9 Recent Fantasy and Science Fiction Book Adaptations Which Are Worth Seeing!
With the success of the first Star Wars movie in 1977, Hollywood began opening its doors more widely to science fiction and fantasy scripts. All the way throughout the late 90s, we got several decent and a dozen mind-numbingly mediocre attempts to transfer the stories we knew and loved to the big and small screens. Limitations, such as run-time, budgets and special effects made capturing the magic of those books in its true essence a daunting task. But where Hollywood saw a very limited fan-base (and thus, limited return on their investments), the video game industry saw an untapped gold mine. And they jumped at the chance to explore it head first. They must have done something right, because all throughout the 2000s entire multi-million dollar corporations were built on the shoulders of one or two fantasy adaptation franchises. Hollywood must have realized their mistake and in recent years have been investing heavily into bringing the genre to a wider audience, leading to some of the highest grossing movies and some of the highest grossing and biggest budget productions ever made.
So let's have a look at some of these book adaptations, featuring our favorite characters, which were done so well that they spawned multi-million franchises in their wake.
MOVIES
The Lord of the Rings
Of course, movies are first on this list and it should come as no surprise for you to find the Lord of the Rings trilogy as the first entry. As we mentioned earlier, up until the late 90s, we've had some decent movie adaptations, but nothing came as close to captivating the attention of audiences around the globe as Peter Jackson's trilogy. It was even more impressive that all three movies kept the same standard of quality, avoiding the curse of some unfortunate sequels that destroyed franchises (looking at you, Batman and Robin, and Stark Trek Nemesis). The trilogy received a total of 475 awards out of 800 nominations, making it the most awarded film series in history.
While the movies are indeed spectacular (and our all-time favourites), we cannot deny that they still substantially shortened Frodo and Sam's journey, especially missing a large chunk from the beginning of the books and minor, but lovable, characters, such as "Fatty" Bolger, Tom Bombadil and Goldberry never got their chance to shine. We can only live with the hope that somewhere in the deep vaults of the Vatican there is a Peter Jackson director's cut tape with a total viewing time of 2 weeks.
Needless to say, the trilogy is a cult classic and if you've somehow missed it, we suggest you immediately book a day off and prepare for a magic 10 hour journey (because the movies should be watched only in extended cut versions and all in one go, and nobody can convince us otherwise!).
The Chronicles of Narnia
Which one of us hasn't at least once opened a hidden closet and secretely hoped it opened up to a magical realm of enchanting landscapes and mysthical creatures? Ok, maybe that's just me, but if you'd read the novels of C. S. Lewis as a child, you've probably shared in my excitement when the first movie The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe came out in 2005. Fans had been waiting eagerly for any kind of adaptation ever since the books gained international fame yet Lewis adamantly refused to sell the rights to the franchise during his lifetime, fearing that any cinematic adaptation would probably fail to render the more fantastical elements of the story realistically. Looking back at the "special" effects they had back in the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s, we honestly couldn't blame him. It wasn't until his stepson, Douglas Gresham (who was also the executor of his literary estate), saw a demo reel of the rendered CGI animals that he agreed to give approval for a film adaptation.
There must be some magic hidden deep in New Zealand, because much like other movies in the genre, it was the location chosen for the filming of the first movie. It became an instant success, winning multiple awards, including the Academy Award for Best Make-up and Hairstyling (2006). The movie was also surprisingly close to the source material and although, much like any adaptation, it did leave out or change certain details, audiences had such positive reviews that the franchise was instantly given the rights to do the second and third movies. And although the third one received mixed reviews, fans were eagerly waiting for the fourth planned instalment, The Silver Chair, in 2011 Gresham announced that the studio's contract with the Lewis estate had expired and it did not seem like the franchise would continue in its current iteration. However, in 2013, a new partnership was made with the Mark Gordon Company and the fourth movie has slowly been in production ever since. In a recent interview with Red Carpet, Mark Gordon expressed the large development time by stressing that they're testing out new teams, technologies and settings, in order to do justice to the source material and make up for the rather mixed received third movie.
