List of adaptations of works by Stephen King
This is a list of media based on work by Stephen King. Note that aside from Creepshow 2, It Chapter Two, and Doctor Sleep, the sequels are only tangentially related to Stephen King's work. King has also written directly for other formats such as screenplays, teleplays, comics, and audiobooks.
Films
Television
Derivative works
Comic books
Stage
- 1988: Carrie is notorious for its history as a flop on Broadway, and has gained a cult following in recent years. The musical was revived at the Lucille Lortel Theatre in New York, directed by Stafford Arima from January until April 2012. On September 25, 2012, the first official cast recording was released. The new production is currently available to license for professional and amateur productions from Rodgers & Hammerstein Theatricals.
- 1990: Ghost Stories was an adaptation of Stephen King's short stories "The Return of Timmy Baterman," about zombies; "Strawberry Spring," about a campus serial killer; "Gray Matter," a black comedy about a hideous mutation caused by a bottle of beer; "Uncle Otto's Truck," and "The Boogeyman," about a distraught father's encounter with a child-killing closet monster, as well as selections from Pet Sematary. Adapted and directed by Robert Pridham, the play premiered at the Arts Center Theatre at Kent Place School in Summit, New Jersey, and toured the United States in the mid-1990s.
- 1993: Rage stage play produced by Shane Black and directed by Jim Birge. Originally titled Getting It On, it was intended to premiere in Jasper, Indiana, but scheduling and venue issues forced it to move to the VFW in Santa Claus, Indiana, where it ran from April 23 to May 1. Venue problems caused the final show, on May 2, to be canceled.
- 2005: Misery stage play by Simon Moore based on 1987 novel. Another adaptation, written by William Goldman, premiered on Broadway in 2015 with Bruce Willis and Laurie Metcalf. This version was also adapted to Polish language. It premiered at Teatr Kwadrat in Warsaw in 2017. A musical version also exists, written by Jeff Hockhauser and Bob Johnson. While it has not been staged, a demo recording has circulated on the internet in recent years.
- 2009: Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption was dramatized by Dave Johns and Owen O'Neill for the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin. A later version, directed by Peter Sheridan, had its world premiere at the Peter Sheridan Theatre in London in September 2010. A production was mounted at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe directed by Lucy Pitman-Wallace in August 2013. In April 2019, The Shawshank Redemption made its North American debut at the Metropolitan Ensemble Theatre in Kansas City, Missouri, directed by Bob Paisley. It garnered great reviews from critics during its run. It featured Keenan Ramos as Red, Chris Roady as Andy Defresne, S.E. Perry as Warden Stammas, Tim Ahlenius as Hadley, Chad Burris as Boggs Diamond, Dan Daly as Pinky, Kevin Fewell as Brooksie, Christopher Preyer as Rooster, Larry Goodman as Dawkins, Nick Hazel as Entwhistle, Evan Lovelace as Tommy, Andrew Paredes as Rico, and Alex Paxton as inmate/guard.
- 2012: Ghost Brothers of Darkland County, an original musical with book by Stephen King and music and lyrics by John Mellencamp. After a week of previews, it ran at Atlanta's Alliance Theatre from April 11 to May 13, 2012. A concept album was released the following year.
- 2013: Dolores Claiborne is an American opera composed by Tobias Picker. It premiered at the San Francisco Opera in Fall 2013.
- 2014: The Body was produced by Chellaston Players in Derby, England. Though an amateur staging, it received rave reviews.
Music
- 1983: "The Stand", recorded by The Alarm, and was released in the UK as a single. The song's lyrics were inspired by King's novel, The Stand.
- 1985: "Lone Justice" by Anthrax, is based on The Gunslinger.
- 1984: "Horror-Teria: " from the Twisted Sister album Stay Hungry. The album's liner notes thank King for inspiring the piece.
- 1987: "Among the Living", recorded by Anthrax, is based on The Stand. "The Walkin' Dude" is Randall Flagg, the main villain in the book, and the beginning verse: "Disease! Disease! Spreading the disease!\With some help from Captain Trips\He'll bring the world down to its knees" refers to the virus that destroys most of the population in the novel.
- 1987: "A Skeleton in the Closet", recorded by Anthrax, is based on the King novella Apt Pupil from the collection Different Seasons.
- 1987: "Severed Survival" recorded by Autopsy is based on the King short story "Survivor Type".
- 1988: "Misery Loves Company" by Anthrax, is based on Misery
- 1989: "Pet Sematary", recorded by The Ramones, a single from their 1989 album Brain Drain. The song is originally written for the King movie adaptation of the same name. The single became one of the Ramones' biggest radio hits, and a staple in their concerts during the 1990s.
- 1999: The music video for "Spit it Out", recorded by nu metal band Slipknot, pays homage to Stanley Kubrick's adaptation of The Shining
- 2002: Formation of the Dutch band Delain, who takes the name from Kingdom of Delain, from the novel The Eyes of the Dragon
- 2006: The music video for The Kill by rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars is inspired by Stanley Kubrick's adaptation of The Shining
- 2006: The song "Carry the Blessed Home" on the Blind Guardian album A Twist in the Myth. It is about Roland Deschain and Jake Chambers at the end of The Dark Tower.
- 2008: "Dull Boy", recorded by heavy metal band Mudvayne, was a single for both The New Game and their compilation album, based on The Shining novel and Stanley Kubrick's 1980 film.
- 2015: Ice Nine Kills included the song "Hell in the Hallways" on their album Every Trick in the Book, which was based on King's first novel Carrie. A number of months later, the band via a poll created and released the single "Enjoy Your Slay", based upon The Shining.
- 2016: The song "Breathing Lightning" by Anthrax is based on The Dark Tower series.
- 2016: Boston band Walter Sickert & the Army of Broken Toys included a song titled "Dull Boy" on their Come Black Magic album, with lyrics inspired by The Shining. The song is otherwise unrelated to the Mudvayne track listed above.
- 2018: Ice Nine Kills release the album The Silver Scream, featuring the song "It is the End", which is based upon the film and TV adaptations of King's highly successful horror novel It.