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The Mist

The Mist

HorrorPost-Apocalyptic
Pages
230
Published
1986
Language
English

Synopsis

After a bizarre storm, David Drayton and his son find themselves among a group of townspeople trapped in a grocery store by a mysterious, creature-filled mist. As fear and religious fanaticism take hold inside, the survivors must decide whether to face the unknown horrors outside or succumb to the terror within. This chilling story explores how far people will go to survive when faced with an unimaginable threat.

Prose complexity
3/10

Vibe

DarkTenseGrittyAtmospheric
SurvivalLocked RoomSacrifice

Genres

Horror Post-Apocalyptic Psychological Horror Body Horror Psychological Thriller

About the author

S
Stephen King

Stephen King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author whose work has defined popular horror fiction for more than half a century. Born in Portland, Maine, he grew up in poverty after his father abandoned the family, and credits his mother's resilience and a voracious reading habit as the foundations of his imagination. He began selling short stories to men's magazines while working as a high school English teacher, and published his first novel, Carrie, in 1974—his wife Tabitha retrieved...

Characters

David DraytonProtagonist
Mrs. CarmodyAntagonist
Billy DraytonSupporting
Brent NortonSupporting
Ollie WeeksSupporting
All characters in The Mist

Frequently asked questions

  • Where was The Mist first published?

    The Mist was first published in 1980 in the anthology Dark Forces, edited by Kirby McCauley, then collected in King's own Skeleton Crew in 1985. It has since been issued as a standalone illustrated edition—its separate listing in the DB reflects that publication history.

  • What inspired the premise of people trapped in a supermarket?

    King has said the genesis was standing in a supermarket after a severe storm and imagining what would happen if something came out of the mist rolling in from the mountains. The supermarket setting came naturally—it concentrates a cross-section of a community in an enclosed space, making the social breakdown as interesting as the monster threat.

  • How does the 2007 film's ending differ from the novella?

    The film, directed by Frank Darabont, ends with the survivors committing a mercy killing before running out of ammunition—and then rescue arriving moments too late. King's novella ends ambiguously, with the survivors driving into an uncertain future. Darabont consulted King before filming the new ending; King has said it is even bleaker than his own ending and that he wished he had thought of it first.

  • What do the creatures represent in the story?

    King has been explicit that the social breakdown inside the supermarket—the factionalism, the religious hysteria, the scapegoating—is at least as horrifying as the monsters outside. The mist functions as a pressure test that reveals what people are willing to do to each other when structure collapses.

  • Is there a television adaptation of The Mist?

    Yes. A Spike TV series ran for one season in 2017 with an expanded story and new characters. It received mixed reviews and was cancelled after one season.

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