Rob Reiner Almost Didn't Direct Stand By Me Until He Made One Change

We are celebrating the life of the late, great Rob Reiner, who tragically passed away at 78.

Stephen King is not only a prolific author, but the source of dozens of great movies and TV shows that adapt his work. His name is a recognizable brand, one that studios have come to rely on for some of the most acclaimed and successful horror movies of all time. Hell, there's a reason why 2025 alone had so many Stephen King adaptations.

Still, as popular as King and his work are, adaptations aren't all guaranteed to get made. There is at least one Stephen King movie that every studio in Hollywood rejected, yet once it was finally made it became a gold standard for coming-of-age tales in the '80s, and a bonafide classic. The movie is "Stand By Me," adapted from King's short story "The Body." It follows four pre-teen boys each from a distinctly dysfunctional family, who set out to see a dead body they heard about and report it in hopes of becoming famous. As directed by Rob Reiner in 1986, the movie remains a beloved and nostalgic movie, one that only gets better with each rewatch.

And yet, the movie only worked once Rob Reiner made one crucial change. In an oral history for the film's 30th anniversary at Variety, Reiner struggled with a lack of focus in the script. "It was giving me headaches trying to figure it out," Reiner said. The turning point, according to producer Andrew Scheinman, was "Realizing that the focus on the script needed to be on Gordie and not Chris. It's a story of a little kid feeling unappreciated by his father and then he realizes that's his father's problem, not his."

It seems like, in the initial version, Gordie was just one of the four characters. "He was an observer. He wasn't the main focus of it," Reiner explained. "Then I was like this is about a kid who has insecure feelings about himself. He's driven to go see this body, because he never cried at his brother's funeral and his father always paid more attention to his older brother who died."

The plot is essentially the same as the book, but just like the source material, Gordie mostly narrates what happens and focuses on what his friends do, particularly Chris, rather than himself. It makes sense, as Chris is the cool best friend, the kid you always admire and aspire to be as a pre-teen. Of course, changing the focus to Gordie wasn't obvious. He's neither the most tragic, nor the most physically distinct, or the bravest. It's easy to have him slide into the background and be the observer and eventual narrator. As producer and co-writer Bruce A. Evans said, "We resisted it at first and then we saw where he was going. Rob does that stuff very well."

Indeed, it is this change that makes the movie what it is. Gordie is the one with the biggest character arc in the movie, as it is more about how he deals with his own feelings towards how his parents treat him than him actively changing the people around him. Gordie finally opening up to Chris and deciding to no longer just be a quiet observer it's cathartic and emotional. It's easy to see why even Stephen King was overwhelmed with emotions after watching the movie.