Stephen King’s Supernatural Sci-Fi Series Is Officially Back, And It’s The Perfect Carrie Follow-Up
Mike Flanagan’s Carrie became the biggest Stephen King hit of the year, and it is all set to be followed up with season 2. However, it will be a while before Carrie season 2 sees the light of day. While waiting for its release, horror fans can now watch another ongoing TV adaptation of a Stephen King book, which has officially returned in 2026.
The show in question, The Institute, has a lot in common with Carrie, and these parallels between the two Stephen King stories will now be even more evident.
Carrie marked Stephen King’s literary debut. The Institute, in contrast, ranks among the King of Horror’s more recent books as it was published in 2019. Its first TV adaptation of the same name landed on MGM+ and garnered a more mixed reception compared to recent shows like It: Welcome to Derry and Carrie. Still, MGM+’s The Institute performed well enough to be renewed for another season.
Interestingly, The Institute season 1 exhausted the story from the original Stephen King novel. Owing to this, its second season is now expanding the source material’s lore. After season 1’s developments and season 2’s opening arcs, The Institute is already starting to look like the perfect follow-up to Stephen King’s Carrie. The two Stephen King stories also share some hidden connections.
The Institute Feels Like The Perfect Carrie Follow-Up, Especially In Season 2
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Carrie was the first breakout horror novel in which Stephen King used telekinesis as a narrative device to highlight the impact of abuse on a young adult. The Institute not only riffs on the same themes but also significantly raises the stakes. Instead of featuring only one character with the “Shine,” it shows how multiple children are gifted with telekinesis (TK), telepathy (TP), and precognition.
The characters in The Institute, however, are subjected to explicit institutional abuse after being abducted from their homes and subjected to immoral experimentation. It almost feels like a sequel to Carrie where the White Commission has realized that more children like Carrie White exist. Now, they have started an “institute” to exploit their powers.
The Institute season 2‘s episode 1 further leans into these overlaps. It shows how entire systems have been built to exploit children with superpowers. The episode introduces older test subjects who use their abilities to help an organization serve a perceived greater good. This introduction of older subjects suggests that humans with TK and TP have been around for a very long time.
Its origins can probably be traced back to Carrie White.
Season 2’s episode 1 also reveals how the overarching corporate-backed project is trying to develop an AI that could replace humans with precognition, TK, and TP. However, AI is just not as effective as humans. Mike Flanagan’s Carrie also ends with the titular character surviving, paving the way for season 2.
It is hard not to see how her story will be similar to the young characters from The Institute who are struggling to escape the clutches of a powerful shadow organization.
Carrie & The Institute Quietly Connect To Stephen King’s Dark Tower
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Stephen King never draws any explicit connections between The Dark Tower, Carrie, and The Institute. However, it is hard not to notice many clear overlaps between all three. For instance, in The Dark Tower universe, all psychic abilities are manifestations of a single cosmic force called the “Shine.”
In The Dark Tower book series, specifically in Wolves of the Calla and The Dark Tower, characters with psychic powers are called are held captive by the Crimson King and referred to as Breakers. The Breakers are collectively expected to use their powers and chip away at the Beams of reality. Even the characters in The Institute are expected to do the same through quantum manipulation.
Put simply, in the grand scheme of Stephen King’s larger horror universe, Carrie tells the foundational story of young adults with superpowers. The Institute and Firestarter step things up by featuring organizations that exploit these powers. Finally, The Dark Tower walks through the cosmic purpose of these powers, revealing why those with the “Shine” are so sought after in every Stephen King story.
Carrie serves as the first step for Mike Flanagan to establish a larger Stephen King universe on the small screen. He will double down on these connections and overlaps in Carrie season 2 and his highly-anticipated Dark Tower adaptation.
The Institute, released in 2025, follows 14-year-old genius Luke Ellis, who is kidnapped and wakes up at a mysterious facility filled with children possessing unusual abilities. Meanwhile, Tim Jamieson, a former police officer, seeks a fresh start in a nearby town, inevitably intertwining his fate with Luke’s.
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