The 15 best Stephen King movies and TV shows of all time
The 15 best Stephen King movies and TV shows of all time
Chris Nashawaty, Clark Collis, Britt HayesMon, October 19, 2026 at 10:00 PM UTC
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River Phoenix in ‘Stand By Me’; Kathy Bates in ‘Misery’; David Jonsson and Cooper Hoffman in ‘The Long Walk’Credit: Everett; Shutterstock; Lionsgate
With the sheer amount of Stephen King adaptations unleashed in theaters and on TV, there are bound to be some that fall short of the King of Horror’s genius. But others not only match the greatness of the source material but expand upon King’s writing in unforgettable ways.
Of course, classics like Carrie (1976), The Shining (1980), and Misery (1990) remain among the best horror films ever made. But many of the strongest King adaptations come from his work outside the genre, with Stand by Me (1986) and The Shawshank Redemption (1994) proving that the author’s talents extend well beyond the supernatural.
And Hollywood remains as interested in King as ever. Recent adaptations like The Monkey (2025), The Life of Chuck (2025), and The Long Walk (2025) have brought King’s stories to the big screen. On television, frequent King adapter Mike Flanagan has revisited Carrie, while HBO’s It: Welcome to Derry has expanded the world of the author’s 1986 novel It.
From terrifying classics to moving dramas, here are our picks for the best Stephen King movie and TV adaptations.
11.22.63 (2016)
James Franco as Jake Epping/James Amberson in ‘11.22.63’Credit: Russ Martin/Hulu
Some King novels feel destined for cinematic adaptation — two hours, in and out. Others, like his sci-fi doorstopper 11/22/63, are much more suited to television, as proven by this Hulu-produced limited series. Telling the story of an English teacher (James Franco) gifted with the chance to time travel back to 1960 to prevent John F. Kennedy’s assassination, the eight-episode thriller is well-paced and well-performed with a strong emotional core that tackles potent themes about love and the consequences of our actions. —Kevin Jacobsen
Carrie (1976)
Sissy Spacek as Carrie White in ‘Carrie’Credit: Everett Collection
A horrific but oddly relatable coming-of-age story, Brian De Palma‘s masterpiece stars Sissy Spacek as small-town outcast Carrie White — a sheltered, picked-on wallflower with a deranged religious zealot mother at home (Piper Laurie) and a telekinetic gift triggered by a rage with which she’s just beginning to grapple.
De Palma’s suspenseful Rube Goldberg–meets–Alfred Hitchcock pig’s blood at the prom climax gets all the attention. Still, this sympathetic love letter to teenage misfits everywhere wouldn’t work without Spacek’s wide-eyed vulnerability and King’s deep understanding of the humiliations of adolescence and popularity that every teen knows all too well. —Chris Nashawaty
Castle Rock (2018–2019)
Sissy Spacek as Ruth Deaver and Bill Skarsgård as the Kid on ‘Castle Rock’Credit: Dana Starbard/Hulu
It is easy to poke holes into Castle Rock‘s inclusion in this list. After all, it’s not technically an adaptation of any particular work. Despite this technicality, this anthology TV show skillfully evokes the milieu of King as a posse of top-notch acting talent (including Sissy Spacek, André Holland, and, in season 2, Lizzy Caplan as a young Annie Wilkes) help extend the Master of the Macabre’s universe. Talk about a multiverse of madness! —Clark Collis
Christine (1983)
Keith Gordon as Arnie in ‘Christine’Credit: Everett
Stephen King and John Carpenter — need we say more? Carpenter, known at that point for such films as Halloween (1978) and The Fog (1980), proved a strong match for King’s pulpy tale of a seemingly sentient Plymouth Fury with a penchant for killing. While King has stated he found the movie adaptation “boring,” in some ways we prefer the film’s more economical storytelling compared to the book, particularly the choice to cut out the backstory of how the car came to be possessed. Rather than get bogged down in the details of an origin story, Carpenter leaves it semi-ambiguous and allows the audience to just enjoy the ride. —K.J.