In October 2018, it was announced that the Lewis Estate and Netflix have entered into a multi-year agreement to develop a new series, based on the novels, yet it seems that the global pandemic has put a halt to development with no new updates coming in since 2020.
While we wait for any news on the 4th film or the Netflix series, make sure to check out the first 3 movies for an undeniably great family experience, but if you truly wish to experience the full magic of Narnia, the books can definitely open that wardrobe door for you.
Harry Potter
We never found the wardrobe door to Narnia and we never received my acceptance letter to Hogwarts. Honestly, if our uncle doesn't leave us a magical ring when we’re 50, we’ll be seriously pissed!
By now, we all know the story of how the Harry Potter books almost didn't come to be. J.K. Rowling's pitch for the tale of "the boy who lived" was rejected a whooping 12 times before a published finally agreed to give her a chance, leading to one of the most famous and successful book franchises the world had ever seen (and a solid chunk of change for Rowling, whose net worth circles around the 1 billion dollar mark). But did you know that random chance again played a role in the creation of the movies, and if it wasn't for one film producer's secretary's love of fantasy novels?
In 1997, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was had a low-priority bookshelf spot and it would seem that it might soon become one of those limited publications forgotten in obscurity. But then, as chance would have it, something happened that nobody could foresee. A copy of the book was picked up by the most unlikely creature (wrong franchise, we know but we couldn't help ourselves, so live with it) - a film producer's secretary. After reading the book, she gave her copy to her boss, film producer David Heyman, who initially disliked the "rubbish title", but was later highly impressed with Rowing's style of storytelling and world-building. So, he took a chance and began the process that would lead to one of the most successful movie franchises of all time.
It was a massive undertaking, but the 8 movie saga was an instant success, earning 12 Oscar nominations, and instantly shooting the cast and the author into stardom. Much like with Lord of the Rings, we are thoroughly convinced that the only way to properly enjoy the movies is to watch them all in one go. And if your friends and family tell you that you're crazy and need to go out more, well, "don't let the muggles get you down".
TV SERIES
Game of Thrones
We remember the first time we saw the massive poster with Sean Bean holding Widow's Wail and looking as solemn as ever, with the words "Winter is Coming" written in massive ominous letters. It was late autumn and it was already quite chilly, so our first reaction was: "No kidding, Sherlock - it's cold out here! Why the hell is Boromir stating the obvious!?" At that point we hadn't read G.R.R Martin's exquisitely intricate series and knew nothing of the world of Westeros or it's multiple political intrigues. But we knew the reputation of Sean Bean as an actor and decided to give the series a go when it first came out. Seems like we weren’t the only ones, because HBO's production instantly became one of the most acclaimed TV series of all time, yet again shooting a bunch of relatively unknown actors into stardom.
Needless to say, after watching the first season, we immediately ordered the “A Song of Fire and Ice” box set and have since re-read it so many times that we think it will soon be time to invest in a sturdier copy. Unlike the Harry Potter books, A Song of Fire and Ice was already popular, having sold more than 90 million copies worldwide and translated to over 45 languages. In 2006, David Benioff, one of the show's executive producers, reached out to Martin's agent, as he was interested in exploring the series. The agent sent him the first four books and after reading just a few hundred pages from the first book, Benioff convinced fellow producer D. B. Weiss to adapt Martin's novel into a television series. They had quite an easy time convincing HBO to pick the series up, but not so much convincing Martin to give them the rights to do so - according to Benioff himself, they won Martin over after a 4 hour conversation that ended up with them answering the question "Who is Jon Snow's mother?"
The show has since gone on to become a TV phenomenon, gaining 738 award nominations and winning 269 of them. If you're looking for a chair-grabbing, mind-wrecking, plot-twisting show that you can get completely lost in, the first few seasons of Game of Thrones do justice to Martin's creative vision (that's right, we’re deliberately ignoring the last seasons - especially season 8 - as we want to live under the delusion that they never happened and will actually come out about the same time as Martin finishes the last book).
The Witcher
"Hmm..." Geralt of Rivia is probably the only character that can put 200 different meanings behind this simple expression and Henry Cavill translates the brooding witcher's intentions perfectly.
