With over 82 million copies of his books in print (as of 1991), over two dozen stories adapted for film, TV, and the stage (as of mid-1993) and several projects in the production pipeline at virtually any given time, King is a virtual one-man entertainment industry. Though he has written in a wide variety of genres, King's name has become synonymous with horror. So prolific that he has his own Book-of-the-Month Club, King has also penned screenplays and teleplays. He has also acted in several films (most notably, a funny extended cameo in George A. Romero's "Knightriders" 1981 and a memorable starring role in a segment of Romero's "Creepshow" 1982). The very few writers from other media who have had more works translated to the screen (e.g. William Shakespeare) did not get to be major players in the industry.
Why does King inspire so much interest? First, he spins a great yarn. The fantastic elements are grounded in a recognizable environment brimming over with brand names and pop culture references. King excels in depicting the rocky emotional dynamics of families; his most frightening passages depict realistic domestic strife and the emotional ravages of alcoholism. As English cultural critic Robin Wood has noted: "The horrors of the King world are the horrors of our culture writ large, made visible and inescapable." King even helmed a feature, "Maximum Overdrive" (1986), an ill-conceived expansion of his nifty short story, "Trucks". A memorably bad movie, it was dismissed by its writer-director as a "moron movie" but his massive literary output has inspired many more interesting filmmakers.
Stanley Kubrick's King adaptation, "The Shining" (1980) is generally regarded as the best, but horror fans were dissatisfied by its paucity of scares, and King fans were nonplussed by the odd omissions and revisions in the adaptation. Nevertheless the film demonstrated how well the author's characteristic themes dovetail with those of the filmmaker. Other outstanding adaptations include Brian De Palma's "Carrie" (1976), based on King's first published novel (he has stated that the film made his career), Rob Reiner's "Stand By Me" (1986), Lewis Teague's "Cujo" (1983) and George A. Romero's "The Dark Half" (1993).
When director Sam Peckinpah died in 1984, he was in pre-production on "The Shotgunners", an original screenplay by King. Steven Spielberg approached King to script his horror production, "Poltergeist" (1982), but details could not be worked out. Acclaimed Canadian filmmaker David Cronenberg made his US directing debut with a King adaptation, "The Dead Zone" (1983). Rob Reiner increased his clout as a filmmaker with two savvy King adaptations: the semi-autobiographical novella, "The Body", filmed as "Stand by Me" and the novel, "Misery", the 1990 film version which netted Kathy Bates a Best Actress Oscar. Columbia Pictures played down King's name in the advertising for "Stand by Me", a nostalgic coming-of-age story of a future writer, lest the public mistake it for a a horror film. Reiner, however, paid King a special tribute by naming his production company "Castle Rock" in honor of the fictional Maine setting for much of King's fiction.
Many King films were very loosely adapted from their source material. At least one--the popular "Stephen King's The Lawnmower Man" (1992)--bears no relation to the original story. All of these films start from a common assumption: "Stephen King" is a brand name that sells tickets. Even a King script is no guarantee of a good movie or even a satisfying adaptation. His first screenplay, "Creepshow", was good gory fun in the vein of the EC horror comics of the 50s and "Stephen King's Cat's Eye", was an amusing romp that was jokey without being campy. But "Silver Bullet" (1985) was ho-hum werewolf fare. One of King's strongest novels, "Pet Sematary" was betrayed by the small-minded but commercially successful 1989 feature which King scripted. "Stephen King's Sleepwalkers" (1992) was an amiable "moron movie" that evoked 50s teen exploitation flicks.
King's TV work has been a bit more consistent. His teleplays for "Stephen King's Golden Years" (CBS, 1991), a summer sci-fi series from Laurel Entertainment, were smart and fast-paced. He also penned a poignant original teleplay, "Sorry, Right Number", for Laurel's "Tales From the Darkside" (syndicated, 1986). Several King short stories have been adapted for fantasy anthology shows and a TV movie, "Sometimes They Come Back" (CBS, 1991). His novels have spawned several miniseries: Tobe Hooper's "Salem's Lot" (CBS, 1979), "Stephen King's 'IT'" (ABC, 1990), and "Stephen King's 'The Tommyknockers'" (ABC, 1993). Everything finally clicked with "Stephen King's 'The Stand'" (ABC, 1994). King penned a compelling screenplay and served as an executive producer for this ratings landmark which helped ABC win the sweeps period for the first time in many years. Spread out over four nights and boasting superior production values and outstanding performances from an excellent ensemble, this was "The Stand" that fans had been waiting for over a decade.
King had long stated his displeasure with Kubrick's feature version of "The Shining". In 1997, the author scripted a miniseries version for ABC that was helmed by Mick Garris. The results, while not a ratings blockbuster, earned critical kudos and several Emmy nominations and better served the original material.