The first images for The Long Walk reveal Stephen King's latest movie adaptation. The dystopian movie is set in a future world that holds a competition called "The Long Walk," where a group of teenage boys must maintain a certain continuous walking speed or else they will be shot and killed. The film adaptation of The Long Walk is directed by Francis Lawrence and features Charlie Plummer, David Jonsson, Cooper Hoffman, Ben Wang, Judy Greer, Mark Hamill, Garrett Wareing, and Roman Griffin Davis.

Now, Vanity Fair has released first-look images of The Long Walk. The images mostly feature shots of the main ensemble walking, showing a look at the characters played by Jonsson, Hoffman, Wang, and more. Some shots also cut away from the main action to show the adult characters, including Hamill as the Major, looking stern. In another image, Greer stands against a gray building, holding her hands together. Check out the images below:

What This Means For The Long Walk

The Movie Has Been a Long Time Coming

Andy in darkness in Alien Romulus

The first images for The Long Walk represent major progress for the film. It is one of the rare King novels not adapted for movies or TV before now, despite having been published over 40 years ago. This is not for lack of trying, as director George A. Romero was approached to direct an adaptation in 1988. Frank Darabont later secured adaptation rights in 2007, but that never came to fruition either.

The Long Walk's first images give an idea of the movie's intensity, and there is nothing glamorous about this dystopian world. Even with a cloudy sky, the overheated misery of the main cast is palpable in the walking images. While the teenage boys struggle through their journey, they will face some unrelenting adults, such as the Major, the leader of the secret police force. Now, that new images are available, it won't be long until the first trailer becomes available online.

Our Take On The Long Walk First Images

Francis Lawrence Is Covering A New Dystopia

Effie giving a speech in The Hunger Games

These images are a testament to how interesting it will be to see Lawrence directing another dystopian movie. The director is best known for his work on The Hunger Games series, which has now made up the majority of his career. There are ways in which the game-based content in The Long Walk bears similarity to this previous work. However, as the image of Greer makes clear, the King adaptation is like The Hunger Games without the glitzy colors of the Capitol. It will be fascinating to see how Lawrence develops this new dystopian world.

Source: VF

The Long Walk - Poster
The Long Walk
Release Date
September 12, 2025
Director
Francis Lawrence
  • Headshot Of David Jonsson
    Peter McVries
  • Cast Placeholder Image
    Cooper Hoffman
    Raymond Garraty
  • Headshot of Charlie Plummer
    Charlie Plummer
    Gary Barkovitch
  • Cast Placeholder Image
    Tut Nyuot
    Arthur Baker