There's a Novel Stephen King Regrets Writing – It's Adaptation Sits at 33% on RT

For over 40 years, Pet Sematary has remained one of Stephen King's best-known works. The novel, which tells the story of a young doctor named Louis Creed who moves into a house by the road, served as a kind of psychotherapy for King himself.

Through his writing, he explored the fears he had about his own family. How does one tell one's daughter that her cat has died? Is it even worth telling her?

Stephen King Confirmed He Didn't Want to Publish 'Pet Sematary'

The end result was so dark, however, that King described it as the most terrible work of his career and initially did not want to publish the novel. Vampires and mad dogs are one thing, but how would readers perceive a story about a child dying under a truck?

In an interview with EW, the author confirmed that he published Pet Sematary only to escape a book contract and said:

“I just had the greatest time writing the book until I was done with it. And I read it over, and I said to myself, "This is awful. This is really f–ing terrible." [...] But all that stuff about the death of kids. It was close to me, because my kids lived on that road.”

'Pet Sematary' Received Several Adaptations

Despite its dark subject matter, the novel was a huge success in both the US and the UK. A film adaptation was inevitable.

Pet Sematary has received four adaptations: two direct ones and one sequel and prequel based on original scripts. Pet Sematary (1989), Pet Sematary II (1992), Pet Sematary (2019), and Pet Sematary: Bloodlines (2023).

None of the Adaptations of 'Pet Sematary' Have Achieved Critical Acclaim

However, none of them were critical hits. The 1989 movie received 56% from critics and 60% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes, and it still remains the best adaptation of the novel.

Director Mary Lambert successfully captured the essence of King's prose, exploring topics such as the acceptance of death, the difficulty of letting go of a loved one, and showed us the most tragic zombies in horror history.

The 2019 remake of Pet Sematary was even less well-received, earning 57% from critics and 33% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes.

Unlike Mary Lambert's movie and the original novel, which relied on a pressing atmosphere, a gloomy mood, and unhurriedness to create fear, the 2019's Pet Sematary scares in a straightforward manner with jump scares and loud sounds.

So if you've ever wanted to get acquainted with one of Stephen King's scariest stories, your best bet is to start with the original novel.