9 Movies That Succeeded By Ignoring The Source Material

Next we come to 1994's Forrest Gump. A film adaptation had been tossed around a fair bit since the novel's publishing in 1986, but after directors like Terry Gilliam turned it down, Robert Zemeckis signed on to make the movie, which mostly proceeded in its own direction. The tale of one unintelligent yet humble man taking part in history became a huge hit.

The main changes here were focused on the character himself, trimming off some adult aspects in favour of someone more endearing.

In the book, the tone is darker, with the protagonist doing drugs, gambling and even taking up career wrestling at one point. Instead, Tom Hanks was able to portray the character with a sense of innocence that won over many an audience. It focused primarily on Forrest's love life and keeping his virtuous nature on display throughout.

By changing these elements, Forrest Gump was far more appealing to audiences and therefore more successful as a result. Had they stuck closer to the book, things would have been a lot more contentious.