--- title: "The Long Walk" year: 2025 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/the-long-walk" fi1m_id: "the-long-walk" imdb_id: "tt10374610" tmdb_id: 604079 wikidata_id: "Q126511469" fi1m_score: 72 critics_score: 74 critics_reviews: 17 published: "2026-09-09" updated: "2026-09-18T08:37:48.196651+00:00" region: "US" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # The Long Walk (2025) Directed by Francis Lawrence · 1h 48m · MPA R · Science Fiction, Thriller, Horror ## Identity The Long Walk - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/the-long-walk - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** the-long-walk - **IMDb ID:** tt10374610 - **TMDB ID:** 604079 - **Wikidata ID:** Q126511469 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10374610/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/604079, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q126511469 **Fi1m score: 72** · Critics 74 from 17 reviews *In a sentence:* Dozens of boys, one road, a truck full of rifles behind them and nothing to talk about but dying, for as long as it takes > Francis Lawrence’s adaptation of Stephen King’s death march is grim, honest about what it shows, and carried by Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson. It has a single idea and walks it for 108 minutes; the idea holds longer than we expected, though not all the way. ## Synopsis In a broke and frightened America, a few dozen teenage boys volunteer for the Long Walk, an annual contest with one rule: keep moving. Fall below the pace and a soldier in the truck behind issues a warning. After the third, he shoots. The last boy still walking is promised whatever he asks for. Raymond Garraty (Cooper Hoffman) says goodbye to his mother (Judy Greer) at the roadside and falls in beside Peter McVries (David Jonsson), who wants a friend, Hank Olson (Ben Wang), who wants a laugh, and Gary Barkovitch (Charlie Plummer), who wants a fight. The Major (Mark Hamill) sends them off. Francis Lawrence directs, from JT Mollner’s adaptation of Stephen King’s novel. ## Review Raymond Garraty (Cooper Hoffman) is dropped at a roadside before dawn by his mother (Judy Greer), who does not want him to go and cannot stop him. He has volunteered for the Long Walk, a contest in which teenage boys set off along a country road and keep going. Fall below the pace and you are warned. Three warnings and the soldiers in the truck behind you shoot you where you stand. The last boy walking gets whatever he wants for the rest of his life. Francis Lawrence, who directed most of the *Hunger Games* films, has made something far plainer here: a good film, hard to sit through, built on one idea, and it walks that idea further than we thought it could. Jo Willems shoots nearly all of it outdoors under flat grey skies, and he keeps the camera moving beside the boys at walking pace, so that we rarely get ahead of them or fall behind. Nicolas Lepage’s production design is a road, some fields, farmhouses with the paint gone, and the truck that grinds along behind with rifles pointed at the walkers’ backs. The spectators, when there are any, stand at the verge and stare. Nobody cheers. The first shooting comes early. It is a boy called Curly (Roman Griffin Davis), and his crime is a cramp. Lawrence does not cut away and Willems does not soften it, and we flinched, hard. What stayed with us was how much less we flinched at the next one, and less again at the one after that, and that the film had counted on this. It is the closest the film comes to making an argument, and it makes it without a word of dialogue. Hoffman plays Garraty as a boy who arrived with a grievance and a plan and keeps both to himself for as long as he can. He does not act tired; he lets his stride shorten. David Jonsson’s McVries has decided that the only sane response to the walk is to make a friend, and he sets about it with a cheerfulness that Jonsson lets crack only when nobody else is looking. Their talk, about mothers and girls and what they would do with the prize and whether any of it is worth it, is the film. Ben Wang’s Hank Olson supplies the jokes and then stops supplying them, and the quiet where they used to be is among the film’s best effects. Charlie Plummer’s Barkovitch needles everyone within earshot, and Plummer makes him pitiable without making him likeable. Mark Hamill’s Major, in aviator glasses and a growl, tells the boys that they are weak because the country is weak, and the film wants him both frightening and a joke. He is neither for long. JT Mollner’s script, working from Stephen King’s first novel, gives the boys a great deal to say about death, and in the middle hour the sayings start to sound like each other. Mark Yoshikawa and Peggy Eghbalian cut the shootings short and sharp and let the conversations run, which is the right choice, but at 108 minutes we felt each of them, and not always in the way intended. Jeremiah Fraites’s score is piano and low strings, and it tells us when to be sad slightly before the actors have. The last stretch makes a choice the book does not, and we will not describe it. We can say that it is the one point where the film stops trusting the road and reaches for something larger, and we came out arguing about