A movie adaptation of Stephen King’s The Stand is in the works. Originally published in 1978, the classic Stephen King book follows characters during and after the outbreak of a virus that kills 99.4% of the world’s population, and the epic battle of good versus evil that ensues. The Stand has been adapted as a television miniseries twice, with the first adaptation in 1994 starring Gary Sinise, Molly Ringwald, and Jamey Sheridan. The second adaptation, whose cast includes James Marsden, Alexander Skarsgård, and Whoopi Goldberg, was released in 2020.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, a movie adaptation of The Stand is in development at Paramount Pictures with Doug Liman attached as the director. Liman, who has previously directed The Bourne Idenтιтy, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Edge of Tomorrow, and the Jake Gyllenhaal Road House remake, will produce alongside Tyler Thompson of Cross Creek Pictures. The search will now begin for writers to adapt The Stand, which is 1,152 pages long after the unabridged edition that was published in 1990.

What This Means For The Stand

It Is In Development, But Will Be Challenging To Adapt

The Stand movie is in the very early stages of development as it only has Liman and Thompson attached at this time. The project still needs to find writers who will have the challenge of adapting Stephen King’s all-time-longest book. As television miniseries, the 1994 and 2024 adaptations had more time to tell their stories. The 1994 version ran for six hours over four episodes, while the 2020 version came to eight and a half hours after nine episodes. Unless the story is split up into multiple installments, the story will have to be condensed extensively for The Stand movie.

While the 1994 adaptation was largely well-received, the 2020 miniseries had a negative reception from critics and general audiences. This newest take, helmed by Liman, presents an opportunity to garner more favorable reception. That being said, it will be a challenge to win over those familiar with the source material, since substantial elements will inevitably have to be cut in order to have a reasonable runtime for a feature film.

Our Take On The Stand Becoming A Movie

It Is Not Well-Suited To Being A Movie

The Stand is one of my all-time favorite novels and features one of Stephen King’s best book endings. At the same time, I am skeptical about how it can be successfully adapted as a movie, especially when it has already been challenging to adapt as a miniseries. Liman is also an intriguing choice since many of his films have been action movies, and action is not one of the most important elements of The Stand. If the right writers can join the project, I will be more optimistic, but for now, I question whether it will be a success.

Source: THR