Samantha Sloyan says this was one of the first things writer, director and showrunner Mike Flanagan said to her when he revealed his idea to turn Stephen King’s 1974 novel of the same name into a miniseries. Sure, Flanagan had tackled King before, adapting novels such as “Gerald’s Game” and “Doctor Sleep” into acclaimed feature films. But “Carrie” had already been adapted into one of the most famous horror movies of all time, a 1976 masterpiece by Brian De Palma which contained many indelible, nightmarish images.
Additionally, Flanagan was interested in recruiting Sloyan to play Carrie’s religious and antagonistic mother, Margaret White, unforgettably played by Piper Laurie in the film. But, much like Carrie on prom night, Flanagan wanted to burn it all down. What’s left is a modern tale of school bullying, with a Margaret who is both a zealot and also, thanks to Sloyan, much more human than in the past.
Sloyan is in the enviable position as a loyal member of Flanagan’s stable of actors, and she’s a scene stealer in many of his darkest projects. From their first collaboration in the 2016 movie “Hush” to roles in series like “The Haunting of Hill House” and “The Fall of the House of Usher,” she’s chameleonic in her parts. But perhaps most memorable to horror fans is Sloyan’s lead role as the villainous yet piteous Bev Keane in “Midnight Mass,” in which she weaponized her religious values and became more terrifying than the vampires roaming the seaside town.
Sloyan often hears about these projects in their earliest days, given a personal connection: She’s been best friends with Kate Siegel, Flanagan’s wife and frequent collaborator, since their twenties. But Sloyan sees two truly different and complicated characters. But Margaret is protecting the daughter that she loves.
In doing that, Mike sets up all these times as they’re interacting with this world that’s totally new to Carrie and that Margaret has purposefully removed herself from for 15 years. And there’s all these opportunities where she can choose to learn or engage or participate. Instead, she just always chooses violence, to push back, to try to destroy, to undermine, to manipulate.” Sloyan’s childhood was diametrically opposite to Carrie’s existence, in that she was born to two character actors who encouraged her to become engaged with the world.
But the lifestyle looked so scary because it was so unpredictable and insecure in so many ways.” Sloyan followed in their footsteps, racking up an impressive roster of recurring roles on hit shows like “Scandal,” “Grey’s Anatomy” and even the first season of “The Pitt” (she plays the grieving mother whose son overdoses on Fentanyl). But she’s always excited to hear about roles for Flanagan’s projects, because they often push her beyond her own expectations. As an actress, a character like that was thrilling and terrifying.
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