For over fifty years, author Stephen King has built a reputation for himself as one of the masters of horror, as well as an author whose work has been adapted more than others into so many mediums -- some of King's work has even been adapted multiple times. 2025 is going to be an especially key year for King fans, not just because filmmakers are delving into some of his short stories but also digging deeper into his early work under the pen name Richard Bachman. Many of the King adaptations coming out later this year aren't even going to be seen as horror movies.
It all begins with the upcoming The Life of Chuck, starring Tom Hiddleston, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) last September and won the People's Choice Award. It's based on a fairly recent King short story from the 2020 If It Bleeds collection, and it's very unlike anything else in the author's oeuvre. In fact, it could be seen almost as the polar opposite of Osgood Perkins' The Monkey, released earlier this year with the tagline "Everyone Dies," because, as the title implies, The Life of Chuck is essentially about one man's life.
Why Is 'Life of Chuck' So Different from Other King Works?
Directed by Mike Flanagan, who previously adapted King's Gerald's Game and Doctor Sleep, The Life of Chuck is loosely based around Hiddleston's Charles "Chuck" Krantz, a bank manager whose early life as a boy living with his grandparents had a deep impact on his later life...and on the entire world around him. The short story and film begin with the type of apocalyptic vision seen in some of King's other work, most notably The Stand, but that's a bit of a red herring for what The Life of Chuck is really about. One noticeable difference between Chuck and some of King's prior work is that the story is told in reverse chronological order. There's also nothing in the film that might be considered horror in the same way as much of King's other work has been labeled as such.
Another thing we'll see this year is that King's "Richard Bachman" phase -- books written under that pseudonym relatively early in the author's career -- will be adapted and explored in two other 2025 feature films. A few of Bachman's books, such as Thinner and The Running Man, have already been adapted, but just because some of King's work has already been adapted, that doesn't mean it isn't fair game for a second go-around. Proof of that is the 2017 and 2019 movies based on It, still the most successful adaptation of King to date. This year, two equally well-respected filmmakers will be dipping into the Bachman well with their 2025 offerings.
Filmmakers Like Francis Lawrence and Edgar Wright Are Diving Into King Territory Close
As mentioned, the Richard Bachman novel, The Running Man, was already adapted into a fairly popular Arnold Schwarzenegger movie in 1987, although filmmaker Edgar Wright, who probably can do anything he wants after a series of hugely popular genre films, both original and adapted, decided to tackle it as his next film. That one stars Glen Powell, and it's presumably going to be a similar sci-fi action film ala the Schwarzenegger film, following a man playing a futuristic game where contestants are being pursued by hunters with the intent to kill them. Although Wright has enough of a passion for the horror genre that his film might take some avenues into that realm, The Running Man probably won't be seen as horror, and some might not even realize it's based on a King novel.
Related 10 Stephen King Books That Aren't Horror
Go now, there are other genres than these.
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Another Richard Bachman novel being adapted, surprisingly for the first time, is his 1979 novel, The Long Walk, which no less than George Romero and Frank Darabont, had tried to develop into a film over hte years. That upcoming Lionsgate release also isn't necessarily horror, though it deals with a similar apocalyptic situation as The Running Man. It also may have been an inspiration for another popular apocalyptic series of novels that have become mainstays at Lionsgate, Stephanie Collins' The Hunger Games, with its concept of a competition that has young men walking across the country without stopping in order to survive. The comparison to The Hunger Games may have been what convinced filmmaker Francis Lawrence to take it on in between Hunger Games prequels. Although The Long Walk and The Running Man are likely to look and feel quite different from each other, the similarities in their high concepts seem apt, considering they were both based on early King works.
For fans of King's writing who still prefer his horror work, there are dozens of adaptations of his previous novels available to watch. We'll also see the return of one of his most popular monsters in the upcoming HBO series, It: Welcome to Derry, with Bill Skarsgård returning as Pennywise, the killer clown. Also, Flanagan has been developing a limited series based on King's first novel, Carrie, for Prime Video, which is likely to be an improvement over the 2013 remake, if only because Flanagan has prove himself to have such a knack for King's material. For those who aren't so keen on horror, there will be plenty of Stephen King's other work to discover, and this will be a particularly good year to do just that.
Like Follow Followed The Life of Chuck R Drama Fantasy Science Fiction 9 10 Release Date May 30, 2025 Runtime 110 minutes Director Mike Flanagan Writers Mike Flanagan, Stephen King Producers D. Scott Lumpkin, Elan Gale, Trevor Macy, Molly C. Quinn, Melinda Nishioka Cast See All Tom Hiddleston Charles 'Chuck' Krantz Matthew Lillard Gus
This story, told in reverse order, begins with the death of Chuck at 39 and moves backward through his life, uncovering significant moments that shaped his existence. As the narrative unfolds, it explores themes of memory, fate, and the connections that define a person's life.
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