The Witcher TV series is one of the newest additions on this list, and the title actually features in two categories, but the video game series will have their own moment in the spotlight further down the page. For now, let's focus on another gambit Netflix made, which seems to be paying off beautifully, as the show has apparently been approved for 7 seasons already, with season 3 currently in production.
Following the enormous success and following of both Andrzej Sapkowski's book series and CD Projekt Red's video game trilogy, the show follows the adventures of Geralt of Rivia, a witcher by trade, who traverses the fictional realm simply known as "The Continent", fighting monsters, bedding sorceresses and generally trying to cheat destiny. Unlike the game series, the show is closely based on Sapkowski's books, with the first season transcribing the events of The Last Wish and Sword of Destiny. The TV series was originally intended to be adapted into a standalone Netflix film, but that notion was quickly rebuffed by Kelly Luegenbiehl, VP of International Originals for Netflix, with the simple question "How do you intend to take eight books and just turn them into a film?"
Well, it seems we all have Kelly to thank for, much like wine, The Witcher gets better with every season. The first season has received generally positive reviews, with some controversy rising around the fact that the it was shot in a non-linear manner, making audiences really work to follow the story in the first couple of episodes. We've got to say, the first time we watched season one, we too were rather confused by that decision but our initial confusion was quickly replaced by an admiration to the showrunner's bold way of stepping outside the traditional storytelling process. And when all those episodes click together at the end of the season... Marvelous.
Starring a lead that has intimate knowledge of the source material, dedicated producers and an amazing costume and CG team, we have a strong feeling that the next 5 seasons will keep us entertained for years to come.
The Wheel of Time
Here is an entry that we’re very conflicted about. On one hand, it is visually stunning. The landscapes, buildings, costumes and general atmosphere really make us feel like we’ve stepped into the mind of Robert Jordan. On the other however, there have been so many creative "frivolities" that already from the onset the story only seems loosely based on the source material. Our ray of shining hope for the series comes in the soothing voice of Brandon Sanderson, who was chosen to finish the last 3 books of the series after Robert Jordan's passing. According to Brandon, the script for season one had his stamp of approval and the story should be approached with a very open mind, as it is more of a "different turning of the Wheel", rather than an exact transcribe of the books.
Fans of the series have been waiting for any live-action adaptation of one of the most important fantasy works for quite some time now, and everyone was head over heels excited when in 2018 Amazon had finally confirmed that it had picked up the title for production. Reportedly one of Amazon's biggest investments to date, it's easy to see where most of that budget went because the show sports some indeed stunning visuals. Unlike the books, the show centers primarily on the adventures of Lan and Moiraine as they arrive in the remote region of the Two Rivers, and one thing it does beautifully is hold the secret of who actually is the Dragon reborn until the last possible second, making both audiences unfamiliar with The Eye of the World and those who have read the whole series multiple times beg the question: What's going to happen next?
Whether you hate it or love, nobody can deny the success of the first season, which became Amazon's most streamed show ever within the first month of it's release, and was given the green light for season two, which is already in production. Only time will tell now how many differences with the original will the Pattern spew out, but one thing is for certain - Amazon has introduced a whole new generation of viewers to one of the most breath-taking fantasy adventures in literary history.
You can watch Season 1 of Wheel of Time on Amazon Prime.
VIDEO GAMES
The Witcher 1, 2 & 3
"Wind's howling." Another one of Geralt's constant observations that rents space for free in our brain. As we've said earlier, The Witcher features twice on this list - both under TV Series and Video Games. So before Henry Cavil ever put on tight leather pants to cosplay as Ross from FRIENDS, there was another adaptation of Sapkowski's novels that brought the white-haired monster slayer to audiences all over the world.
The year was 1997 and Andrzej Sapkowski was reaching household name status in his native Poland. In fact, to this day the author is regularly out-selling world-renowned authors like Steven King or James Paterson. Sapkowski was approached by a small computer company called Metropolis Software (which was later acquired by CD Projekt Red in 2009), wishing to acquire a license for his novels. However, due to the studio's involvement in some other projects at the time, the project was never realized and never got further than some initial media promos.
