Stephen King Page 4

The forthcoming adaptation of Stephen King's 'The Dark Tower' series is coming this summer starring Matthew Mcconaughey and Idris Elba, but it's not your regular kind of adaptation. The movie will act as something of a sequel to the book series, with some familiar characters and an all new story.

Matthew McConaughey and Idris Elba star in 'The Dark Tower'

We really hope this idea of continuing a novel saga in film catches on - 'Harry Potter' is kind of halfway there. 'The Dark Tower' continues on from events in the seventh and final book of Stephen King's saga of the same name (though a prequel was released in 2012 entitled 'The Dark Tower: The Wind Through the Keyhole' that was meant to become the fifth novel); a series which he has more than once described as his magnum opus.

Continue reading: What To Expect From Stephen King's 'The Dark Tower' [Pictures]

Stephen King has finally revealed who is going to play the main character in the long-awaited movie adaptation of his self-described magnum opus 'The Dark Tower'. Idris Elba will take on the role of the Gunslinger Roland Deschain, while Matthew Mcconaughey will face-off against him as his onscreen rival.

Idris Elba to star in The Dark Tower

Given the sheer extent of King's bibliography that has found its way on to the big screen in years past, it's surprising to think that his only book series has never been attempted for an adaptation until now. But it's finally coming with 'Beasts Of No Nation' star Idris Elba in the role of Roland Deschain; the titular Gunslinger of his first 'Dark Tower' novel released in 1982. 

Continue reading: Stephen King Confirms Idris Elba As The Lead Star Of 'The Dark Tower'

Idris Elba is being lined up as the leading actor in the hugely anticipated movie adaptation of Stephen King’s ‘The Dark Tower’.

The British star, 42, is due to play the part of gunslinger Roland Deschain, who squares off against the series’ villain, The Man In Black, played by Matthew Mcconaughey who had previously expressed interest in playing both roles, according to Deadline.

A big screen adaptation of King’s epic series of novels has been rumoured for a long time, but the new project’s backers Sony are reportedly going to be more ambitious than settling for just a movie, floating the idea of a TV series set in the same fictional universe.

Continue reading: Idris Elba Rumoured For Stephen King's 'The Dark Tower' Movie Adaptation

Ahead of the November release of the modern reboot of Stephen King's horror classic, Carrie, promotions are underway to build up as much buzz around the new movie as possible. The team chose to pull off one of the covert camera public pranks that often goes viral, but also chose to do it much, much better than anyone else has.

Chloe Grace Moretz & Julianne Moore Star In The Modern Retake Of 'Carrie.'

A quick explanation at the beginning of the video gets the viewer up to date and lets them sit with glee as the prank plays out on unsuspecting coffee shop customers in New York. We are show the erection of a large fake wall behind which a prank team watch the happenings on screens and control the different elements of this truly terrifying trick.

Continue reading: Hilarious & Terrifying 'Carrie' Prank Stuns Coffee Shop Customers [Video]

The long-awaited sequel to Stephen King's 1977 horror classic 'The Shining' has finally been released in the form of 'Doctor Sleep' which was published on September 24th 2013.

'The Shining' cemented King's dominance in the horror genre as it centres on the explosive tempered, alcoholic writer Josh Torrance who moves his family to the Overlook hotel in the Colorado Rockies.

It turns out that the hotel is plagued with evil entities and forces that only speak to Josh's youngest child, Danny, who is bestowed with psychic abilities. The father doesn't get the peace Josh desired in the Rockies as he is driven mad by these forces and tries to destroy his family by the end of the novel, but he is the one who is killed in the hotel fire.

Continue reading: Stephen King Performs A Masterstroke With The Horror Sequel 'Doctor Sleep'

Fans of Stephen King will be excited to learn that he has finally penned a follow-up to his 1977 horror novel, The Shining. Entitled Doctor Sleep, the new book will return to the characters of The Shining and will focus on Dan Torrance, now a middle-aged man.

King, The Master Of Horror Fiction, Is Releasing A New Book.

