Stephen King jumped on X and did the thing every movie fan secretly wants to do: he posted his 10 favorite films. The timing is handy, with another King adaptation, 'The Long Walk', headed to theaters next year. And yes, he set some ground rules before dropping the list.
The ground rules (and the obvious omission)
King made it clear he was not counting films based on his own writing, which knocks out some big ones: 'Misery', 'The Shawshank Redemption', 'Stand by Me', and 'The Green Mile'. Fair enough. Also missing: 'The Shining'. That one is not exactly a shock if you know King has never been on board with Stanley Kubrick's version of his story, even though the movie itself still looms large in pop culture.
King's top 10 (no particular order)
- 'Sorcerer'
- 'The Godfather Part II'
- 'The Getaway'
- 'Groundhog Day'
- 'Casablanca'
- 'The Treasure of the Sierra Madre'
- 'Jaws'
- 'Mean Streets'
- 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind'
- 'Double Indemnity'
What the list says about King
It is a very King mix: stone-cold canon ('Casablanca', 'The Godfather Part II', 'Jaws', 'Mean Streets') sitting next to picks that feel a little more personal or left-of-center for a horror author ('Sorcerer' hive, you win today; 'The Getaway' and 'Groundhog Day' are interesting tells too). He also noted the movies are not ranked, which tracks — this reads more like a gut-level favorites shelf than a ballot.
Meanwhile, about that next King adaptation
'The Long Walk' — based on his novel — is set to open in the U.S. on September 12, 2025. Consider this list a handy homework assignment while we wait.