Stephen King’s ‘Joyland’ to be Adapted Into a Series at Freeform

Stephen King Novel Joyland

Stephen King’s on a hot streak when it comes to network’s snatching up his novels. The latest King novel to earn a television adaptation is Joyland, with Freeform putting a series based on the book into development.

According to Stephen King’s official site, the novel was inspired by the image of a boy in a wheelchair flying a kite. The image apparently stayed with King for 20 years before he wrote the book. “[…]The pieces didn’t fall into place until a connection was made with placing the story in an amusement park setting and the story soon followed,” per StephenKing.com.

“We are honored to be working with Stephen King – a master storyteller who understands the importance of culturally embedded tales that resonate with audiences on a deeply personal level,” stated Karey Burke, executive vice president, Programming and Development, Freeform. “We can’t wait for Joyland to become part of Freeform’s offerings and haunt our viewers as only Stephen can.”

The Joyland adaptation has Chris Peña (Jane the Virgin) and Cyrus Nowrasteh (The Stoning of Soraya M.) attached to write the pilot. Peña and Nowrasteh are also producing Joyland, and Bill Haber’s Ostar Productions (Valor) is on board to executive produce.

The Book’s Plot:

“After realizing his romantic life is not going in the direction he’d hoped, Devin Jones decides to take a summer job at an amusement park. There he makes friends with Tom Kennedy and Erin Cook, also summer hires at Joyland, which years before had been the scene of the murder of a young woman named Linda Gray whose ghost is said to be seen at the Horror House. He also befriends a young boy, named Mike Ross and his mother, Annie. Their lives all become entwined when Devin decides to investigate the mystery of Linda Gray’s unsolved murder by the ‘Carny Killer.'”