Fleeing his father's legacy, Dan eventually settles into working in a nursing home, providing comfort to the patients with his mental abilities. Dan becomes "Doctor Sleep" with the aid of a cat who can foresee the future, and he must save a 12 year-old girl from an evil travelling cult.

Continue reading: 'Doctor Sleep' Released: 5 Of The Weirdest 'The Shining' Conspiracies

Stephen King has a new book coming out, but with his latest release the literary champion has promised something a little extra as he revisits one of his most famous works: The Shining. His new book, Doctor Sleep, will pick up one year after the faithful events that took place in the Overlook Hotel, and follows central character Danny Torrence in the years leading up to and entering manhood.

Ahead of the release of his newest novel, King spoke with the BBC's Will Gompertz about why he chose to revisit the Torrence family, and why it took so long for him to return to the story (The Shining was first published in 1977). He also went on to explain how he found Jack Torrence, who is played by Jack Nicholson in Stanley Kubrick's timeless adaptation of the book, is one of his most auto-biographical characters, although admitted he does feel a connection with Danny.

"I was curious about what would happen to him, because he's a real child of a dysfunctional family," King said in the interview. "In some ways I think his father, Jack Torrence was the most autobiographical character i'd done, because at the time I wrote the book, I was drinking a lot... I saw him as this heroic character that was battling his demons on his own, the way that strong American men are supposed to."

Continue reading: Stephen King Will Follow-Up 'The Shining' Story In New Book, 'Doctor Sleep'

Stephen King will pay Danny Torrance another visit as he returns to one of his most celebrated and famous works to date; The Shining. King has finished writing Doctor Sleep, the follow-up to the well-known title that reached an even wider audience when Stanley Kubrick and Jack Nicholson turned it into one of the most well known horror movies of all time.

36 years since the first book was published, King will be revisiting the central character of The Shining; young Danny Torrance. Picking up a year after the events of the first novel, Doctor Sleep will follow Danny into adulthood and detail all the strange happenings that follow him through school and into college and work.

Ahead of the release of his latest work, King spoke with the BBC about Danny Torrance, a character he considers to be his most autobiographical. He explained that the people who found The Shining to be a scary book, probably won't be so scared this time around, although that might have something to do with the fact that they're now adults.

Continue reading: Stephen King Will Pick Up Where 'The Shining' Left Off With 'Doctor Sleep'

Under The Dome, the premise is simple: the residents of small American town Chester's Mill find themselves separated from the rest of the world by a giant physical barrier, known as 'the dome.' No one knows why the mysterious, semi-permeable dome has appeared but the Chester's Mill denizens must find a way to maintain order, survive, and ultimately escape.

The show is based on master horror writer Stephen King's 2009 novel of the same name and the author also wrote the first episode of the CBS series. Set for 8 episodes, the series is billed as the "mini-series of the summer" and has been widely praised by US critics, having been one of the six series chosen for the 'Critics' Choice Television Award for Most Exciting New Series,' and attracting a whopping nearly 18 million viewers to its pilot episode on 24th June.

Continue reading: 'Under The Dome' Debuts On UK TV After US Success: Are Critics Won Over?

The trials, tribulations and population of Chester's Mill – the fictional town in which Under The Dome, Stephen King's sci-fi drama is set – will become all too familiar to UK TV audiences tonight (Mon, 19 Aug) as the drama hits Channel 5 for the first time.

Stephen King's novel is coming to the U.K, in TV form

The show is based on King’s novel of the same name, which was first conceived in 1970 but wasn’t published until 2009. It tells the story of a small town suddenly cut off by a giant invisible dome. Loved by U.S audiences, the once-planned 13-episode mini-series format has been extended to a second season due to high viewing figures.

Continue reading: UK Gets Stephen King's 'Under The Dome,' Tonight

They say sex sells, and now author EL James can attest, as the Fifty Shades of Grey creator perches on top of Forbes' author rich list. Amazingly, on the back of her raunchy trilogy alone, James has made more money than any other author in the past year, having earned $95m (£61.5m) from sales of her erotic fiction trilogy and the purchase of the film rights for $5 million (£3.2m).

EL James Is Exceedingly Rich.

