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How ‘Carrie’ creator Mike Flanagan paid tribute to Matthew Lillard’s iconic ‘Scream’ character

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Sarner, L. (2026, October 9). How ‘Carrie’ creator Mike Flanagan paid tribute to Matthew Lillard’s iconic ‘Scream’ character. New York Post. https://pagesix.com/2026/10/09/entertainment/how-carrie-creator-mike-flanagan-paid-tribute-to-matthew-lillards-iconic-scream-character/

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New York Post · collected 2026-10-09 · by Lauren Sarner

Quick Summary

Mike Flanagan, creator of "The Haunting of Hill House," paid tribute to Matthew Lillard's character from the 1996 film "Scream" in his Prime Video series adaptation of Stephen King's "Carrie." In both films, Lillard’s characters meet a similar fate by getting electrocuted. Flanagan incorporated this homage as Principal Henry Grayle dies tragically at prom in his version of "Carrie," which is set in the present day and not during the '70s like King’s original story. The show also features modern elements such as Instagram bullying leading up to Carrie's retaliation on prom night.
Written by AI on 2026-10-09, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Mike Flanagan, creator of "The Haunting of Hill House," paid tribute to Matthew Lillard's iconic role in Scream (1996). In Flanagan's latest series on Prime Video, Lillard reprises a similar fate as his character, Stu Macher, who died from electrocution when a TV fell on him. This time, Lillard plays Principal Henry Grayle and meets an eerily similar demise during a disastrous prom scene where he is electrocuted by dangling wires. Flanagan noted the parallels between the two deaths, stating that it was "fun" to include this tribute to one of his favorite horror films, emphasizing the tragic end for both characters.

Written for “Tribute To Scream Character” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Tribute To Scream Character
Entertainment · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 3% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
TIME
Hedges 3 of 36 claims Outlet record 59/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of Mike Flanagan's adaptation of 'Carrie' and do not describe the same specific incident or time.”
New York Post
Hedges 0 of 13 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of the 'Carrie' TV show; one focuses on release details and cast, while the other discusses a tribute to Matthew Lillard's character.”
New York Post
Hedges 1 of 34 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of Mike Flanagan's 'Carrie' miniseries, one focusing on recreating the prom scene and the other on a tribute to Matthew Lillard's character from 'Scream'.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
29
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
3%
1 of 29 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
66/100
New York Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Entertainment
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-09 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

New York Post · 15411 article(s) · 35 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 35 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Lauren Sarner
17 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 Perry’s friend Marjorie Harris Newman, noted that Perry “had this sort of persona” that he “never” got the girl and would say, “But when I’m famous, I’ll get all the girls.”
🔮 The search for the next James Bond has narrowed down to finalists Callum Turner and Jack Lowden, who will screen test this weekend, The Hollywood Reporter revealed Friday.
🔮 We did ask them if they would participate, and they decided not to,” Robertson told Page Six.
🔮 I didn’t know what I would do if she hadn’t!”
🔮 But, you could also say that about the movies.
🔮 “The Haunting of Hill House” creator explained that he also thought it would be appropriate for the principal to get fatally electrocuted in his version of “Carrie,” as a “really tragic end to that character.”
🔮 “Very watery [so that] when it drops, it would drip off of her.
🔮 King’s 2014 novel, “Revival,” is a project that Flanagan said he really wish he could have made, telling us, he “had a great script for that one.”
🔮 HBO hasn’t announced a premiere date for Season 4 yet, but confirmed that it will be set during the Cannes Film Festival.
🔮 The move could have made the show predictable, but instead, it uses our knowledge to make the journey to that destination surprising and full of mounting tension.
Also by Lauren Sarner
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 17 articles by Lauren Sarner →

Topics

Ghostface Page Six Prime Video YouTube

Subjects

Flanagan PERSON · 7× Lillard PERSON · 5× Carrie PERSON · 2× Chris PERSON · 2× Page Six ORG · 2× Prime Video ORG · 2× Stu Macher PERSON · 2× Billy Loomis PERSON · 1× Henry Grayle PERSON · 1× Skeet Ulrich PERSON · 1×

Narrative

Lillard, who plays Principal Henry Grayle in the Prime Video series, which is out now, dies at the disastrous prom when he’s electrocuted by dangling wires — similar to Stu Macher, who was electrocuted when a TV falls on his head.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-09
🔮 “The Haunting of Hill House” creator explained that he also thought it would be appropriate for the principal to get fatally electrocuted in his version of “Carrie,” as a “really tragic end to that character.”

