Entertainment - Media News Watch originally published at Entertainment - Media News Watch
Literary master of horror Stephen King only charged $1 for the use of the quote that opens the Alan Wake video game
Developed by Remedy Entertainment and published by Microsoft Game Studios, the video game Alan Wake begins with the narrator quoting a line that was written by Stephen King – and during an interview with Eurogamer, Remedy boss Sam Lake revealed that King only charged them $1 to use that line.
In case you’re not familiar with Alan Wake (as I wasn’t before seeing the article on the Eurogamer website), Eurogamer provides the information: Alan Wake begins with a sequence where we see the title character driving through the lonely countryside, over which we hear him deliver the following lines: “Stephen King once wrote that ‘Nightmares exist outside of logic, and there’s little fun to be had in explanations; they’re antithetical to the poetry of fear.’ In a horror story, the victim keeps asking ‘Why?’ But there can be no explanation, and there shouldn’t be one. The mystery of the unanswered question is what will stay with us forever. The article was entitled Why Hollywood Can’t Do Horror. The specific article was Why Hollywood Can’t Do Horror.
Speaking with Eurogamer, Lake said, “Creating the original Alan Wake
, I really, really desperately wanted a quote from him to start it off. I believe he asked for $1 to give us the rights to use his quote. so very generous.“Alan Wake[It was] was released in 2010, and a remastered version was released in 2021. Wikipedia notes that “The story follows bestselling novelist Alan Wake, as he attempts to unravel the mystery of his wife’s disappearance while on vacation in a small fictional town in Washington. All the while, he experiences events from his latest novel which he can’t remember writing, coming into life. The structure and pacing of Alan wake
are similar to that of a thriller TV series, with its plot twists and cliffhangers. The game itself is made up of six episodes. Two special episodes, The Sign and-The writer were released as downloadable content within the year the game was released. A six-episode web series, Bright Falls, also serves as a prequel. A number of books are also available that expand on the Alan wake story. Alan Wake’s American Nightmare, a stand-alone spin-off, was released in February 2012.” A sequel, AlanWake II, is scheduled to be released for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S in October.It’s no surprise that King only charged $1 for the quote used in Alan Wake, because it’s well known that he has a “Dollar Baby” arrangement where he only charges $1 when students, aspiring filmmakers, and theatre producers want to make an adaptation of his work. Why not charge $1 to quote a line in an Entertainment Weekly article? Leave a comment to let us know.
Entertainment - Media News Watch originally published at Entertainment - Media News Watch
