Stephen King’s alter ego who inspired a George Romero horror film

George A. Romero and Stephen King had a good working relationship. King had appeared in Romero’s film “Knightriders,” Romeo had directed the King-penned anthology film “Creepshow,” and “Tales From the Darkside,” a 1990 horror TV series created by Romero, had two episodes adapted from King’s stories. But what Romero really wanted to do was tackle a King novel. “I’ve always wanted to make a movie out of a Steve novel,” Romero told Fangoria (via the book “Creepshows”). “So many people have tried and failed to understand or capture his voice and his intentions. Maybe I will, too. But I’ve always wanted to take a chance.”

Romero had been considered to direct Pet Sematary in 1989 and the miniseries It in 1990, but he was unavailable for both. His opportunity came with The Dark Half. Romero usually worked outside the studio system, but The Dark Half saw him working with Orion Pictures. “I have to respect the fact that it’s their money,” Romero told the Pittsburgh Press in 1990. The film itself remains largely faithful to King’s novel: “I tried to be as faithful to the book as possible,” said Romero, who wrote the screenplay. Timothy Hutton plays both Thad Beaumont and George Stark, and the actor is quite good as Stark, really enjoying playing such a villainous character (aided by some gooey makeup—Stark’s face starts to rot as the film goes on).

As for the film, it’s generally satisfactory. The grand finale, which features a huge flock of sparrows tearing Stark apart, is a real coup, but it’s a pretty average Stephen King adaptation. And unfortunately, it ran into some behind-the-scenes trouble. Distributor Orion was in dire financial straits at the time, and while Romero finished filming in 1991, “The Dark Half” didn’t hit theaters until 1993, when it flopped at the box office.

As for Richard Bachman, like George Stark, he too would rise from his grave. While King had “killed” Bachman, two more Bachman books would eventually hit the shelves, the explanation being that unpublished Bachman stories had been “found” by Bachman’s fictional widow. There was “The Regulators” in 1996 and “Blaze” in 2007. For now, it seems that Bachman is gone for good. But you never know… he might reappear.