The movie Stephen King hated so much that he disowned it
Barely a year goes by without at least one Stephen King adaptation gracing screens, either big or small, with the prolific author being credited as the inspiration behind dozens upon dozens of works spanning almost 50 years.
In the majority of cases, it’s been one of his novels, novellas, or short stories being translated from page to screen, but there have been the rare occasions – like with the 1999 miniseries Storm of the Century – where he’s crafted a brand new tale and penned the scripts for a completely original production.
However, only once has King stepped behind the camera to direct a feature himself, and the results were so disastrous that he’s never even considered doing it again. Maximum Overdrive is silly enough as a work of literary fiction, considering it revolves around a comet turning trucks into killing machines, but it was somehow even stupider when realised in live-action.
The soundtrack is a saving grace, to be fair, with King drafting in his favourite band to ensure that the otherwise terrible movie does at least boast a couple of decent tracks from AC/DC. That didn’t stop it from tanking at the box office and being dragged over hot critical coals, though, with the first-time filmmaker distancing himself as far away from the project as possible in the aftermath.
His apologetic nature over the dismal debut even extended to the cast, with Emilio Estevez telling Vanity Fair how King has repeatedly apologised to him over the years. “I’m not speaking out of class because he knows it’s a terrible movie,” he admitted. “But Stephen King often talks about his one directorial experience on Maximum Overdrive, which I was in.”
“The few times that I’ve connected with him over the years, he’s like, ‘Can you forgive me for that?'” he continued. “I think at one point my mom said, ‘Why’d you do that movie?’ I said, ‘I wanted to work with Stephen King.’ And she said, Couldn’t you have helped him paint his house?'” The Estevez matriarch had a point, but it’s not as if everyone involved isn’t aware that it sucks.
A Golden Raspberry Award for ‘Worst Director’ is a fair reward for King’s sole foray into behind-the-camera work, with Maximum Overdrive being described at various points by its creator as “a moron movie,” also noting how he was “coked out of my mind” for the majority of the production and didn’t really have any clue how to direct a feature.
Ironically, King’s son Joe Hill floated the possibility of writing and directing a Maximum Overdrive remake in 2020, which only really has the potential to go one of two ways should it happen. Either he repeats the sins of the father, or does the complete opposite and proves once and for all the story had cinematic potential.