Claims (29 extracted, 1 hedged)

Lillard, who plays Principal Henry Grayle in the Prime Video series, which is out now, dies at the disastrous prom when he’s electrocuted by dangling wires — similar to Stu Macher, who was electrocuted when a TV falls on his head. asserted
TV → play → head
“[Lillard] was like, ‘I get to get electrocuted again! asserted
I → get → ?
I was like, ‘but so much more, this time!” Flanagan exclusively told Page Six. asserted
Flanagan → tell → Page
“It was fun,” Flanagan said, confirming it was a tribute to the classic horror series, which he deemed as “one of the greatest horror films ever made.” asserted
he → say → films
“So, I can’t help but always be thinking of that when [Lillard] is around,” he added. asserted
he → help → that
“The Haunting of Hill House” creator explained that he also thought it would be appropriate for the principal to get fatally electrocuted in his version of “Carrie,” as a “really tragic end to that character.” asserted
principal → explain → character
“And I loved the visuals of it,” he said, pointing out how there’s fire and water surrounding them in that scene, which made for “a really beautiful image.” asserted
which → love → image
In 1996’s “Scream,” Lillard and Skeet Ulrich’s characters — Stu Macher and Billy Loomis — were unmasked as the original Ghostface killers. asserted
characters → unmask → killers
Stu allegedly met his end during the first movie when he was electrocuted by the TV, though he appeared in “Scream 7” last year as an AI deepfake used by the new killers. uncertain
he → meet → killers
Many fans are still convinced he somehow made it out alive. asserted
he → convince → it
In Flanagan’s reboot of Stephen King’s debut 1974 novel, a sheltered and isolated teen girl Carrie White (Summer H. Howell) is bullied by classmates when she attends school for the first time. asserted
she → bully → time
The show is set in the present day – not the ‘70s of King’s story, or the first 1976 adaptation starring Sissy Spacek. asserted
show → set → Spacek
Mean girl Chris (Alison Thornton) creates an Instagram account spreading gossip about the student body, which causes the school to spiral out of control, as Principal Grayle (Lillard) struggles to contain the chaos. asserted
Grayle → create → chaos
At prom, Chris conspires to get Carrie elected prom queen, and dumps pig’s blood on her, as a cruel prank. asserted
Carrie → conspire → prank
Carrie’s telepathic powers lash out, leading to mass death and destruction. asserted
powers → lash → death
“Carrie” is the latest in a string of splashy horror hits for Flanagan, who also did shows like “Midnight Mass” and “The Fall of the House of Usher.” asserted
who → do → Usher
He’s also working on upcoming movie “The Exorcist: Martyrs,” starring Scarlett Johansson. asserted
He → work → Johansson
“It makes me happy that horror has these cycles. asserted
horror → make → cycles
It has these moments. asserted
It → have → moments
The genre is eternal,” Flanagan told Page Six. asserted
Flanagan → tell → Six
He said he “loves” that the genre “keeps surprising people by being terrific. asserted
genre → say → people
We are in a particularly interesting moment right now, because we saw last year this incredible upswell in event horror.” asserted
we → see → horror
“The Haunting of Bly Manor” creator cited “Weapons” and “Sinners” as “big movies” that showed “why people want to go to the multiplex.” asserted
people → cite → multiplex
Flanagan also noted that sleeper hits like “Obsession” and “Backrooms” are “the other side of the coin” with “younger filmmakers coming out of YouTube” who are having “huge horror success.” asserted
who → note → success
The “Midnight Club” creator added that it’s “wonderful” to see those films, as well as Zach Cregger’s “Resident Evil” taking “the world by storm,” which shows “the vitality and the diversity of the genre.” asserted
which → add → genre
Flanagan noted that he loves the current horror resurgence, “I love it for cinema, I loved it for Hollywood – and, I mostly loved it for audiences.” asserted
I → note → audiences
“Carrie” is now streaming on Prime Video. asserted
Carrie → stream → Video
Conversation Your voice matters. asserted
voice → matter → Conversation
Discussions are moderated for civility. asserted
Discussions → moderate → civility
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