‘The Long Walk’: Read The Screenplay That Turns Stephen King’s 1970s Novel Into An Allegory For Our Time

Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series spotlighting the scripts behind the year’s most talked-about movies continues with The Long Walk, Lionsgate’s psychological thriller from director Francis Lawrence, adapted for the screen by JT Mollner based on Stephen King’s 1979 novel.

The story is set in a post-war, dystopian America where a military despot known as the Major (Mark Hamill) oversees an annual televised contest of pure will. In this brutal marathon march known as The Long Walk, 50 boys selected by lottery must maintain a constant pace of at least 3 mph. If a contestant falls below the speed, they receive a warning; after three warnings, they are executed, or out, leaving only one survivor to claim riches beyond belief and any wish they desire.

Lionsgate released the film in theaters in September and it has grossed $62.9 million at the global box office. Its ensemble cast will be the recipient of the Independent Spirit Awards‘ Robert Altman Award next year.

At the center of the script is local contestant Ray Garraty (Cooper Hoffman), whose journey alongside Peter McVries (David Jonsson) forms the film’s emotional core. Their relationship evolves from one technical competition into a soulful, brotherly alliance that serves as an act of defiance against a merciless system. To capture this unraveling of the human spirit, Lawrence utilized a strategy of shooting in strict linear order, allowing the audience to witness the actors’ actual physical deterioration and psychological decline as they walked tens of miles per day.

Thematically, the script serves as a stark metaphor for the erosion of the American dream and the financial nihilism felt across modern society. While the original 1967 novel was an allegory for the Vietnam War, the 2025 adaptation re-frames the story to reflect contemporary struggles with inflation, stagnating wages, and the desperation of people who feel they must risk their lives to secure a future.

Beyond the sociopolitical commentary, the narrative explores the power of friendship to provide light in total darkness, examining how human connections can be forged even in a culture that thrives on carnage and division. By stripping down the world to primal sights and sounds, the script asks uncomfortable questions about human value and what makes life worth living when there is nothing left to give.

Read the screenplay below.