Stephen King Says He Was The First To Use This Song In A Film
Chad Collins
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Classic Saturday Night Live skit aside, Blue Öyster Cult’s “Don’t Fear The Reaper” is a genre perennial. From its use in John Carpenter’s Halloween to its needle drop in last year’s Ti West slasher X, the 48-year-old song is everywhere. Where else has it been featured? Well, you might have heard it in Zombieland, Chucky (The TV Series), Scream, Halloween Ends, Supernatural, The X-Files, and many, many others. While I’m partial to “Burnin’ for You,”—put that in more movies, you cowards—the internet had a field day when a Twitter user pointed out the conundrum innate in the song being both overplayed yet always welcome. Then Stephen King had something to say.
Stephen King cheekily pointed out that both he and director Mick Garris used the song to signal period in the classic, made-for-television miniseries The Stand (no, not the 2020 adaptation), while simultaneously plugging the series’ availability on AppleTV Plus. Check out King’s tweet below:
Of course, in classic internet fashion, Stephen King’s tweet incited even more conversation, this time around not just “Don’t Fear the Reaper,” but the use of needle drops in horror movies more broadly. A good needle drop can make all the difference (I’m still riding the high of Barbarian’s needle drop as the credits rolled), and if you’re interested in more, check out this festive ranking from R.C. Jara’s “Spins and Needles” column here at Dread Central.
Horror author Nat Cassidy contended The Stand has two of the best needle drops in horror history, placing “Don’t Dream It’s Over” right alongside “Don’t Fear the Reaper.” A lot of “don’ts” in these songs, huh?
Everyone could use a little more cowbell. What do you think? What’s your favorite needle drop in a horror movie? What do you think of Stephen King’s The Stand? Let me know over on Twitter @Chadiscollins.
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