The 20 Best Stephen King Adaptations, Ranked
The 20 Best Stephen King Adaptations, Ranked
When we think of Stephen King, we think of high schools haunted by psychic forces, immortal creatures that live in the sewers, empty hotel hallways that echo with disembodied voices, and ragtag groups of outcasts who are bonded by facing incomprehensible horrors together. Ever since he started publishing in the seventies, King’s stories have resonated with generations of readers. His ability to depict ordinary experiences and elevate them into disturbing, sometimes supernatural, but always heartfelt tales has made him one of the most revered American writers alive. When King first began publishing his stories, it was a necessity, both as a way to fulfill his inner need to tell stories and also to make a living.
Everything changed when his first novel, Carrie, was adapted into a film by Brian De Palma. Carrie brought King’s storytelling onto the big screen, stunning viewers and ringing in a lengthy tradition of King adaptations that still bring in huge audiences today. After writing more than 60 novels and 200 short stories, King’s work continues to be adapted regularly. His creations continue to haunt us and define the genre of horror. Ask anyone their favorite scary movie and you might hear IT, Carrie, or The Shining. Here, we’re revisiting all of King’s best adaptations here to guide you on your own exploration through the hallmarks of horror.
20) 1408 (2007)
Stephen King’s short story, 1408, was already a greatest-hits album of Kingsian action: It centers around an author who investigates haunted house houses. There’s a particularly spooky one at a hotel in New York City, Room 1408... and whoops! He gets trapped. The film doesn’t work quite as well as the story, but it features aughts John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson, both in top form—which is half the battle. Additional reading: Check out King’s memoir/writing Bible On Writing, which uses 1408 as an example of how he edits his stories. —Brady Langmann
19) It: Chapter 2 (2019)
The companion piece to 2017’s It isn’t as chilling as its predecessor, thanks to the fact that viewers are as prepared for Pennywise’s malevolent antics as the film’s now-adult heroes. Still, what it lacks in memorable frights it makes up for in grand spookshow set pieces – including ones set in a funhouse and an old lady’s shabby apartment – and poignant drama about the lingering effects of childhood trauma. With Jessica Chastain, James McAvoy and a terrifically funny and heartfelt Bill Hader as its leads, It: Chapter 2 doesn’t just provide closure for its King-authored tale; it serves as a moving study of transcending pain and fear through togetherness. —Nick Schager
18) Children of the Corn (1984)
Okay, so this isn’t exactly King’s most complicated work, nor is it technically a very good movie. But some late October nights call for trashy, scary good fun, and this story of a hapless couple whose road trip leads them into a community ruled by bloodthirsty, corn-god worshipping children is exactly that. And if its status as a campy ‘80s classic isn’t enough for you, it also stars Terminator’s always magnetic Linda Hamilton. —Gabrielle Bruney
17) 1922 (2017)
1922 might be one of the best—and even most underrated—adaptations in the recent Stephen Kingaissance. Released straight to Netflix, 1922 adapts King’s novella of the same name, which follows Wilfred James (who’s about as unreliable a narrator as you can get), who hatches a plan with his 14-year-old son to kill his wife. Thomas Jane plays “Wilf” to moody, grumbling perfection, and Neal McDonaugh as his son, Henry, does horror-movie-hissy-fit pretty damn well. A chilling tale of isolation, regret, and karma, director Zak Hilditch nails the paranoid tone of King’s work—murderous rats and all. —Brady Langmann
16) The Mist (2007)
The Mist is one of the more baffling adaptations from King’s repertoire and not the most well-received of Frank Darabont’s adaptations (to be fair, he also directed The Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption). Nevertheless, the film offers a crazy look into the terror that unfolds in a Maine supermarket after a mysterious mist engulfs the town. If the titular mist wasn't unnerving enough, the terrifying offscreen monsters really set the survivors on edge. Known for its shock ending, the true horror in The Mist has less to do with the mist or the monsters within it, but rather the extremes that humans will go to when faced with terror. —Justin Kirkland
15) Green Mile
