Latest Adaptation of Stephen King’s Classic Thriller ‘Firestarter’ Heads to PH Cinemas

SUMMER’S about to get even hotter with the upcoming latest adaptation of Stephen King’s classic thriller Firestarter starring Zac Efron, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Sydney Lemmon, Kurtwood Smith, John Beasley, with Michael Greyeyes and Gloria Reuben.

Stephen King is known as “The King of Horror,” and while this story does have some horrific elements, he also likes to dabble in the “what ifs” of the world. He has written several stories that involve a person (usually a child) who discovers they have a natural ability that sets them apart from the rest of the world.

Many people focus on the horror aspect of The Shining, but oftentimes forget that the term “shining” is used in reference to Danny Torrence’s abilities. His 2019 book, The Institute, focuses on a group of children who have been kidnapped by a secret agency because of their supernatural abilities. The Green Mile (1999) was about a man who had the ability to remove illness and injury from others. King is no stranger to this sub-genre, whether it gives you nightmares or not.

In Firestarter, a girl with extraordinary pyrokinetic powers fights to protect her family and herself from sinister forces that seek to capture and control her. For more than a decade, parents Andy (Efron) and Vicky (Lemmon) have been on the run, desperate to hide their daughter Charlie (Armstrong in the titular character, previously played by 8-year-old Drew Barrymore in 1984 film adapted from the 1980 Stephen King novel) from a shadowy federal agency that wants to harness her unprecedented gift for creating fire into a weapon of mass destruction.

Andy has taught Charlie how to defuse her power, which is triggered by anger or pain. But as Charlie turns 11, the fire becomes harder and harder to control.

After an incident reveals the family’s location, a mysterious operative is deployed to hunt down the family and seize Charlie once and for all. Charlie has other plans.

Directed by Keith Thomas and produced by Jason Blum‘s Blumhouse Productions. The score is composed by none other than John Carpenter and his son, Cody Carpenter. According to Jason Blum, Stephen King has read the completed script by Scott Teems (Halloween Kills) and has given it his approval.

Watch the official trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8i7P1IhYCpI

From Universal Pictures International, Firestarter will soon open in local cinemas on May 11.

(ROHN ROMULO)