In Stephen King’s The Long Walk, contestants must choose to walk or die

By Dan Girolamo Published May 7, 2025

Stephen King is a horror master who specializes in creating psychological scenarios. In The Long Walk, contestants must choose to walk or die. It’s a simple premise, but the consequences are deadly.

Lionsgate released the official trailer for The Long Walk, a dystopian thriller based on King’s 1979 novel of the same name. The plot depicts a walking contest involving 100 men. Contestants must stay above the speed limit of three miles per hour. Falling below that number results in elimination.

The tense trailer previews what happens when someone falls below the speed limit. One of the contestants receives three warnings before a soldier shoots him in the head.

It’s a last-man-standing contest, with “one winner and no finish line.”

The Long Walk’s cast features Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, Charlie Plummer, Ben Wang, Roman Griffin Davis, Judy Greer, and Mark Hamill.

Hunger Games veteran Francis Lawrence directs The Long Walk from a screenplay by Strange Darling’s JT Mollner. The screenplay is based on King’s novel written under the pseudonym of Richard Bachman. Producers include Lawrence, Roy Lee, Steven Schneider, and Cameron MacConomy.

King’s novels remain as prolific as ever in Hollywood. Earlier this year, Osgood Perkins directed The Monkey, a black comedy about a toy that causes vicious deaths. Next month, Mike Flanagan’s adaptation of The Life of Chuck hits theaters nearly one year after winning the People’s Choice Award at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival.

This November, Paramount will release the second feature film adaptation of The Running Man, a novel King wrote under his Richard Bachman moniker. Edgar Wright will direct, and Glen Powell will star as Ben Richards, a contestant on the world’s deadliest game show.

The Long Walk opens in theaters on September 12.