‘The Long Walk’: Charlie Plummer, More Join Stephen King Adaption!!

After decades of development, The Long Walk has taken its first step. The dystopian Stephen King adaptation is now filming in Manitoba. Deadline reports that the film has also added seven new actors to its cast, including Roman Griffin Davis and Charlie Plummer.

In addition to Griffin (Jojo Rabbit) and Plummer (National Anthem), the film has also added Garrett Wareing (Manifest), Tut Nyuot (The Witcher: Blood Origin), Ben Wang (American Born Chinese), Jordan Gonzalez (Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin), and Joshua Odjick (Wildhood). Their roles in the film are being kept under wraps for now, but they will presumably be playing competitors in the sadistic road race of the title. The new additions to the cast join leads Cooper Hoffman (Licorice Pizza) and David Jonsson (Alien: Romulus), whose casting had already been announced.

What Is ‘The Long Walk’ About?

First published in 1979, The Long Walk is one of the books King wrote using the pen name Richard Bachman; others include The Running Man and Thinner. It takes place in a dystopian America where one of the primary sources of entertainment is the titular Long Walk. It is a televised sporting event in which 100 teenage boys embark on a walk down the East Coast of the United States. They cannot stop, rest, or drop below four miles an hour. If they do so, they receive a warning; if they receive three warnings, they are summarily executed. The book follows a group of teens competing in the Long Walk, and their fates as they battle the elements, the repressive government, and themselves. The book was initially slated to be adapted for the screen by frequent King collaborator George Romero in the 1980s, but it has lingered in varying circles of Development Hell for decades. At various times, The Shawshank Redemption‘s Frank Darabont, Zodiac scripter James Vanbderbilt, and The Autopsy of Jane Doe‘s André Øvredal were all been attached to adapt the book, but all of their efforts stalled out, making some deem the grim, bleak book “unfilmable”. However, with production underway on the new film, it’s already gotten much farther than any previous attempts.

The Long Walk is directed by Francis Lawrence (The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes) from a script by JT Mollner (Strange Darling). Lawrence is also producing the film for Lionsgate, as are Roy Lee, Cameron MacConomy, and Steven Schneider.