Watch for our in-depth review of Carrie, a Prime Video series based on the classic, much-adapted debut novel by Stephen King about an abused and bullied teenage girl from Maine who discovers that she has telekinetic powers. The showrunner is the excellent horror filmmaker Mike Flanagan, who’s previously adapted King’s Kirkus-starred novels Gerald’s Game and Doctor Sleep, as well as the novella “The Life of Chuck” from King’s collection If It Bleeds. Summer H. Howell (Hunter Hunter) plays the title role and Samantha Sloyan, who’s appeared in many other Flanagan works, co-stars as Carrie’s unhinged mother. It premieres on Oct. 7. Meanwhile, here are four more book-to-screen adaptations coming soon:

Oct. 1: East of Eden (limited series premiere, Netflix)

This streaming miniseries is based on the Kirkus-starred 1952 novel by Nobel Prize–winning author John Steinbeck—a sweeping saga about the Trask and Hamilton families of California in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which draws heavily on the biblical story of Cain and Abel. The new series was created and co-written by Zoe Kazan, an accomplished film actor whose grandfather, Elia, directed the 1955 film adaptation of the novel (one of only three films that featured the legendary James Dean in a lead role). It notably stars Florence Pugh (soon to appear in Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Part Three) as Cathy Ames, the troubled and manipulative matriarch of the Trask clan, as well as Christopher Abbott (Possessor), Mike Faist (Challengers), and Joseph Zada (soon to appear in a film version of Suzanne Collins’ Kirkus-starred Hunger Games novel Sunrise on the Reaping).

Oct. 2: Verity (theatrical film premiere)

Verity, which was self-published in 2018 and reissued by Grand Central in 2021, provides the basis for this third film based on a Colleen Hoover bestseller to hit theaters in the past year. (The others adapted 2019’s Regretting You and 2022’s Reminders of Him.) In the novel, writer Lowen Ashleigh gets an unusual request from Jeremy Crawford, the spouse of bestselling author Verity Crawford, who was injured in an accident and is now bedridden and unresponsive. He wants Lowen to complete Verity’s unfinished books, and he’s willing to pay her handsomely to do so. After Lowen accepts the deal, though, she discovers what appears to be a draft of Verity’s memoir, titled So Be It, which contains some very disturbing revelations. The book tells a twisty tale that brings to mind such similarly lively thrillers as Freida McFadden’s 2022 bestseller The Housemaid (which got its own entertaining movie adaptation late last year). This new film, directed by Michael Showalter (The Eyes of Tammy Faye), features an impressive cast, including Anne Hathaway as Verity, Dakota Johnson as Lowen, and Josh Hartnett as Jeremy.

Oct. 9: Other Mommy (theatrical film premiere)

Horror author Josh Malerman is best known for his disturbing, post-apocalyptic Kirkus-starred novel Bird Box (2014), which was made into a popular 2018 Netflix film starring Sandra Bullock. His 2024 novel Incidents Around the House inspired this new chiller, directed by Rob Savage (The Boogeyman); it stars the great Jessica Chastain as a mother who finds that a shapeshifting, supernatural creature is mimicking her appearance and terrorizing her young daughter (played by child actor Arabella Olivia Clark). It’s a challenging dual role for Chastain, but the Oscar winner (for her performance in the aforementioned The Eyes of Tammy Faye) is unquestionably up to it. She also knows her way around the horror genre, as evidenced by her fine work in such terrifying fare as the underrated Crimson Peak (2015) and the smash-hit Stephen King adaptation It Chapter Two (2019).

Oct. 23: Klara and the Sun (theatrical film premiere)

This movie is based on the Kirkus-starred 2021 SF novel by Nobel Prize–winner Kazuo Ishiguro, which tells the story of Klara, a solar-powered android (or “Artificial Friend”), who becomes the companion of a sick girl named Josie. The trailer promises a dazzling-looking cinematic portrayal of the world of the future, directed and co-written by Oscar-winning filmmaker Taika Waititi (Jojo Rabbit). It stars Jenna Ortega (of Wednesday fame) as the wide-eyed Klara and Mia Tharia (The Listeners) as Josie, with supporting turns by such luminaries as Amy Adams and Natasha Lyonne.

David Rapp is the senior Indie editor.