Few names are as synonymous with horror as Stephen King’s. It’s almost unbelievable that one man is the source of so many horror classics and so much iconic imagery—from the pig’s blood raining down on Carrie at prom to Pennywise luring Georgie into the sewer and the twin girls haunting the hallway in The Shining…the list goes on. October isn’t complete without at least one film adaptation of a Stephen King classic. As horror season rolls around, I’ve rounded up my favorite book-to-film adaptations of King’s works in the horror genre specifically, so you won’t find Stand By Me or The Shawshank Redemption, even though they’d top just about any other list.
- The Shining (Stanley Kubrick, 1980)
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I’m well aware that calling The Shining the best King adaptation probably seems like low-hanging fruit. There’s a case to be made for it being the most iconic horror film ever, spawning so many unforgettable images that it’s hard to believe they all came from the same movie. But I’ll forever stand by this being both the greatest King film as well as the greatest horror film ever. The Shining follows Jack Torrance, a recovering alcoholic who takes a winter caretaking job at the isolated Overlook Hotel in Colorado with his wife, Wendy, and young son, Danny—unaware of the terror that lies within.
Interestingly, King infamously despised Kubrick’s adaptation of The Shining. Read the novel and it‘s not hard to see why—the movie is almost entirely unfaithful to the source material. Although King viewed Jack as a sympathetic figure he identified with, Kubrick reimagined him as the film’s unequivocal villain. For Kubrick, the Overlook provided the isolation needed for the madness within Jack to take over. Both the book and the film stand out in their own ways, but Kubrick gets the edge for me. Some shots still send chills down my spine just thinking about them. He transformed The Shining into something far beyond a standard adaptation.
- Pet Sematary (Mary Lambert, 1989)
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“Sometimes dead is better.” I have chills just typing that line. Pet Sematary was one of the first King adaptations I remember watching—probably when I was far too young—but it remains one of my all-time favorites. The film follows the Creed family, who move to a new home in Maine and discover an ancient burial ground with the power to bring the dead back to life—but never quite the same as before.
Pet Sematary has never been considered one of King’s best adaptations. It was divisive upon release, and its reputation hasn’t improved much over time. But I don’t care—I love this film. It’s a true horror classic that captures the bleak, gut-punch terror of one of my favorite King novels. Part of what makes it so compelling is King’s heavy involvement in the production. He wrote the screenplay himself, insisted the movie be filmed on location in Maine, and was present for most of the shoot to advise director Mary Lambert. Maybe that sounds a little overbearing, but honestly, it worked. It produced one of my favorite horror films of all time.
- Carrie (Brian De Palma, 1976)
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Carrie holds the distinction of being both Stephen King’s first published novel and his first film adaptation—and on both fronts, it’s top of the pack. Brian De Palma, a horror legend in his own right, fought for the rights against a dozen other studios and won, though with a modest budget of just $1.6 million. Widely considered one of the greatest horror films of all time, it follows Carrie White, a bullied teenage girl living under the control of her ultra-religious mother, who discovers her telekinetic powers and unleashes them on her tormentors at prom.
Unlike Pet Sematary, Carrie was an immediate hit upon release, and its legacy has only grown stronger with time. The film was a box office success, launched De Palma’s career, and earned Oscar nominations for Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie—an impressive feat given the Academy’s well-known aversion to honoring horror performances. I absolutely love Carrie and will never skip a rewatch in October. It’s iconic, eerie, and perfectly crafted.
- The Long Walk (Francis Lawrence, 2025)
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I’ll be the first to admit it feels a little absurd to put a 2025 film on a “best of” list, but hear me out. I saw The Long Walk in theaters and was so spooked I left halfway through and finished it at home. I’m glad I did. This is an incredible adaptation of one of King’s best books. The story takes place in a vague dystopian future where, each year, 50 boys are chosen by lottery to participate in “The Long Walk.” They must maintain a steady pace of three miles per hour, and dropping below that earns up to three warnings before they’re shot and killed.
Though Carrie was King’s first published novel, The Long Walk was written during his freshman year of college as an allegory for the Vietnam War draft. He published it in 1979 under the pseudonym Richard Bachman, and for years it was considered unfilmable—until now. The movie makes a few small changes, like condensing the number of boys from 100 to 50, lowering the pace from four to three miles per hour (King famously admitted he “didn’t know” the average walking speed of humans), and dramatically altering the ending.
I’m honestly not sure whether I prefer the book or the film—they each have their strengths—but the movie is uniquely devastating and acted with such precision that every loss hits like a gut punch. I can’t recommend it enough.
- The Outsider (Richard Price, 2020)
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Okay, yes, The Outsider is a miniseries, not a movie, but I’d be remiss not to include it on this list. Adapted from King’s 2018 novel, the series begins with the brutal murder of a young boy in a small Oklahoma town. Insurmountable evidence points toward local coach Terrence Maitland, but equally convincing evidence places him at a conference hundreds of miles away during the time of the murder. As the investigation continues, townspeople begin suspecting there may be a supernatural force at play in the town.
The Outsider is my favorite King novel, and one of his only recent works that I’ve read. I’ll admit that I do find the book to be stronger than the series, but that points more to the quality of the novel than any lack in the show. The concept is brilliant, and as usual, King executes it perfectly. It’s incredibly eerie to the point where I had to sleep with the lights on after finishing both the novel and the series. There are small differences between the book and the series to keep the latter fresh, which is a balance I appreciate in adaptations (when done well). I highly recommend it if you’re looking for a less popular King adaptation and a show to obsessively binge during October.
- Children of the Corn (Fritz Kiersch, 1984)
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The 1984 adaptation of Children of the Corn might not make any official Stephen King “best of” list, but it ranks surprisingly high when it comes to my favorites. Adapted from King’s 1977 short story of the same name, this film is so utterly ridiculous that it circles back around to being amazing. It follows a young couple who stop in a rural Nebraska town, only to discover it’s run entirely by children who’ve ritually slaughtered every adult to ensure a successful corn harvest.
On paper, the concept sounds ludicrous. In practice…yeah, it still is. Critics harshly panned it upon release, and time has not been particularly kind to it either—but I implore you to look beyond all of that and give it a chance. The opening scene, which depicts ultra-creepy child leader Isaac watching the local diner poison and kill all its adult patrons, will always be iconic to me. Campy and dumb? Of course. But it’s the level of campy and dumb that only makes it more entertaining to watch.
King has remained the undisputed king of horror for decades for a reason. His novels and shorts are incredible—evocative, deeply frightening, and always stick with you past the closing page. It’s just as fortunate that his stories have spawned so many equally amazing (or, in some cases, even better) adaptations for both film and television. There are dozens more films I easily could have included on this list—the fact that Misery and The Mist didn’t make it is criminal—but, when it comes to the films I return to almost every October, this is the definitive list. Hopefully, at least one of them makes your October horror watchlist.