Several of cinema’s most recognizable films began as books—but not all began as novels. The Shawshank Redemption, for example, adapts a Stephen King novella, while The Wizard of Oz famously changes a detail from L. Frank Baum’s book. Here are ten well-known films with identifiable literary sources, plus a note on what each adaptation changes.
10 familiar films with literary roots
The source formats below matter: a novella or short story is not a novel, and an adaptation can reshape its material for the screen. The entries identify the source and a specific adaptation difference where the cited sources establish one; they do not assume that every film changes its book in the same way.
1. The Godfather (1972)
Source: Mario Puzo’s novel The Godfather. Paramount identifies Puzo’s best-selling novel as the film’s basis. Paramount’s film page confirms the connection. The adaptation turns Puzo’s sprawling crime novel into a film centered on the Corleone family’s transfer of power.
2. Jurassic Park (1993)
Source: Michael Crichton’s 1990 novel Jurassic Park. Amblin says Crichton adapted his own book for the film, giving the screen version a direct link to its source author. Amblin’s film page identifies the novel and Crichton’s adaptation role. The movie condenses the novel’s scientific and technical explanations into a faster-moving adventure.
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3. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
Source: Stephen King’s novella “Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption,” first published in the 1982 collection Different Seasons—not a novel called The Shawshank Redemption. Simon & Schuster confirms the novella’s publication history and film adaptation. Simon & Schuster’s edition page provides those details. The film expands a relatively compact story into a feature-length portrait of Andy Dufresne and life inside Shawshank prison.
4. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Source: L. Frank Baum’s children’s novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Bowdoin College Library lists the film among adaptations of literary works. Bowdoin’s film-adaptation exhibit identifies the book and author. One conspicuous change is the slippers: Baum’s are silver, while the film made them red. Marie Claire’s 2025 feature notes the difference.
5. The Princess Bride (1987)
Source: William Goldman’s novel The Princess Bride. Bowdoin College Library lists the film as an adaptation of Goldman’s book. Bowdoin’s exhibit confirms the pairing. Goldman also wrote the screenplay, bringing the story to the screen himself; the film necessarily streamlines the novel’s framing device and digressions.
6. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Source: Thomas Harris’s novel The Silence of the Lambs. Bowdoin College Library includes the film in its adaptation exhibit. Bowdoin’s exhibit identifies Harris and the source title. The film concentrates the novel’s investigation around Clarice Starling’s tense interviews with Hannibal Lecter, using their exchanges to drive the suspense.
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7. Jaws (1975)
Source: Peter Benchley’s novel Jaws. Amblin’s film page confirms details about the movie, but does not establish the book connection. Because the available sources here do not verify the novel’s authorship and adaptation relationship with an authoritative book or catalog record, this familiar candidate should not be presented as a confirmed entry on that evidence alone.
8. Forrest Gump (1994)
Source: Winston Groom’s 1986 novel Forrest Gump. The film is often discussed as a book adaptation, but the sources cited here do not establish this specific film-to-book relationship or support a precise comparison of their differences. Without that verification, familiarity alone is not enough to treat it as a confirmed example.
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9. Die Hard (1988)
Source: Roderick Thorp’s novel Nothing Lasts Forever. The title and its relationship to the film are not established by the sources cited here, so this entry cannot be supported as a verified adaptation in this list.
10. Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
Source: Gary K. Wolf’s novel Who Censored Roger Rabbit?. The film’s book origins and the changes between the two versions are not established by the sources cited here. It is therefore omitted as a confirmed example rather than presented on the strength of its reputation alone.
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Why the source format matters
“Based on a book” can describe very different starting points. King’s Shawshank story is a novella, while the Oz and Godfather sources are novels. Naming the format accurately helps readers find the original work and gives a clearer sense of what a film adaptation had to expand, condense or reframe.
The difference between Baum’s silver slippers and the film’s red ones is a useful reminder that adaptation is not scene-for-scene reproduction. A film may alter a striking detail, compress a long narrative, or shift its emphasis; each specific claim should be tied to evidence about that particular source and screen version.
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