3 Stephen King Adaptations You Never Knew Will Be Coming Soon

And believe it or not, we're not talking about a third chapter to IT!

There's so much from Stephen King as it is, so it's easy to miss even the most obscure. Part of the reason for that is the fact that many get plenty of press, lots of sold tickets, interviews and hoopla. Whereas others are just back-burned due to being under major development or limited to a particular platform. Hence why you have to read up on this! Take notes. Prepare. And.... Perhaps subscribe to those streaming platforms?

The First Is the Announcement of THE DARK HALF

Soon Stephen King's THE DARK HALF Will Be Back for More

When you look at the entirety of King's filmography (we might as well call it his filmography), the list is staggering. In fact, some of the films were written specifically for the theater! -- like SLEEPWALKERS. Getting a grasp of all of them is hard enough, such as CARRIE, CHRISTINE, CUJO, MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE and more. And it may be argued that those were massive cult classic hits both on the silver screen and on paper.

But THE DARK HALF? Talk about obscure....

A rather under-appreciated film adaptation from 1993 turned the blink-and-you'll-miss King novel into a psychological horror cinematic masterpiece ironically led by a certain zombie flick pioneer by the name of George Romero: no one would have ever thought this book needed this.

Let's Not Forget About LISEY'S STORY

What Is Stephen King's "Lisey's Story," and Why Should We Care?

There's a real chance you might not even have heard of this particular novel (unless you're a die-hard King fan). This is yet another reason why sometimes we'll miss the gems within the cracks of the literary and cinematic industry, because there's just so much out there already.

After all, if you have that subscription to Hulu, chances are good you've reaped the benefits of his time traveler thriller 11/22/63 and the King homage series Castle Rock. If you were on Netflix, you had the pleasure of checking out Gerald's Game as well. Long story short, King might be easily more well known for his demons and devils over demonized serial killers or devilish fathers with a screw loose.

But have you read LISEY'S STORY? That might be one of those missing gems, but you haven't even grasped the scope of what this property's getting into -- check it out.

Lastly, THE OUTSIDER....

THE OUTSIDER May Be King's Best Cinematic Adaptation, and Here's Why

Aside from exceptions like Paolini's ERAGON and perhaps other rare instances, we often don't see a lot of books immediately adapted into film or television even after penetrating bookstores. Even Harry Potter took a while. George R.R. Martin's work also took a long time before HBO was able to snag them up. Even within King's entire portfolio, we'd say 90% of his work saw the adaptation engine only after some time in selling brick, mortar and digital.

THE OUTSIDER, however? There's a reason why King happens to be quite involved with this most recent published work of his.

A tour de force of Stephen King that's so not King -- like THE GREEN MILE and HEARTS IN ATLANTIS -- and yet the book has utterly broke the mold and will soon shatter more on a certain premium cable network. Check it out.

Let's Not Forget What's Coming....

We're looking forward to the likes of 'SALEM'S LOT seeing the remake mill soon. That was to be expected since it honestly has been overdue (we've only seen a TV film adaptation). THE STAND will also rawk like it did on television once upon a time. There will even be a THE DARK TOWER television series adaptation not off-shooting from the ill-received Idris Elba-Matthew McConaughey feature film.

No one can deny that King is the most adapted author in history. And this list of three may only be the beginning; you can thank Pennywise for that.

THE OUTSIDER May Be King's Best Cinematic Adaptation, and Here's Why

That's a hefty and ambitious claim. After all, we've seen (and we'll be seeing even more soon) quite a few of those adaptations already: IT, PET SEMATARY, soon we'll be seeing 'SALEM'S LOT, there was GERALD'S GAME on Netflix, 11/22/63 on Hulu, the UNDER THE DOME series. The list goes on and on -- a veritable best hits of the master of horror for years and years akin to some of the most genre-focused works he's ever done.

But the Claim Is Clear: THE OUTSIDER May Rank as the Very Best

But why?