This is an undeniable people pleaser. King adaptations always have a mass appeal, but alongside Shawshank, The Green Mile is the writer's most universally beloved adaptation. That’s thanks to America’s favorite uncle, Tom Hanks, who is still at the peak of his ‘90s charm in 1999 when this movie was released to massive box office and critical success—getting nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Supporting Actor for Michael Clarke Duncan. — Matt Miller
14) Castle Rock
It’s hard to imagine a TV series better suited for Stephen King fans. The world of Castle Rock is like a King playground—a universe that is like a melting pot of the horror master’s stories. It takes his tropes, his settings, his characters, and themes and remixes them into a familiar yet entirely new narrative. It’s a scavenger hunt for King obsessives in every scene, and can equally be enjoyed by anyone who doesn’t consider themselves an expert of his multiverse. Here the mind-bending horror sci-fi of Castle Rock is at once an homage, an adaptation, and entirely new. Every single episode has a new surprise in store.—Matt Miller
13) Creepshow (1982)
Pairing King with Night of the Living Dead auteur George Romero for an E.C. Comics-inspired anthology was a stroke of genius, as borne out by this stellar 1982 horror compilation. King himself has a good (and goofy) time taking center-screen for a vignette about a farmer who comes down with an alien fungal infection, although the real highlights are segments involving an adulterous Ted Danson and a jealous Leslie Nielsen, and an ancient crate that may be housing a monster that Hal Holbrook can use to rid himself of obnoxious Adrienne Barbeau. Alternately amusing and ominous, this collection has ably stood the terrifying test of time. —Nick Schager
11) It (2017)
Director Andy Muschietti takes considerable liberties with King’s magnum opus for 2017’s blockbuster, and almost all of them are for the better. Focused solely on the kid-centric half of its source material, the film presents a nightmarish vision of youthful Maine friends under siege from Pennywise the Dancing Clown (Bill Skarsg?rd), an ancient creature with a fondness for red balloons and an appetite for human flesh. Bolstered by strong performances from its adolescent cast, Muschietti’s It goes to great lengths to humanize its protagonists – and establish their forged-in-blood bond – which, in turn, allows him to provide a series of increasingly nerve-jangling scares. It’s a saga of child abuse, in all its many forms, that doubles as a scream-generating thrill ride. —Nick Schager
10) Gerald’s Game (2017)
A fundamentally interior novel, Gerald’s Game seemed like a so-so candidate for a screen adaptation – until, that is, Mike Flanagan (The Haunting of Hill House, Doctor Sleep) helmed this superb 2017 Netflix feature. Carla Gugino stars as an unhappily married woman who winds up trapped, handcuffed to her bed, after her husband has a heart attack during a weekend-getaway bedroom tryst. Her struggle to free herself while simultaneously battling memories of a horrifying past is brought to dynamic (and, in a few instances, gruesome) life by Flanagan. It’s the phenomenal Gugino, however, who carries the film as a scarred but defiant woman unwilling to succumb to the horrors of today or yesteryear. —Nick Schager
9) Dolores Claiborne (1995)
Kathy Bates’ turn as the truly terrifying Annie Wilkes is her most famous performance, but Misery isn’t Bates’ only Stephen King movie. Five years after her Oscar-winning role, she starred as the titular heroine Dolores Claiborne, who struggles to support her family despite her marriage to an abusive and alcoholic husband, only to find herself accused of murder in her twilight years. King has sometimes failed to render fully-dimensional female characters (I’m looking at you, Frannie from The Stand), but with the help of Bate’s fantastic performance, Dolores is one of his best heroines ever. —Gabrielle Bruney
8) The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
Frank Darabont’s 1994 cinematic expansion of King’s 1982 novella didn’t win any of the seven Oscars for which it was nominated, but time has been immensely kind to his The Shawshank Redemption, which remains among the most beloved of all King-based films. That’s in large part due to the fact that, far from a typical supernatural King tale, it’s a moving and inspiring drama about two men’s ordeal in – and attempts to escape—a Maine prison that’s led by arguably the finest performances of Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman’s career. Rich in character detail, humor and hope, it finds uplifting light at the end of the dark tunnel. —Nick Schager
