Sometime between watching the first teaser trailer and shoveling buttery handfuls of movie theater popcorn into our mouths that inevitable question may start to dawn on us… Hey, wasn’t this a book?
It seems that many movie studios, writers and producers are jumping on the book-to-movie train, and it is clear why – certain books can easily provide that perfect blueprint for a great movie, with strong characters and enticing storylines. The Martian. No Country for Old Men. Harry Potter. Les Miserables. Book and series super-fans line up (and often dress up!) to see their most beloved books translated onto the silver screen. Unfortunately, this can also mean angry fans disappointed when that translation is inaccurate (see: the live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender movie by M. Night Shyamalan), or when their favorite scenes are shortened or even missing altogether (“Where was my favorite cheeky side character that only appears on page 372??”). Book-to-movie adaptations can be a touchy subject, and a challenge to create.
Which of these book-to-movie adaptations this summer will take the cake, and which will flop? Use this handy list of book-to-movie adaptations debuting in summer 2017 to make your own list of must-sees, and let us know your answer to that age-old question: Which was better: the movie or the book?
1. Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2
Release Date: May 5
Okay, okay, so this one isn’t really in “summer.” But the comic book is making a comeback in a big way, and Marvel is doing it right. Based on the graphic novel by the same name, get ready to see our favorite group of intergalactic warriors back on the silver screen as they work together to discover the truth about Peter Quill’s parents.
2. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul
Release Date: May 19
Again with the summer thing, but this movie based on the ninth book in the Wimpy Kid series is no wimp. The new film features an entirely new cast, and depicts the same kooky Heffley family as they venture off on a road trip to attend grandma’s 90th birthday celebration. Yet Greg has something else up his sleeve as he attempts to tweak the trip to visit a video game convention.
(Photo Credit: DreamWorks Animation – © 2017 DreamWorks Animation LLC. All Rights Reserved.)
3. Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie
Release Date: June 2
This incredibly original series about two fourth graders who hypnotize their principal into thinking he is their homemade comic book superhero, Captain Underpants, debuts as its first feature film with a title that plays on the book, aptly subtitled “The First Epic Novel.”
4. Wonder Woman
Release Date: June 2
DC Comics brings its superheroine to the forefront in this standalone film based on one of the most famous, kick-butt female characters in history! This installation of Wonder Woman featuring Gal Gadot (Talk about perfect casting. Seriously, her name is Gal. Get it? Gal? Woman?) made her first on-screen appearance in the recent Batman VS. Superman movie Dawn of Justice. Oops, did I say spoiler alert?
5. My Cousin Rachel
Release Date: June 9
In this adaptation from Daphne Du Maurier’s 1950s mystery romance novel of the same name, a young Englishman suspects his dark and mysterious cousin Rachel as the true murderer of his guardian, but soon finds himself confused and falling under her spell of… oh who are we kidding, we will see anything starring Rachel Weisz.
6. Amityville: The Awakening
Release Date: June 30
Fans of the freaky and paranormal have been following the Amityville film franchise since 1979, but you may not know that these creepy stories were originally published as a book called The Amityville Horror by author Jay Anson in late 1977. Based on the supernatural experiences of the Lutz family in the infamous Amityville House, this movie is ready with new scares to keep you up all night.
7. The Beguiled
Release Date: June 30
Adored film director Sofia Coppola of The Virgin Suicides (also a book!), Lost in Translation, and The Bling Ring turns to Thomas Cullinan’s novel The Painted Devil for inspiration in her upcoming drama set in Civil War-era Virginia. When a girls’ school unexpectedly takes in a wounded Union soldier, the house erupts with tension and jealousy.
8. Spider-Man: Homecoming
Release Date: July 7
We saw a hint of this new (and hopefully improved) edition of Peter Parker in Captain America: Civil War, and with the seemingly back-to-back tries at the character since 2002, we are sure hoping for the best! Fans’ spidey-senses everywhere are tingling as Spiderman is finally adopted (no pun intended, Pete) into the box office-crushing Marvel Cinematic Universe.
