With the recent success of well-known young adult novels such as 13 Reasons Why and When I Fall on Netflix and in theatres, Hollywood continues to run with the trend of taking a best-seller and turning it into a blockbuster. A dry spell seemed to hit following major franchises like The Hunger Games and Twilight which led some adaptations to fall short of expectations like Divergent and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. However, these upcoming film projects suggest that directors have emerged from their ruts to deliver hit interpretations. Take a look at the most promising films coming out this year and in 2018 that are based off of a book, and see if you can guess which will have a positive or negative Rotten Tomatoes score.
1. The Lost City of Z
Release date: April 14, 2017
What’s it about: Starring Charlie Hunnam of Sons of Anarchy fame, new Spiderman Tom Holland and previous teen heartthrob Robert Pattinson, this film follows an explorer as he journeys to find an ancient city deep in the jungle that is thought to be inhabited by savages.
2. The Circle
Release date: April 28, 2017
What’s it about: Emma Watson’s second leading role of 2017 finds her alongside Tom Hanks as she works for an expanding technological company that causes her to face ethical dilemmas and question the amount of privacy individuals have.
3. Everything, Everything
Release date: May 19, 2017
What’s it about: Maddie, played by rising star Amandla Stenberg, has been kept inside the safety of her home away from danger and germs her entire life. She never felt compelled to step outside her safe haven until she meets and falls in love with Olly, the shaggy haired boy-next-door played by Nick Robinson from Jurassic World.
4. My Cousin Rachel
Release date: July 14, 2017
What’s it about: Rachel Weisz actually plays the title role of Rachel who is a mysterious anomaly that tempts her cousin, Sam Claflin, in order to distract him from discovering if she is truly a killer.
5. Murder on the Orient Express
Release date: November 22, 2017
What’s it about: Josh Gad, Daisy Ridley, Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Penélope Cruz and Judi Dench all show up in this thriller about thirteen strangers on a train collectively trying to figure out who is responsible for a murder.
6. Annihilation
Release Date: 2017
What’s it about: This movie might have the best all-star female cast on this list with Natalie Portman, Tessa Thompson and Gina Rodriguez. It centers around a biologist venturing into an unknown environment to find her missing husband.
7. The Dinner
Release date: May 5, 2017
What’s it about: Out of all the movies on this list, this one might be the most ambitious and thus the one most likely to be torn apart by critics. The entire book focuses on troubling issues that occur one night during a dinner.
8. Let it Snow
Release date: November 22, 2017
What’s it about: If you are like myself and many other hopeless romantics, you have been awaiting John Green’s next romantic novel to be shown in theatres since The Fault in Our Stars was released in 2014 (let’s all try to forget Paper Towns.) Well, Green teamed up with two other authors to combine three short, love stories that will simultaneously come to life on the silver screen.
9. The Snowman
Release date: October 13, 2017
What’s it about: Michael Fassbender is detective Harry Hole who is hired to investigate the possible beginnings of a serial killer after a simple, pink scarf tied around a snowman is the only evidence found when a woman goes missing.
10. Atomic Blonde
Release date: July 28, 2017
What’s it about: Charlize Theron has recently become the queen of playing strong female characters so it is no surprise that her upcoming role in Atomic Blonde continues this pattern. Theron is a cunning spy on a mission who partners with the very talented James McAvoy to find an important dossier.
11. A Wrinkle In Time
Release: date: April 6, 2018
What’s it about: The 4th grader in me is extremely excited to see Ava DuVernay bring this classic, 1960s fantasy to life. With a diverse, fantastic cast of Chris Pine, Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling and Zach Galifianakis, we can’t wait to see how the bizarre tale that includes multiple dimensions, time travel and deception becomes a reality.
12. The Bell Jar
Release date: 2018
What’s it about: After many years and failed attempts to create a modern version of this famous Sylvia Plath novel, Kirsten Dunst has taken control of this project and hopefully will finally be able to tell the story of Esther Greenwood. Dakota Fanning will tackle the role of Esther and all her inner demons which will could possibly help Fanning retake her place as Hollywood’s “it girl.”