Second only to Shakespeare, Stephen King is the most adapted author of all time. With 60 movies and counting, King’s novels and short stories have terrified audiences for decades since Brian De Palma adapted his debut novel Carrie in 1976. But while King’s canon yielded memorable cinematic and TV horrors like It, Cujo, and Salem’s Lot, the Maine native also delved into profound human connections as seen in real-world dramas like Stand By Me and The Shawshank Redemption.
This year alone marks the release of three highly-anticipated King adaptations: Longlegs director Osgood Perkins’s horror comedy The Monkey, the Tom Hiddleston-led sci-fi drama The Life of Chuck, and Edgar Wright’s upcoming The Running Man remake starring Glen Powell.
From misty monsters to haunted hotel rooms, we glimpse through the best of Stephen King adaptations. And while it might draw the scorn of ‘the King of Horror’, this list also includes some cinematic classics that he notoriously hated himself.
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