Apple TV’s New Horror Show Borrows Stephen King’s Greatest Storytelling Trick

A new horror comedy series on Apple TV seems to cleverly borrow one of Stephen King‘s greatest storytelling tricks. Since Stephen King is often touted as the King of Horror, it should not be surprising that his influence can often be found in many new additions to the horror genre. Even some of the greatest horror filmmakers, like Mike Flanagan, keep drawing from his work.

Apple TV’s new horror series, Widow’s Bay, follows an original story and is not a direct adaptation of any literary works. However, from its opening episode itself, it is hard not to notice how it seems reminiscent of many Stephen King stories. Unlike most Stephen King books, Widow’s Bay does not take itself too seriously and often layers some of its most terrifying scenes with a layer of levity.

However, a closer look at the villains and monsters it features in its storyline reveals how they are similar to the ones from many Stephen King stories. Interestingly, it is these similarities between the monsters portrayed in the show and Stephen King’s works that allow the Apple TV horror series to effectively land its comical moments.

The Monsters In Apple TV’s Widow’s Bay Are Reminiscent Of Stephen King’s Iconic Villains

The monsters in Stephen King’s stories often have an “ancient” quality to them, making them far older than the settings and people they haunt. For instance, Pennywise himself is considered an ancient being who predates humanity and has existed for millions of years. Many of these monsters also do not hide in the shadows. Instead, they come out and play with humans and even try to alter their sense of perception and reality.

Owing to this, Stephen King’s stories often rely less on jumpscares and more on the eerily absurd nature of their central supernatural villains. Apple TV’s Widow’s Bay brings a similar sense of absurdity to its supernatural threats, allowing the show to be both scary and hilarious at the same time.

In its first three episodes, Widow’s Bay has primarily introduced three major supernatural threats: a clown, a deadly fog, and a Sea Hag. While the clown, for obvious reasons, seems reminiscent of Pennywise from Stephen King’s It, the deadly fog reminds one of the titular mist from The Mist. Even the Sea Hag seems a lot like Rhea of the Cöos from The Dark Tower.

Like Stephen King’s villains, these supernatural beings in Widow’s Bay do not shy away from interacting directly with humans. They do not lurk quietly in the background and actively manipulate and torment the main character in the series. This allows their presence to feel absurdly theatrical while still being quite terrifying.

Widow’s Bay achieves the rare feat of simultaneously scaring and amusing a viewer. If it was too inclined towards following the conventions of horror and featuring sneaky and mysterious monsters, it would not have been half as funny. What makes it chilling and hilarious at the same time is its ability to somehow humanize some of its most inhuman supernatural threats, making it the perfect show for Stephen King fans.

Apple TV’s Widow’s Bay Is Partly Inspired By Stephen King

Considering its similarities with many Stephen King stories, it should not be surprising that the King of Horror served as a major influence for the series. In an interview (via Polygon), Widow’s Bay’s showrunner, Katie Dippold, admitted that Stephen King was one of her influences when she wrote the series. “I really wanted to tap into that Stephen King atmosphere,” she said (via The Boston Globe).

Despite its Stephen King similarities, though, Widow’s Bay also deserves credit for establishing its own identity in the horror genre. Its monsters might instill a feeling of familiarity, but the ease with which the show makes them seem both scary and funny is just brilliant.

Widow’s Bay‘s comedy and terror are further elevated by its talented cast, which includes Matthew Rhys, Stephen Root, and Kate O’Flynn. The show has earned almost unanimous acclaim from critics and currently boasts a near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes score of 97%.

Hopefully, even in terms of viewership, Widow’s Bay will perform as well as some of Apple TV‘s best shows and get to garner as much mainstream success as the Stephen King stories it draws from.