Stephen King Has High Praise For This Harrowing 4-Episode Netflix Series

Ah, to be Stephen King. Having long since established himself as one of the great authors of his era, the man seemingly now spends his days watching movies and TV shows before delivering his opinions via social media. In 2026 King has already confirmed that he's obsessed with Hulu sci-fi series "Paradise," and reminded us all to revisit Netflix's "Bird Box" following a less than stellar critical response. Now, he's imbibed the entirety of the streamer's new "Lord of the Flies" adaptation and judging by his latest social media update he absolutely loved it.

The four-episode miniseries actually debuted on the BBC back in February 2026 and is the first TV show adaptation of William Golding's 1954 novel. Yes, despite three "Lord of the Flies" films, Golding's haunting examination of atavistic impulses running rampant among a group of pre-teens was yet to make it to the small screen. The BBC series didn't stray too far from the original narrative, but put a new spin on things by focusing on one of the four main characters with each installment. Now, the show has made its way to Netflix in the United States, where King was apparently eagerly waiting.

Was there ever any doubt that the writer would enjoy an adaptation of a tale about fragile order degenerating into absolute chaos and misery? Of course not. The master of horror couldn't get enough. In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), King wrote of the miniseries, "I had my doubts, but it's remarkable. Captures all the horror and mystery of lost children descending into ... well, you decide."

For anyone who wasn't traumatized by this book in middle school, "Lord of the Flies" follows a group of young boys who become stranded on an uninhabited island. One of them, Ralph (played by Winston Sawyers in the TV series) takes on a leadership role, and with the support of his friends Piggy (David McKenna) and Simon (Ike Talbut) helps bring some semblance of order to the stranded boys. But his tenuous leadership soon comes under attack from Jack (played Lox Pratt, who will also portray Draco Malfoy in the upcoming "Harry Potter" reboot series), who forms a rival clan. Things quickly descend into tribal savagery as the boys become convinced there's a monster on the island.

The book is an upsetting examination of how quickly human beings can embrace their worst impulses. At the time of its publication, it also functioned as a devastatingly stark summation of the absurdity of the Cold War-era Mutually Assured Destruction doctrine. Considering the climate in which the BBC/Netflix series has emerged, it couldn't be more timely.

Of course, it would mean nothing if the "Lord of the Flies" series wasn't any good. Thankfully, it benefits from having been written by Jack Thorne, who co-created the chilling limited series "Adolescence" — a show that, like "Lord of the Flies" had what George Orwell called "a power of facing unpleasant facts." He clearly understood the assignment with his William Golding adaptation, which thus far has racked up an impressive 95% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes and has now earned praise from Stephen King — though this guy seems to like a heck of a lot of stuff including a horror series with a 32% Rotten Tomatoes score.