The King of Horror has been ruling bookshelves and screens around the world for almost half a century. Stephen King's terrifying tales with every storytelling element somehow successfully intertwined is something the literary world has never seen before. Some of the King's scariest human villains in his stories top even the most demonic, paranormal entities without flaw.
It's no surprise that the movie adaptations of his stories have also gone down in cinematic history and new films and television series always seem to be in production. The movies on this list are the highest-rated adaptations of King's novels, according to Rotten Tomatoes.
Doctor Sleep (2019) – 78%
Doctor Sleep is a sequel to King's infamous novel, The Shining. It follows a grown Danny Torrence (Ewan McGregor) in the wake of attempting to regain his life. He bonds with a young girl, Abra, through the Shining ability they both have. When the two discover a group of nomads called The True Knot, who consume the Shining out of others without mercy, killing them, they must team up to defeat them.
The film is directed by Mike Flanagan of Netflix's hit mini-series The Haunting of Hill House. Rebecca Ferguson hauntingly plays the leader of The True Knot, Rose the Hat. For a sequel whose release was so long after the original, the success of Doctor Sleep emphasizes King's talent.
1408 (2007) – 79%
Based on a short story by King, 1408 centers on a best-selling author, Mike Enslin (John Cusack), whose claim to fame comes from debunking paranormal phenomena. He checks into the Dolphin Hotel to investigate the supposed hauntings in room 1408. Being the skeptic, Mike brusquely ignores the warnings of the hotel manager played by Samuel L. Jackson.
As anyone familiar with King's works can guess, the haunting is very much real and Mike is subjected to intense psychological torture. It's a classic tale of how being closed-minded can have devastating effects and the film reflects that message beautifully.
Dolores Claiborne (1995) – 84%
In her first of two appearances, Kathy Bates stars as the title character in Dolores Claiborne. Having Bates as the leading lady is enough to reel a lot of movie fans in because of her impeccable versatility and talent.
This film features Bates playing the mother of Selena (Jennifer Jason Leigh), a reporter who returns home after learning Dolores has been arrested for murdering an elderly woman. Dolores's connection to the victim through being her housekeeper fuels suspicions and results in a great murder-mystery film.
The Shining (1980) – 84%
Stanley Kubrick's adaptation of The Shining has become a staple in film history for what went on both in front of the camera and behind the scenes. The accounts of verbal abuse by Kubrick on the cast, primarily Shelley Duvall (Wendy Torrance), are enough to keep people rewatching it today.
Jack Nicholson's portrayal of the terrifying Jack Torrance and quotes like "Here's Johnny!" have haunted many a nightmare since its debut in 1980 and is inarguably one of King's movies with the best re-watch value. However controversial Kubrick's techniques may have been, the final product of the film is incomparable for its intricacy and ability to induce fear.
IT: Chapter One (2017) – 86%
Everyone's favorite clown, Pennywise (Bill Skarsgard), hit the big screens in September 2017 with a ton of anticipation. Audiences got to dive into the Derry sewers and chase red balloons as the evil entity terrorized The Losers.
Andy Muschietti (Mama) directed both this film and the sequel, IT: Chapter Two (2019), but the first part ranked much higher with fans. The two-part TV mini-series that aired in 1990 and starred Tim Curry as Pennywise had to hold back on the rawness of the original story through censoring. This 21st-century revival gave long-time King fans the adaptation they deserved.
The Dead Zone (1983) – 90%
Before The Dead Zone became a television series in the early 2000s, it was adapted to the big screen in 1983 and starred none other than Christopher Walken as the leading man. It's no wonder that this film has a 90% score after all of these years with director David Cronenberg (The Fly) at its helm.
Walken played Johnny Smith, a great non-horror King character, who woke up from a five-year coma resulting from a car accident to discover he'd developed psychic abilities. While he thought this new ability was a gift at first, he soon realized that his life had just become way more complicated and dangerous.
Misery (1990) – 90%
Of course, the other appearance of Kathy Bates must be as the ultimate fangirl, Annie Wilkes in Misery. When fate leads to Annie finding her favorite author, Paul Sheldon (James Caan), injured from a car accident in a snowstorm, she takes him in and intends to keep it that way. Inducing claustrophobia and isolation, audiences truly felt trapped in this haunting film.
Bates and Caan's on-screen chemistry brought the story even more to life and, in turn, that much more terrifying. Directed by Rob Reiner, the film also led to Bates taking home an Academy Award for Best Actress.
Stand By Me (1986) – 91%
Stand By Me was based on King's novella entitled "The Body" and is perhaps one of his more tame tales. However, it still brings a kind of darkness and horror. The story focuses on a writer recounting how he and his friends discovered the body of a missing boy following the death of one of their friends.
Another fantastic adaptation and one that's most faithful to the source material, Stand By Me is also directed by Rob Reiner. The group of boys who the story centers around include stars River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, Wil Wheaton, and Jerry O'Connell.
The Shawshank Redemption (1994) – 91%
Using the original plot from King's short novel, "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption", this film has remained a classic drama since its 1994 release. Two men who are incarcerated at the prison of the title name bond over several years. This deep tale of redemption through finding humanity in an otherwise primal environment is a lovely 2 1/2 hours.
The film was directed by Frank Darabont and stars Tim Robbins and the iconic Morgan Freeman. Although it didn't take any Oscars home, The Shawshank Redemption was nominated for a whopping 7 Academy Awards including Best Picture and Freeman up for Best Actor.
Carrie (1976) – 93%
Carrie holding the highest rated King adaptation is ever-appropriate with it being based on his first published novel of the same name. The story of powerful psychic Carrie White and her tyrannical mother is legendary and the 1976 film quenched fans' thirst for blood with director Brian De Palma.
Sissy Spacek played the prolific title character and the frame of her drenched in pig blood at her prom will forever remain in cinematic history. The carnage Carrie inflicts on her date (John Travolta) and her classmates set a precedent for gore in films and fueled the birth of slasher films during this period.