Every Stephen King TV Show, Ranked Worst to Best

by Jason Dietz, Metacritic Features Editor – June 3, 2021

Originally a reluctant convert to television, best-selling horror author Stephen King has seen over two dozen projects bearing his name reach the small screen over the past 40+ years, from Salem's Lot to the just-launched Lisey's Story. While most of these have been adaptations of King's novels and stories, a few were wholly new projects written by the author directly for TV. Some have been deeply mediocre at best, but quite a few of King's TV shows have received a warm welcome from critics.

In the gallery on this page, we rank every Stephen King series from worst to best by Metascore, reflecting the critical consensus at the time of each show's debut. Miniseries are included alongside conventional TV shows, but made-for-TV movies are excluded.

15 of 26 photo by TNT

65Salem's Lot (TNT, 2004)

Based on the novel Salem's Lot (1975)

[tied for #10] Vampire novel Salem's Lot is of two King books adapted twice for television, along with The Stand. This two-part 2004 TNT miniseries didn't receive the level of critical acclaim that the 1979 version earned, but it certainly wasn't bad. Directed by Mikael Salomon (an Emmy-winning director of Band of Brothers and an Oscar-nominated cinematographer for The Abyss), this version of Salem transported the story to the (then-) present day and featured a strong cast led by Rob Lowe, Samantha Mathis, Donald Sutherland, Andre Braugher, James Cromwell, and Rutger Hauer. A few critics actually liked this straightforward take better than the first adaptation, but most preferred the original.

“TNT's four-hour miniseries boasts fine performances, exceptional photography and all the other bells and whistles that mark a great show ... All is in place, except for the scary bits. There's nary a fright to be found.” —Mike McDaniel, Houston Chronicle

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