Stephen King is a prolific novelist and short story writer, but he's only penned less than two-dozen screenplays for movies and TV shows. That's a bit surprising, considering the massive amount of his work that's been adapted for the screen in the past 40-plus years. One would think that someone with King's reputation would get asked to adapt their own work far more often, although it's possible that several notable instances in which a King script was rejected made the author wary of putting in the time.
Of course, it's not like King has a ton of free time as it is. He's well-known for pumping out books like he was a cyborg specifically designed to write novels, and while his pace isn't quite as fast nowadays as it used to be, it's rare that more than a few months go by without the news that another King book is on its way to shelves. Case in point, King's latest story collection, If It Bleeds, just released in May 2020.
It remains to be seen what King's next novel or short story collection will be, but his constant readers can't wait to find out. In the meantime, here are all the times King traded prose for the screenplay format.
Creepshow
1982's Creepshow, one of the most beloved horror anthologies of all time, was directed by zombie master George A. Romero and written by King. Two of the stories were adaptations of existing King shorts - The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verill and The Crate - while the other three were original. King also stars as Jordy Verill.
Cat's Eye
Directed by Lewis Teague, helmer of Cujo, 1985's Cat's Eye is another anthology movie written by King. Three stories are included, all connected by the presence of a wandering cat. The first two tales, Quitters, Inc. and The Ledge, are adaptations of King shorts, while the third, General, is unique to the screenplay.
Silver Bullet
King adapted his own novel Cycle of the Werewolf into the 1985 film Silver Bullet, which stars Gary Busey, Corey Haim, and Everett McGill. Silver Bullet was neither a critical or commercial hit at the time of release, but has since developed a large cult following, partially thanks to Busey's wacky performance.
Maximum Overdrive
With 1986's Maximum Overdrive, King adapted his short story Trucks, from the Night Shift collection. This was also, rather infamously, King's one and only outing as a director. Maximum Overdrive has its own cult following of people who think it's so bad it's good, but King himself has admitted that he was high on cocaine for most of filming.
Sorry, Right Number
"Sorry, Right Number" was a 1987 Tales from the Darkside episode written by King for the small screen. It tells the story of a mysterious phone call that's sadly later revealed to be from the future. In a unique move, the story was actually included, in screenplay format, in King's Nightmares & Dreamscapes collection.
Pet Sematary
1989's Pet Sematary is often regarded as one of the most faithful adaptations of a King novel to the big screen, and that's no surprise, since King did the adapting. Needless to say, he didn't pen the script for the 2019 version, which differs from his book in many major ways. Most fans seem to prefer the 1989 movie.
Golden Years
1991's now mostly forgotten Golden Years was a seven-part TV series created and written by King, telling the story of an elderly janitor that begins aging in reverse after having the misfortune to be present when an explosion at the secretive lab facility where he works occurs. King designed Golden Years to be a "novel for television."
Sleepwalkers
1992's Sleepwalkers was King's first original feature film script, and wow was it a weird one, centering on cat-like monster people that steal life force from virgins and are fans of sleeping with their own relatives. Notably, Sleepwalkers marked King's first collaboration with director Mick Garris.
The Stand
1994's The Stand is perhaps King's most beloved miniseries, with the possible exception of 1990's IT. Working again with director Garris, King penned all four parts of The Stand's script, and was heavily involved with production as well. The Stand will soon be adapted again for CBS All Access, with King writing a new ending.
The Shining
King was famously never happy with Stanley Kubrick's iconic movie adaptation of The Shining, so he teamed up with Garris again to make a miniseries version in 1997. It's definitely closer to the book, but Garris is no Kubrick, and while he does fine overall, Steven Weber is no Jack Nicholson.
Chinga
"Chinga" was an original screenplay written for The X-Files with series creator Chris Carter, which aired as episode 10 of season 5 in 1998. It sees Mulder and Scully travel to King's stomping grounds of New England, and investigate a murderous doll. "Chinga" got mixed reviews, but it's still pretty cool that King worked on The X-Files.
Storm of the Century
Another original screenplay written by King, 1999's Storm of the Century is considered by some to be the best King miniseries to date. Consummate character actor Colm Feore is at the top of his game as sinister villain Andre Linoge, and the isolated Little Tall Island quickly begins to feel like a claustrophobic prison.
Rose Red
2002's Rose Red represented another original King screenplay for a miniseries, reuniting the author with Storm of the Century director Craig R. Baxley. Rose Red was a much more mixed effort, earning high ratings at the time, but mixed reviews. Today, the miniseries sports a generally negative reputation, although it's really not that bad.
Kingdom Hospital
King created, and wrote or co-wrote all but a few episodes of 2004's Kingdom Hospital, which ended up only lasting one season. Airing on ABC, it was inspired by Lars Von Trier's Danish series The Kingdom. King had an outline for a possible season 2, but ABC passed due to low ratings. Today Kingdom Hospital is a bit of a cult item.
Desperation
Originally intended as a miniseries but instead aired as one long TV move, 2006's Desperation saw King adapt his own 1996 novel of the same name. Reviews for Desperation were mixed, and ratings were disappointing, ending the long era of ABC serving as a happy home for most King TV projects.
Heads Will Roll
Somewhat ironically, considering the show very quickly became an almost in name only adaptation of King's book, the author penned the teleplay for Under the Dome's 2014 season 2 premiere "Heads Will Roll." The episode featured Angie getting surprisingly killed off, much to the annoyance of many fans.
A Good Marriage
For this 2014 film, King adapted his novella of the same name from the Full Dark, No Stars collection. Joan Allen stars in A Good Marriage as Darcy Anderson, who one day discovers that her husband of 25 years has a secret life a a serial killer. She decides to stop him, but finds doing so isn't going to be that easy.
Cell
The first time John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson starred in a Stephen King adaptation, fans got the great 1408. The second time, 2016's Cell, didn't turn out very memorable. King shares screenplay writing credit with Adam Alleca, but neither should really want it, as most fans and critics panned the final product.