Stephen King Novels That Deserve A Film Adaptation
Stephen King is one of the most creative authors of his generation, and his writing including IT, The Shining, and Pet Sematary, have been adapted into films and television programs. Films, television films, television series, miniseries, television episodes, short films, and even an opera have been based on King’s novels, novellas, and short stories. Stephen King and movies go hand-in-hand, with a career spanning more than 55 years.
For decades, his writings and films based on them have given horror fans nightmares, and this writer shows no signs of slowing down with the thrills he delivers through his work. While a few of his adaptations have gone down in history as some of the best films ever made, the author’s collection still incorporates many excellent works that have yet to be discovered.
The Plant
It was Stephen King’s effort to write a serial novel in the style of Charles Dickens. Its narrative centers around a guy who tries to persuade a publishing house editor that magic exists. Because King never finished the book, many of the fundamental mysteries remain unsolved. The fact that the plant was never finished is arguably more astonishing given that King is a prolific novelist who can churn out a 300-page novel in his sleep. Adapting the story with a unique conclusion would be a fascinating task for a screenwriter. It appears like King will never finish the narrative, but perhaps someone else will.
Insomnia
This is a 1994 book that takes place in the fictional town of Derry, Maine. This is the same set as Stephen King’s previous works, such as IT. Even if it hasn’t gotten very far on the adaptation front, King’s sprawling novel about a widower with insomnia who begins to see phenomena others can’t is a favorite among a select group of admirers. It’s a smart blend of sci-fi and horror that would give filmmakers with as many obstacles as creative chances at over 800 pages. This novel would definitely work best as a TV miniseries, but a film adaptation would be terrific as well.
Duma Key
It’s time to travel down the east coast of the United States. While most of King’s novels are set in his home state of Maine, Duma Key is unique in that. It is the first novel he ever wrote set in Florida. This psychological horror novel was published in 2008 and has been optioned several times in the decade since then, all to no result. Although the project is officially in progress, no news is definitely bad news after years of pauses and starts.
The Long Walk
It is another Stephen King work that was written using the pen name Richard Bachman rather than his own identity. It was released in 1979, although according to King, it was one of the first novels he ever wrote, albeit not the first to be published. As an alternate history in which the Germans appear to have won World War II, it strongly resembles Philip K. Dick’s (successfully adapted) The Man in the High Castle. Frank Darabont (The Walking Dead) bought the rights to the cruel, haunting dystopian novel more than a decade ago, but nothing has come of it – though a popular animated fan film counts for something.
Black House
The sequel to King and Peter Straub’s 1984 novel The Talisman reunited the two authors and brought back protagonist Jack Sawyer, which was adopted as a produced short in 2008 and is presently under miniseries development. While producers are currently attempting to have Talisman adapted for a larger audience, there is no indication of when Black House will be given the same treatment.
