Stephen King Loved The Last House on the Left Remake

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Throughout his 50-year career, Stephen King has worked with many of horror’s most famous directors. His first novel, Carrie, was made into a film by Brian De Palma, and since then, directors like John Carpenter (Christine), Tobe Hooper (Salem’s Lot, The Mangler), Mike Flanagan (Doctor Sleep, Gerald’s Game), and David Cronenberg (The Dead Zone) have all brought his stories to the screen. However, despite his success, one prominent horror director never adapted any of King’s work: Wes Craven.

Wes Craven, the director famous for films like A Nightmare on Elm Street and the first four Scream movies, was a highly influential filmmaker. It’s surprising that he never worked with Stephen King, especially since Craven often said Carrie was one of his favorite books and he also loved Cujo. Their connection was limited to a few things: some believed Craven was inspired by King’s work when making Shocker, due to similar themes, and King was once a potential director for A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child. Beyond that, they rarely spoke about each other, possibly because of King’s initial impressions of Craven’s films.

Stephen King Criticized Wes Craven Early in His Writing Career

Seven years after his novel Carrie came out in 1981, Stephen King published Danse Macabre, a non-fiction book exploring the impact of horror on society, personal fears, and popular culture. King analyzes horror from the Victorian era to more modern examples, and how it affects audiences. The book was generally well-received, with King highlighting influential works like Rosemary’s Baby by Ira Levin and Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury. He was somewhat critical of director Wes Craven, who was still relatively unknown at the time, having directed only a few lesser-known films.

By 1981, Wes Craven had directed only a few films – The Last House on the Left, The Hills Have Eyes, Stranger in Our House, and the X-rated The Fireworks Woman. Stephen King, in his book Danse Macabre, was dismissive of Craven’s early work, calling it unoriginal and suggesting all his movies felt the same. While Craven hadn’t yet made films like The People Under the Stairs or Scream, receiving such criticism from the author of Carrie and The Shining likely stung.

Stephen King Loved the 2009 Remake of The Last House on The Left

In 2009, Greek director Dennis Iliadis revisited Wes Craven’s debut film, The Last House on the Left, with a modern remake. The new version featured Garret Dillahunt, Monica Potter, and Aaron Paul of Breaking Bad, but received mixed reviews. Critics gave it a 42% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, significantly lower than the original’s score. While the remake was considered very violent, many felt it lacked the deeper meaning found in Craven’s film.

In 2009, Stephen King praised the remake of Last House on the Left, calling it the best horror film of the new century. He admired how the updated story maintained the intensity of Wes Craven’s original while presenting it in a fresh way. In a 2010 update to his book Danse Macabre, King explained that the remake’s story was logical and, crucially, maintained a clear moral center. He felt the villains were truly monstrous and deserved a definitive end, not endless sequels, and considered the film to be as strong as The Silence of the Lambs.

While The Last House on the Left isn’t considered as critically acclaimed as Jonathan Demme’s award-winning thriller, Stephen King actually preferred it to Wes Craven’s original. King famously called Craven’s film a “crapfest,” likely because of its harsh and realistic portrayal of sexual assault and the subsequent revenge. Craven’s earlier work often feels deeply pessimistic, and despite similar endings, something about that specific movie particularly bothered King.

I always loved that Stephen King eventually admitted Wes Craven was a true horror genius – it’s no surprise, really, considering he created classics like A Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream. It’s such a shame, though. Craven passed away in 2015, and now a collaboration between those two brilliant minds will sadly never happen. It would have been amazing to see what they could have created together.

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2026-04-20 17:39