The Stand is a miniseries based on the eponymous horror novel by Stephen King. Considered by many as one of his best works, the King’s tome of a novel, released in 1978, is a sprawling tale of a worldwide pandemic caused by a weaponised strain of influenza that kills almost the entire human population. The Stand, to be fair, is a genuinely great piece of fiction that — apart from a pandemic of apocalyptic proportions — explores the dangers of biological warfare, the need of working together against a common enemy who is hell-bent on destroying civilisation, the nature of society among other issues. The series is directed by Josh Boone. The cast is impressive, featuring names like Whoopi Goldberg, James Marsden, Greg Kinnear, Amber Heard, Jovan Adepo, Odessa Young, and Owen Teague. Alexander Skarsgård looks suitably evil as the primary antagonist Randall Flagg, a supernaturally powerful man who establishes a totalitarian society in what was previously Las Vegas. The Stand looks like a compelling watch. The production values look pretty great, the actors seem to be doing great in their respective roles, and the scale of the show looks appropriately globe-spanning. The official synopsis reads, “Based on the best-selling novel by Stephen King, CBS All Access’s The Stand stars Whoopi Goldberg, Alexander Skarsgård, James Marsden, Odessa Young, Jovan Adepo, and many more. The limited event series will also feature an all-new coda written by Stephen King.” The Stand comes out on December 17, 2020.