The 10 Best And 10 Worst Stephen King Movies

Ever since his rise to prominence as a bestselling author in the '70s with his classic novel Carrie, Stephen King's works have made the leap to film or television well over 100 times, making him the all-time "king" of adaptations by a living author. With so many different movies and shows inspired by his work (and more on the way), it'd be near impossible to rank them all—especially since so many (like Firestarter or 2017's The Dark Tower) simply fall in the realm of unremarkable mediocrity. Instead, we've put together a list (in no particular order) of the ten best and ten worst Stephen King movies so you'll know which ones are worth your time—and which you should avoid at all costs.

Unlike many King adaptations, Stand By Me is more coming-of-age drama than horror. Based on King's semi-autobiographical short story The Body, it follows four adolescent boys in a small Oregon town who embark on a journey to find the corpse of a missing boy. As star Wil Wheaton (Gordie) later recalled, director Rob Reiner "found four young boys who basically were the characters we played." Wheaton and his co-stars River Phoenix, Jerry O'Connell, and Corey Feldman became extremely close during production, lending to the authenticity of the characters' friendship. Stand By Me remains a classic today, worthy of any movie fan's collection—even those who don't like horror films.

Although it registered very little impact in theaters upon its release, director Frank Darabont's 1994 prison drama The Shawshank Redemption has gone on to become one of the best-loved films of the last 30 years—an explosion in popularity due, in part, to near-daily airings on the TNT network in the years after its release. The movie tells the story of two prisoners serving life sentences at the Shawshank State Penitentiary, who become dear friends despite their difficult circumstances. Starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman in the lead roles, The Shawshank Redemption is a gritty and uplifting tale told simply and poignantly—one that showcases the tender, hopeful heart that beats under King's best work.

A psychological thriller directed by Rob Reiner (who also directed Stand By Me) about fan obsession gone horribly wrong, 1990's Misery was a critical and commercial success that launched Kathy Bates' career—and for good reason. The plot follows romance author Paul Sheldon (James Caan). He wakes following a car accident to find himself in the care of nurse Annie Wilkes (Bates), who happens to be his "number one fan."

When Wilkes learns that Sheldon has killed off her favorite character in his latest novel, things start to get grim; for a generation of filmgoers, the word "hobbling" will never be heard without a wince of pain. Annie's arc may have been ugly, but it was anything but for Bates; she became a star almost overnight, and won both an Oscar and a Golden Globe for her commanding performance.

Kathy Bates returned to the world of Stephen King when she appeared in the 1995 psychological thriller Dolores Claiborne, based on the novel of the same name and directed by Taylor Hackford (La Bamba, Ray). The film follows the tale of domestic servant Dolores Claiborne (Bates), who's accused of murdering her elderly employer Vera (Judy Parfitt). Much of the town (and even her own daughter) has a hard time believing Claiborne's explanation for Vera's death. It's a harrowing and suspenseful tale that will keep audiences guessing until the end.

Unlike her appearance in Misery as a clear antagonist, Bates' part in Dolores Claiborne is much more conflicted; the supporting characters and audience alike are left in the dark about her true motivations until the final act. Even though it was Misery that won her the Oscar, her part in Dolores Claiborne remains Bates' favorite.

Unlike the lukewarm reception earned by 2017's other Stephen King adaptation—The Dark Tower—the feature film debut of IT smashed all sorts of records on its opening weekend. With an estimated $117 million earned at the box office in its first three days, IT became the biggest opening ever for a horror film and the biggest September opening for any film of all time. All of this cash rolling in comes from not just eager King fans or horror buffs, but from all stripes of cinema-goers—no doubt eager to watch the film after hearing the glowing reviews written by professional movie critics and audience members alike.

At turns funny, intense, and terrifying, IT definitely shows up the 1990 television adaptation of the book in nearly every way. Bill Skarsgård is positively horrifying and menacing as Pennywise, although Tim Curry fans may find themselves missing the lack of funny one-liners that Curry's version of Pennywise delivered in the miniseries. Nevertheless, there's no question that 2017's IT will go down as one of the best King adaptations of all time, with plenty of scares to go around.

