All the Stephen King Easter Eggs in Castle Rock

Hulu's new series Castle Rock is set in the "Stephen King multiverse," which means that while it's not an adaptation of any Stephen King story, it's connected to a whole bunch of them, not unlike how King references his other stories in his fiction. Castle Rock is peppered with allusions that even casual King fans will recognize, as well as some deep cuts that may have all but the most Constant Readers googling. Here's a running list of all the Stephen King Easter eggs embedded in Castle Rock that we found.

(If you notice any I've missed, please let me know on Twitter.)

Episode 0

Scott Glenn, Castle Rock

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Alan Pangborn
The only character directly taken from King's books to appear so far on Castle Rock is Alan Pangborn, who was the sheriff of Castle Rock, Maine, in The Dark Half and Needful Things. Pangborn was played by Michael Rooker and Ed Harris in the respective movie adaptations of those novels. On Castle Rock, he's played by two actors in different timelines: by Jeffrey Pierce in 1991, when he was still sheriff; and in 2018 by Scott Glenn, after he's retired.

The presence of Sissy Spacek and Bill Skårsgard
The casting of these two actors is a conceptual Easter egg, as they are both well-known from their roles in King adaptations. Bill Skårsgard was terrifying as Pennywise in IT -- a role he'll be reprising in next year's sequel -- and is terrifying on Castle Rock, too, in a completely different way. And Sissy Spacek, of course, played the titular role in Carrie, the cult classic adaptation of King's debut novel. No word yet on whether her Castle Rock character has psychic powers. They're the most obviously referential actors on the show, but Melanie Lynskey is also a King vet: she starred in the 2002 miniseries Rose Red, which he wrote.

Castle Rock Is Worth a Visit, Even if You Don't Get Spooked

Episode 1

Bill Skarsgard, Castle Rock

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Shawshank
Much of the action of Castle Rock revolves around Shawshank Prison, which you know from The Shawshank Redemption. In fact, there's a direct reference to the previous warden who offed himself in that novella/movie: while giving a tour of the warden's office, a character says "You can still see the bullet hole where Warden Norton--" before he gets cut off.

The Mouse on the Mile
The short scene with the Shawshank mouse is meant to call to mind the immortal mouse Mr. Jingles from The Green Mile, which was also set in a prison. Castle Rock's mouse ain't immortal, though.

Episode 2

Jane Levy, Castle Rock

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"Remember the dog? The strangler?"
During Warden Lacy's (Terry O'Quinn) voiceover monologue about the evil history of Castle Rock, he references Cujo and The Dead Zone. In The Dead Zone, a serial killer named Frank Dodd was terrorizing the town. After his death, his spirit may have possessed the St. Bernard who terrorized the town in Cujo. There's another reference to Cujo a little later in the episode, when Henry Deaver (Andre Holland) is looking at newspaper clippings and one of the headlines is "Rabid Dog Tears Through Town."

"1961. It was the fall after they found that boy's body out by the train tracks."
There are two references to the novella The Body, which got adapted into the movie Stand By Me. There's the above shoutout in Lacy's monologue, and there's the headline Henry sees that says "Anonymous Tip Led to Boy's Body," which was called in by the bullies from the story.

"Shopkeeper Missing After Oddity Store Fire"
Another headline, this one a reference to Needful Things' Leland Gaunt, whose name is highlighted in the clipping, as is "Missing." Leland Gaunt didn't exactly go missing. He was a demon who fled to Iowa to open another evil shop called "Answered Prayers."

Jackie Torrance
It's unclear at this point if Jane Levy's amateur historian is any relation to The Shining's Jack Torrance, but the name is no coincidence.

Nan's Luncheonette
It's burned down by the time of Castle Rock, but it was around for IT and Needful Things.

The Stephen King Movies You Should Stream to Prepare for Castle Rock

Episode 3

Melanie Lynskey, Castle Rock

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Creepy kids?
It's not a direct reference, but those spooky parentless kids in the animal masks sure remind you of the Children of the Corn, don't they?

New episodes of Castle Rock drop Wednesdays on Hulu.

Other Links From TVGuide.com Castle RockStephen KingSissy SpacekBill SkarsgÃ¥rdScott GlennAndre HollandAndré HollandMelanie Lynskey