Children Of The Corn Trailer Shows The Kids Are Definitely Not Alright
For decades, Stephen King has reigned over the horror genre. Through books, short stories, television, and feature films, King has become a recognizable name for fans of the genre as well as causal enjoyers. There aren't many people who can claim not to know the incredible reputation of the talented author. His popularity has only grown more substantial over the last several years.
That's partly thanks to the uptick of remakes and sequels based on previous adaptations of his work. The most notable example of how successful this new flood of remakes is has been the 2017 film "It." Pennywise has easily become one of the most iconic horror monsters since the 1990 TV mini-series that starred Tim Curry as Pennywise. Bill Skarsgård had big shoes to fill when he took on the role in the 2017 remake. Still, Skarsgård's performance has been praised as horrific, unsettling, and potentially even more memorable than Curry's more campy version of the character.
While there have been some highlights to this trend, there have also been some duds, like the heavily criticized "Pet Sematary" remake that hit theaters in 2019. With an Audience Score of a measly 33% on Rotten Tomatoes, this remake proves that just sticking King's name on something doesn't mean anything.
All that said, the trend hasn't died down yet. 2023's setting out to breathe life into another King classic with "Children of the Corn."
The new trailer fuels the terrifying kids in horror trope
One horror trope that has never really faded over time is how children often act like an omen of something terrible to come. Sometimes that's literal, like in "The Omen," where the little boy, Damien, was actually the son of the Devil. Other times, it's a child attached to a creepy (and usually possessed) doll or a kid who can see and experience things that the adults can't. Nothing good ever comes out of mixing the horror genre with the idea of corrupting the innocence of children.
"Children of the Corn" was originally a 1978 short story by Stephen King that centered on a vacationing couple who accidentally run over a young boy after he ran into the street. After hitting the boy, the couple takes his body to the nearby town of Gatlin. As soon as they arrive, though, they notice that there is something extremely wrong with the town. They can't find anyone, and all of the indications of society (like gas prices and shopping) are outdated. Eventually, the couple discovers that Gatlin is ruled by children, and no one is allowed to live to see their 20th birthday in the town.
The trailer for 2023's stab at a remake seems to focus on the inner workings of Gatlin. Rather than focusing on retelling the original story, this version seems to be exploring the origin story of Gatlin's fall to the children.
Many adults are on the chopping block
Where the original story took place after the uprising of the children of Gatlin and focused on a couple of strangers wandering into the kids' territory, this movie seems to be taking fans back to the beginning. The short story took place after the children's revolution against the adults. The original 1984 film did explore the revolution a little bit when Isaac Chroner, a 9-year-old boy leads all of the children of Gatlin into the cornfields to introduce them to "He Who Walks Behind the Rows," a bloodthirsty deity that influences the children to do his bidding.
After the kids slaughter all of the adults in Gatlin and take over the town, the original film time jumps three years. It follows the events of the story, where an outside couple stumbles upon the town and comes face to face with the horrific children that live there.
This film focuses on a young girl instead of Isaac. Although the trailer didn't name the girl, she talks about the entity in the corn and how he "took care of her, so she's going to take care of him." This includes killing all of the adults in Gatlin, but the girl is forceful about that only being the start. There are numerous shots of teenagers who look like they're right on the cusp of becoming adults being strung up or tortured, meaning the movie will likely deal with what becoming an adult means in this new version of Gatlin.
The trailer shows many scenes of adults being locked up in prison, attacked, and awaiting their fate. The absolute carnage that takes place in just a few minutes of insight into the film is enough to prove that evil comes in all sizes and all ages.
This remake isn't shying away from the supernatural elements
The children of Gatlin are inducted into a cult for the entity known as "He Who Walks Behind the Rows." It starts with a single child (Isaac in the original film, the young girl in this remake) coming into contact with him and being persuaded to help him after doing something for the child. This leads the main child to induct the other children of Gatlin into a cult worshipping this mysterious entity that craves violence. It would have been easy to lean away from this angle in the remake. Plenty of things can influence children to do horrible things.
That said, "He Who Walks" can be seen scrawled in blood on some of the walls in the town. This is the shortened version of the entity's name, making it easier to address him verbally and through writing. The end of the trailer also features a glimpse at something mysterious and otherworldly.
At the end of the trailer, a girl can be seen strung up in the cornfield. She's one of the older cast members, meaning she's likely a teenager on the brink of becoming an adult or has just crossed over the border of being considered one. As she hangs there, terrified, a snarling, growling, and guttural noise can be heard behind her. A man screams, followed by horrible noises of him being attacked and likely ripped apart.
The trailer wants us to believe that this is He Who Walks.