1990's Graveyard Shift still stands as one of the worst King adaptations. In a Maine textile mill where a drifter (David Andrews) has taken a job, several overnight employees of the mill have died recently, and the egomaniacal foreman (Stephen Macht) sends the drifter—and others—down into the basement of the mill to investigate. To put it politely, the short story didn't translate well to the screen.

It's kind of a shame, really, because the acting in Graveyard Shift isn't bad. The movie even performed fairly well at the box office, eventually earning over $11 million. If you're going to make the plunge and watch, keep an eye out for the performances of both Macht and Brad Dourif. You might know Dourif better as "Wormtongue" from The Lord of the Rings, but he does an excellent turn here as a crazy exterminator.

Stephen King's first (and only) directorial effort, 1986's Maximum Overdrive, is largely considered a bomb, but it's still hard not to love. When Earth passes through the tail of a comet, once-inert machines suddenly come to life and go on a murderous rampage against humans. At a truck stop, a bland protagonist played by Emilio Estevez and an odd assortment of other unremarkable characters settle in to wait out the semi trucks that have them pinned down inside.

Maximum Overdrive is mostly a stinker of a movie, and it drags too long, especially during the second half. That being said, it has a killer soundtrack from AC/DC, and there are some pretty neat shots peppered throughout, proving that King wasn't completely hopeless as a director. If you have an irrational fear of electric carving knives or drawbridges, you probably watched Maximum Overdrive as a kid. To get Maximum enjoyment, watch the first 30 minutes or so, then turn it off and listen to the Who Made Who album at top volume.

It's hard to say what's more inexplicable: that Tobe Hooper's 1994 adaptation of King's short story The Mangler managed to score better on Rotten Tomatoes than Maximum Overdrive, or that it spawned two sequels. The movie stars the once-formidable Robert Englund (Nightmare on Elm Street) as sinister laundry-service owner Bill Gartley, and Ted Levine (Silence of the Lambs) as the police officer who investigates a series of mysterious deaths at Gartley's business. He soon finds (with the help of his demonologist brother-in-law) that a laundry press is to blame—a laundry press possessed by a demon and activated by the presence of blood and over-the-counter antacids. Yes, really.

The original short story was threadbare to begin with, but tongue-in-cheek and appropriate for the magazine that published it. Hooper, however, ignored the opportunity to make a campy movie that pokes fun at itself; instead, we're left with schlocky gore that goes on way too long and takes itself much too seriously for a movie about a laundry machine that eats people.

King's 2001 novel Dreamcatcher was admittedly not one of the author's favorites. It was written in 1999, when he was "using a lot of Oxycontin" while convalescing after being hit by a car. Perhaps it shouldn't be too surprising, then, that Lawrence Kasdan's 2003 film adaptation of the book is among the worst. The movie follows four lifelong friends—who have psychic powers—on a winter hunting trip to upstate Maine. They soon find themselves caught between invading aliens and the U.S. military forces trying to contain them.

Thomas Jane, Damian Lewis, Timothy Olyphant, and Jason Lee do fine work as the friends, but Morgan Freeman falls flat as an overzealous commander with ridiculously distracting eyebrows. Kasdan gave us an overly long, free-associating mess of a movie—one that could have done much better if he'd just picked a tone and stuck with it.

The Night Flier stays fairly true to King's original short story, but that doesn't mean that this 1997 adaptation is a good movie. Miguel Ferrer plays tabloid reporter Richard Dees, who attempts to hunt down a serial killer using a small aircraft to travel from town to town—leaving a grisly trail of victims in his wake. Dees soon finds that this is no ordinary criminal, and must also deal with an eager-beaver competitor from his tabloid (Julie Entwisle) who's trying her hardest to steal his scoop. While the short story's version of Dees was an unlikeable cynic who finds his worldview shaken by what he finds, the movie's script (and Ferrer's flat performance) makes Dees a complete jerk with no redeeming qualities. If you decide to watch The Night Flier, you'll no doubt find yourself rooting for the vampire to win.