How Stephen King’s The Monkey Became an Instant Classic

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2025 saw a lot of Stephen King adaptations, which isn’t unexpected given his extensive writing and Hollywood’s eagerness to bring his stories to the screen. What stood out last year was how promising all of these film and TV projects seemed.

Recently, two Stephen King adaptations have stood out. The first, directed by Osgood “Oz,” was one of the best King films in a long time. It was based on his 1980 short story Longlegs, and surprisingly shifted from traditional horror to a darker, comedic tone. Following its success in theaters and with audiences, The Monkey also became a popular hit on Hulu.

How The Monkey Became an Instant Streaming Darling

The film The Monkey debuted in cinemas on February 21, 2025, distributed by Neon, and quickly rose to become the number one movie on August 7th.

The movie based on Stephen King’s work opened in third place on August 8th, but quickly rose to become the most popular film in the U.S. after just one day. Nearly a year later, it’s still considered one of King’s best and most overlooked adaptations in recent years. The film stays true to the original story while also offering a new and creative take. It’s not surprising that it has remained popular, as many films quickly disappear from public attention and are replaced by the next trend.

What Is The Monkey About?

In the film The Monkey, twin brothers Bill and Hal stumble upon a strange toy monkey – a drum-playing figure – among their father’s possessions. This discovery triggers a series of unsettling and unexpected deaths. Theo James plays both twin brothers, and the movie also stars Tatiana Maslany, Christian Convery, Colin O’Brien, Rohan Campbell, Sarah Levy, Adam Scott, and Elijah Wood.

Stephen King’s The Monkey was the first movie adapted from his work to be released in 2025. Critics generally liked the film, giving it a ‘Certified Fresh’ rating of 77% on Rotten Tomatoes. However, general audiences had a more mixed reaction, giving it a score of 55%.

Despite costing only $11 million to make, the film The Monkey earned over $63.7 million worldwide, making it a very successful and profitable venture for Neon. Plus, the author of the original work also gave the film his blessing.

As previously mentioned, Stephen King embraced changes in how his work was adapted, even when they shifted the tone from scary to darkly comedic. He believes humor and horror are closely linked, explaining, “It only stops being funny when the joke is on you.”

King agreed with Perkins, stating, “He’s right about that…” He then shared that the movie had moments that genuinely moved him, admitting with some embarrassment that he couldn’t help but react emotionally.

2025 Was Filled With Stephen King Adaptations

2025 began with the release of The Monkey, but King fans had much more to look forward to. Mike Flanagan’s The Life of Chuck premiered in theaters in the summer of 2025 and is now available to stream or purchase digitally, continuing to be a hit with viewers.

Last year brought us two Stephen King adaptations: The Running Man and The Long Walk. The Running Man is the second film based on King’s 1982 novel, following the 1987 version with Arnold Schwarzenegger. The Long Walk was a long-awaited project, finally brought to life by Francis Lawrence, and many consider it the most emotionally difficult film of 2025.

The Monkey is streaming on Hulu.

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2026-01-30 18:36