6) It (1990)
With all due respect to Bill Skarsg?rd, Tim Curry delivers the definitive performance as Pennywise the Dancing Clown in ABC TV’s 1990 mini-series, about a motley crew of kids who are beset by unspeakable evil in Derry, Maine—and then forced to confront it once again as adults. With over-the-top circus-entertainer gusto that’s underscored by pure, toothy menace, Curry images the monster as the demented flip-side of Bozo, all cheery excitement masking unnatural hunger. The rest of this small-screen effort ranges from solid (Richard Thomas as Bill) to deflating (the spider-y finale). Yet Curry’s turn – especially in the earlygoing – is downright unforgettable. —Nick Schager
5) The Dead Zone (1983)
David Cronenberg may be known for a distinctive brand of body horror, but he took a more psychological approach to his 1983 adaptation of King’s supernatural novel, about a small-town schoolteacher (Christopher Walken) who, following an accident and a five-year coma, awakens with psychic abilities. More stunning still, he then discovers, courtesy of his second sight, that a promising U.S. Congressman (Martin Sheen) is destined to bring about global catastrophe. Walken’s subdued performance captures the alienation plaguing his protagonist as he tries to avert disaster through drastic means. Cold and haunting, the film contends that sometimes, having great power doesn’t make you any less powerless. —Nick Schager
4) Misery (1990)
Making a ranking of Stephen King adaptations without recognizing Misery would be insane. Some of the horror writer’s most effective work is when he explores just how horrific humans can be, and you’d be taxed to find a character more terrifying than Kathy Bates’ Annie Wilkes. A nurse and megafan of a book series by author Paul Sheldon (James Caan), Annie rescues Paul after he has a car wreck after a snow storm. When he awakens, he realizes that Annie is way more than a “big fan.” Unhappy with where he’s taken her favorite book series, things go from helpful to potentially homicidal real quick. There’s a “hobbling” scene where Annie takes a sledgehammer to Paul’s ankles that will make you rethink just how toxic stan culture can be. —Justin Kirkland
3) Stand By Me (1986)
In case anyone thought Stephen King could one write stories about things that go bump in the night (not that there’s anything wrong with that), Stand by Me, an adaptation of his novella “The Body,” proves that he’s just as capable of crafting less otherworldly tales. Okay, so there’s still a touch of the grim and grisly—the four boys at the heart of this story are on the hunt for a dead body—but this beloved coming-of-age film has it all, from great performances, including a star turn from a teenage River Phoenix, oodles of truly moving moments, and a perfect late-‘50s soundtrack.—Gabrielle Bruney
2) The Shining
Is there any classic horror movie with more quotable lines than The Shining? "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." "Redrum." "Heeeeere's Johnny." This film remains the pinnacle of prestige horror. It is still regarded by the new era masters as a turning point in the genre—just this year on the press tour for Us, new horror auteur Jordan Peele even dressed like Jack Torrance during an interview. Stanley Kubrick places his masterful eye toward sweeping landscape shots, terrifying single point perspective hallways, and a hedge maze scene that might never be matched in cinema. Visually, this film has some of the most beautiful and terrifying images ever put to film. And, Jack Nicholson's command over facial expressions and unhinged emotional turns is the best of his entire career. — Matt Miller
1) Carrie (1976)
For most of Carrie’s runtime, the only scary thing in the film is, well, high school. The cruel classmates who pelt tampons at the titular anti-heroine, the cascading physical and emotional abuse trickling down the food chain from abusive boyfriend (John Travolta in his second ever film role), to his mean-girl girlfriend, to Carrie herself. Then there’s Carrie's truly psychotic mother, and while all that’s disturbing, not a single body drops until the final twenty minutes. And by the time you get to the truly iconic pig’s blood moment, you're thoroughly invested in this strange, lonely girl, her teachers, classmates, and even her tormentors. —Gabrielle Bruney
We run down the 20 best films and shows from Stephen King with Carrie, It, The Shining, Castle Rock, and more.