The Long Walk Trailer Brings Stephen King's Bleakest Story To The Big Screen

After spending years (and years) in development hell, one of Stephen King's earliest and most brutal novels is finally coming to the big screen — and we have proof! Lionsgate has released the first trailer for "The Long Walk," which hits theaters this fall. While King isn't one to pull punches, this is one of his most unflinchingly brutal works, with young men walking to their deaths while the last one standing wins a prize in a post-apocalyptic, grim vision of the future. Check it out for yourself above.

"The Long Walk" is very much akin to King's "Hunger Games," albeit without any YA flair. This is nitty, gritty, and very much R-rated. It perhaps makes sense that Francis Lawrence, known best for his work on "The Hunger Games" movies, is in the director's chair for this one. Lionsgate isn't giving us much by way of the plot, with the official synopsis describing the movie as "an intense, chilling, and emotional thriller that challenges audiences to confront a haunting question: how far could you go?"

The studio assembled quite the cast for the adaptation, led by Cooper Hoffman ("Licorice Pizza") and David Jonsson ("Alien: Romulus"). The ensemble also includes Garrett Wareing ("Manifest"), Tut Nyuot ("The Witcher: Blood Origin"), Charlie Plummer ("Spontaneous"), Ben Wang ("Mean Girls"), Roman Griffin Davis ("Jojo Rabbit"), Jordan Gonzalez ("Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin"), Joshua Odjick ("The Swarm"), Judy Greer ("Ant-Man"), and Mark Hamill ("Star Wars"). JT Mollner ("Strange Darling") penned the screenplay.

Anyone who has read "The Long Walk" knows that it's particularly grim. King's works often have some supernatural element at play, making them feel a little disconnected from reality. Here, it's just a dystopian future and there's nothing to say this couldn't happen, sort of in the way "The Purge" could, in a world gone very wrong, technically happen. Based on this trailer, it appears as though Lawrence isn't pulling any punches in adapting this tale for the screen.

Over the years, several filmmakers have tried – and failed – to turn this book into a movie. Not to go over the exhaustive history here but the likes of George A. Romero ("Night of the Living Dead"), Frank Darabont ("The Mist") and André Øvredal ("Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark") all spent time developing the project. So it's impressive just to see that it's an honest to goodness reality. Beyond that, it's a damn fine teaser that appears to be very faithful to the source material.

It's also interesting to see Mark Hamill, who most of the world knows as Luke Skywalker from "Star Wars," taking a full-blown evil turn here as The Major. His voiceover anchors the entirety of the trailer. It's also interesting since Hamill has become something of a Stephen King staple in recent years, as he's also starring in Mike Flanagan's "The Life of Chuck" this summer, following his work in "The Fall of the House of Usher." It's just a teaser, but after all these years it looks like this story is finally getting its due.

"The Long Walk" hits theaters on September 12, 2025.