The series was announced in February 2017 as a collaboration between Hulu, J.J. Abrams, and Stephen King, drawing on King's large body of work rather than adapting a single novel, with writing by Sam Shaw and Dustin Thomason and production by Abrams' Bad Robot.

For season 2, Garrett Hedlund was originally announced in March 2019 as part of the lead cast, but his role was later recast with Paul Sparks.

Aaron Staton played a pastor character in both seasons, becoming the first character from season 1 to reappear in season 2, though as part of a different narrative continuity.

Principal photography for season 1 took place largely in Massachusetts, with the downtown area of Orange, Massachusetts redressed to portray Castle Rock, and additional scenes shot at Vernon Hill School in Worcester and a Victorian house in Lancaster.

The former West Virginia Penitentiary in Moundsville, West Virginia, was used as the filming location for the fictional Shawshank State Prison.

After filming wrapped in Orange, Massachusetts, the production donated $3,500 to the town, including $2,500 to the Fire Department for its assistance and $1,000 to the Trustees of Soldiers' Memorial.

Visual effects were used to alter the seasons depicted on screen, including adding snow to scenes that had none on location and creating a forest fire for the fifth episode.

The song 'Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa' is played three times in season 1, opening the premiere with Gene Pitney's 1963 version and closing the finale with Dusty Springfield's 1964 version, its lyrics echoing The Kid's storyline.

The season 1 episode 'The Queen' received exceptional critical acclaim, holding a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 14 reviews, with particular praise for Sissy Spacek's performance and Chris Westlake's score.