Let's not even consider that HBO will be the platform, still fresh off the fire of a little show called Game of Thrones. Forget the fact that we even have something like CASTLE ROCK still going strong on Hulu and MR. MERCEDES knocking on your door as well. But if this synopsis of what THE OUTSIDER is all about doesn't get you, we don't know what will:

An unspeakable crime. A confounding investigation. At a time when the King brand has never been stronger, he has delivered one of his most unsettling and compulsively readable stories. An eleven-year-old boy's violated corpse is found in a town park. Eyewitnesses and fingerprints point unmistakably to one of Flint City's most popular citizens. He is Terry Maitland, Little League coach, English teacher, husband, and father of two girls. Detective Ralph Anderson, whose son Maitland once coached, orders a quick and very public arrest. Maitland has an alibi, but Anderson and the district attorney soon add DNA evidence to go with the fingerprints and witnesses. Their case seems ironclad. As the investigation expands and horrifying answers begin to emerge, King's propulsive story kicks into high gear, generating strong tension and almost unbearable suspense. Terry Maitland seems like a nice guy, but is he wearing another face? When the answer comes, it will shock you as only Stephen King can.

Pretty Gripping, We'd Say -- and If You Read the Novel, You'd Agree -- But Here's the REAL Reason This Will Be the Best Adaptation Ever

The real reason is Stephen King himself:

"THE OUTSIDER is one of the best adaptations of my work. Hope you'll watch it."

That's definitive. Just being one of the best may herald it as the best. We shall see. It is, after all, HBO and King joining forces. Expect to see THE OUTSIDER mystery thriller miniseries to premiere on the Home Box Office on January 12, 2020.

Once Again, Stephen King Reinvents Horror With His New Book ELEVATION

Don't go looking for that book just quite yet. It'll debut on October 30, 2018. And it's the second book of 2018 we'll see from the man (the other one is a taut thriller by the title of THE OUTSIDER). What makes this new announcement on his second novel rather, well, novel is the fact that along with some other projects he's taken, this particular book called ELEVATION deviates a bit from the standard horror tropes we expect.

For Starters ELEVATION Will Run a VERY Tight 144 Pages Long

And if you know King, you know that's a sprint of a story. Usually his yarns can go for miles and miles, like DUMA KEY or UNDER THE DOME (the latter clocks in at a freakish 1,074 pages LONG). Yet he pulls this one out of his scary hat, and we're treated to something of a novella even though this one's being billed as a novel.

Pretty cool, and honestly not far from King and his passions for what many readers might know as the "short story."

That's not the biggest revelation of ELEVATION, though:

Believe It or Not, This Book ELEVATION Isn't Actually Horror at All!

We'd even go as far to say that ELEVATION is largely an "upbeat" tale touching on divisive culture and real-world issues affecting our society today. Make no mistake: elements of King storytelling are still here, but don't expect to have the pants scared off of you.

Here's the synopsis for the upcoming book ELEVATION if you want a deeper look:

The latest from legendary master storyteller Stephen King, a riveting, extraordinarily eerie, and moving story about a man whose mysterious affliction brings a small town together—a timely, upbeat tale about finding common ground despite deep-rooted differences.

Although Scott Carey doesn’t look any different, he’s been steadily losing weight. There are a couple of other odd things, too. He weighs the same in his clothes and out of them, no matter how heavy they are. Scott doesn’t want to be poked and prodded. He mostly just wants someone else to know, and he trusts Doctor Bob Ellis.
In the small town of Castle Rock, the setting of many of King’s most iconic stories, Scott is engaged in a low grade—but escalating—battle with the lesbians next door whose dog regularly drops his business on Scott’s lawn. One of the women is friendly; the other, cold as ice. Both are trying to launch a new restaurant, but the people of Castle Rock want no part of a gay married couple, and the place is in trouble. When Scott finally understands the prejudices they face–including his own—he tries to help. Unlikely alliances, the annual foot race, and the mystery of Scott’s affliction bring out the best in people who have indulged the worst in themselves and others.
From Stephen King, our “most precious renewable resource, like Shakespeare in the malleability of his work” (The Guardian), Elevation is an antidote to our divisive culture, as gloriously joyful (with a twinge of deep sadness) as “It’s a Wonderful Life.”

So there you have it. An interesting study on character. And weirdness. Definitely perks your ears, but here's the biggie:

As King Does so Well, He Reinvents Horror and Makes the "Horror" Essentially About the HUMAN CONDITION

And arguably that's the best quality of Stephen King we could ever want. A lot of his books tend to be like that. Obviously he doesn't shy away from the supernatural or the inexplicable. But the true horror stories definitely come from all around us. In the store. At church. In school. And even while we're at work, filing papers.