9 Things You Should Know Before Seeing Stephen King’s Pet Sematary 

1. King admitted even he was scared of Pet Sematary after writing it. If the movie is half as disturbing as the book, you will be shielding your eyes. Pet Sematary is one of King’s most disturbing novels. If you have not read the book or seen the original film, it’s about a family who lives near a ‘pet sematary’ which rests on an ancient burial ground. There might be traditional jump scares throughout the movie, but there are also bound to be haunting lines like this one from the novel: “The most terrifying question of all may be just how much horror the human mind can stand and still maintain a wakeful, staring, unrelenting sanity.”

2. A real experience inspired King to write the story. King used to rent a house on a busy road in Orrington. So many pets had died on the road that the neighborhood children created a pet cemetery in a field near his house. His daughter’s cat, Smuckey, was buried in the cemetery after getting hit. Not long after, his son had a close call on the same road. The back-to-back experiences inspired King to write Pet Sematary.

3. Smuckey is honored in the book and the original movie. The cat the King family lost on an Orrington road has its name inscribed on gravestones at the pet sematary inside of the novel and in the 1989 version of the film.

4. King did not originally plan on publishing the book. King believed his story was too bleak to be enjoyable. He thought he took the subject matter too far and accepted the book would never be published. However, when he needed to provide a final book for his contract, his wife convinced him to submit Pet Sematary. The rest is history.

5. King commonly links his stories together to create a cohesive world. In the Pet Sematary novel, a character mentions a dog going rabid in a nearby town and killing people. This is a reference to another one of his bestsellers, Cujo.

6. The release of this adaptation is proof of King’s timelessness. Some horror movies repeat the same tropes you have seen time and time again. Even though this story was written decades ago, it still hold up. The storyline is much more unique than most things you will find in theaters today. It takes horror to a whole new level.

7. The directors will not disappoint. Kevin Kölsch is directing alongside Dennis Widmyer. They both worked on Scream: The TV Series, Holidays, and Starry Eyes. They know how to create quality content.

8. The cast list is insane. You know John Lithgow from The Crown, 3rd Rock From The Sun, and How I Met Your Mother. You know Jason Clarke from Zero Dark Thirty, Everest, and Mudbound. You know Amy Seimetz from Alien: Covenant, The Killing, and most recently from Stranger Things (she played Becky Ives, Eleven’s aunt). With such a talented cast adapting a movie from the king of horror, you know you are going to be talking about this movie long after you leave the theater.

9. Even the trailer will freak you out. Watch and see.

Don’t forget: Sometimes dead is better.