whether it had earned it. We can also say that the film keeps its nerve about the shootings to the end, which is more than we expected from a studio picture with a 15 certificate. Set beside Lawrence’s own *Hunger Games* films, there is no arena, no capital, no costumes; the whole spectacle is a road and a truck. It is the more honest film for it and the smaller one. Set beside Stephen King adaptations generally, it sits well above the middle, mostly because two actors in their twenties make a two-hour conversation feel like it might be interrupted at any moment, and often is. Do not watch it over dinner. Watch it with someone who will want to argue about the last ten minutes, because you will. *Fi1m score 72, published 9 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics take to The Long Walk, and the spread is narrow: the bulk of the reviews land as solidly positive, with a small cluster of mixed notices and a single outright rejection. The praise gathers around the two lead performances, from Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson, and around the friendship between their characters, which nearly every review names as the thing that carries a punishing premise. Francis Lawrence is credited with keeping the film bleak and unflinching without tipping into cruelty, and several reviews approve of the screenwriter’s changes to Stephen King’s novel. The reservations are about the material rather than the making: a walking contest is hard to dramatise, the comparisons to The Hunger Games are frequent and not always flattering, and a few critics find the message muddled or the villain too broad. The Telegraph is the lone dissenter, judging the premise anti-cinematic and the film quickly short of ideas. ## Straight answers **Is The Long Walk worth watching?** *The Long Walk* is worth watching for anyone who can sit through a grim, single-idea thriller about boys shot for slowing down, and we scored it 72. Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson make a long conversation about dying feel worth having. The middle hour repeats itself and the ending reaches for something we are not sure it earns. **How long is The Long Walk, and what is it rated?** *The Long Walk* runs 1h 48m and is rated R by the MPA in the US. It is a science fiction and thriller film. **Where can I watch The Long Walk in the US?** *The Long Walk* is streaming on HBO Max, Hulu, The Roku Channel and Amazon Prime Video in the US, and it is also available to rent from Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video from $5.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service. **How violent or frightening is The Long Walk, and is it suitable for children?** *The Long Walk* is a UK 15 and a US R, and it is not for children. Boys are shot dead for slowing down, the first for a cramp, and the film does not cut away or soften it; we flinched hard, and it counts on you flinching less each time. Teenagers of fifteen and up who can take that will manage it, but the squeamish should not watch it over dinner. **How does The Long Walk compare to Battle Royale?** *The Long Walk* is the plainer and grimmer of the two, and [*Battle Royale*](https://film.one/film/battle-royale) the nastier, funnier and quicker. Fukasaku's film has an island, weapons and children turning on each other; Lawrence's has a road, a truck and boys who talk instead of fight. We think the earlier film is the more alive, but the newer one is the more honest about what it shows. **Is The Long Walk based on a true story or a book?** *The Long Walk* is not a true story; it is adapted from Stephen King's first novel, with a script by JT Mollner. It keeps the book's rule of three warnings and a rifle, but the last stretch makes a choice the book does not, and we will not describe it. You do not need to have read King to follow it, though readers will notice the change. **What should I watch after The Long Walk?** After *The Long Walk*, try [*Battle Royale*](https://film.one/film/battle-royale) (2000, Fi1m 83): Schoolchildren made to kill each other on an island; nastier, funnier, and quicker on its feet. Then [*Stand by Me*](https://film.one/film/stand-by-me) (1986, Fi1m 88): King’s boys walk a railway line instead, and nobody shoots them; the same talk, gentler; and [*Gallipoli*](https://film.one/film/gallipoli) (1981, Fi1m 82): Two young runners sent to a war that wants their legs; the friendship is the point. ### Reviews we read (21) - **Slant Magazine**, Justin Clark (85/100, inferred): The review presents the film as a harrowing mirror to reality and a passion play about class solidarity. It singles out the script’s empathy for all characters and the radical defiance found in the central friendship. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/the-long-walk-review-cooper-hoffman-francis-lawrence/) - **Radio Times**, Jeremy Aspinall (4/5): The critic calls it a searing yet thoughtful adaptation of Stephen King’s first novel that twists the American Dream into something macabre. It features marvellous performances, especially from Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson, as an often agonising horror directed with expertise in dystopian survival tales. