It’s baffling to think back to a time when the majority of Stephen King adaptations were TV movies produced by broadcast networks, since those are the places where new projects aren’t happening these days. Case in point: Paramount+ revealed new details and first looks for its upcoming prequel Pet Sematary: Bloodlines, which is a straight-to-streaming sequel to Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer’s 2019 theatrical feature (which isn’t quite a retread of Mary Lambert’s 1989 film). And while the analytical side of my brain is highly skeptical any time a sequel like this comes to life (eep) without being based directly on King’s source material, I find it impossible not to root for any project that co-stars David Duchovny, Pam Grier and Henry Thomas.
The shot above of the mystical, animal-filled cemetery is one of the new looks at the Pet Sematary origin story, which puts to rest questions about its prequel nature that arose during production. Check out the poster below, which notes the film's streaming premiere date of October 6, and combines the signature grave circles with a cool-looking silhouette of all the grave markers. But like, is that a bear head on there? Are we supposed to believe that someone kept a bear as a pet, or is that more like an unfinished bear headpiece meant to represent the native population that lived there years prior?
Pam Grier technically gets a "with" credit as part of the Pet Sematary: Bloodlines cast, indicating she may not be a major part of the story from beginning to end. But even if all she does is pop into the story to blow an evil animal’s head off, along with an anecdote about how she got her facial scars, then it’s a win for this prequel that its predecessor was not able to boast.
And then we have X-Files vet and all-around mood-driver David Duchovny, who has somehow never headed up a Stephen King project before. (Even though the actor and author did compete against one another during a 1995 episode of Celebrity Jeopardy!, with Lynn Redgrave as the third contestant.) As Bill, Duchovny is paired with Grier as a “with” credit, and the fact that he’s seeing what appears to be an undead person (Jack Mulhern’s Timmy) in the reflection doesn’t bode well for his future.
Someone who does have experience with Stephen King adaptations is Henry Thomas, who has been part of Mike Flanagan’s features Gerald’s Game and Doctor Sleep, as well as starring in the TV movie Stephen King’s Desperation and the “End of the Whole Mess” installment of the anthology Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King. Within the world of Pet Sematary: Bloodlines, he’ll be playing a character named Dan who, at least in the picture below, looks like he’d be in good company with Jeffrey Dahmer.
Isabella Star LaBlanc (Long Slow Inhale) can be seen below as Donna alongside Forrest Goodluck (The Revenant) as Manny, and they're in the thick of some lovely and lush greenery, with sunflowers and hazardous-looking plants all around. They don't appear to be looking at anything they're highly excited to see, so I can't wait to see what else is hiding amongst the plantlife.
And then we have Mrs. Fletcher and Ambulance's Jackson White as the most familiar character in the bunch, as he'll be portraying Judd Crandall, who was portrayed by John Lithgow in the 2019 film. (And by Fred Gwynne in the '87 adaptation.) Not a whole lot to get excited by in this pic specifically — remember round side mirrors? — but there was only downhill to go after Pam Grier anyway.
Finally, we go from humans to a more feral beast that almost automatically calls to mind Cujo, just on the nature of it being a fucked-up dog in a Stephen King-inspired narrative. To be fair, the mutt looks kind of happy, but probably because it just submerged itself in the tears of its victims. Or a nearby lake. Whatever the case may be, is this Patient X when it comes to the pet cemetery's affect on the world?
Pet Sematary: Bloodlines was co-written by Jeff Buhler and Lindsey Anderson Beer, and serves as Beer's directorial debut. It will be available to stream with a Paramount+ subscription on Friday, October 6, but there are plenty of upcoming horror releases to bury your heads in while waiting.
