Dream Casting For The Carrie Remake

Hollywood, in its infinite, money-spinning wisdom, has decided to once again flog the dead horse that is Stephen King's breakout debut novel, despite or perhaps because of a hugely popular 1970s adaptation starring Sissy Spacek.  The less said about its loose "Generation X" sequel and TV pilot the better.  While I remain undecided as to whether this is a good idea or not (film versions of King's work vary greatly in quality), it was interesting to give a little thought to who might be suitable for the role of Carrie White, the victim of cruel bullying who exacts revenge with her telekinetic powers.

Below are my top picks.

Lindsay Lohan: This name, believe it or not, has already come up on the net as a possibility.  While LiLo has become more famous for her court appearances and personal life recently than she has for her film work, a teen horror flick might be just what she needs to get her career back on track, or at least regain some of the pop culture clout she achieved with Mean Girls.  I'm thinking update the story to a university or apartment building so that she doesn't appear too old for the part, and lay on the sexual tension as Carrie is torn between her wish to conform and her secret crush on Sue Snell (that's not a spoiler, I just totally made it up).

Kristen Stewart: Hear me out! While I find K-Stew wholly unappealing in the Twilight films, I feel that has more to do with the cardboard cut-out of a character she is being forced to play.  Rewind a few years to her role as awkward teenager Lucy in the indie drama In The Land Of Women, and you start to get a glimpse of what she might be capable of.  Plus she has horror experience with The Messengers, and the Carrie franchise would attract her built-in Twilight fanbase.  So think on that, Hollywood.

Kaya Scodelario: Better known as Effy Stonem in the first four seasons of British drama Skins, Kaya Scodelario could perfectly embody the skinny, vulnerable Carrie.  She'd bring in the trendy young crowd, and as she's shown in the role of Effy, she can swing from "mystery girl" to "tortured psychopath" with ease.  In fact, why not shift the entire story to an arts college in Bristol and show her wreaking supernatural havoc on her hipster classmates?  I for one would pay for that ticket.

Jessica Stroup: Famous for playing the pixie-like, bipolar Silver in 90210, Stroup has an otherworldly charm - and looks a hell of a lot like a young Mia Kirschner.  She's young enough to be believable as a teenage girl struggling with the burgeoning power brought on by a late and traumatic puberty, and the rest of the cast could be peppered with pretty Beverly Hills faces.

Jennifer Lawrence: Having proven her acting chops in the Oscar-nominated Winter's Bone and wowed fanboys as misfit Raven in the X-Men reboot, Lawrence is certainly flavour of the month.  If she could fit in the role of Carrie amongst her Hunger Games commitments, she'd be a sure-fire box office draw - and she has enough talent to carry what would otherwise undoubtedly be a terrible and unoriginal rehash.

Who do you think would make the best Carrie White for the 2010s?  Feel free to submit your own suggestions in the comments below.

Top 5: Stephen King and the "Final Girl"

In the same way that Joss Whedon's feminist beliefs compel him to imperil beautiful girls in order for them to fight their way to freedom, so Stephen King brings us tale after tale of ordinary women (and plenty of men) who find themselves in the most nightmarish of scenarios and must risk everything to survive.  This Top 5 post is dedicated to that classic horror trope, the "final girl" - the female who, through cunning or skill or sheer virtue, stands triumphant at the end of the tale.

Spoilers may lie ahead for readers not familiar with all of Stephen King's work - so, you know. Beware.

5. Lisey
LISEY'S STORY
There's a tiny clue in the title of this novel as to which character might last to the final page.  As everything in the book is from Lisey's perspective, one might suspect that there is no feeling of danger - but King still manages to make the reader fear for Lisey as she discovers the unreal world that her late husband spent much of his troubled life in.  More than any other King novel, Lisey's Story is about empowerment.  Having long been the supportive wife, Lisey is forced to walk into hell alone, and come out the other side.

4. Sue Snell
CARRIE
It would be easy enough to remember the ending of Carrie, which we all read a long time ago, as one where everybody ended up dead.  Not quite: Sue Snell, the popular girl who tried to do something nice for outcast Carrie White, survives to witness the destruction her own actions caused.  If she hadn't encouraged her boyfriend to take Carrie to the prom, then the unfortunate pig's blood incident would never have happened, and all those cruel teenagers who tormented her would still be alive.  Actually, come to think of it, it sounds like an unconventionally happy ending to me.

3. Wendy
THE SHINING
Motherly love never came stronger than it did in Wendy Torrance.  A large, uneasy portion of The Shining is spent watching her walk on eggshells around her recovering alcoholic husband, all the while being eaten up inside with fear and anger at what might happen to their son Danny if Jack falls off the wagon.  Stanley Kubrick's film adaptation did nothing to convey the lioness-defending-her-cub strength of character that Wendy embodies in the book - shattered bones and a head injury do not stop her dragging herself, inch by painful inch, to Danny's aid.

2. Rosie
ROSE MADDER
This story is one of numerous trials.  Rose Daniels suffers for years at the hands of a violent, abusive husband.  When she finally works up the courage to leave him, an even more terrifying journey begins, as she finds herself drawn into a dream-like painted world, where her fearsome doppelänger holds the key to vengeance.  Rose's survival is a triumph, but is shadowed by an epilogue which reveals (SPOILERS) she has inherited her former husband's bloody rages.


1. Jessie
GERALD'S GAME
Personally, I think the word "harrowing" is overused, especially when describing books.  But in this case I find it incredibly apt - I was as attached to Jessie's ordeal as she was to the bed.  When a simple sex game goes awry and Jessie is left naked and alone, it is not death that poses a threat.  It is the voices.  The madness.  And the misshapen face that keeps emerging from the shadows.  Gerald's Game is not a supernatural novel, making the unlikely peril Jessie faces feel all the more real.