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-hljr5b/the-long-walk/) - **Screen Daily** (80/100, inferred): The critic describes it as an uncompromising, unrelentingly bleak and utterly brutal Stephen King adaptation that is one of the most powerful in recent years. It features a poignant emotional heart that powers the narrative through its grim trek. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/the-long-walk-review-powerful-stephen-king-adaptation-journeys-through-bleak-dystopian-america/5208773.article) - **The Hollywood Reporter**, Frank Scheck (80/100, inferred): The critic finds Francis Lawrence’s adaptation bleak and bruising yet emotionally affecting overall. He singles out the warm friendship between the two leads and the heartfelt family relationships for particular praise. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/the-long-walk-review-francis-lawrence-stephen-king-1236362631/) - **The AV Club**, Jacob Oller (B): The review calls the adaptation a chummy, harrowing Stephen King B-movie that respectably plods through its hellish metaphor. It singles out the sublime moments of connection and solidarity among the boys amid the violence. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/the-long-walk-review) - **IndieWire**, Ryan Lattanzio (75/100, inferred): The critic praises Lawrence and the screenwriter for delivering the source material’s dark-hearted vision without any saccharine hope. He highlights the film’s unflinching totalitarian nightmare and the lead performances. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/the-long-walk-review-cooper-hoffman-1235150481/) - **RogerEbert.com**, Clint Worthington (75/100, inferred): The methodical premise is difficult to dramatize, but Lawrence and the cast maintain its pace through focus on the budding friendship between sensitive Ray Garraty and optimistic Peter McVries amid the brutal contest. The tension builds from the growing exhaustion and inevitable violence, though some backstories remain thin and one performance feels miscalibrated. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-long-walk-stephen-king-movie-review-2025) - **Vulture** (75/100, inferred): The critic describes the film as a bleak yet sentimental take on camaraderie under brutality, likening it to a dude version of The Hunger Games. He praises David Jonsson’s standout performance as the character who insists on solidarity. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/article/review-the-long-walk-is-dude-hunger-games.html) - **Time Out** (70/100, inferred): The critic presents it as a brutal Stephen King adaptation charting a Hunger Games-style walking contest to the death in a totalitarian America, with strong performances from the young cast and Mark Hamill. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-long-walk-2025) - **Variety**, Siddhant Adlakha (70/100, inferred): Although it doesn’t reach the melodramatic highs for which it aims, director Francis Lawrence’s film is nonetheless a tense and surprising dystopian drama steeped in personal and national ethos, with an excellent cast that leads toward its beating heart via questions of how best to approach the world when everything feels hopeless. It remains intriguing, if not outright riveting, for the vast majority of its runtime despite some open-ended elements. [Read](https://variety.com/2025/film/news/the-long-walk-review-1236516103) - **Little White Lies**, David Jenkins (3/3/2): The critic sees it as a violent Stephen King adaptation about a death march that offers contemporary commentary on a depraved America. Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson deliver superb lead performances, but the film lacks originality and is overloaded with cynicism. [Read](https://lwlies.com/reviews/the-long-walk) - **Los Angeles Times**, Katie Walsh (60/100, inferred): The film tackles what it means for young people to volunteer for organized barbarism out of desperate need, as well as the consumption of their destruction as entertainment, with a strong ensemble showcasing the dehumanizing torture they endure. Lawrence's sparing style locates the fable in an unspecified future, but the message remains muddled, at once hopeful and despairing. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2025-09-12/the-long-walk-review) - **The Telegraph**, Robbie Collin (2/5): The critic finds this Stephen King adaptation fundamentally limited by its anti-cinematic premise of an endurance trek, despite some strong performances. It is compared unfavourably to The Hunger Games as a low-budget version that quickly runs out of ideas. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/the-long-walk-review-stephen-king/) - **Empire**, Jamie Graham: The critic finds the Stephen King adaptation gruelling and grimly violent in its depiction of a deadly dystopian contest, with the camera unflinchingly capturing the physical and psychological toll on the teenage participants. Praise is given to the bold changes by the screenwriter that preserve the source's bleakness while highlighting moments of camaraderie, defiance and a touching friendship between the leads. