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I do not believe that CBS All Access would call it a stroke of luck that they chose to release The Stand in a year like 2020. Yet, you do have to admit, the health concerns the world has been facing lately have made the plot of the apocalyptic miniseries far more relevant than they might have expected. Of course, this was not the first time that Stephen King had a vision for the end of the world that was later adapted for television.
In fact, this new, nine-episode update of the 1978 novel about a battle of biblical proportions that ensues from a cataclysmic virus is not even its first transition to the screen. In 1994, ABC broadcast an Emmy-winning, four-part miniseries based on The Stand, led by Academy Award nominee Gary Sinise as Stu Redman - a role played by James Marsden in 2020. Not to mention, there are a few other works by Stephen King that have found success on television, and even a few that you could say took inspiration from his ideas of what the apocalypse might look like.
That being said, if you have been captivated by the miniseries’ infectious storyline and cannot stand to wait another week to cure your excitement, I have few suggestions that should be a helpful remedy while you wait for the next episode. In my opinion, the following 11 TV shows are just what I would prescribe to a devoted follower of The Stand, starting with another televised update of a Stephen King classic that was previously adapted for the screen.
The Mist (Netflix)
As they are already under conflict in the wake of a brutal crime, a family must band together with others when a mysterious, otherworldly threat begins terrorizing their small town, hidden behind a mysterious fog.
Why It Is A Good Option For Fans Of The Stand: Frank Darabont stayed relatively faithful to Stephen King’s 1980 novella The Mist for his 2007 feature-length adaptation (save that brutal, polarizing ending), but this 10-episode series, originally airing on Paramount Network (called Spike at the time), expands on the story of ordinary people trying to survive extraordinary circumstances, but in a more Lovecraftian way than The Stand tends to go.
Stream The Mist on Netflix here.
The Walking Dead (Netflix)
A former Georgia cop (Andrew Lincoln), his family, and others struggle to protect themselves while navigating a world ruled by the undead.
Why It Is A Good Option For Fans Of The Stand: While not inspired by the work of Stephen King, his aforementioned frequent collaborator, Frank Darabont, did originally develop this blockbuster AMC hit. It's based on Robert Kirkiman’s popular Image comic book series The Walking Dead, and, after 10 seasons and counting of chilling suspense, brutal bloodshed, and maddening civil unrest, it's just about the ultimate in end-of-the-world television these days.
Stream The Walking Dead on Netflix here.
Falling Skies (HBO Max)
A Boston University professor of military history (Noah Wyle) becomes the reluctant leader of a new war against malevolent, extra-terrestrial visitors after surviving a deadly attack.
Why It Is A Good Option For Fans Of The Stand: What The Walking Dead did for the zombie apocalypse on television, Falling Skies, from executive producer Steven Spielberg, came pretty close to matching for alien invasion stories with its chilling, five-season chronicle of how the human race falls prey to monstrous creatures before rising above them.
Stream Falling Skies on HBO Max here.
Under The Dome (CBS All Access)
Home is no longer a safe haven for the citizens of Chester’s Mill, Maine, after a transparent and impenetrable force field suddenly covers the entire community, leaving its residents confused, desperate, unable to communicate with outsiders, and running low on supplies.
Why It Is A Good Option For Fans Of The Stand: Based on a more recent novel by Stephen King, Under the Dome, like The Stand, comments on the physical and psychological challenges of the human condition in the midst of chaos. However, instead of on a global scale, this three-season series sees one small town suffering its own, personal apocalypse, inexplicably cut off from the outside world.
Stream Under the Dome on CBS All Access here.
Snowpiercer (TNT)
A former Chicago detective (Hamilton star Daveed Diggs) is enlisted by a ruthless authoritarian (Academy Award winner Jennifer Connelly) to investigate a murder aboard a self-sustaining bullet train holding the last of mankind after a global snowstorm leaves the rest of the world uninhabitable.
