How many versions of Salem's Lot are there? Explained 

Stephen King's Salem's Lot, a classic vampire story from 1975, was quickly adapted into a miniseries in 1979. It was later remade as a miniseries in 2004, directed by Mikael Salomon. A new film adaptation, written and directed by Gary Dauberman, will be released on Max on October 3, 2024.

There have been four different versions of Salem's Lot released over the years. The first show was a miniseries on TV in 1979. Different cuts have been made since then for rebroadcasts, theater releases, and home video formats. Each version is different, with different scenes, lengths of time, and degrees of violence.

Now, Salem's Lot will be released on Max on October 3, 2024, skipping theaters. This marks a new approach to the iconic vampire story.

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Exploring different versions of Salem's Lot

The 1979 Salem's Lot miniseries, airing on CBS over two nights, ran for 200 minutes and quickly became a fan favorite. Its longer runtime gave viewers more character depth and plot development, building suspense and horror. It remains well-known, especially for iconic vampire scenes like Ralphie Glick appearing at his brother's window.

A year after the 1979 Salem's Lot miniseries aired, CBS re-released a shortened 150-minute version to fit TV schedules. Though still impactful, this cut removed some scenes, potentially reducing the story's depth.

The miniseries was cut down to 112 minutes for the European theatrical version, which brought a drastic change. This version had to be the right length for a feature film because it was shown in theaters outside of the U.S. A lot of scenes were cut, which made the story rushed and sometimes hard to follow. It was different from the TV version, as it had different takes of certain scenes and more violence.

The final version of Salem's Lot is the DVD/Blu-ray version that came out later for home viewers. This cut is pretty much the same as the original CBS show, but there are no commercials. It also cuts out the credits at the end of part one and the credits at the beginning and end of part two, making the whole thing 183 minutes long.

Even with these small changes, the DVD/Blu-ray version is mostly the same as the original miniseries, so viewers can get a pretty full experience.

A glimpse of the cast

The cast of upcoming version of Salem's Lot features Lewis Pullman as the protagonist, Ben Mears, and Makenzie Leigh as his love interest, Susan Norton. Alfre Woodard plays Dr. Cody, while William Sadler takes on the role of Parkins Gillespie.

Bill Camp portrays Matthew Burke, and Pilou Asbæk embodies the sinister Richard Straker. John Benjamin Hickey is Father Callahan, with Jordan Preston Carter as Mark Petrie.

Spencer Treat Clark plays Mike Ryerson, Nicholas Crovetti as Danny Glick, Cade Woodward as Ralph Glick, and Alexander Ward as Kurt Barlow.

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The new adaptation of Salem's Lot is releasing on October 3, 2024, on Max.