Science Fiction Day Top 10 Book-to-Movie Adaptations

The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells (1898)/ The War of the Worlds (1953)

H. G. Wells’ 1898 science-fiction novel The War of the Worlds has had a huge influence on shaping the modern science-fiction genre. When actor Orson Welles narrated the novel on live radio on October 30, 1938, not only did it cause widespread panic, but it also birthed a new generation of science-fiction fans, ushering in the genre’s “Golden Age.”

It wouldn’t be until 1953, almost 20 years after that broadcast, that The War of the Worlds would get a film adaptation, and after winning the 1954 Academy Award for Best Special Effects, that movie has been inspiring sci-fi pictures ever since.

We also love Spielberg’s 2005 take on the classic with Tom Cruise and Dakota Fanning.

I, Robot by Isaac Asimov (1950)/ I, Robot (2004)

While the movie I, Robot is much different from the compilation of stories that make up Asimov’s 1950 I, Robot, there is no doubt the movie is based on his works. The entirety of I, Robot’s stories, including “Runaround,” the 1942 short story introducing the Three Laws of Robotics, are also found in Asimov’s The Complete Robot featuring 31 out of 37 of his short stories about robots. The Complete Robot is listed among the most influential works of science fiction of all time.

Loosely based or not, we still think the Will Smith I, Robot film adaptation is pretty dope.

Minority Report by Philip K. Dick (1956 novella)/ Minority Report (2002)

Both Spielberg and Cruise are back on the sci-fi movie list with a film adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s 1956 novella Minority Report.

Foreshadowing quite a bit of technology that we actually do now have in 2023—though we still can’t see crime before it happens—Spielberg’s Minority Report turned Dick’s novella into a must-watch. It is a fast-paced, futuristic, dystopian who-done-it that features Cruise on the run for a crime he has not yet committed and a young Colin Farrell in his big breakout role.

Dune by Frank Herbert (1965)/ Dune (2021)

Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel Dune is masterful in that he creates a universe devoid of computers and with humans who are forbidden to create machines that may have the likeness of a human mind. Instead, some of Herbert’s humans have evolved to be the machines they’ve been forbidden to make with superhuman skills.

This universe has been so uniquely and intrinsically created that the first attempt to adapt the story in 1984 was a notorious flop. It wasn’t until our own advancements in computer technology that Dune received a proper screen adaptation by Denis Villeneuve starring Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya in 2021. Part 2 is scheduled to be released in November and we’re pretty excited about it!

"We Can Remember it for You Wholesale" by Philip K. Dick (1966)/ Total Recall (1990)

Showing up a second time on the list is Philip K. Dick who is one of the most adapted writers of all time. His 1966 novelette “We Can Remember It for You Wholesale” was the source material for the mind-bending Total Recall on the big screen in 1990 starring Arnold Schwarzenegger in all his action-figure hero prime.

The movie is a bit campy and humorous, but that's what made it a huge blockbuster at the time. It has maintained its science-fiction street cred more than 30 years later thanks to the enigmatic direction of Paul Verhoeven. Bonus: There is a 2012 version starring Colin Farrell, as well!

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick (1968)/Blade Runner (1982)

We couldn’t leave off the first Philip K. Dick story to make it to movie theaters and the one that brought his others to Hollywood. Director Ridley Scott turned Dick’s 1982 novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep into the science-fiction dystopian film Blade Runner with Harrison Ford playing the former police officer Rick Deckard.

Blade Runner might have been misunderstood when it was first released, but it sure has gained a cult following since and many consider it to be one of the greatest films of the last 50 years. The iconic film was added to the National Film Registry in 1993.

2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke (1968)/2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Arthur C. Clarke’s 1968 novel 2001: A Space Odyssey was actually published after the release of Stanley Kubrick’s iconic and visionary film of the same name. Finding inspiration in Clarke’s 1951 short story “The Sentinel,” Kubrick wrote the film’s screenplay in collaboration with Clarke. Clarke was simultaneously writing the novel.

While all of that is enough to inspire a rewatch of the science fiction classic that gave the world HAL, the movie itself is pure genius. Cementing Kubrick in film history, the camera work is as captivating as the story which presents a disturbing analysis of how humans interact with technology and the fear of what that could mean.

Battlefield Earth by L. Ron Hubbard (1982)/Battlefield Earth (2000)

Can something be so bad, that it's actually good? Based on a book by the founder of Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard, Battlefield Earth was a box office flop, but it still has a following in the sci-fi scene. With a Rotten Tomatoes score of only 3%, suspend more disbelief than you usually do, and it'll be a blast!

Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton (1990)/Jurassic Park (1993)

We love to love the Jurassic Park franchise, which has mostly eclipsed Michael Crichton’s novels, but he deserves credit for giving Steven Spielberg the inspiration to bring our collective interest in dinosaurs to life. The imaginative world-building Spielberg creates allows viewers to believe Jurassic Park could actually exist. And with existential questions like: "How much should we manipulate scientific discoveries?" firmly places the film within the best of science-fiction adaptations.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (2008)/ The Hunger Games (2012)

Suzanne Collins’ 2008 young adult dystopian science fiction trilogy turned into a blockbuster hit due to its unique and intricate world-building, fierce female heroine, first-person perspective, and extremely unsettling tension. Jennifer Lawrence’s Katniss Everdeen is remarkable and strangely relatable. The movies get the feel Collins creates through her words, so fans of the novels are equally riveted by the film adaptations.

If you are looking for longer form science-zafiction adaptations that create and inhabit entire worlds, these two completed television series are right up your alley.

• Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan(2002)/ television series (2018-2020)
• The Expanse by James S.A. Corey (2011-2021)/ television (2015-2022)