299: The Woman in the Room with Randy Havens

Mr. Clarke himself, Randy Havens, joins The Kingcast boys to talk about the final Stranger Things season, the not-so-chill fans that showed up in its wake, working with Frank Darabont and looking back at Darabont's very first Stephen King adaption: The Woman in the Room. 

For those sensitive listeners out there, consider this fair warning: when our guest Mallory O'Meara (Girly Drinks, The Lady from the Black Lagoon) pops up on The Kingcast, things tend to get a little raunchy and this episode is no exception. She may be a James Beard award winning author, but she also hosts a podcast called Reading Smut.Mallory returns to the show to finally dive into some Dark Tower waters as the topic turns to Stephen King's novella The Little Sisters of Eluria, which takes place not too long before the first novel in the Dark Tower series, The Gunslinger.What does Pixar's Cars have to do with this story? What about a surprisingly extended conversation about what other bodily fluids can sustain a vampire? Well, you'll just have to listen to find out!

It is time to return to Mid-World in this final Kingcast episode of 2025 as indie horror star Graham Skipper (Re-Animator: The Musical, Almost Human, Beyond the Gates) joins Breznican and Vespe to discuss the fourth book in Stephen King's Dark Tower series: Wizard and Glass.  We break down the plot, underline how it weirdly mirrors the plot that George Lucas would later use for The Phantom Menace, and take a deep dive into how this book really plays to King's strength at mixing intricate character work and unbelievable world-building. 

Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele, were tragically murdered over the weekend and the film community is still reeling. Reiner was not only a kind man, someone dedicated to protecting the rights and freedoms of everybody, and a talented filmmaker, he was one of the very few filmmakers that understood exactly how to translate Stephen King to the big screen. Author Nat Cassidy (The Wolf at the Door) and film commentator Drew McWeeny (The Hip Pocket Podcast) join Beznican and Vespe to discuss the tragic loss of Reiner and celebrate his massive contributions to the world of cinema, from his King adaptations Stand By Me, Misery, and The Shawshank Redemption (which he produced for Frank Darabont) to the genre defining classics This Is Spinal Tap, The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally, and A Few Good Men.

If you're a fan of SCREAM then you're going to want to pay attention to today's episode featuring none other than Stu Macher and Billy Loomis themselves, Matthew Lillard and Skeet Ulrich. They're appearing in the upcoming Five Nights At Freddy's 2 and they decided to stop by The Kingcast to talk about their love of King's work and specifically Frank Darabont's adaptation of The Shawshank Redemption. We also talk about their real life friendship, the stain that is toxic masculinity, working with Wes Craven on the original Scream, and even about Skeet's rather... interesting... appearance as a poster above Satan and Saddam Hussein's bed in South Park.

Peter Hall and Paul Gandersman, the writer/directors behind the upcoming genre flick MAN FINDS TAPE, join your intrepid Kingcast hosts to discuss one of Stephen King's underappreciated and as yet unadapted books: Joyland.  Conversation jumps between their film, their deep cut Stephen King origin stories, some Dark Tower nerdiness, and why Joyland plays so well into King's strengths as an author. We even fancast our adaptation and do a damn good job at it, if we don't say so ourselves.

Pop culture experts and the hosts of HBO's It: Welcome to Derry Official Companion Podcast, Marc Bernardin and Princess Weekes, join Breznican and Vespe in the crossover event of the decade! What better place to land Marc and Princess than The Kingcast where we can talk through Stephen King stuff, the deeper themes at play in It: Welcome to Derry, and what it's like running the official HBO companion podcast for this series.

At long last director Edgar Wright finally makes an appearance on The Kingcast and he brought some friends along. Wright stops by to talk about his current Stephen King adaptation, The Running Man, and it just so happens that his cast was also promoting the movie so you're going to get Stephen King Origin Stories (TM) from stars Glen Powell, Lee Pace, and Josh Brolin before a lengthy chat with Edgar about constructing this particular adaptation, Stephen King's reaction to it and notes along the way, the Richard Bachman of it all, and King's adoration of Shaun of the Dead.

The Kingcast's Eric Vespe and Anthony Breznican are doing their own watch along show as HBO's It: Welcome to Derry rolls out. Check out this exclusive feed drop as they dive into episode 1 of the Pennywise prequel show from the creators of the It films. If you like what you hear make sure to subscribe to Watching It: Welcome to Derry to hear Brez and Vez discuss each episode week to week!

The day is here! Andy and Barbara Muschietti, the creative duo behind the It films and the upcoming prequel series, have finally come on The Kingcast to talk all about dat boy, Pennywise. Or is it dat girl, Pennywise? This is one of many topics brought up as Andy and Barbara discuss their love of King's work, the challenges of adapting for both the big and small screen, and even share some never before revealed details about a massive scene cut from It: Chapter One.