Jumping a few years into the future, CD Projekt Red, a relatively unknown company at the time, approached the author again for a license and managed to obtain one against the very modest sum of approximately 9,500 dollars. The Pole might be a world-class storyteller, yet he had a surprising lack of vision when he turned down the offer for royalties from the entire franchise, and instead accepted the small lump sum upfront. Had he went the other way, the success of the games would have netted him roughly 60 million USD today. Ouch! In a 2017 interview, Sapkowski acknowledges that at that point in time he didn't believe that video games were a serious medium and had no interest in them - a decision we’re sure he regrets to this day.
Once CD Projekt Red had the rights to create their games, they went to work. And, oh boy, did they do a fantastic job of it. One of the best creative decisions the company took was to not literally do an adaptation of the existing story, but instead use it as a basis and start with a fresh spin on things, though routinely referencing events that happened in the books to give the Witcher universe a more complete feel.
The games' plot follow Geralt of Rivia, a couple of years after the events of Blaviken. Geralt is found in a field by Vesemir and the other witchers, with no recollection of how he got there, who he was or what had happened before that moment. This direction allowed players a blank canvas to take Geralt into any character development direction they wanted. Which, in turn, introduced them intimately to one of the key concepts in the series - nothing is black and white, nothing is simply good or evil. And your actions, whatever they may be, will always have consequences.
Assassin's Creed
"Nothing is true, everything is permitted." There isn't a gamer alive that can't recognize the prophetic creed of the main protagonists in the Assassin's Creed series. From Altair to Ezio, from Edward to Alexios and most recently Eivor, members from the mysterious Assassin's guild have put their creed at the center of their operation and belief system for millennia. But would it shock you to find out that the massive franchise from Ubisoft can trace its roots to the 1938 novel Alamut by Vladimir Bartol?
In an interview with producer Jade Raymond, he reveals that the first game in the series was inspired by Bartol's work, which itself is set in Alamut, a once real person fortress located about 60 miles from present-day Teheran. In the early 11th century, the fortress was in the hands of a missionary by the name of Hassan-i-Sabbah and his guild of assassins. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? Well the similarities do not end there. Can you guess what a key line from the novel states? "Nothing is absolutely true, all is permitted", which is nearly taken verbatim in the game series.
If you think about it, removing the whole Pieces of Eden and Isu plots, all Assassin's creed games have deeply historical roots, allowing the players to experience locations, meet historical figures and even join some of history's most prominent battles. So it comes as no shock that the premise of the series itself should have historical roots in the face of Alamut.
Metro 2033
In Soviet Russia you eat monsters, and not the other way around. We remember our first playthrough of the survival horror shooter Metro 2033, sneaking about the subway system of a depressingly plausible futuristic version of Moscow, devastated by a nuclear holocaust. And if highly toxic levels of radiation and limited supplies were not bad enough, the whole city is populated by killer mutants who like nothing better than to get their hands (or claws) on you. The first time one of these buggers jumped at us we squeaked with a sound, which we didn't know grown people can produce.
The game absolutely honors its source material of the same name, written in 2005 by Russian author Dmitry Glukhovsky. The player takes control of Artyom - the same protagonist in the novel - who is desperately trying to save his home station from the dangers lurking within Moscow's Metro. And sometimes, the mutants are not the worst monsters out there.
It is interesting to note that Metro 2033 was the debut title for game studio 4A Games, who gained the author's permission not in small part due to their location in Eastern Europe. The author gave the studio a lot of creative freedom and from the first few moments of playthrough it becomes clear that they put a lot of effort into storytelling and recreating Glukhovsky's setting uniquely terrifying atmosphere. The game was so successful that it evolved into one of the most enjoyed survivalist franchises out there, adding to its catalogue the sequels Metro: Last Light and Metro: Exodus.
Are there any book adaptations that you particularly enjoyed - let us know in the comments? Or are there ones that you hate with a burning passion - then stay tuned for our upcoming article on the top 10 worst fantasy and science fiction adaptations to date!
Affiliate Disclaimer
Disclaimer: This article uses affiliate links, meaning: at no additional cost to you, we earn a small commission if you click-through and make a purchase. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. We only feature products that we believe in and use ourselves. Your support means the world to us and allows us to host this website. Thank you!