The Dead Zone (1983)
Christopher Walken as Johnny Smith in ‘The Dead Zone’Credit: Everett Collection
Director David Cronenberg brings his signature brand of Canadian creepiness to this taut supernatural thriller. Christopher Walken stars as a school teacher who comes out of a coma with a gift that feels more like a terrifying curse. He discovers that he can see glimpses of the past and future by touching people, a gift that eventually presents him with a terrifying moral dilemma involving an ambitious politician. It’s like a Twilight Zone episode spiked with arsenic. —C.N.
Dolores Claiborne (1995)
Kathy Bates as Dolores Claiborne and Jennifer Jason Leigh as Selena St. George in ‘Dolores Claiborne’Credit: Everett Collection
This powerful feminist psychodrama feels like a love letter from King to his single, working-class mother, who he says supported their family alone after his father walked out. Kathy Bates plays Dolores, a hardscrabble Maine housekeeper who hasn’t seen her estranged daughter, Selena (Jennifer Jason Leigh), in 15 years. Selena returns after her mother is suspected of a murder that mirrors the events surrounding the death of Selena’s abusive father (David Strathairn). Director Taylor Hackford toggles between the past and present in a way that reminds you that sometimes in life, it’s hard to tell them apart. —C.N.
The Long Walk (2025)
‘The Long Walk’Credit: Murray Close/Lionsgate
Leave it to Hunger Games director Francis Lawrence to make an effective adaptation of The Long Walk, a work of dystopian horror that has grown increasingly relevant in the 40-plus years since it was first published. Set in a dystopian version of the 1970s, the film follows a group of 50 boys — one from each state — participating in an annual competition that requires them to walk without stopping, day or night, under the watchful eye of the military. Touted by the government as a symbol of hope and national renewal, the eponymous contest is televised around the country as a spectator event. There are rules, of course: Fall below 3 mph and you receive a warning; receive three warnings and you will be shot and killed on the spot.
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Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson anchor the ensemble as a pair of teens whose friendship raises the stakes, culminating in a gut-wrenching final act. Lawrence and screenwriter JT Mollner (2024’s Strange Darling) manage to find tiny glimmers of gentleness in an otherwise grueling and deeply upsetting story that never betrays the tone of the original novel — one of several darker and more cynical books King published under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. That The Long Walk is one of two King/Bachman adaptations released in 2025 (the other being Edgar Wright’s fairly disappointing take on The Running Man) makes sense given our increasingly dystopian circumstances. —Britt Hayes
The Mist (2007)
Various characters in ‘The Mist’Credit: Ralph Nelson/The Weinstein Company
Frank Darabont is the go-to director when it comes to King adaptations (see also: The Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption). And he certainly found every ounce of the author’s air of locked-room dread in this one. Set almost entirely in a small-town Maine supermarket where the locals are hiding out from...well, what exactly? Thomas Jane steals the show from a great cast of character actors, especially in a final scene that is so raw and bleak and amazing that I may just go watch it again right now. —C.N.
Misery (1990)
Kathy Bates as Annie Wilkes in ‘Misery’Credit: Everett Collection
Misery is the moment Kathy Bates became an icon. Annie Wilkes, the self-proclaimed number-one fan of a jaded bestselling author played by James Caan, is an unforgettable cocktail of G-rated verbal abuse and hard-R physical violence (the sledgehammer!). “I thought you were good Paul. But you’re not good. You’re just another lying ol’ dirty birdy.”
King and Bates both make Annie, arguably King’s most vivid and dementedly noble character, the perfect villain in their own ways. It should come as no surprise, then, that Bates won the Academy Award for Best Actress for the role in 1991. —C.N.
Mr. Mercedes (2017–2019)
Brendan Gleeson as Bill Hodges on ‘Mr. Mercedes’Credit: Kent Smith/AT&T Audience Network
If you are looking for an underrated crime series, Mr. Mercedes should be at the top of your watchlist. Brendan Gleeson is simply terrific as retired detective Bill Hodges, who remains haunted by a terrifying incident in which a man dubbed Mr. Mercedes claimed the lives of 16 people. His independent investigations lead him to a sadistic psychopath (Harry Treadaway), who will seemingly stop at nothing to torment Hodges. Not unlike its 2020 contemporary, The Outsider, Mr. Mercedes combines procedural drama with supernatural scares to create an enjoyable roller coaster ride. —C.C.
