‘Castle Rock’: Every Stephen King Easter Egg and Reference

Britt Hayes

September 13, 2018

Set while in the fictional town developed by Stephen King, Hulu’s?Castle Rock?is, you might imagine, filled?with references for the master of horror’s works. However, not an instantaneous adaptation from a one?King novel,?Castle Rock feels like it can be with thanks to the various connections and happy easter !. Through the inclusion of recurring?novel character Alan Pangborn for the mystical reasoning behind alternate universes, we’ve collected every easter egg and reference in a single handy video detailing where Castle Rock?suits the King-iverse.

King’s Constant Readers may have surely noticed several major – and minor – references into the author’s written and filmed works. There are a number of obvious ones, like Shawshank Prison and Jackie Torrance (played by Jane Levy), together with some smaller easter eggs like the recurrence on the number 19 – which holds an extraordinary significance in King’s canon – and also the Jerusalem’s Lot bus stop. But do you also find the references to your Maine radio station owned by King himself? Then why not when Bill Skarsgard’s mysterious “The Kid” hears someone whisper “Wanna experience a body?” – a mention of King’s short story that inspired Stand By Me.

Speaking from the cast,?Castle Rock?is populated by using a number of actors who definitely have appeared in other King movies and shows: Sissy Spacek (Carrie), Melanie Lynskey (Rose Red), Frances Conroy (The Mist?TV series), and Chosen Jacobs and Bill Skarsgard – each of whom can be found in the latest hit adaptation of?IT.?By casting actors we’ve seen in other adaptations,?Castle Rock?creators Sam Shaw and Dustin Thomason pay homage to King’s thought of “twinners” – doppelg?ngers from alternate universes – which also factors prominently to the series.

It also underscores the series’?affect?The Dark Tower – King’s magnum opus, wherein all universes are linked to a large tower via psychic beams. In those books, King explains that “all things serve the beam,” which would be to claim that all worlds (the literary ones he created?and?the fictional worlds within those creations) are connected.?Castle Rock will not directly reference?The Dark Tower (although the “schismas” sound a great deal like King’s idea of “thinnies” – areas where the borders between worlds are thinner and much more easily breached), although the way it incorporates references and characters looks like it’s in service?in the beam.

We explore all of this – a whole bunch more – inside latest ScreenCrush video hosted by Ryan Arey. For additional video essays and easter egg guides, register for our YouTube channel – and in case you enjoyed this one, provide it with a like and look for much of our other Stephen King videos below: