When I took this assignment from my editor, I may have been the teensiest bit hasty. I read the words “Tiny Terrors” and immediately my mind jumped to Zuni fetish dolls terrorizing victims or Gremlins and Critters wreaking havoc on small towns. Count me in.
Turns out, as reported by The Wrap, Stephen King and JJ Abrams are partnering again to work on a new anthology horror series that will be “really, really scary.” While I would prefer a Stephen King / JJ Abrams collab on a series featuring tiny monsters with tons of special effects and utter chaos, I will definitely take this as a strong second place.
The two have worked together previously on Castle Rock and are currently working on Lisey’s Story based on the book of the same name. Stephen King is no stranger to anthologies as he worked with George Romero on 1982’s Creepshow (and even featured in a segment as Jordy Verrill in an unforgettably tragic role). Lesser known is the extremely creative Cat’s Eye anthology film that had three slightly entwined horror-adjacent segments. Two were from King’s Night Shift book of short stories and one was an original story featuring an unforgettable battle between a breath-stealing troll and a cat on a mission to save Drew Barrymore. Hey, look! There’s another “tiny terror.” Maybe there is hope for little monsters in this series after all.
As I approach my targeted word count, I would be remiss If I didn’t mention how both creators are adept at weaving their stories and making them deeper than they appear on the surface. JJ Abrams’ Cloverfield had a truly remarkable marketing campaign called “Alternate Reality Game” which rewarded fans with a backstory that enhanced their viewings of the film without requiring casual viewers to know to enjoy. Unlike many series and films of the current era, small Easter eggs, dialogue, and callbacks can be an “A-ha!” moment for the most obsessed fans but not leave someone lost without that info. This was seen in CBS’ 2020 The Stand miniseries. Plenty of callbacks to The Dark Tower, but all are just icing on the Stephen King cake.
Castle Rock was a great concept that didn’t seem to garner the attention it deserved, so I hope Tiny Terrors will bring us something scary, fun, and if I have my way, little monsters.