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/the-long-walk/) - **Financial Times**, Danny Leigh (★★★★☆): The critic praises the adaptation as a quietly radical take on the novel, set in an economically wrecked America and stripped back visually compared to The Hunger Games. It highlights the defiant humanity in the friendships formed amid the lethal contest. [Read](https://www.ft.com/content/26045f27-71c3-4bad-a2fa-e2b04ef6e6dd) - **The Times**, Tom Shone (★★★☆☆): The review describes the film as a gruelling dystopian thriller that mixes The Hunger Games with Squid Game but is hampered by King’s philosophising. Strong acting conveys the physical toll of the march effectively. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/a-very-long-walk-are-we-nearly-there-yet-3fhvqhl59) - **Collider**, Jeff Ewing (9/10): The critic praises the film's focus on the walkers' lives and emotions, calling it tense, moving, and complex. It stands out as one of the best Stephen King adaptations and horror movies of the year thanks to its exceptional cast and layered character development. [Read](https://collider.com/the-long-walk-movie-review-stephen-king-mark-hamill/) - **/Film**, BJ Colangelo (9/10): The critic hails it as an emotionally obliterating all-time great Stephen King adaptation and one of the best films of 2025. She praises the focus on the boys' relationships and performances, especially Hoffman and Jonsson, for delivering raw vulnerability and devastating emotional impact without flinching from the brutality. [Read](https://www.slashfilm.com/1953442/the-long-walk-review/) - **HeyUGuys**, Linda Marric (4/5): The critic calls it a bleak, unflinching, and unexpectedly moving adaptation of Stephen King's early novel, one of the strongest yet. She singles out the central performances of Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson for grounding the grim premise with humanity and tenderness amid the physical and psychological torment. [Read](https://www.heyuguys.com/the-long-walk-review/) - **The Wrap** (75/100, inferred): The critic views the film as a gut-wrenching Vietnam War allegory that updates Stephen King’s story to highlight ongoing American economic and systemic violence against its youth. They praise the direction for making the grueling march feel viscerally miserable and thematically resonant but fault its narrow focus on American victims while ignoring the war’s impact on Vietnam. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/the-long-walk-review-francis-lawrence-stephen-king/) - **Den of Geek**, David Crow (4 out of 5): The adaptation is very good overall, with a stripped-down focus on young men confronting mortality through camaraderie and friendship. It praises the strong ensemble performances, particularly David Jonsson and Cooper Hoffman, while noting some tonal issues and broad villain characterization prevent it from being great. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/the-long-walk-review-stephen-king-done-justice/) ## Details - **Director:** Francis Lawrence - **Director:** Francis Lawrence - **Screenplay:** JT Mollner - **Novel:** Stephen King - **Cinematography:** Jo Willems - **Editor:** Mark Yoshikawa, Peggy Eghbalian - **Music:** Jeremiah Fraites - **Production design:** Nicolas Lepage - **Producer:** Roy Lee, Francis Lawrence, Steven Schneider - **Cast:** Cooper Hoffman as Raymond Garraty #47; David Jonsson as Peter McVries #23; Garrett Wareing as Billy Stebbins #38; Ben Wang as Hank Olson #46; Tut Nyuot as Arthur Baker #6; Charlie Plummer as Gary Barkovitch #5; Jordan Gonzalez as Richard Harkness #49; Joshua Odjick as Collie Parker #48 - **Runtime:** 1h 48m - **Certificate (MPA):** R - **Release (the US):** 12 September 2025 - **Genres:** Science Fiction, Thriller, Horror - **Budget:** $20 million - **Box office:** $63 million - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Toj3Zxun7aQ ## Where to watch in the US - HBO Max: streaming - Hulu: add-on, hd - The Roku Channel: add-on, hd - Amazon Prime Video: add-on, uhd - Apple TV: rent $5.99, hd - Amazon Prime Video: rent $5.99, uhd - Apple TV: buy $14.99, hd - Amazon Prime Video: buy $14.99, uhd *Checked 2026-09-10.* Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, DE, DK, ES, FI, FR, GB, HK, ID, IE, IN, JP, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PH, PL, SE, SG, TH, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## If you liked this - *Battle Royale* (2000), Fi1m 83: Schoolchildren made to kill each other on an island; nastier, funnier, and quicker on its feet. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/battle-royale.md) - *They Shoot Horses, Don't They?* (1969): A Depression dance marathon as slow public execution; the grown-up version of this film. - *Stand by Me* (1986), Fi1m 88: King’s boys walk a railway line instead, and nobody shoots them; the same talk, gentler. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/stand-by-me.md) - *Gallipoli* (1981), Fi1m 82: Two young runners sent to a war that wants their legs; the friendship is the point. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/gallipoli.md) - *Squid Game* (2021), Fi1m 81: Debtors play children’s games for money and their lives; brighter colours, same contempt for the crowd. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/tv/squid-game.md) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/the-long-walk