‘The Long Walk’: Francis Lawrence’s film adaptation of Stephen King’s novel set for September release

Francis Lawrence, best known for his work on Constantine and The Hunger Games franchise, brings Stephen King’s eerie 1979 novel, The Long Walk, to the big screen this year. Set for release on September 12, King’s novel, which marked his debut at the young age of 19, features a dystopian U.S. under a totalitarian regime, where an annual walking contest is held. One hundred teenage boys are made to participate in this endurance challenge, where they must walk at a speed of at least 4 miles per hour (3 miles per hour in the film) without a break, and no end in sight, until only one remains. Those who are unable to keep pace or stop, meet a fatal fate—death.

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The trailer opens with with main character, Ray Garraty, and a group of teens as they begin their long walk, full of dreams of victory. The plot soon takes a dark turn when one of the boys is killed after an injury slows him down. This trailer shifts from a story of carefree boys to a desperate tale of survival. The film features a strong ensemble cast including Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, Mark Hamill, Garrett Wareing, Charlie Plummer, Ben Wang, and Roman Griffin Davis.

Reflecting on his early work in an interview with Vanity Fair, King said, "You write from your times, so certainly, that was in my mind. But I never thought about it consciously. I was writing a kind of brutal thing. It was hopeless, and just what you write when you’re 19 years old, man. You’re full of beans and you’re full of cynicism, and that’s the way it was."

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King’s illustrious career is backed by numerous adaptations of his books of varying genres, including The Shawshank Redemption (1994), Carrie (1976), The Shining (1980), Pet Sematary (1989, 2019), It (2017), and The Green Mile (1999). With his latest dystopian thriller adaptation set to hit the theatres, his legacy cannot be more secure.

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