10 Underrated Movies Based On Stephen King Stories

Released in 1987 and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger himself, The Running Man is vastly different to King's original story, which he wrote and released under his alter ego, Richard Bachman. The film takes place in the far flung future of 2019. The biggest show on TV is The Running Man, in which death row inmates are thrown into a huge arena in a life-or-death battle with 'stalkers': heavily armed guards with amusing names and flashy costumes, not unlike boss characters in video games

The whole movie really does play out like an arcade game as Schwarzenegger and other 'runners' battle their way through the arena, taking on one increasingly ludicrous stalker after the next. Outside the game zone, real-life game show host Richard Dawson puts in a truly brilliant performance as the chillingly charismatic Damon Killian.

It's a pure popcorn action movie with a ton of '80s charm and wonderfully cheesy dialogue, and despite deviating massively from the source material, it remains one of the better mid-level King adaptations, as well as being highly rewatchable.