"The King of Dystopias": The Long Walk started with 100% on Rotten Tomatoes

The Long Walk, an adaptation of one of Stephen King’s first novels, has received a perfect 100% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 19 reviews.

‘THE LONG WALK’ debuts with 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Described as a brutal and heartbreaking survival tale that is easily one of the best movies of the year

Read our review: https://t.co/XT21ZNCmE1 pic.twitter.com/5e5jvpmwS3

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) September 2, 2025

By now, the number of reviews has doubled, and the score fell slightly. However, it is still quite high compared to previous new and praised adaptations of King, in particular “Monkey” (77%) and “The Life of Chuck” (81%).

“The Long Walk is an adaptation of Stephen King’s novel of the same name, published in 1979 under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. The plot focuses on the dystopian United States, which is entertained by a rather atypical competition: a group of teenagers continuously moves along route 1, accompanied by soldiers; if they walk too slowly, they receive warnings, after the third — they will be shot. The one who survives and reaches the finals will receive a large sum of money and a prize of their choice.

The film is directed by Francis Lawrence, known for his work on the Hunger Games film adaptation, and adapted by J.T. Molner. King himself provided several updates to the plot, some by reducing the walking speed compared to the original story.

The film stars Cooper Hoffman, Ben Wan, Judy Greer, Garrett Wearing, Roman Griffin Davis, Charlie Plummer, David Johnsson, and Mark Hamill, who appears as a psychopathic major who terrorizes the marchers. Wearing has previously said that he secretly tracked the number of steps on the set and determined that they I had to walk up to 25 kilometers a day.

What do critics say?

In reviews, the film is called the “king of dystopias” and perhaps the best adaptation of King’s work to date. The actors Cooper Hoffman and David Johnsson have received special praise, who were predicted to win an Oscar in the first reactions

• The “long walk” does not last long — 108 minutes, but every second of it is felt… All the deviations from King’s source material are optional. The film stays in the spirit of the book and respects the story, rather than trying to change things for no reason.” — IGN.
• “The Long Walk is not for the faint of heart, but it is one of the best adaptations of Stephen King’s work, and one of the best dystopian sci-fi films to hit the big screen in a long time. This is yet another victory for The Hunger Games and I Am Legend director Francis Lawrence, who once again demonstrates that he understands dystopia like no other… You’ll leave the theater feeling immensely grateful for your life, but not without a nagging fear that this is exactly what society will be like in 50 years.” — Games Radar.
• “The update of King’s source material, while retaining elements faithful to the time of his writing, sometimes confuses the motivations of the main characters, but the skillful acting easily overcomes many of these obstacles.” — Screen Rant.
• “The Long Walk’s unwavering focus on the lives and emotions of travelers is an exceptional choice that allows it to be tense, moving, and complex. It is one of the best horror films of the year.” — Collider.

The Long Walk will be released in Ukrainian cinemas next Thursday, September 11.

We would like to remind you that this fall, we are expecting another adaptation of King’s novel: remake of The Running Man Edgar Wright, which is being promoted as a “more authentic adaptation.”