The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon is finally becoming a movie. Stephen King’s 1999 psychological horror novel follows a nine-year-old girl who becomes lost in the woods with only her Walkman radio, and as she listens to baseball games, her love of pitcher Tom Gordon begins to result in vivid hallucinations, visions that may hold the key to her survival.

There have already been two failed attempts at adapting The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon into a movie. The first was when George A. Romero was attached to write and direct a film adaptation, but those plans stalled in October 2005 before his death in 2017. In November 2020, it was announced that Lynne Ramsay had been hired to direct the movie, which also fell through.

Now, The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon movie is in the works with JT Mollner writing and directing for Lionsgate. Mollner previously penned Lionsgate’s The Long Walk, based on Stephen King’s 1979 book and directed by Francis Lawrence. The studio has now optioned the rights to King’s 1999 novel. Lionsgate Motion Picture Group president Erin Westerman shared the following statement:

JT is a filmmaker we believe has a bright future. Throughout his work, he creates characters, and especially young characters, that are so compelling, heartbreaking, and emotional that they pop off the screen. And of course, that’s what Stephen King does on the page as well. The story of survival and perseverance in The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon is timeless. We’ve loved this tale for a long time, and JT is the perfect choice to adapt and direct this King fan favorite.

What This Means For The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon Movie

JT Mollner Is A Strong Choice

Although iconic horror director George A. Romero was never able to make The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon movie, JT Mollner is a similarly strong choice. He is best known for writing and directing the 2023 thriller Strange Darling which received rave reviews, resulting in a 96% Rotten Tomatoes score, with critics praising Mollner for delivering a wildly unpredictable and electrifying ride.

Stephen King himself praised Strange Darling, calling it “a clever masterpiece“ that is “really terrific.” This is likely why Mollner was chosen to write The Long Walk movie and now, write and direct The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon. By securing his second Stephen King adaptation, Mollner is quickly becoming one of the most frequent adapters of the author’s work, alongside Mike Flanagan.

Our Take On The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon Movie

Third Time’s A Charm

Though there have already been two failed attempts at adapting The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon into a movie, the third time should be the charm. Mollner has already written The Long Walk movie based on King’s novel, which seems primed to be a success.

Considering Mollner’s superb work on Strange Darling, he seems like a great choice to bring The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon to the screen. Though this attempt could still technically fall through like the previous two, it seems like the one that will finally be successful.

Source: Lionsgate