There’s a lot of money to be made from adapting books into films, and while this has certainly been a financial success, that hasn’t meant fans have always preferred these movies. Instead, the growing audiences for the TV landscape, thanks to services like Netflix, have brought about the idea that translating these books to the small screen would be a better option.
In a survey conducted by Super Summary, findings revealed the franchises that people wished had TV adaptations rather than being on film. These were supported by a number of facts and figures, and we’ll be detailing on why these 10 film adaptations would work better as shows, and why people want them in such a medium, based on these numbers.
The Notebook
We’ve previously discussed how the movie was better than the book where The Notebook was concerned, but it appears that the majority vote leans toward readers wanting this to be a full-fledged series instead.
That wouldn’t be the worst thing, though, as The Notebook is an epic tale that takes place across several decades. With such a long time span to cover, it would take multiple episodes that would appropriately tell the story without having to sacrifice character arcs to fit the film’s run time.
Forrest Gump
The funny thing is that hardly anyone is aware that Forrest Gump was based on a book at all. The study concluded as much too, with barely more than 5% of the survey acknowledging this fact. Regardless, those who watched the film still seem to prefer a series.
As was the case with the previous point, it is the progression of time that would be aptly detailed that makes Forrest Gump’s TV version a more appealing prospect. After all, who wouldn’t get emotional at the film’s events after watching them unfold at length?
The Chronicles Of Narnia Series
While The Chronicles of Narnia tells a story that lasts several thousand years in the land of Narnia, solely watching that unfold isn’t likely the reason to want it to be a series. Instead, it’s the fact that the film series was left abandoned that fans want it to transition to TV.
The best choice would be to have it appear on a streaming service like Netflix, where every novel can be delivered as part of a season before reaching the eventual conclusion. We could have dozens of prominent characters and subplots on our screens this way.
The Dark Tower
With the lack of critical success for The Dark Tower’s film version we’re not surprised that the survey reflected a lack of enthusiasm for this feature. Clearly, fitting the novel’s horror and action elements in a limited time was too much of a task.
The public perception is most likely that a TV series would rule out this story having to follow in Stephen King’s It live-action films, and can be its own thing. Since TV already features so many A-listers these days, we won’t even have to say goodbye to the leads in favor of other actors.
Jurassic Park Series
We’ll admit we’re somewhat surprised to find the Jurassic Park series to be on this list, seeing as the film franchise has done a great job in keeping these dinosaurs interesting and relevant. However, given the Jurassic World series deviating quite far from the source material, fans probably want a faithful adaptation.
Game of Thrones has proven that TV series can also have special effects on par with films, so bringing the dinosaurs to life on the small screen won’t be too hard. Just so you know, the books are wildly different to the movies, meaning a TV adaptation would feel completely fresh.
The Twilight Saga
This one is a no-brainer to understand why fans want it to be on the small screen. While perception of the films has gotten better over the years, they were still hardly comparable to the books. A common criticism was how the films relied on CGI trickery rather than story.
For this reason, we see how the numbers reflect a liking toward going the TV route, as fans undoubtedly want a more sympathetic version of Bella. The way to get this done would be by using the slower pace of a TV series in order to give us an insight into her characterization.
The Hobbit
Although only 13.4% of respondents gave their dislike for screen adaptations to be because they don’t include the little details, we can be certain a majority of people in this group are The Hobbit fans. This book was turned into a so-so trilogy, a series that lacked proper heart in its execution.
Having a TV series would allow for the many little things the book is known for, especially the moments of camaraderie between Bilbo and his friends that were missing from the movies.
The Hunger Games Series
There weren’t many negative points in the first two Hunger Games films, but perhaps the lackluster film versions of the final novel might be what swayed respondents to prefer a TV adaptation. Since almost 42% preferred the books over the movies, it’s the most likely assumption.
For one thing, the love story between Katniss and Peeta in the final book would play out better, seeing as the films just glossed over it. Meanwhile, Gale could also have more of a personality rather than just being known as Katniss’ friend.
The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy
As many as 82% of the people surveyed on this topic agreed that screen adaptations brought the material in books to life, and we’re inclined to believe that it is these people who voted The Lord of the Rings so highly to be turned into a TV show.
Considering that the film trilogy was unanimously praised by fans and critics, it’s most likely that these viewers want more content to consume with a series. The books are enormous, meaning we would have perhaps dozens of seasons on our hands.
Harry Potter Series
Finally, we’ve got everybody’s favorite wizard on the top of this list, and it’s for certain that fans want this to be a TV show instead because we would have all of Hogwarts to see. Abandoned storylines such as Hermione being S.P.E.W.’s leader, or Ginny’s fiery personality would be a treat for fans to see unfold.
There’s also the fact that the latest generation were too young to watch the films in the cinema, and with streaming services being all the rage, having the Harry Potter series with most of the subplots intact would be a win-win. It could also go a long way in incorporating the number of changes JK Rowling has made since the films have ended.