What started out as Twilight fan fiction has seen the author's work rocket past Twilight author Stephenie Meyers (who didn't even make this year's top 15) in the last year's earnings to take the top spot on the business magazine's list. Her books sold faster than any other novel in history, with 70 million shifted in the first eight months of release in the USA and at its peak, the trilogy was earning her more than $1 million (£650,000) per week. The success of the 50 Shades trilogy was fostered by the ebooks market that enabled people to read her book in public places without feeling embarrassed to be seen reading such steamy fiction.

Continue reading: '50 Shades' Author E.L James Rakes It In As Forbes' Richest Author

Steven Spielberg's futuristic thriller Extant - a serialized drama - has been picked up by CBS Television Studios for next summer. Spielberg, Greg Walker and Mickey Fisher, who penned the script, will executive producer alongside Brooklyn Weaver, Justin Falvey and Darryl Drank.

The series follows a female astronaut trying to reconnect with her family after returning a year in outer space. Her experiences lead to events that ultimately change the course of human history.

"Extant is a very original concept with layers of humanity, mystery and surprise that reveal itself throughout the script," said CBS Entertainment president Nina Tassler, "Our partnership with Amblin for Under the Dome showed that viewers respond to high-quality event programming in the summer. We look forward to building on that with Extant and offering CBS audiences another high-concept, unique event for summer television."

Continue reading: CBS Wins Bidding War For Steven Spielberg's Astronaut Series 'Extant'

Steven Spielberg's newest television project, Under The Dome, is proving to be the latest success for CBS in it's late night programming. In a bid to capitalise on this current run of success, the TV company have decided to double up on Spielberg and have agreed a deal with the Oscar-winning filmmaker to air his next project; Extant.

Spielberg will be at the heart of the new series

On Wednesday (7 August), the joint project from Spielberg's Amblin Television and CBS Television Studios was green-lit by studio execs. and work began on the futuristic drama-thriller. The Hollywood Reporter has since revealed that the series will be penned by Spielberg, Greg Walker and Mickey Fisher, and that it will be a future-set family drama and thriller about a returning female astronaut trying to reconnect with her family after spending a year outside the Earth's atmosphere. This is more than just a family-reconnection series though, as our female protagonist has experienced things in space that will ultimately alter the course of human history.

Continue reading: New Steven Spielberg Series, 'Extant,' Green-Lit By CBS

The televisual adaptation of Stephen King’s novel, Under the Dome, will be coming back as CBS have ordered another season of the mystery/horror/drama. Not only will fans get more of their favourite dome-based action, though, King himself is set to write the opening episode.

The first season garnered generally favourable reviews, being nominated for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Most Exciting New Series and landing a 72% rating on Metacritic. Networks don’t renew shows on the strength of reviews, sadly enough, they prefer to work with viewer ratings, and Under The Dome didn’t disappoint there: the series premiere was viewed by a total of 17.76 million viewers, and overall, it broke records for CBS.

Ultra-fans have been somewhat critical though, claiming that the show isn’t true to its source material – King’s book – but that’s something the author has admitted to himself. “[If] you look closely, you’ll see that most of my characters are still there, although some have been combined and others have changed jobs. That’s also true of the big stuff, like the supermarket riot, the reason for all that propane storage, and the book’s thematic concerns with diminishing resources.”

Continue reading: CBS Stepping Back 'Under The Dome,' And Stephen King's Invited

J.K. Rowling was living out Stephen King’s dream when she wrote The Cuckoo's Calling as Robert Galbraith, enjoying the anonymity bestowed on her by that pseudonym. King, who wrote under the name Richard Bachman, praised the practice while bemoaning those clever Internet folks that spotted his ruse.

Rowling enjoyed writing as Galbraith

"I would have told her it's an impossible secret to keep for long," King told USA Today. He "got outed as Bachman by someone who recognized my style, and in these days of the Internet, that becomes more and more likely," but for him, "Jo is right about one big thing — what a pleasure, what a blessed relief, to write in anonymity, just for the joy of it. Now that I know, I can't wait to read the book." Rowling said she had "hoped to keep this secret a little longer".