Pet Sematary (2019)
Jason Clarke as Louis Creed in ‘Pet Sematary’Credit: Kerry Hayes/Paramount Pictures
Mary Lambert’s 1989 adaptation has its hardcore fans. But, for my money, Starry Eyes directors Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer’s remake digs into something darker and more primal. The Creed family (led by an excellent Jason Clarke) moves to Maine, watches their beloved cat become roadkill, and then brings that pet back to life by burying it in a supernatural cemetery deep in the woods. Like many things that seem too good to be true, there’s a catch: Those buried there do not come back the same.
There’s a lesson here about grief and not messing with the dead (or our cherished memories of them), but you’ll be too busy digging your fingernails into your armrest to give it much thought until you’re home lying in bed. Oh, and P.S., good luck trying to fall asleep. —C.N.
The Running Man (1987)
Arnold Schwarzenegger as Ben Richards in ‘The Running Man’Credit: Everett Collection
Long before Edgar Wright took his own stab at Stephen King’s dystopian novel — originally published under the name Richard Bachman — director Paul Michael Glaser delivered a sci-fi satire that was peak Schwarzenegger. Ahnuld plays a wrongly convicted man who has to fight for his freedom on a death-sport television reality show. To make matters worse, it is hosted by former Family Feud kissing bandit Richard Dawson (who, let the record show, is a fantastic movie villain). Timely, prescient, and highly underrated. —C.N.
The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
Morgan Freeman as Ellis Boyd ‘Red’ Redding in ‘The Shawshank Redemption’Credit: Everett Collection
Although it was nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Frank Darabont‘s adaptation of King’s 1982 novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption was greeted at the box office with relative indifference. Since then, thanks to an infinite loop of cable airings, The Shawshank Redemption has snowballed into the ultimate male weepie — a nakedly sentimental drama that guys can choke up watching and not feel guilty about afterward.
Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman play Andy and Red — a pair of long-term convicts who gradually become best friends despite Andy’s undying dream of freedom and Red’s suspicion that after so long behind bars, he might not know how to live on the outside. Shawshank has its naysayers who dismiss it as melodramatic hooey, but they’re wrong. —C.N.
The Shining (1980)
Jack Nicholson as Jack Torrance and Joe Turkel as Lloyd in ‘The Shining’Credit: Everett Collection
Before you say anything, yes, Stephen King is famously not a fan of this version of his 1977 novel. Then again, he may be too close to the story to see what everyone else loves about Stanley Kubrick’s haunting goose-flesh adaptation. Part supernatural chiller, part psychological thriller (with a dash of sub-zero cabin fever thrown in for atmosphere), The Shining is the ultimate combination of a typical horror movie and an art film. This dream-logic nightmare begs you to wrestle with it, rearrange it, decode it, and find your own terrifying answers. Like the frenzied conductor of a runaway train, Jack Nicholson and his devilish smile drive it all. —C.N.
Stand by Me (1986)
Wil Wheaton as Gordie Lachance, River Phoenix as Chris Chambers, Jerry O’Connell as Vern Tessio, and Corey Feldman as Teddy Duchamp in ‘Stand by Me’Credit: Everett Collection
Sometimes lost in all of those volumes of white-knuckle horror prose is the fact that King is more than just creeping dread and gotcha scares. He’s also a master of nostalgia. Rob Reiner‘s Stand by Me may be the clearest example of the author’s Proustian obsession with the smallest quotidian details of youth — the recollected smells, sights, and sounds of long-ago summer nights that we’re only able to share with our oldest (and first) friends. But yes, there’s also a dead body.
Told in sun-dappled flashback, Stand by Me revolves around four childhood friends (beautifully played by River Phoenix, Wil Wheaton, Jerry O’Connell, and Corey Feldman) who, in 1959, set off to find that dead body. But really, it’s about male bonding, the first taste of freedom, and how the most insignificant things (a catchy pop song, a campfire story about a pie-eating contest puke-athon) can feel like the only things that matter. —C.N.
on Entertainment Weekly
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