10 Horror Movies That Would Have Made Better TV Shows
Whether these spooky films worked or not, they could be better as a TV series.
Every time a television adaptation of a famous movie is announced, you can feel the world collectively groan. Some films are so beloved, we don't want to see them remade, especially in a different medium. If a story worked perfectly as a movie, why turn it into a series?
However, there is one genre that is arguably better suited to television than film: horror.
A scary story relies on building up tension and climaxing with a terrifying pay off. We, as an audience, need to get to know the characters so we care when they are in mortal danger. Doing this effectively is difficult in a horror movie, because the entire story has to be crammed into 90 minutes.
By using an episodic approach, the story can take its time. A horror flick may have a great premise but fail because it doesn't have the opportunity to set up storylines and characters. Movies like The Exorcist, Psycho, and Silence of the Lambs are considered so flawless, it feels impossible to improve them. And yet, their television adaptations worked perfectly since the viewer is given far more time to digest what's going on.
Now that movie fans are starting to see the appeal to tv adaptations, here are ten horror movies that could work better on the small screen.
10. Scanners
David Cronenberg's literal mind-blowing classic centres around a group of people called scanners who have developed telekinetic and telepathic powers. One scanner, Vale, is hired by a military company to eliminate a psychic called Revok who intends to use his power to rule the world.
Even though a TV series was being developed in 2011, it was scrapped. BRON Studios announced another television adaptation in 2017, but little has been mentioned about it since. It's a shame that studios are having trouble adapting Cronenberg's work, since it has so much potential.
For a television show, we could see Vale and other scanners being hired to take down a different rogue psychic every episode. Because scanners can't always control their powers, Vale has to accept the fact that the chances of him or one of his co-workers going rogue is a realistic possibility. With a big budget, it would be awesome to see scanners hurling cars at one another with their minds, bursting heads with a thought, or initiating a psychic war against humanity.
Considering Cronenberg hasn't directed a film in seven years, having him return to the limelight to adapt the story that launched his career would be incredible.