Continue reading: Stephen King On J.K. Rowling's Pseudonym - 'What A Pleasure'

J.K. Rowling's latest work, The Cuckoo's Calling, was turned down by at least one publisher. Yesterday (Sunday 14th July), Kate Mills of Orion publishing house admitted she had rejected the novel. This was following Rowling's admittance that she had penned the crime novel written under the male pseudonym 'Robert Galbraith'.

J.K.Rowling at the premiere of Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 2.

Rowling's first work Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone was initially turned down by publishing powerhouse Bloomsbury. The company eventually did pick up the novel and the subsequent series. The Harry Potter books have been translated in 64 languages and remain the bestselling series in history. 

Continue reading: JK Rowling's 'The Cuckoo's Calling' And Other Famous Authors Who Suffered Publisher's Rejection

Stephen King's novel Under the Dome, adapted into a miniseries, aired yesterday (June 25, 2013) in the US and has been met with favourable reviews. The horror writer's 2009 novel had a huge audience of 13.1 million viewers and is likely to continue filming until September. Owing to its initial popularity, it is possible CBS could fund further episodes. 

The pilot episode introduces the audience to the bizarre Maine town of Chester's Mill, an area which is trapped in a bubble from which the residents cannot escape. With a healthy dose of a mysterious murder; a plane crash and many of the residents suffering convulsions it's definitely Stephen King's style. 

Under The Dome is CBS' latest attempt to compete with rival networks who offer such series as The Following and Revolution. The cast of Under the Dome may not match up to the likes of Kevin Bacon (in The Following) but Joanne Ostrow of the Denver Post comments on the suitability of mixing 'veteran actors and fresh new faces'.  

Continue reading: Stephen King's 'Under The Dome' "Could Be Just What We've Needed"

Richard Matheson has led a long and interesting life. Born in Brooklyn he started his writing career when some of his short stories were published in 1950. The author's subsequent career, spanning 60 years, including writing scripts for The Twilight Zone, Family Guy, Ghost Story and Jaws 3-D. His most famous work is I Am Legend, a post-apocalyptic horror which follows one man's life pitted against vampires whilst he is isolated in deserted Los Angeles.

I Am Legend has been adapted three times since its publication in 1954. The first starring Vincent Price, the second Charlton Heston and in 2011 Will Smith took on the role. The novel has been critically acclaimed and continues to challenge vampire novelists in developing an idea as original as Matheson's.

Director Steven Spielberg paid tribute to the late author saying in a statement "Richard Matheson's ironic and iconic imagination created seminal science-fiction stories and gave me my first break when he wrote the short story and screenplay for Duel." 

Continue reading: Richard Matheson, Author Of 'I Am Legend', Dies

Richard Matheson, the man behind such noted titles as I Am Legend and countless The Twilight Zone episodes, passed away on Sunday (June 23), aged 87. A writer for film, television and in the traditional sense as a novellist, Matheson influenced countless generations of future writers and filmmakers throughout his career and he will long be remembered as one of the great sci-fi writers, next to Jules Verne, HG Wells and Stephen King - who coincidentally referred to Matheson as his biggest inspiration as a writer.

His most famous work, I Am Legend, was published in 1954 and since then it has gone on to spawn at least three movie adaptions, with the 2007 Will Smith-starring version perhaps the most famous, with no disrespect to 1971's The Omega Man starring Charlton Heston and The Last Man on Earth with Vincent Price from 1964. He also wrote the short story and eventually the screenplay for the movie Duel, which became Steven Spielberg's breakthrough movie as a director, and most recently was involved in the 2009 Cameron Diaz starring The Box, which was adapted from his short story Button, Button.

Away from film, his work on television was just as, if no more influential than his work for the big screen and on print. He wrote countless episodes of The Twilight Zone, including one of he most iconic stories - 'Nightmare at 20,000 Feet' - about a man (played by William Shatner) who is seemingly the only person on his in-transit plane who can see a gremlin on the wing trying to bring it down. He was also one of the first writers for the original Star Trek series, an honour that needs no elaborating on. The Hugh Jackman movie Real Steel was based on a Twilight episode by Matheson called 'Steel.'

