Horror On Hulu: Watch This Classic Stephen King And George A. Romero Interview

If you’re looking for the best horror movies or content on Hulu, the streaming company also hosts a classic interview that genre fans are likely to thoroughly enjoy. In addition to the vast collection of movies and series that Hulu hosts, the company also has a collection of classic content from years gone by, including episodes from The Dick Cavett Show.

In 1980, Dick Cavett had a horror panel put together and his guests were Peter Straub, Ira Levin, George A. Romero, and Stephen King. At the time, each artist was at the forefront of the horror industry; Straub was popular for his horror novels like Julia and Ghost Story. Romero’s Dawn of the Dead was still recent and being raved about. Levin was known for writing Rosemary’s Baby and The Stepford Wives. And as Cavett points out on the show, thanks to novels like Carrie and The Shining, Stephen King was the biggest-selling author in the world.

The four panelists discussing horror was very fresh and unique at the time. Aside from a few movies and books that transcended the genre, like Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho or William Peter Blatty’s The Exorcist, horror was rarely at the forefront of pop culture. The ’80s embraced the industry more than any other previous decade, and this 1980 interview reflects how horror was starting to become the most popular genre of entertainment.

All of the guests’ commentary is fascinating to re-visit or discover for the first time, and Stephen King and George A. Romero provided great insight into their thought-process, and the genre as a whole. When Cavett asked the panel on why people like to be scared, the duo gave perfect answers. Romero spoke first regarding why people seek-out horror movies, and compared it to a roller coaster ride.

“You go in with high expectations, and I think the ones that work on that audience are the ones that really pay off. The ones that give you that little zest and give you that involuntary response reaction to it that you went in hoping to get.”

Per his usual, Stephen King dug in a little deeper to answer the question and exposed parts of the human psyche that many would prefer to ignore.

“I think something else that horror does is society gives points, you know, for good emotional behavior. So we get points for exercising those emotional muscles that society approves of — love, friendship, loyalty, humor — that sort of thing. But for every one of those good emotions, we have a dark one as well. We have fear. We have aggressiveness. We have anger. We all have, I suppose, urges that sometimes tend towards sadism, that sort of thing. And a horror story or a horror movie gives us a chance to exercise that side in a comparatively harmless way.”

The four would go on to discuss each other’s works and how King and Romero were working on Creepshow together, which would later be released in 1982. Though all the guests were profound in many ways, with his humor and massive popularity, Stephen King stole the show. Many times he had everyone laughing out loud as he delivered clever one-liners while discussing why he is “warped.”

It’s surreal watching four of the biggest names in horror converse with each other so many years ago. If you’re a fan of horror movies and books, or of Stephen King, or any of Cavett’s other horror panelists, then this classic interview is a must-watch. For those wanting more of King on Hulu, the site is hosting some of his best horror movies including Carrie and Children of the Corn.

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