samantha Sloyan playing her fiercely protective mother, Margaret. The new images introduce both characters ahead of the eight-part series arriving on Prime Video this autumn.
The official synopsis reads: Misfit high-schooler Carrie White has spent her life hidden away inside the walls of her home with her fiercely protective mother, Margaret. After her father’s sudden, untimely death thrusts her into the unforgiving ecosystem of public high school, Carrie is forced to navigate a viral bullying scandal that tears through her community, the relentless pressure and casual cruelty of the social-media age, and the awakening of mysterious telekinetic powers that rise alongside her adolescence.
The series will expand King’s original story across eight episodes, following the smaller choices and mounting tensions that lead towards one devastating night. Prime Video says the adaptation will explore kindness, cruelty and the question of whether Carrie is becoming a hero, a monster or something more complicated.
Flanagan’s version will also bring the story into the present day, with social media and viral bullying becoming part of Carrie’s experience at school. That update gives the series room to explore how public humiliation can spread beyond the classroom, while keeping the emotional core of King’s novel intact.
Howell was selected for the lead role following an extensive casting search involving more than 1,000 actors. She is joined by Sloyan, who previously worked with Flanagan on Midnight Mass, The Haunting of Hill House and The Fall of the House of Usher. The wider cast includes Siena Agudong as Sue Snell, Alison Thornton as Chris Hargensen, Joel Oulette as Tommy Ross, Josie Totah as Tina, Arthur Conti as Billy and Thalia Dudek as Emaline. Amber Midthunder will play Miss Desjardin, while Matthew Lillard appears as Principal Grayle.
Flanagan serves as writer, showrunner and executive producer on the series, as well as directing four of its eight episodes. Stephen King is also an executive producer, with Amazon MGM Studios producing.
Published in 1974, Carrie was King’s first novel and introduced readers to the isolated teenager whose telekinetic abilities emerge alongside years of abuse and bullying. The book was famously adapted by Brian De Palma in 1976, with Sissy Spacek playing Carrie and Piper Laurie starring as Margaret.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of De Palma’s film, but Flanagan’s adaptation will be the first time Carrie has been developed as a television series.
At CultureCues, we are looking forward to this one, especially with a strong creative team led by Mike Flanagan behind it. We have always loved the book and its film adaptations, and eight episodes should give Carrie, Margaret and the wider characters more time to develop. The social-media angle also feels like a natural way to bring the bullying into the present day, and could make Carrie’s public humiliation hit even harder. This is firmly on our watch list… Just keep us well away from any suspiciously placed buckets.
Carrie will premiere exclusively on Prime Video in autumn 2026.
Nikki Murray is a UK-based writer, screenwriter and founder & editor of CultureCues, covering film, television, music and pop culture. Her work focuses on storytelling and the moments shaping modern entertainment.