Downton Abbey 3 and Spinal Tap 2 may be hitting cinema screens this weekend, but so is the latest Stephen King adaptation, The Long Walk.
Based on his 1979 novel of the same name, the survival thriller starring Mark Hamill is set in a dystopian USA ruled by a totalitarian regime.
The simple but harrowing premise is this: a group of young men enter an annual contest in which they must continue to walk at a speed of at least 3 miles per hour, or be executed, until there is one winner.
Reviews are in with a 95% Rotten Tomatoes score and are praising the new movie as not only one of the best films of the year but also one of the greatest Stephen King adaptations.
HeyUGuys
Bleak, unflinching, and unexpectedly moving, The Long Walk is both a faithful King adaptation and one of the most harrowing cinematic experiences in years. Not for the faint of heart — but easily one of the best films of 2025 so far.
Total Film
The result is one of the best Stephen King adaptations ever made — joining the ranks of The Green Mile, Misery, and Stand By Me.
Coming Soon
The Long Walk is a perfect movie. I don’t say that very often about new films, but as I watched this, I realized I didn’t have a single thing I would change about it.
Discussing Film
The Long Walk is one of the most powerful Stephen King film adaptations in years, anchored by Cooper Hoffman & David Jonsson’s heartbreaking performances. Their path to stardom has reached a new milestone, as audiences will be left walking away in pieces.
The Hollywood Reporter
While The Long Walk doesn’t entirely escape its narrative limitations, it features generous amounts of the sort of emotion and heart that have marked the best King adaptations. Of course, that doesn’t make it any less grueling.
Empire
Screenwriter JT Mollner has made some bold changes to the source material, but neither sanitises or dilutes.
MovieWeb
Francis Lawrence brilliantly adapts Stephen King’s The Long Walk into a harrowing cinematic journey with profound philosophical depth. Each bloody step and brutal mile is a visceral experience that’s riveting from the first frame.
Screen Rant
Updates to King’s source material, while retaining other elements faithful to the time of its writing, sometimes muddle the motivations of the main characters, but skillful performances easily pave over many of those speed bumps in the story’s path.
IGN
Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson share the spotlight wonderfully, building a rapport which serves as the only light in what’s unquestionably one of the most bleak Stephen King adaptations ever.
io9
The Long Walk is brutal. It’s not for the faint of heart. It can be violent, disgusting, and incredibly hard to watch. But if you do watch, you’ll be rewarded with a surprisingly beautiful, nuanced, human story.
Collider
The Long Walk’s steadfast focus on the lives and emotions of the walkers themselves is an exceptional choice, allowing the film to be tense, moving, and complex. It’s one of the best horror movies of the year.
The Long Walk is out in UK cinemas from Friday.