Continue reading: Renowned 'Smart Sci-Fi' Writer Richard Matheson Passes Away

Rachelle Lefevre will be joining the new CBS sci-fi drama Under the Dome, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The Twilight star is pegged to play the role of Julia, an investigative reporter who has recently moved to Chetser’s Mill, from Chicago. Once there, she and the rest of Chester’s Mill’s inhabitants, finds herself dealing with the “post apocalyptic conditions” that arise when a “strange dome” encapsulates the entire town.

With the show based on Stephen King’s popular novel, Julia is the editor of the town’s local paper and her curiosity is sparked by the news that multiple deliveries of propane gas had been made to a local warehouse. The appearance of the dome has her confused, though the disappearance of her husband – the local doctor – has her even more concerned. The drama is due to be produced by CBS Television studios and was taken straight to series, in association with Steven Spielberg’s own Amblin Television. Working as executive producers on the show will be Neal Baer, Darryl Frank, Justin Falvey, Stacey Snider and Brian K Vaughan. The premiere episode of the series will also feature Lost’s Jack Bender as executive producer.

The cast will also include Dean Norris (Breaking Bad), Mike Vogel (Pan Am) and Aisha Hinds (True Blood). Her casting in Under the Dome marks a return to CBS for Lefevre, who previously worked with them on A Gifted Man. The show is scheduled to premiere on June 24, 2013. 

Continue reading: Stephen King Adaptation 'Under The Dome' Will Star Twilight's Rachelle Lefevre

Some of the best films ever made have been Stephen King adaptations. The Green Mile, It, The Shining and Carrie are all Stephen King originals. Incidentally Carrie is being remade and, released next year, will be starring Chloe Moretz. Now, CBS has announced that they'll also be adapting his Under the Dome novel, for the small screen, reports the Huffington Post. 

King is famed for his complex horrors and sci-fi novels, and Under the Dome is one of the latter genre, in which a small town in Maine is suddenly isolated from the rest of the world, trapped in a transparent dome. The community devolves into a post-apocalyptic state as they try to understand what's happening to them, and why. The CBS series will run for 13 episodes. 

As yet no casting has been announced by Nina Tassler, the President of CBS Entertinament released a statement saying:"This is a great novel coming to the television screen with outstanding auspices and in-season production values to create a summer programming event," she said. "We're excited to transport audiences 'Under the Dome' and into the extraordinary world that Stephen King has imagined." Current plans will see it air in the summer of 2013.

Shawshank Redemption, the 1995 film starring Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins, has been named as the most inspirational movie by a poll of film fans.

The tear-jerking film, which was based on Stephen King's novel, sees two prisoners form a friendship against years of hardship.

Closely following in second place is Schindler's List, the true story of German businessman Oskar Schindler, who saved over 1,000 Jews from almost certain death during the second world war.

Tom Hanks' 1994 Forrest Gump was named as third, with people inspired by the tale of a simple man achieving greatness.

More than 2,000 film fans were surveyed by film and music store HMV.

Personal tales of success in the face of hardship appear to be the most inspiring themes for movie fans, with others in the top ten including Erin Brockovich and Billy Elliot.

Quite what Titanic inspired people to do after watching it may be questionable, but the film still managed to be named as the ninth most inspirational film.

Other classics which made it into the top 50 include Dead Poets' Society, Pretty Woman, Gladiator, To Kill A Mockingbird and Chariots of Fire.

HMV head of DVD Charles Fotheringham said Shawshank Redemption is a "great example" of how films have an "enduring capacity to inspire".

"Truly inspirational films can even change our view of the world and the things around us - helping us to see them from another person's perspective," he added.

''Ultimately, films can inspire us to change our lives in some way - think how many dancers must have started out in their chosen career after watching Billy Elliot.''

Top ten most inspirational films:

1. The Shawshank Redemption (1995)
2. Schindler's List (1994)
3. Forrest Gump (1994)
4. It's a Wonderful Life (1947)
5. Billy Elliot (2000)
6. Braveheart (1995)
7. The Green Mile (2000)
8. Erin Brockovich (2000)
9. Titanic (1998)
10. Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (1983)

Continue reading: Shawshank Redemption 'Most Inspiring Movie'