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The Hottest New (and Upcoming) Book-to-Screen Adaptations
Good news, book nerds! And movie nerds! And TV nerds! It’s time once again for our regular roundup of new and upcoming book-to-screen adaptations. Hollywood has been mining the world of books for a long time—since 1899, according to some reckonings—and it can be tricky to keep track of everything.
We’ve gathered here an assortment of high-profile projects slated for release in the next year or so, along with some updates to recently released screen adaptations. These include both feature films headed to theaters and series adaptations coming to networks or streaming platforms.
You’ll find stories both old and new from authors including Suzanne Collins, Esi Edugyan, Kristin Hannah, Colleen Hoover, Liz Moore, and Richard Osman. Plus an array of literary classics from Emily Brontë, John Steinbeck, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, and even the ancient Greek poet Homer.
We double-checked all the specifics, but keep in mind that these release dates get moved around all the time. Check your local listings.
It’s the year 2025. The economy is in shambles, crime is rampant, and survival is a spectator sport. Or at least it is for Ben Richards, who volunteers to be a contestant on a deadly reality show. Written by Stephen King under his pseudonym Richard Bachman, The Running Man was famously adapted into a 1980s sci-fi action film with Arnold Schwarzenegger. The new reboot, starring ascendant movie star Glen Powell, hits theaters on November 14. And yes, the original novel was set in the year 2025.
Maggie O'Farrell’s 2020 novel, Hamnet—a fictionalized account of William Shakespeare, his wife Agnes, and the tragic death of their 11-year-old son—was a huge hit with readers and critics alike. The much anticipated film adaptation stars Jessie Buckley as Agnes, Paul Mescal as Will, and the great Emily Watson as Will’s mother, Mary. Best of all, the director is acclaimed filmmaker Chloé Zhao, who won the Best Director Oscar for her 2020 film, Nomadland. Hamnet is slated for wide release in U.S. theaters on November 27.
Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson headline the big-screen adaptation of Argentine author Ariana Harwicz’s 2012 novel, which details the psychological breakdown of a desperate young mother. Longlisted for the Man Booker International Prize, the book is considered a modern classic of emotional insight and a deeply empathetic treatment of mental illness. The big-screen version won a standing ovation at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and is slated for theatrical release in the U.S. on November 7.
It’s time for the second act! OK, deep breath: Wicked: For Good is the second part of last year’s film adaptation of the Broadway musical based on Gregory Maguire’s 1995 novel, Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West. That book, in turn, is based on the L. Frank Baum classic The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Thanks to Maguire’s modern classic, we learn that the green-skinned girl, Elphaba, isn’t wicked at all in this illuminating and imaginative fantasy. The new movie hits theaters on November 21.
It’s every parent’s worst nightmare: A first playdate. A pickup that never happens. A missing child. And that’s just the beginning in Andrea Mara’s 2021 mystery-thriller, which ratchets up the suspense with a merciless series of tragic twists and dramatic reveals. The new series adaptation from NBC is scheduled to debut via the Peacock streaming service on November 6, with a cast including Sarah Snook, Sophia Lillis, Dakota Fanning, and Abby Elliott.
Mary Shelley’s timeless monster-and-mad-scientist face-off has inspired movies, comic books, television shows, spin-off sequels, a bride, and still more movies. In the next six months or so, fans will get two additional updates to Shelley’s original 1818 Gothic masterpiece. Guillermo del Toro’s adaptation Frankenstein arrives in theaters on November 7. Next March, director Maggie Gyllenhaal will expand worldwide Frankenstein lore with the much anticipated feature film The Bride!
Based on author Freida McFadden’s popular book series, the upcoming thriller The Housemaid—starring Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried—is scheduled to hit theaters on December 19. In this twisted tale of control and desire, Millie is an ex-con with a past who comes to the Winchesters' house as a live-in housekeeper. Nina, the lady of the house, may or may not be recovering from a psychotic break. Some messes can’t be cleaned.
With a nod to the rom-com classic When Harry Met Sally, Emily Henry’s 2021 novel, People We Meet on Vacation, tackles the age-old question: Can men and women ever truly just be friends? Poppy and Alex have a friendship of the opposites-attract variety, and we learn their backstory through chapters that travel through time. After a falling-out, Poppy reaches out to Alex to mend the friendship (and possibly more) on one final trip. The film adaptation hits Netflix early next year—January 9, 2026.
John Steinbeck’s immortal classic East of Eden tells the story of two families in California farm country in the early days of the 20th century. Steinbeck considered it his greatest book, and in 1955 it was famously adapted to film by legendary filmmaker Elia Kazan. So here’s a wild thing: The seven-episode Netflix adaptation—coming in early 2026 and starring Florence Pugh—is written and directed by Zoe Kazan, Elia’s granddaughter.
