10 Stephen King Stories That Deserve Film Adaptations
The King of Horror has so many great stories to tell.
Stephen King is one of the most prolific horror writers the world has ever seen, blessed with a remarkably macabre imagination and a true talent for taking often simple ideas and twisting them around in unexpected ways, crafting memorable horror stories that have scared us more times than we can count.
With the King of Horror having written over 50 novels and more than 200 short stories, many of which have gone on to win awards and sell millions of copies, it's no surprise that his work has been adapted numerous times on the silver screen, to vastly different results.
Some of the films based on King's work, like The Shining, The Green Mile, Misery, and The Shawshank Redemption, have gone down in history as some of the best-rated movies of all time, while others turned out to be total flops and should probably never have been made in the first place.
Clearly, some of King's work is well-suited to film adaptations, while other stories are best left on the page. Despite all the movies and shows that have been based on his books, many of his most exciting tales have been left untouched and thoroughly deserve to be adapted.
10. The Long Walk
Written under King's pseudonym, Richard Bachman, The Long Walk bears some similarities with other great novels like The Hunger Games and another of King's works: The Running Man. Like those stories, The Long Walk is focused on a life-or-death contest in a dystopian future.
The book follows Raymond Garraty, a teenage boy taking part in an annual walking marathon. 100 contestants enter, but only 1 will survive. All the boys have to do is walk. They must maintain a steady pace and aren't allowed to stop for any reason. If they do pause or start walking too slowly, they get a warning. After three warnings, they're out, permanently.
It's a simple premise but could work brilliantly as a film, with the story containing a rich cast of characters and some unexpected incidents along the way. Interestingly enough, a film version of this one might actually happen sooner rather than later. The rights for the film have been passed around a little in recent years, with New Line Cinema being the latest to announce plans to bring The Long Walk to the big screen at some point in the not-too-distant future.