This article contains mentions of suicide.
Warning! This article contains spoilers for The Institute episode 6.
A new TV adaptation of aStephen Kingnovel surprisingly changes the circumstances around a character’s fate and makes her death far darker than it was in the original book. Interestingly, this story change adds more depth to the character’s narrative in the show and arguably makes it better than the source material.
TV shows, likeUnder the Dome, that try to stray too far from their source material are often heavily criticized by audiences. The criticism even makes sense because these adaptations end up losing the essence of Stephen King’s original vision, which is frustrating for viewers familiar with his books.
Fortunately, a new TV series, which adapts a five-year-oldStephen King book, does not introduce many changes to the original narrative. It seems to change one major aspect of a heroic character’s story, but its creative liberty actually heightens the emotional stakes. This, in turn, makes one story beat in theStephen King TV showfar more hard-hitting and tragic.
Maureen’s Death In The Institute Show Leaves Out Tragic Details From Stephen King’s Book
The Show Emphasizes How Much She Feared Consequences
InThe Institute’s episode 6, Maureen agrees to help Luke escape the titular facility. She hides him in one of her laundry baskets and carefully escorts him out of the facility before anyone can catch them. However, soon after she helps him leave, Maureen dies by suicide before the facility’s authorities can get to her and question her.
Although the events surrounding Luke’s escape unfold in a similar manner toStephen King’sThe Institute, the circumstances Maureen finds herself in are slightly different. The book establishes that Maureen is already terminally ill and on the verge of dying. In her eyes,helping Luke becomes her last shot at redemption before her illness kills her.
The show reveals no such thing about her. She is purely driven by her strong sense of morality and desire to help the children when she helps Luke escape. After Luke leaves, she dies by suicide, not because she was going to succumb to an illness. She does it because she fears what the Institute’s authorities will do to her after learning what she did.
Her suicide in the series also highlights how the guilt of not doing anything for a long time finally gets to her towards the end. She realizes that no matter what she does to redeem herself, she will never be able to forgive herself for serving at the evil facility. Therefore, she dies by suicide instead of living with guilt for the rest of her life.
Why The Institute Keeps Maureen’s Death A Secret
They Do Not Wish To Draw Unwanted Attention
After learning about Maureen’s suicide, Ms. Sigsby asks the central facility’s staff to keep her death a secret. She does this because she realizes that if the news of her death reaches the public,it would only draw unwanted attention to the Institute’s operations and potentially expose the unethical experiments they conduct on children.
She also understands that Luke’s escape from the facility already puts them at significant risk. Any additional scrutiny from the news of a staff member’s suicide could only further accelerate the collapse of their covert operation. Therefore, to ensure things do not escalate, Sigsby orders her employees to get rid of Maureen’s body in theStephen Kingshow and asks them to say nothing about her death to anyone.
The Institute
A kidnapped prodigy with special abilities, Luke, ends up at The Institute, while Tim, a former cop, seeks a new life in a nearby town. Their fates are inevitably linked.