Emily Brontë’s classic 1847 novel—the only novel she ever wrote—has a permanent place in our cultural memory as the epitome of Gothic vibes and windswept moors. The upcoming film adaptation, scheduled for February of 2026, features some heavy Hollywood firepower. Margot Robbie plays our heroine Catherine Earnshaw, and the director is filmmaker Emerald Fennel, known for her period dramas and the late, great BBC spy thriller Killing Eve.
The undisputed queen of have-a-good-cry fiction, Colleen Hoover delivered another massive bestseller with her 2022 novel, Reminders of Him, concerning a young mother trying to put her life back together after a terrible tragedy—and a five-year prison stint. The feature film adaptation, scheduled to hit theaters in March 2026, stars Maika Monroe as protagonist Kenna Rowan, with Tyriq Withers as the sympathetic bar owner with a tender heart. If reader reviews are any indication, Hoover’s latest story will make you cry. Bring tissues.
The most charming mystery novel of 2006 is set to become the most charming mystery movie of 2026. German crime writer Leonie Swann took a delightful left turn with Three Bags Full, in which a flock of anthropomorphic sheep set out to solve the murder of their shepherd. The book has since become a classic for offbeat mystery lovers around the world. The film adaptation, expected in November 2026, has been officially dubbed Three Bags Full: A Sheep Detective Movie. Ewe’ll love it.
Andy Weir’s ambitious 2021 sci-fi novel is similar in tone and scope to his 2011 blockbuster debut, The Martian. Both books are great examples of modern “hard SF,” grounded in science and physics and cold, hard reality. Project Hail Mary features another stranded astronaut, but with the stakes raised to extinction-level seriousness. The much anticipated film adaptation, starring Ryan Gosling, is currently slated for release on March 20, 2026. Bonus trivia: The novel won the 2021 Goodreads Choice Award for Readers’ Favorite Science Fiction book.
Author Peter Heller’s literary take on the dystopian postapocalypse story The Dog Stars follows one man’s experience living in an abandoned airport as the rest of the world descends into anarchy. Heller’s lyrical prose elevates the book out of its genre, and the book has since attracted a rather obsessive readership. (We speak from experience.) A-list filmmaker Ridley Scott evidently liked the book, too: His adaptation—starring Josh Brolin, Guy Pearce, and Margaret Qualley—is scheduled to hit theaters in March 2026.
A writer finds herself in a treacherous situation when she drifts into the orbit of bestselling author Verity Crawford and her handsome husband. Then it gets really complicated. Colleen Hoover’s psychological thriller made its way into a lot of neighborhood book clubs in 2018. The upcoming film adaptation—slated for October 2026—stars Dakota Johnson along with Anne Hathaway and Josh Hartnett as the unhappily married couple.
The award for Oldest Story Adaptation goes to filmmaker Christopher Nolan for his upcoming feature film adaptation of The Odyssey, coming July 17, 2026. Composed by the great poet Homer around the 7th century BCE, the original epic follows Odysseus, king of Ithaca, as he journeys home from the Trojan War. Nolan’s wildly ambitious IMAX film version stars Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Anne Hathaway, and Charlize Theron.
Author Suzanne Collins expanded The Hunger Games book series back in the spring with Sunrise on the Reaping, a prequel novel focused on the popular character of Haymitch Abernathy. The official feature film adaptation is currently underway with a tentative release date of November 20, 2026. Fans of the original movies will recall that the older version of Haymitch was played by Woody Harrelson. According to industry scuttlebutt, Australian actor Joseph Zada will play young Haymitch in the new film.
Released earlier this year...
For film nerds of a certain intensity, this fall’s must-see movie was the cinematic action drama One Battle After Another, released in September. Filmed in IMAX format, it’s the latest from director Paul Thomas Anderson (Magnolia), and the cast is incredible—Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Benicio del Toro, Regina Hall, and future movie star Chase Infiniti. Book nerds will note that the film is loosely based on Vineland, Thomas Pynchon’s visionary 1990 novel about America, creeping decline, and revolution.
British author Ruth Ware earned a wave of critical and popular acclaim with this 2016 mystery-thriller, concerning a travel writer, a North Sea luxury cruise, and a genuinely baffling disappearance. Keira Knightley, Guy Pearce, Art Malik, and Gugu Mbatha-Raw headline the British film adaptation, which debuted on Netflix in October. Bonus trivia: Ware’s sequel novel, The Woman in Suite 11, hit shelves in July. The new book features the return of protagonist Lo Blacklock and moves the action to a luxury hotel in Switzerland.
More from the feverish brain of Stephen King: The 1978 novel The Long Walk was published by King under his pseudonym Richard Bachman. The story follows a group of young men forced to compete in an annual competition, known as the Long Walk, across a future America spiraling into dystopian horror. The winner gets anything he wants. The losers get executed. Good times. The film adaptation, released to theaters in September, received solid reviews and will soon cycle through to streaming platforms.
