WARNING! This article contains SPOILERS for Salem’s Lot (2024)!The omission of an important part of Stephen King’s original novel sets up the opportunity forSalem’s Lot 2at Max, continuing the story of Ben Mears (Lewis Pullman) and Mark Petrie (Jordan Preston Carter). The 2024 film adaptation makes some bigchanges to King’s 1975Salem’s Lotbook, including differences in character backstories, fates in the battle against the town’s vampires, and locations for some major set pieces. Overall, however,Salem’s Lot(2024) remains quite authentic to the source material, and evenleaves room for a potential sequel due to the plot reveals that the adaptation leaves out.
Max’sSalem’s Lotmovie endsas Ben Mears and Mark Petrie drive out of town to safety, leaving behind the vampire-infested location after losing their loved ones. However, with the town still overrun with the bloodsucking creatures, the story of Ben, Mark, and Jerusalem’s Lot isn’t over. In fact, this point is elaborated on further inStephen King’s novel, which includes both an epilogue and a prologue that reveal Ben and Mark’s whereabouts and plans after fleeingthe titular location. By removing these book details from the 2024 movie, it seems Max is laying the groundwork forSalem’s Lot 2.
Salem’s Lot Cut The Epilogue Of Ben & Mark Returning To The Town A Year Later
Stephen King’s Book Elaborates On What Happens To Ben & Mark After Fleeing Salem’s Lot
Perhaps surprisingly,Salem’s Lot(2024) ends without giving a glimpse at the story details revealed in the book’s epilogue. However, the omission makes complete sense if Max is saving this story to adapt intoSalem’s Lot 2– though the studio has yet to announce a sequel. The prologue of Stephen King’s book begins shortly after Mark and Ben drive away, revealing thatthe two have fled to a seaside town in Mexico to recover from the ordealthey faced in the fight againstSalem’s Lot’s vampires. Eventually, Mark confesses what happened in Jerusalem’s Lot to a friendly local priest.
Salem’s Lot(2024) has become the #1 trending movie on Max following its streaming premiere. The film holds a mixed 47% score from critics on Rotten Tomatoes.
The book then dives into the central plot ofSalem’s Lotas it becomes overrun with vampires, with the epilogue then revealing Ben and Mark’s fate a year later. It didn’t make it into theStephen King movie adaptation, but the epilogue outlines Ben and Mark’s plan to return to Salem’s Lot and finish what they started with the vampires. When they arrive,Ben and Mark devise a scheme to start a brush fire in the woods outside of town, draw the vampires out of their hiding places, and kill them in the sunlight.
It’s implied that the pair were successful in killing numerous vampires, but subsequent Stephen King stories reiterate that the various evils attracted to Jerusalem’s Lot weren’t completely destroyed
The epilogue of King’sSalem’s Lotbook concludes without revealing the outcome of Ben and Mark’s brush fire. However, the aftermath is addressed in Stephen King’s 1977 short storyOne for the Road, which picks up two years afterSalem’s Lotand reveals that Ben and Mark’s brush fire burned for about three days. It’s implied that the pair were successful in killing numerous vampires, but subsequent Stephen King stories reiterate that the various evils attracted to Jerusalem’s Lot weren’t completely destroyed.
Salem’s Lot 2 Can Show Ben & Mark’s Return & Final Battle With The Vampires
The Details Of Mark & Ben’s Next Vampire Fight Haven’t Been Explored
If Max makesSalem’s Lot 2, then the sequel can adapt the story of Ben and Mark’s return to Jerusalem’s Lot. Their battle with the vampires doesn’t go into specifics in the book, soSalem’s Lot 2would have plenty of freedom to craft the details of their fightand potential reunions with the vampiric versions of the former townspeople. Additionally, it’s possible that Ben and Mark would be joined by new vampire hunters and trapped residents, expanding on thecast and characters fromSalem’s Lot(2024).
Salem’s Lot Town Name Origins & Meaning Explained
Jerusalem’s Lot is the central setting of Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot, and the Maine town has an interesting history dating back to the 1700s.
ThoughAlexander Ward’s Kurt Barlowwas killed by Mark and Ben, the vampires still remain and have the potential to flee Jerusalem’s Lot and infiltrate nearby towns. This is another tragic aspect thatSalem’s Lot 2could explore,moving beyond just the titular location and diving into the vampires’ spread across the area. It seems the book’s epilogue is the final time that Ben and Mark battle vampires in Jerusalem’s Lot, so a potentialSalem’s Lot 2would likely bring a proper end to their story. However, Max could still adaptOne for the Roadwithout the original characters.
How Salem’s Lot 2 Would Be Different From 1987’s A Return To Salem’s Lot Movie
Salem’s Lot 2 Would Actually Feature Ben Mears & Ben Petrie
So far there have only been three direct adaptations of King’sSalem’s Lotnovel: the 1979 miniseries, 2004 miniseries, and 2024 movie of the same name. However, the town’s story has also been depicted in two other on-screen adaptations, the 1987 film sequelA Return to Salem’s Lotand the2022 prequel seriesChapelwaite. The1987 movie serves as a sequel to 1979’sSalem’s Lotminiseries, but doesn’t follow any of the original characters. Rather, it explores an anthropologist and his son who arrive at Jerusalem’s Lot and discovers that his old hometown is now a vampire colony.
Salem’s Lot(2024)
Salem’s Lot(1975)
Ben and Mark don’t appear inA Return to Salem’s Lot, making it more of an indirect sequel to the miniseries’ depiction of the book’s events. However, a properSalem’s Lot 2on Max would likely provide a more direct sequel to the 2024 movie, bringing back Ben and Mark to tell the next chapter in their vampire-fighting story. Given the popularity of the 2024 film upon its streaming release on Max, there’s a good chance that the platform continues this success with a Lewis Pullman and Jordan Preston Carter-starring sequel.
Salem’s Lot
Cast
Salem’s Lot is a 2024 remake of the movie of the same name released in 1979. The latest adaptation of Stephen King’s 1975 novel stars Lewis Pullman, Makenzie Leigh, and Bill Camp, with Gary Dauberman writing and directing the Max original film. The plot revolves around a writer who discovers a vampire in his hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot upon returning home for inspiration.
