brutal trailer for The Long Walk sees a group of young men walking while surrounded by a military presence. Any of the contestants who are unable to keep up are killed, and there is the promise of a prize for the last one standing. This calls to mind some comparisons to The Hunger Games, although there are, surprisingly, even more connections than this.
While it's already an excellent year for King adaptations, this new film promises to be uniquely brutal. Originally published in 1979 under King's pseudonym, Richard Bachman, a film adaptation of the acclaimed novel has been tossed around Hollywood for some time. Filmmakers including George A. Romero and Frank Darabont were attached at various points. The eventual film, however, has some surprising connections to another popular franchise, especially behind the scenes, that can't be ignored.
The Long Walk's Survival Game Immediately Draws Comparisons To The Hunger Games
The New Movie's Setup Mirrors The Popular Dystopian Franchise
The new trailer for The Long Walk invites several comparisons between the new film, which sees Mark Hamill as a villain, and The Hunger Games. Both projects are based on novels and revolve around twisted games that pit teenagers against one another. In both of these, this deadly game, which promises a significant prize, is enacted by twisted and cruel government forces. This terrifying promise sets up enormous tension in the new film.
Granted, there are many films like The Hunger Games, but this release appears to examine similar themes and ideas. Seeing the strong cast, led by David Jonsson and Cooper Hoffman, react even in this short preview creates a powerful setup for the film. The new movie promises to show the charismatic camaraderie between its cast before tracing the devolution in their relationships. As only one young man can survive the ordeal, the film promises to go to some very dark and powerful places.
Stephen King's book came out 29 years before Suzanne Collins published the first Hunger Games book. King's novel may not have been a direct influence on Collins' work, but the parallels are still clear.
The similarities between The Long Walk and The Hunger Games in their basic setups are not an example of the new film copying the major movie franchise. King's book came out 29 years before Suzanne Collins published the first Hunger Games book in 2008. King's novel may not have been a direct influence on Collins' work, but the parallels are still clear. With Hunger Games beating The Long Walk to movie theaters, the new film could feel to some like it is attempting to replicate the former's success.
The Long Walk's Trailer Openly Acknowledges Its Hunger Games Connection
Francis Lawrence Has Directed Several Installments In The Hunger Games Franchise
The new trailer shows an even greater connection to The Hunger Games in its first look at The Long Walk as it proudly lists Francis Lawrence as its director. This is presented in big, bold text for the Lionsgate film, acknowledging Lawrence as the director of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and its sequels, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 and Part 2, as well as The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. The American director also helmed I Am Legend and Water for Elephants.
Lawrence shared in a recent interview with Vanity Fair that he tried to adapt The Long Walk as early as 2006 but failed, so he signed up to make the Hunger Games movies instead.
Lawrence is clearly deeply invested in the Hunger Games films, and will next direct The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, which is based on a new book about Haymitch's games. With the director being so immersed in that world, it makes sense that some of his latest work would feel connected to that franchise. As another exploration of children being forced to turn on one another, The Long Walk could provide a genuinely original look at these already explored ideas from a unique vantage point.

The Long Walk: Release Date, Cast, Story & Everything We Know About The Stephen King Adaptation
One of Stephen King's lesser-known novels is finally coming to the big screen, and exciting updates are pouring in regarding The Long Walk.
By making Lawrence's history with Hunger Games known, it's apparent that Lionsgate - the studio behind the franchise and The Long Walk - informs audiences that this new film is coming from someone behind a $3.3 billion franchise. It's a clever way to potentially entice people who have never read the King book but are entertained by the Hunger Games series. Additionally, King adaptations can be a hit or a miss, so having an experienced director in the genre with plenty of franchise success adds confidence to The Long Walk.
How The Long Walk Will Be Different From The Hunger Games
The Look And Feel Of The New Film Is Significantly Different
Even though the two projects share some similarities, The Long Walk looks starkly different from The Hunger Games. While the latter focuses on presentation and broadcast, the King adaptation looks like a much more contained and smaller competition. Rather than being forced to perform on television, this competition forces the boys to walk together. Notably, the boys are not actively trying to kill one another, and there's even a sense of camaraderie that's rare in The Hunger Games. Lawrence acknowledged this key difference regarding the characters' dynamic and the impact of the first Long Walk death in a Vanity Fair interview:
Anything that has a contest with death as the stakes and some sort of big prize if you win can be connected in some way. But in The Hunger Games, everybody’s competing in a very different kind of way. There are alliances and you are trying to kill one another. Here, you’re not actually trying to kill one another. It’s a very different dynamic, in of relationships.
I’m, like, ‘I don’t want this to feel like The Hunger Games. I’m really only interested in the emotional value of it. You want that impact. He doesn’t seem like he’s going to be the first one to go.
Lawrence has a point concerning how the contestants behave and think differently due to the circumstances. In The Hunger Games, alliances can help tributes to survive as long as possible, but even those can be temporary once it comes down to the last finalists. In contrast, the King adaptation will likely illustrate a different psychological impact on the contestant, who would have to endure walking tirelessly on the roads and watching their friends slowly lose their lives when they give up. The trailer has already hinted at this brotherhood, which could take an emotional toll and test their limits.

Hunger Games: What Happened To Panem After The Second Rebellion
Each rebellion propelled Panem in a new direction during the events of The Hunger Games franchise, but the second uprising brought positive changes.
On the other hand, The Hunger Games is about systemic political oppression, and it appears that The Long Walk will examine those same ideas but in different ways. The pervasive power of the dystopian regime appears to be less technological, and there seems to be a much more natural and rural look in the new film. However, even the political climate is more low-key and has less significance in The Long Walk, while the same issue became the catalyst for later Hunger Games installments, where the oppression and brutality led to a rebellion.
Will The Long Walk Start A Movie Franchise Like The Hunger Games Did?
The Box Office Returns Will Decide
The Long Walk is not likely to start a franchise, but anything is possible. The Hunger Games was based on a three-volume book series, and the first film went on to gross over $694 million at the worldwide box office. That world was more sensationalized and featured a larger cast of Hunger Games characters that could run through its various interconnected stories. The Long Walk feels much more isolated than that, and a sequel does not seem like the logical path forward for the franchise.

New Hunger Games Prequel Movie May Have One Of The Biggest Budgets In The Entire Franchise
Ahead of production kicking off on The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, expectations are high as the movie has netted a massive budget.
The Richard Bachman-attributed novel has a dark ending, and the movie likely will too. The setup for the film does not appear to lend itself well to the idea of making sequels. However, even the most Joker: Folie à Deux get made if the first film makes enough money. While The Long Walk does not look set to break out and become an enormous global hit, an event like that would certainly provoke Lionsgate to look at possible sequel opportunities, no matter how unnatural they might be.
With the incredible success of The Hunger Games franchise, it makes sense that the new film might hope to appeal to some of the same audience.
The Long Walk is already drawing comparisons to The Hunger Games, and it seems that the new film intends to embrace that. With the incredible success of The Hunger Games franchise, it makes sense that the new film might hope to appeal to some of the same audience. How that impacts the new film's box office remains to be seen, but The Long Walk promises to be a dark and intense look at youth and violence when it releases in September.
Source: Vanity Fair

The Long Walk
- Release Date
- September 12, 2025
- Director
- Francis Lawrence
- Writers
- JT Mollner
- Producers
- Roy Lee, Steven Schneider
Cast
- Peter McVries
- Cooper HoffmanRaymond Garraty
- Charlie PlummerGary Barkovitch
- Tut NyuotArthur Baker