10 Worst Stephen King Film Adaptations
5. The Dark Tower
The Dark Tower is Stephen King's magnum opus, with seven full length novels and several short stories and a novella combining to make one sprawling story. It crosses dimensions and ties in with almost all of his other works in some form or another, forming the centerpiece to his universe. Written in installments between the '70s and the '00s, its sheer size would seem impossible to adapt to the big screen.
When news broke that a single film was being made from the series, fans cringed. Still, all was not lost. It could simply have been an adaptation of The Gunslinger. The cast was solid, with Idris Elba taking on the role of Roland and Matthew McConaughey becoming Randall Flagg. It was billed as a continuation of the series as well as an adaptation. So, what went wrong?
It didn't know where to go. It was completely unaccessible to newcomers and completely unfaithful for fans of the franchise. It was dull and it changed the focus of the plot from Roland, pushing him into a supporting role, to Jake, attempting to turn it into a boyhood adventure film.
The novels were horror and proud of it - removing these elements strips them of much of their strength. The film was watered down to a PG-13 rating. King offered some praise for the script, saying it kept the main idea of the novels, but conceded that the film itself was poor.