Stephen King has defended himself against a social media user who said his new book will be a “flop.”
The author of horror stories, who joined the Democratic Party in 1970 and is a vocal critic of former President Donald Trump, is divisive online because he often takes to social media to share his thoughts on a variety of political issues.
On May 13, he announced on X (formerly Twitter) that later this month he has a book of stories coming out titled You Like It Darker. The audiobook version is to be read by himself and actor Will Patton.
While most people showed excitement over the news, one person didn’t share the same sentiment, writing: “It’s going to be a flop, dude. No one likes you.”
King replied to the X user with a now viral post: “Opinions are like a*******. Everybody’s got one. I think Clint Eastwood said that.”
The line “Well, opinions are like a**holes. Everybody has one.” was said by Eastwood in the 1988 film The Dead Pool, in which he starred as Inspector “Dirty” Harry Callahan.
At the time of writing, King’s post had been viewed 246,300 times. Newsweek emailed a spokesperson for King for comment Thursday.
People took to the comments to show their support for the critically acclaimed author, with one person writing: “That has to be just another X bot—I can’t wait for your new series.”
“I’m sure it’s going to be great! Can’t wait to read it and see it made into a fabulous popcorn movie to watch with friends. Your fiction I love! Not so much your political commentary, but who cares? Keep writing,” said another.
“You probably have millions of fans and some of us have been reading your books and watching your movies for decades,” a third commented.
A fourth added: “Opinions from #MAGACultMorons don’t count.”
King is a prolific X user, posting about various topics to the platform, where he has 7.1 million followers. King also likes to share his support for shows he’s watched and books he has read.
He previously shared his thoughts on Netflix’s hit show, Baby Reindeer, with his reaction similar to that of most people who have watched it.
Based on Richard Gadd’s award-winning one-man play, Baby Reindeer follows struggling comedian Donny Dunn’s (Gadd) messy relationship with his female stalker, Martha (Jessica Gunning).
King took to X to share his pithy take on the dramedy, writing: “BABY REINDEER: Holy s***.”
At the time of writing his post had been viewed 4.3 million times.
Gadd previously wrote a lengthy essay about his decision to turn his experiences with Martha into a comedy show, which would ultimately turn into a series for Netflix.
“I remember during a particularly long night of unrest; the idea came to me. To stage this whole ordeal, one day, when the time was right,” he wrote for Netflix. “It felt like a risky thing—to do a ‘warts and all’ version of the story where I held my hands up to the mistakes I had made with Martha.”
Gadd added: “All I ever wanted to do was capture something complicated about the human condition. That we all make mistakes. That no person is ever good or bad. That we are all lost souls looking for love in our own weird way.”