MOVIE NEWS – Even as Stephen King adaptations have continued to arrive at a steady pace, just days after the Duffer Brothers confirmed that Netflix had pulled the plug on The Talisman, another long-gestating project based on King’s work has now been officially shut down.

For fans of Stephen King, 2025 turned out to be a strong year. Adaptations such as The Life of Chuck, The Long Walk, and The Running Man all generated solid reactions from critics and audiences alike. Still, that momentum has not carried every project through development. The latest casualty is The Revelations of ’Becka Paulson, a series first announced in 2020 as part of The CW’s planned slate.

According to the Matt’s Inside Line newsletter, the series was effectively killed following The CW’s acquisition by Nexstar in October 2022. The change in ownership triggered an aggressive cost-cutting strategy, leading to the cancellation or shutdown of numerous scripted shows. That shift also marked the end of the Arrowverse and several other once-core series, as the network pivoted toward cheaper acquired programming and sports content.

What Was The Revelations of ’Becka Paulson About?

The project was set to adapt a 1984 Stephen King short story originally published in Rolling Stone magazine, later included in a limited edition of his collection Skeleton Crew. The story features a character King would revisit in his 1987 novel The Tommyknockers, where the material was reworked into one of the book’s subplots.

The narrative centers on Rebecca “Becka” Paulson, who accidentally shoots herself in the head with her husband’s .22 Winchester. The bullet lodges in her brain without killing her, after which Becka begins experiencing vivid hallucinations, believing that a three-dimensional image of Jesus is speaking to her and revealing the secrets of everyone around her.

The story had previously been adapted only once, serving as the basis for a 1995 episode of The Outer Limits starring Catherine O’Hara, with John Diehl and Steven Weber also appearing. The canceled CW series would have been the only other attempt to bring the story to the screen, leaving unanswered whether it might have become another standout King adaptation or simply a forgotten curiosity.

Several Stephen King projects remain in development. Mike Flanagan continues to be one of the most determined figures bringing King’s work to television, with his adaptation of Carrie set to arrive on Prime Video in 2026, and ongoing hopes that he will eventually tackle The Dark Tower. MGM+ has also greenlit a second season of The Institute.

Source: MovieWeb