THE KING’S SEAL

Hollywood Star Reveals He Had to Get Stephen King’s Approval for Major Role

It’s not the first time the celebrated horror author has retained veto rights on casting for film adaptations of his best-selling books.

Hollywood star Glen Powell has opened up about having to seek out Stephen King’s approval before he was cast in the lead role of an upcoming adaptation of The Running Man. Edgar Wright, who’s directed the feature, had already approached Powell, but the pair had to wait on word from King before moving ahead. “Edgar offered me this movie, and I was like, ‘Yes.’ I’m like, ‘Let’s go…’ And then, like, later that night, [Edgar says], ‘By the way, like, you have to be approved by Stephen King. He’s gonna watch Hit Man tonight,” the actor told a panel at New York Comic Con, referring to his recent performance in the hit Netflix film. “And so I had to wait overnight for Stephen King to watch Hit Man and hope that I still had the role in the morning. It’s terrible.” It’s not the first time King’s retained rights on casting approval for movie adaptations of his book, with Idris Elba and Matthew McConaughey reportedly waiting on his greenlight before they were confirmed for the 2017 adaptation of his novel series The Dark Tower.