Mr. Harrigan's Phone: Release date, cast and more for Stephen King's Netflix adaptation

The story of "Mr. Harrigan's Phone" follows a boy named Craig who develops a friendship with a wealthy elderly neighbor whom he calls Mr. Harrigan. When the neighbor dies, a distraught Craig slips the man's phone (which Craig gave him earlier as a gift) into his jacket pocket at the funeral, and the phone is buried with him. Years later, Craig calls Harrigan's phone and discovers that not only has the phone's battery remained alive, but the things Craig says in the voicemails he leaves have a dark effect on the real world. Here is the official synopsis:

When small-town boy Craig (Jaeden Martell) befriends Mr. Harrigan, an older, reclusive billionaire (Donald Sutherland), the two begin to form an unlikely bond over their love books and reading. But when Mr. Harrigan sadly dies, Craig discovers that not everything is dead and finds himself eerily able to communicate with his friend from the grave via the iPhone in this supernatural coming-of-age story that shows that certain connections are never lost.

It sounds a bit like “The Black Phone,” a kid-centric horror film based on the short story of the same name by King's son, Joe Hill. Or perhaps a better comparison would be 2017's debut "It" movie, or 1986's "Stand by Me" movie. Stephen King is at his best writing a coming-of-age story centered on a dark premise, and that's exactly what "Mr. Harrigan's Phone" promises to be.