Stephen King praises Longlegs director's new horror movie adaptation of his own short story: "It's batsh*t insane"

Share

• Copy link
• Facebook
• X
• Whatsapp
• Pinterest
• Flipboard
• Email

Share this article

Join the conversation

Follow us

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Newsletter

Get the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more

Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors

---

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful

---

Want to add more newsletters?

Every Friday

GamesRadar+

Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.

Signup +

Every Thursday

GTA 6 O'clock

Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.

Signup +

Every Friday

Knowledge

From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.

Signup +

Every Thursday

The Setup

Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.

Signup +

Every Wednesday

Switch 2 Spotlight

Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.

Signup +

Every Saturday

The Watchlist

Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.

Signup +

Once a month

SFX

Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!

Signup +

---

An account already exists for this email address, please log in.

Subscribe to our newsletter

Stephen King has shared his verdict on upcoming horror-comedy movie The Monkey – and it's got his seal of approval.

"You've never seen anything like THE MONKEY. It's batshit insane," the author wrote on Threads. "As someone who has indulged in batshittery from time to time, I say that with admiration."

Written and directed by Longlegs helmer Osgood Perkins and adapted from King's short story of the same name, The Monkey follows twin brothers Hal and Bill (both played by Theo James), who witnessed a string of horrifying deaths as children after discovering their father's toy monkey in the attic.

After attempting to put their past behind them and going their separate ways, the brothers suddenly find themselves surrounded by death again as adults and are forced to reconcile to eliminate the toy primate once and for all. The movie's cast also includes Tatiana Maslany and Elijah Wood.

"I took a playful horror shine to it right away. That was important to me from the get-go with this project, that it wasn't going to be dreadfully somber," Perkins recently told SFX magazine. "It was going to be more comedic, and cozy, which I think seemed correct for a movie about a toy. I wanted to steer away from the more serious movies about possessed toys, which don't ring true for me."

Perkins' last movie, Longlegs, was a hit when it was released last year. Nicolas Cage plays the titular serial killer, who targets families with daughters born on the 14th day of the month. It Follows' Maika Monroe stars as FBI agent Lee Harker, who's investigating Longlegs' spree of occultist murders.

The Monkey arrives on the big screen on February 21. For more, fill out your watchlist with our guide to the other best new horror movies on the way in 2025.