The Outsider
Series, 2020, The 2020s, Set in Cherokee City, Georgia
The Outsider is #32 of 42 in release order and #18 of 42 in chronological order in the Stephen King Universe.
The story
When an insidious supernatural force edges its way into a seemingly straightforward investigation into the gruesome murder of a young boy, it leads a seasoned cop and an unorthodox investigator to question everything they believe in.
The Outsider recap
The Outsider (2020) is a 10-episode HBO miniseries about a child murder pinned on a man who seems to have been in two places at once. Richard Price created it from King's 2018 novel. In Cherokee City, Georgia, Detective Ralph Anderson (Ben Mendelsohn), still grieving his son, publicly arrests Little League coach Terry Maitland (Jason Bateman) for the killing of a boy, Frankie Peterson, based on DNA and eyewitnesses. Terry has video proving he was at a conference in another city at the time. He is shot dead outside court, leaving his wife Glory (Julianne Nicholson) to fight for his name. Private investigator Holly Gibney (Cynthia Erivo), a brilliant woman with a remarkable memory, traces similar cases across the country and concludes a shape-shifting entity copies innocent people, kills children and feeds on the grief. Ralph resists the idea as the deaths mount. The search leads to a cave in Texas. Holly is the same character King wrote for the Mr. Mercedes books, though this series does not follow on from that show.
The Outsider ending explained
The Outsider ends, in the finale "Must/Can't", with the entity killed in the cave. Claude Bolton (Paddy Considine), whose face the entity had begun to take, shoots it, the cave collapses and impales it, and Ralph crushes its head with a rock. Back home, the survivors agree on a story, and Terry is cleared at a press conference. In a mid-credits scene, Holly is shown with the same scratch the entity gave its other victims.
Where to watch The Outsider
The Outsider is streaming on HBO Max in the US. You can rent or buy it on Amazon, Apple TV, and Google Play.
Ratings
IMDb 7.6/10
Where it fits
- Release order: after Pet Sematary, before The Stand.
- Chronological order: after Mr. Mercedes, before Salem's Lot.
What to watch before The Outsider
In release order, 17 Stephen King Universe essentials come before The Outsider (2020), from Carrie (1976) to Mr. Mercedes (2017).
Cast
- Ben Mendelsohn as Ralph Anderson
- Bill Camp as Howie Gold
- Jeremy Bobb as Alec Pelley
- Julianne Nicholson as Glory Maitland
- Marc Menchaca as Jack Hoskins
- Mare Winningham as Jeannie Anderson
- Paddy Considine as Claude Bolton
- Cynthia Erivo as Holly Gibney
- Yul Vazquez as Yunis Sablo
- Derek Cecil as Andy Katcavage
- Scarlett Blum as Jessa Maitland
- Summer Fontana as Maya Maitland
Created by Richard Price.