In 2021, veteran reporter Lizzie Johnson published her book Paradise, describing the tragic fate of a small California town caught in the 2018 wildfire known as the Camp Fire. In October, Apple Studios released The Lost Bus, a feature film adaptation based on material from Johnson’s book. The movie is now available via Apple TV+ streaming service. Significantly, the film is directed by Paul Greengrass, the former journalist turned filmmaker who specializes in true-story projects.
Never one to shy away from difficult subjects, author Colleen Hoover dives into the difficult relationships between mothers and daughters in her 2019 novel, Regretting You. Morgan and her teenage daughter, Clara, can barely relate and are pushed farther apart when a fatal accident befalls the family. The feature film adaptation of the novel, which hit theaters in October, echoes the author’s bedrock themes: family secrets, betrayals, and finding the courage to face the truth.
British author Richard Osman’s hugely successful cozy mystery series features a team of amateur sleuths from an upmarket retirement village who crack cold cases in their spare time. The first book in the series chronicles the gang’s first real-time murder investigation and serves as the basis for Netflix’s adaptation, which debuted in August. And how’s this for an all-star cast: Helen Mirren, Sir Ben Kingsley, Pierce Brosnan, and Celia Imrie.
Sex! Scandal! Homicide! This 2021 thriller from author May Cobb follows the fate of big-city lifestyle blogger Sophie O’Neill when she relocates to small-town Texas. Things get weird when Sophie is drawn into a circle of wealthy Texan women who like to shoot guns, party hard, and keep secrets. Season 1 of the Netflix series adaptation wrapped up this summer, starring Malin Akerman, Brittany Snow, and Dermot Mulroney. Season 2 is set to drop in July 2026.
This 2020 novella collection from Stephen King, our elder statesman of modern horror, features four tales longer than a short story but shorter than a novel. The collection’s second story, “Life of Chuck,” is a kind of reverse-chronology brain twist of cosmic wonder. The highly regarded film adaptation, starring Tom Hiddleston and Chiwetel Ejiofor, opened in theaters back in June and is now available on streaming platforms.
It’s baaaaaack. Lois Duncan’s 1973 thriller novel was famously resurrected for audiences with the hit 1990s film, and this year brought yet another expansion to the slasher story. In the original novel, four teenagers kill a boy on his bicycle in a hit-and-run accident after a party. They make a pact to never mention their involvement, but someone knows what they did. Franchise favorites Freddie Prinze Jr. and Jennifer Love Hewitt headline the new reboot, now available on streaming platforms.
In 2009, author Jenny Han kicked off a multimedia YA romance empire with her beloved coming-of-age novel The Summer I Turned Pretty. The story of Isabel "Belly" Conklin continued for two additional books in Han’s Summer trilogy. In 2021, Amazon Prime began production on the television series adaptation of all three books. Season 3 of the streaming series finally hit screens this summer, roughly mapped to events in the third and final book, We'll Always Have Summer.
National Book Award finalist—and winner of the 2014 Goodreads Choice Award for YA fiction—E. Lockhart’s novel We Were Liars is a devastating example of sustained psychological suspense. It’s the story of four teenagers, their wealthy families, a private island, and a terrible secret. Be wary of spoilers if you haven’t read this one yet. The book and its sequel, Family of Liars, have been adapted into an Amazon Prime series, with Season 1 now available for streaming.
The exciting and epic adventure of Washington Black follows field turned house slave “Wash” through life and its incredible journey. Wash gets his freedom early on, fleeing Barbados with his master’s brother in a hot-air balloon. But he’s being tracked by a bounty hunter and is never fully free. Author Esi Edugyan’s 2018 novel explores the tension between slavery and freedom, oppression and possibility. An eight-part series based on the book premiered in July and is now available on Hulu.
A former baseball player finds himself hunted by the New York City criminal underworld in this Hitchcockian 2004 thriller from author Charlie Huston. The exciting news for film buffs is that the big-screen adaptation is written and directed by Darren Aronofsky, the acclaimed filmmaker who brought us Requiem for a Dream and Black Swan. Released to U.S. theaters in August, the new movie stars Austin Butler, Regina King, Zoë Kravitz, Live Schreiber, and Bad Bunny.
In 2024, author Liz Moore’s mystery-thriller The God of the Woods became the surprise hit of the summer reading season. (In fact, it won a Goodreads Choice Award that year.) Fans of that book might want to double back to Moore’s 2020 novel, Long Bright River, which tells the story of two sisters in Philadelphia—one’s a cop, one’s an addict, and one of them just went missing. The streaming service Peacock adapted the novel into an eight-episode miniseries that dropped earlier this year.
South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon Ho made 2025’s wildest sci-fi film back in March with Mickey 17. The gist: Robert Pattinson plays a disposable space colony clone who experiences an existential crisis. Several, actually. A solid critical and commercial success, the film is based on author Edward Ashton’s 2022 novel, Mickey7, nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award in the science fiction category. The film version is now available digitally on multiple streaming platforms.
