Stephen King has had so many of his books adapted into various projects. 2025 was ultimately the year of the King adaptation, with four major theatrical movies coming out from his works. The Long Walk, The Monkey, The Running Man, and The Life of Chuck combined for around $220 million at the global box office.
That doesn’t count television shows, of which there were two. Andy Muschietti returned to the It universe to create an original spinoff prequel, Welcome to Derry. The Institute on MGM+ was a straightforward adaptation of the 2019 King novel of the same name.
That show is getting a second season, which is ultimately good news for fans of the show and fans of King adaptations. There’s just one problem.
The One Problem with the Stephen King Adaptation: The Institute
Television series are becoming the best way to adapt longer works to the screen. Books that aren’t novellas or are over 400 pages (depending, of course, on a ton of factors) are harder to cut down to movie length. Video games are the same way, which is why so many television shows have adapted books and games. There’s much more time to bring in more elements of the book or game.
Even the new eight-episode norm for TV is more time than a movie has to offer, and that can lend itself well to adaptations. The Institute by Stephen King is a good example. It’s around 600 pages, so a television series made perfect sense for the adaptation. Now, there’s going to be a second season, according to multiple reports.
There’s just one problem. They’re about to go beyond the original Stephen King novel. The show got the King stamp of approval, and they wouldn’t be doing a second season without the author being fine with it, but it’s still uncharted water.
The story ends with the destruction of Maine’s institute, but there are plenty of other institutes around the country still kidnapping, abusing, and then killing children. That is the most logical place to go, and the showrunners can do it by telling an original story within the universe of the novel.
The alternative is to explore the path forward with Luke Ellis and Tim Jamieson now that Luke is free, but without his parents. He will presumably want to continue honing and learning about his psychic powers, which would be a sensible continuation for Season 2. It’d also bring back familiar characters and actors to keep audiences engaged.
A third potential option is to have Luke and Tim seek out those other institutes to try to bring them down as well. That’s maybe the most interesting option, but it’s also the hardest one to pull off. Regardless of which path they choose, it’s all uncharted territory, and there’s always a big risk in going beyond the source material.
Dark Matter on Apple TV+ is going beyond the source material, but author Blake Crouch is writing the show as well, so the original creative is telling more of the story. The Handmaid’s Tale went well beyond the book, and there was a mixed reaction to those creative choices.
Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead surpassed their source materials, and the latter seasons of those shows (especially the last Game of Thrones season) were not remotely as well-received as the originals. There’s a big risk, especially with King not writing the second season himself.
Conclusion
The Institute is one of Stephen King’s most popular recent books, so it’s no surprise that it was adapted last year. It is a surprise, though, that a second season is on the way since King hasn’t written a sequel, and it’s not really part of any series. It could work out well, but this is certainly a risk.
