Did ‘X-Files’ Just Spoil Stephen King’s ‘The Monkey’ Before Its Release?

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The premiere of “The Monkey” serves as another intriguing chapter in Stephen King’s extensive and peculiar film journey. Led by director Osgood Perkins, this movie delves into King’s past for inspiration, aligning itself with other screen adaptations of King’s works such as “Carrie,” “The Running Man,” and “The Shining.” Interestingly, it’s noteworthy that Perkins isn’t the first to breathe life into what was believed to be an untouched short story. Bravo to those who remember the 1998 episode of “The X-Files” titled “Chinga,” which employed a similar narrative.

In Season 5, as part of a unique series, creator Chris Carter brought on some talented writers to contribute. This led to an unofficial interpretation of Stephen King’s 1980 short story “The Monkey.” Instead of the original cymbal-playing monkey, this adaptation featured a chilling, haunted Victorian Doll. For reasons likely related to copyright, the story underwent changes, making its origins less obvious. However, enough essential elements remain to identify the roots of “Chinga.” Now, it’s King’s story that’s coming into the limelight, but Chris Carter and his team at The X-Files got there first.

Freak of the Week Goes Hollywood

During the course of the series, Chris Carter expanded his creative horizons by sourcing unique narratives from beyond the writers’ room for standalone episodes. “Chinga,” a King-inspired story set in Maine, was one such addition, staying true to the King brand. The following episode, titled “Kill Switch,” was penned by William Gibson, the pioneer of cyberpunk literature, marking a significant year for the show. Despite mixed fan responses, this episode perfectly complemented the eccentric “monster of the week” format.

In Robert Shearman’s “Wanting to Believe”, he argues that Carter’s revisions aimed to transform the original horror into a parody, but fell short of fully achieving this. The end product of their collaboration is unlikely to meet the expectations of Stephen King fans or X-Files fans, who were anticipating a deeper experience given the involvement of these renowned figures. Unfortunately, our thoughts align with this assessment. If “Chinga” reminds you of the Telly Savalas episode in “The Twilight Zone” titled “Living Doll”, it does. However, while “Living Doll” is more iconic, “Chinga” is amusing but not essential viewing.

Mining the Back Catalog

Providing a steady stream of movies, beware Maximium Overdrive as it may lead to peril, this author boosted his savings significantly by penning numerous television adaptations. Some King TV films stand out, like Salem’s Lot, while others might be best forgotten. If The Langoliers appeals to you, we won’t pass judgment, but those special effects have fared as well as last year’s spoiled yogurt. The Monkey is an exceptional case, its transition from book to screen remains shrouded in mystery, almost as if the X-Files episode was a one-of-a-kind invention.

The title modification seems rather ordinary, but the central plot twist is now designed to remind us of Chucky. However, the reason for this deviation remains unexplained. As mentioned in The X-Files: The Official Collection, the name was also modified in certain areas due to “Chinga” being an offensive term in some Spanish-speaking communities. The new title? “Bunghoney.” Kudos to the censors, they certainly deserved that week’s salary for this creative twist.

King Leads the Retro-Horror Renaissance

Movie producers are now capitalizing on Stephen King’s lesser-known works, sensing an opportunity in his vast collection of stories. The success of movies like “It” and TV shows such as Netflix’s “Stranger Things,” which draw from King’s horror genre, have contributed to this trend. Today, horror is a lucrative genre in Hollywood, making it one of the rare consistent money-makers. King’s wealth of stories, which he likely didn’t foresee would become so valuable, was once ridiculed during adaptations in the ’90s.

Following the release of “Sleepwalkers,” featuring cat people with an incestuous theme, Stephen King temporarily fell out of favor. This isn’t a criticism; we enjoyed “Thinner” quite a bit. However, it didn’t resonate with Baby Boomers and Generation X. Fast forward to a new era, and King is enjoying renewed popularity as a new generation rediscovers his work.

Currently, “The Monkey” is playing in theaters, and you can stream or purchase seasons five of “The X-Files” on Hulu and Amazon Prime Video at this very moment.

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2025-02-25 06:02