Best Movies Based on Stephen King Books - Made-for-TV Adaptations

For whatever reason (probably money) some Stephen King book adaptations have aired on the small screen either as a single two-hour movie or an extended miniseries. Stories like The Stand and It are far too long to make a decent theatrical adaptation, so that at least explains that. Here are my picks for the top five made-for-television adaptations of Stephen King books.

The Shining

I'm one of a handful of people who prefer the made for TV version of The Shining to the Stanley Kubrick version that stars Jack Nicholson. My sole reason for enjoying it more is because it is more faithful to the book, and the Kubrick version is way out in left field. It does drag in parts, but it is well worth seeing.

The Stand

This eight-hour mini-series a very faithful adaptation of the Stephen King book. A government lab accidentally unleashes a virus on humanity and wipes out the population of Earth with only a few survivors. Not perfect and very ambitious, The Stand is a well acted and compelling horror/drama that will please the readers of the book.

The Dead Zone (Series)

Twenty years after the David Cronenberg-directed masterpiece, King's The Dead Zone was adapted for a television series with Anthony Michael Hall picking up the role of Johnny Smith that Christopher Walken made famous. Just as entertaining as the movie and the book, it's a shame that this series only lasted five seasons.

Salem's Lot

Salem's Lot is an old-school-style horror film complete with thick fog, lots of darkness and a chilling atmosphere. Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) directs this made-for-TV film about a clan of vampires that invades a New England town and causes chaos and destruction. This adaptation has a top-notch script that takes liberties with the original book and is much better than the appalling TNT remake.

Carrie

The 2002 version of Carrie isn't as much a remake as it is an updated version of the original. The ending was changed because this film adaptation of the Stephen King story was meant to be a two-part pilot for a TV series, but the broadcast suffered from poor ratings and was scrapped by NBC. The hope was that this series would take off and achieve the same level of success of The Dead Zone series. It's a shame, though, because it had potential.

A movie that I didn't include on this list because it was written for TV and not originally a story was Storm of the Century. This is another film I highly recommend seeing.