Stephen King revealed the classic horror movie that has stuck with him years after watching it. That’s quite a feat considering King is one of the masters of horror.

The author of numerous books that have been turned into iconic horror movies, including Carrie, The Shining, Cujo, and IT, King knows a thing or two about getting audiences to experience cold shivers of fear. King is not immune to that feeling, it seems, as a 51-year-old movie got to him when he first saw it.

Variery shared a clip from a new documentary where King shares that 1974’s The Texas Chainsaw Mᴀssacre has stuck with him after all these years. The clip is from Chain Reactions, which premieres September 19 in New York City, which recounts the impact that Texas Chainsaw Mᴀssacre has had on five creatives.

In the clip, King reveals he actually didn’t see The Texas Chainsaw Mᴀssacre until eight years after its initial release, but that may have helped the movie’s impact on him. He said:

“I was in the theater almost by myself. That’s when a movie really has a tendency to work on you, to get its cold little fingers under your skin. It had that kind of washed-out ’70s look, for want of the better term. You could tell that this print had been around for a while, and it’s better for it, because it just looks f—king real. It works because there’s not artifice about it, there’s no buildup, there’s no character nuance. I mean, there are scenes in the graveyard… they’re not extras, they’re not Hollywood people at all. They look like they came from the nearest little Texas town. It’s fantastic.”

Other creatives featured in the Chain Reactions documentary include Patton Oswalt, 13 ᴀssᴀssins director Takashi Miike, horror critic Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, and filmmaker Karyn Kusama.

What This Means For The Texas Chainsaw Mᴀssacre Legacy

The Texas Chainsaw Mᴀssacre is already one of the most acclaimed and popular horror movies of all time. Following the original 1974 movie, there have been eight sequels/reboots of the franchise, but none of them have reached the same height as the original. More Texas Chainsaw projects are on the way, as A24 is close to acquiring the franchise rights.

Yet to hear King talk so glowingly about The Texas Chainsaw Mᴀssacre and how the movie worked on him does feel like it puts another feather in the cap of the horror classic.

Our Take On Stephen King’s Texas Chainsaw Mᴀssacre Comments

It’s always fascinating to hear what movies have inspired and entertained some famous authors, directors, and actors. Whether it’s Christopher Nolan revealing he loves the Fast & Furious movies, or Martin Scorsese reviewing A24’s Eddington.

That is the case here with King. It’s fun to think that someone who has been responsible for so many frights can be similarly impacted by the scares and unsettling nature of The Texas Chainsaw Mᴀssacre.