Steven Spielberg has made some of the most popular movies of all time, but one movie that he still wants to make is an adaptation from one of the most popular novelists of all-time. Steven Spielberg has never adapted anything by Stephen King, but he's wanted to do so for nearly 40 years. Spielberg recently revealed that he hopes to get production started on The Talisman sometime in the next couple of years, as he's held the rights to the book since 1982. According to Spielberg...
I feel that in the very near future, that's going to be our richest collaboration. Universal bought the book for me, so it wasn't optioned. It was an outright sale of the book. I've owned the book since '82, and I'm hoping to get this movie made in the next couple of years. I'm not committing to the project as a director, I'm just saying that it's something that I've wanted to see come to theaters for the last 35 years.
The Talisman was a collaboration between Stephen King and Peter Straub that was published in 1984. It's possible Steven Spielberg was aware of the book early and snatched up the rights before it was even published, or it's been so long he doesn't actually remember in his EW interview how long he's had them. Either way, Spielberg was so sure that he wanted to make the book into a movie that he skipped getting an option and purchased the rights outright.
The Talisman follows a 12-year-old boy named Jack Sawyer as he goes on a quest for the titular talisman, an object that he believes can save the life of his mother who is dying of cancer. The talisman is located in "the Territories," an alternate universe version of the United States that Jack has the ability to cross over into, by virtue of the fact that his double in the other world has died. Jack travels through both worlds, meeting many different characters and facing multiple obstacles on his quest. The book also received a sequel, Black House, in 2001 that follows an adult Jack.
While The Talisman has been rumored for both a theatrical and television adaptation in the past, it's never happened, but Steven Spielberg does say he hopes to get the film made in the next couple of years. He may only be involved in a producer capacity as he says he may not direct the film, but it does sound like one way or another Spielberg sees this one as a priority.
Both Stephen King and Steven Spielberg became world famous in their respective genres in the 1980s and both have continued to produced quality work over the decades. This feels like a collaboration that needs to happen. Hopefully, we won't need to wait too much longer for it.