Why It Is A Good Option For Fans Of The Stand: Based on a French graphic novel that would also inspire Bong Joon-ho’s acclaimed 2014 film, Snowpiercer sees surviving passengers attempting a post-apocalyptic recreation of society within the titular public transport. They develop a class system that puts the rich in the front, the poor at the caboose, and everybody at each other’s throats.
Stream Snowpiercer on TNT here.
Jericho (Netflix, CBS All Access)
A once idyllic Midwestern town must figure out how to reconstruct their community and reestablish communication with the outside world after witnessing a nuclear explosion just miles away.
Why It Is A Good Option For Fans Of The Stand: Like the aforementioned entries in our list, Jericho (starring a pre-Riverdale Skeet Ulrich) focuses on regular people dealing with similar post-apocalyptic circumstances in an isolated environment. But, the cause of their problem and its lingering issues is something far more realistic and, thus, even more frightening.
Stream Jericho on Netflix here or on CBS All Access here.
Lost (Hulu, IMDb TV)
The survivors of a plane crash are left to rely on whatever they have left to stay alive, sane, and civil with one another on a remote island plagued by mysterious phenomena that only worsen their struggle.
Why It Is A Good Option For Fans Of The Stand: While the rest of the world is just fine, the personal worlds of the cast of Lost end in the pilot, before things only get stranger for them, on this hit drama from executive producers J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof.
Stream Lost on Hulu here or on IMDb TV here.
Carnivale (HBO Max)
A young man on the the run from the law (Nick Stahl) takes a job at a traveling sideshow while a devout California preacher (Clancy Brown) grows desperate to serve God - each unwitting to the staggering, revolutionary conflict they are each destined to lead with the use of their unusual abilities.
Why It Is A Good Option For Fans Of The Stand: Excluding elements of a post-apocalyptic tale, the Emmy-winning HBO period drama Carnivale has plenty in common with The Stand, specifically an emerging, fantastic battle between good and evil that takes inspiration from biblical text.
Stream Carnivàle on HBO Max here.
The Dead Zone (Tubi, IMDb TV)
A science teacher (Anthony Michael Hall) awakens from a coma after six years to find that he suddenly has the ability to see the future simply by touching a certain item.
Why It Is A Good Option For Fans Of The Stand: One of the most iconic characters from The Stand is Mother Abagail Freemantle (played by Whoopi Goldberg in the new miniseries) for her prophetic visions, much like the precognitive gifts of Johnny Smith in The Dead Zone - an acclaimed USA series also based on a Stephen King novel, which was previously adapted into a 1983 feature film starring Christopher Walken and directed by David Cronenberg.
Stream The Dead Zone on Tubi here or on IMDb TV here.
Castle Rock (Hulu)
Ordinary people, such as a disgraced lawyer and a head nurse at the local hospital, discover the extraordinary causes behind the series of tragic events that their quaint Maine community is infamous for.
Why It Is A Good Option For Fans Of The Stand: Speaking of precognitive abilities, you may notice that to be a recurring theme among many characters created by Stephen King, whose work inspired Hulu’s horror anthology series Castle Rock (named after a town of the author’s invention). The second season borrows a lot from certain elements of The Stand, as well as Misery, Salem’s Lot, and plenty more I might need to look for on a rewatch.
Stream Castle Rock on Hulu here.
Good Omens (Amazon Prime)
The unlikely friendship between an angel (Michael Sheen) and a demon (David Tennant) turns into an alliance to prevent the end of the world years after the birth of the antichrist.
Why It Is A Good Option For Fans Of The Stand: Following a considerable amount of doom and gloom among the previous entries in our list (even the ones that do not involve Armageddon), a good way to round-out this ultimate binge for The Stand fans is Good Omens. The Amazon Prime original miniseries is based on the hilarious book by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, which puts a much lighter spin on the end of days by imagining how forces of good and evil could co-exist.
Stream Good Omens on Amazon Prime here.
What do you think? Could you use a laugh after putting up with the apocalypse for a year… I mean, hours. Or, is watching others suffer worse fates than you your primary source of entertainment? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check back for additional information and updates on The Stand, as well as even more of our own recommendations about what is available to stream right now, here on CinemaBlend.
