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Season 1 – Stephen King's Rose Red

Play trailer Poster for Season 1 – Stephen King's Rose Red Jan 2002 Mystery & Thriller Horror Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
42% Tomatometer 19 Reviews 62% Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
A college professor and a team of psychics investigate an old abandoned house at the request of the man who has inherited it. Hoping to explain some of the mysterious deaths and disappearances on the property, the psychics stay in the mansion, but unleash a terrifying force that threatens to destroy them all.
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Stephen King's Rose Red — Season 1

Stephen King's Rose Red — Season 1

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Critics Consensus

Rose Red asks too many questions and provides too few answers to satisfy given its lack of scares -- though King completists may enjoy wandering its somewhat mysterious halls.

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Critics Reviews

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Sean T. Collins Decider 10/05/2023
Travis's throwback mad-scientist character, the game and likeable supporting cast, the '90s nostalgia, and the pleasantly Halloween-y atmosphere make it worth a "let's throw something on" binge. Go to Full Review
Linda Stasi New York Post 01/15/2020
The bad news is that in true King fashion the mini series is about three hours longer than it needs to be. Somebody throw King to a newspaper editor Go to Full Review
Howard Rosenberg Los Angeles Times 01/15/2020
Written by the prolific King, this overwrought, overacted three-parter on ABC is campy, not scary or even stomach-turning. Go to Full Review
Stephanie Morgan Common Sense Media 10/18/2023
2/5
It's important to note, however, that the show contains some troubling elements, including undercurrents of sexism and the representation of people of color and differently-abled individuals in stereotypical and demeaning ways. Go to Full Review
Jorge Loser Espinof 03/17/2020
3.5/5
Tension is effective and flashes of pure horror work surprisingly well. [Full Review in Spanish] Go to Full Review
Scott D. Pierce Deseret News (Salt Lake City) 01/15/2020
King doesn't quite wrap everything up in the end. There are some unanswered questions that might have been answered. But he has created a creepy tale that anyone who enjoys being scared -- without being totally grossed out -- will enjoy. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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kish b @RT00429023 Nov 17 ★★★★☆ Stephen King’s Rose Red is a gloriously over-the-top, old-school haunted house miniseries that feels like The Shining decided to throw a three-night party inside the Winchester Mystery House, and everyone got gloriously drunk on atmosphere. This 2002 ABC event is pure early-2000s King comfort food: a massive, creaky mansion that literally grows new rooms when it’s hungry, a team of psychics who probably should’ve read the job description twice, and enough foggy corridors, ghostly children, and rotting statues to satisfy any horror fan who grew up wishing The Haunting (1999) had been four hours longer and twice as unapologetic. Nancy Travis is perfect as the skeptical-but-secretly-terrified professor, Matt Ross steals every scene as the smarmy psychic showboat, and Julian Sands brings just the right amount of doomed arrogance. The effects swing between genuinely creepy practical work and hilariously dated CGI (that roaring stone lion will never not make me laugh), but somehow it all adds to the charm. It’s too long, occasionally cheesy, and the last hour drags a bit, but when Rose Red is firing on all cylinders (those hallway perspective shifts, the drowning ballroom, the garden statues coming to life), it’s legitimately unsettling and ridiculously fun. Four stars because it’s flawed as hell… and I still rewatch it every October without fail. Perfect rainy-weekend, lights-off, don’t-think-too-hard horror comfort. Turn your brain off, grab the popcorn, and let the house eat you alive. 🏰❤️ See more Katie C @RT25446585 Apr 12 I love this mini series, I understand It can be difficult to follow, if everyone watches the Pre sequel Ellen Rimbauer diary, they will receive more depth, minor changes but I think this show is amazing and one of my top favorite steven king shows or movies, honestly they could have kept going, I still want to go see the Winchester house See more wesley r @RT50329283 02/25/2025 Kept wondering when something would happen. Wondered for a very long time. Watchable but nothing special. (This was on dvd. Temptation to skip was very strong). See more Piper W @RT45232281 10/02/2023 Skip it. Not a genuine scare, chilling or terrifying moment to be found. Stephen King missed on this one. Direction was pedantic and unimaginative, the acting uninspiring. See more Cees T @RT15093300 09/24/2023 Nice to have ghost-savvy leads for a change, but inconsistent characters and longwinded even at double speed. Instead of ridiculous drama that makes characters unlikable, try adding some real-life consequences of the deaths. 6.1/10 - Watch A Pup Named Scooby-Doo instead. See more Margaret Y @Myyyy 04/29/2023 I really enjoyed this although it's pretty cheesy. See more Read all reviews
Stephen King's Rose Red — Season 1

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Episodes

Episode 1 Aired Jan 27, 2002 A professor (Nancy Travis), a team of psychics and an autistic teen (Kimberly J. Brown) unleash spirits in a mansion. Details Episode 2 Aired Jan 28, 2002 Team members encounter weird noises and odd rooms as they move throughout the mansion. Details Episode 3 Aired Jan 31, 2002 The mansion has strange and menacing effects on each member of the team. Details
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Season Info

Director
Craig R. Baxley
Executive Producer
Stephen King, Mark Carliner
Screenwriter
Stephen King
Network
ABC
Rating
TV-14
Genre
Mystery & Thriller, Horror
Original Language
English
Release Date
Jan 27, 2002