Summary
A new Stephen King adaptation,The Long Walk, adds Mark Hamill andHalloween’s Judy Greer. Originally published under the pseudonym Richard Bachman, the 1979 dystopian novel follows a group of teenage boys who are forced by an authoritarian regime to compete in a brutal walking competition where only the last one standing survives. The adaptation is fromThe Hunger Gamesdirector Francis Lawrence, withThe Long Walkcastalready including Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, Garrett Wareing, Tut Nyuot, Charlie Plummer, Ben Wang, Jordan Gonzalez, Joshua Odjick, and Roman Griffin Davis.
Now, the King adaptation is continuing to round out its cast. Lionsgate has announced thatThe Long Walkhas cast Hamill and Greer. It’s unknown who the two actors will be playing, though Hamill could be playing The Major, the primary authority figure who oversees the event.
The Long Walk Is Mark Hamill’s Second Stephen King Adaptation
He Also Stars In The Life Of Chuck
Hamill will also star in another Stephen King adaptation,Mike Flanagan’sThe Life of Chuck, which is set to premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2024. While Tom Hiddleston is playing the titular character, Hamill is playing Albie, who serves as an associate to Chuck in the field of accounting and is also his close friend.The Life of Chuckalready marked a reunion for Hamill with Flanagan, having starred in his Netflix miniseriesThe Fall of the House of Usher.
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The Long Walkwill be Hamill’s secondStephen King adaptationin a short amount of time. While his character inThe Life of Chuckis a supportive and sympathetic friend,Hamill has the chance to play a very different character inThe Long Walk. Throughout the grueling event, The Major displays a cold and detached demeanor and shows little to no empathy for the well-being of the walkers. Lawrence is also a great choice for director since he has had much success adapting dystopian novels about oppressive authoritarian regimes, having directed the last fourHunger Gamesmovies.
J.T. Mollner adapted the screenplay forThe Long Walk.
On the other hand, Greer is a character actress who has appeared in a wide variety of films, includingDavid Gordon Green’sHalloweenreboot trilogy. It’s unclear who she could be playing inThe Long Walksince there are no major female characters in the novel other than a girlfriend of one of the walkers and the protagonist, Ray Garraty, occasionally thinking about his mother. No matter who Hamill and Greer are playing, they are great additions toThe Long Walkcast.
The Long Walk
Cast
Adapted from Stephen King’s first novel, The Long Walk follows 100 teenage boys forced into a walking contest at four miles per hour or face lethal consequences.
