There are so many Stephen King movies that some excellent hidden gems have pᴀssed by unnoticed, and these forgotten adaptations are worth revisiting. Often regarded as the “King” of horror literature, Stephen King is one of the most recognizable authors of the latter half of the 20th century. As such, Hollywood can’t stay away from his best-selling works.

His debut novel, Carrie, became a classic of 1970s cinema, and that started the trend of bringing King’s works to the screen. Most of his novels, short stories, and novellas have been brought to life in some form, but truly great Stephen King movies are actually quite rare. His unique storytelling and brilliant character work are notoriously difficult to adapt.

For every hit like The Shining, there are numerous adaptations that either don’t do the original work justice, or are just plain forgettable. However, there are quite a few King movies that don’t get the attention they deserve despite being pretty good or even excellent. Stephen King’s name carries weight, but his adaptations aren’t always guaranteed successes.

Some of King’s more forgotten movies either come from his less popular books, or are so far removed from their source material that they’re not recognizable. Regardless, the hidden gems in Stephen King’s film catalog reflect the author’s unique voice, and a few are so good that they should be considered some of his all-time best.

Silver Bullet (1985)

Released at the height of Stephen King-mania in the mid 1980s, Silver Bullet is one of the author’s most underrated movies that leans into pure horror. Adapted from his novella, Cycle of the Werewolf, Silver Bullet is chock-full of King’s trademarks, and has relatable characters that are elevated above the usual boring protagonists found in horror films.

What was initially dismissed as a goofy werewolf movie is actually much deeper. Corey Haim plays the teenage protagonist who is a wheelchair user in a time when those with disabilities weren’t often shown, let alone shown to be heroic. King’s tropes are used appropriately, and give the story a heightened sense of reality.

The only thing that truly holds Silver Bullet back is its werewolf designs, and they look quite lackluster compared to other classic movie lycanthropes. Critics are rarely kind to horror anyway, but Silver Bullet got disproportionately bad reviews in the ’80s. Since then, it has garnered a deserved cult following.

The Life Of Chuck (2024)

Mike Flanagan has positioned himself as the go-to interpreter of Stephen King stories, but The Life of Chuck fell shockingly flat. Based on a short story from King’s book, If It Bleeds, The Life of Chuck has none of the horror hallmarks that the author is known for. Instead, it’s a musing on life and death, with surrealist imagery.

Tom Hiddleston headlined a stellar cast, and Mike Flanagan proved he could do something other than horror. The film received a lot of applause from critics, but when it finally got a wide release, audiences just didn’t turn up to see it. Despite bombing, The Life of Chuck could still find its audience on streaming.

The Graveyard Shift (1990)

While many of Stephen King’s stories have deeper meanings, some can be interpreted as nothing more than spooky fun. The Graveyard Shift is culled from the eponymous short story, and needed to do a lot of fleshing out to make it to feature length. The short is one of workplace abuse and shocking comeuppance, and the movie preserved those themes.

The Graveyard Shift is far from a perfect movie, but it’s an over-the-top monster romp with some fun acting from the likes of Brad Dourif and Stephen Macht. It actually improves upon some of the more lackluster details from King’s story, and isn’t afraid to push the envelope with even bigger scares.

Stephen King reportedly hated the movie (via ᴅᴇᴀᴅline), and his calling it “a quick exploitation picture” isn’t entirely inaccurate. However, that’s exactly what makes it such an entertaining movie. It never takes itself too seriously and has some fun creature effects that make for a cheesy good time.

Hearts In Atlantis (2001)

Despite constantly being shoehorned into the horror genre exclusively, works like Hearts in Atlantis prove that Stephen King is effective with drama as well. The Anthony Hopkins vehicle drew its name from the short story collection, but only adapted “Low Men in Yellow Coats”. It stripped away the connections to the larger Dark Tower universe, which was the right call.

Hearts in Atlantis has smatterings of the supernatural, but is not a conventional horror tale. Hopkins is joined by Anton Yelchin, and the performances are what make the largely forgotten King film truly shine. There is a pleasant and nostalgic tone, and the film does an excellent job of condensing and expanding to stretch the short film to feature length.

It got middling reviews at the time, but the consensus has softened since 2001. Many of the reviews lamented the changes to the original story, but failed to recognize what the film did well on its own. It’s a poor representation of King’s larger vision, but an excellent coming-of-age drama with a few supernatural twists thrown in for good measure.

Mr. Harrigan’s Phone (2022)

The original short story, “Mr. “Harrigan’s Phone”, is a rather obvious example of Stephen King plagiarizing himself and his familiar themes, but the 2022 Netflix adaptation is not a bad movie on its own. Given more time to breath, the story’s somewhat silly concept doesn’t feel quite so ridiculous, and the performances from Donald Sutherland and Jaeden Martell are notable.

As a disposable horror story, Mr. Harrigan’s Phone is a perfect piece of light entertainment, and utilizes just the right number of Stephen King tropes. An aspiring author, an unrealistic bully, and a vengeful ghost are all things featured in other King works, but they are refreshed by incorporating modern twists. Horror doesn’t have to be groundbreaking to be entertaining.

1922 (2017)

Stephen King is no stranger to dark tales, but 1922 is one of the most dour stories he ever penned. The 2017 movie did an excellent job of illustrating existential dread, and Thomas Jane delivered a remarkable performance in the lead role. Essentially, 1922 employs the classic supernatural vengeance plot structure, but stretches it out for maximum impact.

The horror aspects aren’t exaggerated or overstated, and each moment builds upon the next until the climax finally arrives. It’s largely devoid of most of Stephen King’s more overused cliches, but the movie still captures his unique storytelling voice. King does tragedy really well, and the underrated Netflix adaptation is a nice representation of his abilities.

Because 1922 was a streaming exclusive release, it only garnered a fraction of the audience it could have if it was released wide. Critics ate it up, but it was largely overshadowed by the mountain of content dumped on Netflix on a monthly basis. Hidden gems are often buried, and 1922 is worth digging for.

Dolores Claiborne (1995)

Kathy Bates will always be remembered for her turn as Annie Wilkes in Stephen King’s Misery, but her other King movie is worth a revisit too. Dolores Claiborne is a unique addition to King’s catalog because it’s less of a horror story and more of a gripping tale of trauma and deliverance.

Bates is at her very best in the тιтle role, and she has the unique challenge of playing the same character at different points in time. Dolores Claiborne is a character study with thriller aspects, and director Taylor Hackford also incorporates King’s larger-than-life style. It was a modest hit at the time, but has since faded into the background.

Despite not feeling like yet another Stephen King horror story, Dolores Claiborne is undoubtedly one of the author’s best movies. It shows off his brilliant character work, and even makes the right changes to transform the novel into something that’s more digestible on the screen.

Gerald’s Game (2017)

Mike Flanagan earned his spot as the modern Stephen King expert when he successfully adapted one of the author’s most inaccessible works. Gerald’s Game is about one character’s journey through their own dark past, and it’s framed by her attempts to escape from being handcuffed to a bed. The film successfully captures King’s meandering prose, and delivers effective chills.

Carla Gugino carries the film single-handedly, and it’s paced so that the viewer never goes long without a shock. Despite its horror emphasis, it also never loses sight of its deeper themes, and has a compelling emotional arc. It went underseen on Netflix, but it’s one modern Stephen King movie that’s bound to stand the test of time.