9. War for the Planet of the Apes
Release Date: July 14
This famous sci-fi series has us not asking if the movie was better than the book, but if the movie or the book or television series or the video game or the other movie or the comic book was better than the…you get it. Pierre Boule’s novel from 1963 has spawned a world that he could hardly dream (or could he?), and this new movie has us following the beloved apes on a quest to avenge their kind.
10. Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets
Release Date: July 21
We all know our favorite comic book heroes from Marvel and DC, but this movie comes from a different graphic novel, the landmark French sci-fi comic series Valerian and Laureline (three guesses who the main characters are). This movie follows the two intergalactic special ops agents as they try to save the peaceful City of a Thousand Planets from a mysterious dark force.
11. The Dark Tower
Release Date: August 4
If you (like the rest of us) can’t get enough of Idris Elba (or Matthew McConaughey! That’s right, they’re both in this movie), you might want to check out this adaptation of the similarly named novel by Stephen King. The story follows an adventurous 11-year-old boy as he begins to unfold clues to an interdimensional world, and includes elements of science fiction, fantasy, western, and horror.
12. Death Note
Release Date: August 25
Ever wondered what you would do with a magical notebook that has the power to kill any person whose name is written inside? When the Death Note falls into high school student Light’s lap, he decides to use the power for the greater good, but not everyone is okay with him playing God. Netflix brings this mystical manga to an American audience with a new live-action film debuting on their home streaming service this summer. Netflix and chill, anyone?
13. Tulip Fever
Release Date: August 25
This is not author Deborah Moggach’s first rodeo when it comes to film adaptations of her novels – previously, her novel These Foolish Things (2004) was adapted into the movie The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. The new film Tulip Fever, based on her novel of the same name, features an all star cast (Christoph Waltz, Zach Galifianakis, Judi Dench, and new sensations Alicia Vikander and Cara Delevingne) to tell the story of a love triangle during the period of tulip mania in 17th century Amsterdam.
14. It
Release Date: September 8
I know what you’re thinking – this isn’t a summer movie! Well actually, summer this year lasts until September 22, so there’s plenty of time to be scared by this adaptation of Stephen King’s novel It starring our (least?) favorite evil clown, Pennywise. Neighborhood kids join together to put a stop to the town’s epidemic of disappearing children in this new film, updated for modern audiences.
15. American Assassin
Release Date: September 15
If you love Vince Flynn novels, this is a must see this summer. American Assassin follows CIA black ops recruit Mitch Rapp on a mission to stop a mysterious terrorist while recovering from his own personal tragedy of the loss of his girlfriend by a terrorist attack.
Don’t forget to keep an eye out for some of these other highly anticipated book-to-movie adaptations that are due out later this year!
Kingsman: The Golden Circle
Release Date: September 29
Source: The Secret Service, comic book by Dave Gibbons and Mark Millar
Starring: Channing Tatum, Julianne Moore, Jeff Bridges, Halle Berry
The Mountain Between Us
Release Date: October 20
Source: The Mountain Between Us, novel by Charles Martin
Starring: Idris Elba, Kate Winslet
Thor: Ragnarok
Release Date: November 3
Source: Character of Thor, Marvel Comics
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett
Wonder
Release Date: November 17
Source: Wonder, juvenile novel by R. J. Palacio
Starring: Julia Roberts, Owen Wilson, Mandy Patinkin
The Glass Castle
Release Date: TBA
Source: The Glass Castle, non-fiction memoir by Jeannette Walls
Starring: Brie Larson, Naomi Watts, Woody Harrelson, Max Greenfield
Annihilation
Release Date: TBA
Source: Annihilation, first in the sci-fi Southern Reach trilogy by Jeff Vandermeer
Starring: Natalie Portman, Oscar Isaac, Jennifer Jason Leigh
The Long Home
Release Date: TBA
Source: The Long Home, novel by William Gay
Starring: James Franco, Ashton Kutcher, Josh Hartnett, Josh Hutcherson
