# Why haven't these books been made into movies? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** books-writing-myths\ **Created:** [July 22, 2020, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036 "2020-07-22T17:23:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/102 "2020-07-25T21:40:39Z")
No; it’s a detective story not a police procedural. Let’s just agree to disagree here; I think you should re-read the book, tho. Your impression of the story isn’t accurate IMO. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/103 "2020-07-25T21:47:25Z")
Detective, defective…still needs a hook. And yes, people are going to start yelling at us shortly. I wonder what my double-autographed, First Edition is worth these days? 😃 Although…if you make Dream Park a Disney creation, and put a few megabillions on the line…you might have a neat story. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/104 "2020-07-25T21:51:00Z")
> [@SCAdian](#): > > _Lord Kalvan of Otherwhen_ would also be an excellent choice I think Sam Raimi was channeling a bit of Lord Kalvan when he wrote _Army of Darkness_. ---
**Author:** ![Gray\_Ghost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c0e974/32.png) [@Gray\_Ghost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gray_Ghost)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2020, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/105 "2020-07-25T23:12:31Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > I wonder what my double-autographed, First Edition is worth these days? Ooooh! Shiny! (I need to figure out how to get Larry to sign my first ed paperback of _Ringworld_) _California Voodoo Game_ would look great on the screen, but you’d need so much time to set up the world and the backstory. And don’t let Steve Barnes anywhere near the dialogue. I don’t understand the difference of opinion—specifically, the magnitude of it—between you and Bo on _Dream Park_. Shrug. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2020, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/106 "2020-07-26T22:13:29Z")
> [@SCAdian](#): > > … > > I’d like to see Johnny Fedora and Matt Helm, my two favourite secret agents, as movies. (And while you’re at it, destroy all copies of those Dean Martin abominations.) > > … This Johnny Fedora? 😝 [https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fdisney.fandom.com%2Fwiki%2FJohnny\_Fedora\_and\_Alice\_Blue\_Bonnet&psig=AOvVaw1ncmrQpGiVnk9sbfCBx0KY&ust=1595887933939000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCKiwiID46-oCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD](https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fdisney.fandom.com%2Fwiki%2FJohnny_Fedora_and_Alice_Blue_Bonnet&psig=AOvVaw1ncmrQpGiVnk9sbfCBx0KY&ust=1595887933939000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCKiwiID46-oCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD) I liked those films, but then again, I have always liked Deano, met him a couple times, great guy. ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2020, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/107 "2020-07-26T23:30:47Z")
Replay by Ken Grimwood. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2020, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/108 "2020-07-26T23:51:53Z")
heck they could make a pretty good netflix series out of the whole series … ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2020, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/109 "2020-07-27T00:14:44Z")
> [@E-DUB](#): > > Replay by Ken Grimwood. Good choice. ---
**Author:** ![Tomyros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/858c86/32.png) [@Tomyros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tomyros)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2020, 8:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/110 "2020-07-27T08:18:08Z")
Was it the whole story or just the usual snippets? How about “Ramayana” then, with Hanuman providing the comedy element? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2020, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/111 "2020-07-27T08:24:20Z")
> [@SCAdian](#): > > I’d like to see Johnny Fedora and Matt Helm, my two favourite secret agents, as movies. (And while you’re at it, destroy all copies of those Dean Martin abominations.) !00% with you on this one. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2020, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/112 "2020-07-27T09:58:57Z")
The latest one, at 267 half-hour episodes, I imagine is quite comprehensive. I’ve only seen the one made in the 80s, and that was 90 1-hour episodes. It seemed … sufficient. There was also a 45-episode spin-off for the bits they missed. _Ramayana_ has also been done a few times. I’ve only seen the 80s version, with comic (but powerful) Hanuman, but there’s a couple more recent ones for that, too. If you follow Indian TV at all, these kinds of epic shows are not uncommon. And just a factoid, the 80s _Ramayana_ was rerun recently during lockdown and set a record as the most watched TV show of all time (beating the GoT finale). ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2020, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/113 "2020-07-27T10:51:45Z")
I’m on board with a _Dream Park_ series based loosely on the first three books (with a bit of _The Descent of Anansi_ borrowed for backstory) but written by actual competent writers (we will not mention _The Moon Maze Game_). There’s the park setting and the games themselves, the whodunnits, the romantic intrigues, the corporate intrigues, international politics… there’s a lot to build on. Niven and Barnes may have been a tad uneven (shall we say) but they built a great world. ETA: Plus with the second season you could actually cast heavier actors for the Fimbulwinter game. That’d be a novelty in itself. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2020, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/114 "2020-07-29T04:06:48Z")
**Metzger’s Dog** , by Thomas Perry – a fun caper novel that I’ve been rereading every few years since the '80s. A group of small-time crooks take on the CIA… ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2020, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/115 "2020-07-29T16:28:42Z")
> [@Limmin](#): > > They could make for some seriously good movies. As for who should play “Slippery Jim…” That’s a tough one. He needs to be hollywood handsome, but have a goofy, humorous personality, not built around an angry/profane vibe (as I get from Ryan R) Too old now, but I see Bruce Campbell as Jim. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2020, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/116 "2020-07-29T16:32:36Z")
Eh…too goofy to me. Remember, when we first encounter Angelina Jim has been around for quite a bit. The first three books (sequentially) shouldn’t apply. Jim should be late 20s/early 30s when the action commences. ---
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2020, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/117 "2020-07-29T17:29:03Z")
They never got to third series because the BBC putz who cancelled Doctor Who after Colin Baker’s first series openly hated science fiction and cancelled Tripods as well. I hate that asshole to this day. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2020, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/118 "2020-07-29T17:48:00Z")
He must have moved overseas and gone to work for Fox. ---
**Author:** ![Ryz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ryz/32/13213_2.png) [@Ryz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryz)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2020, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/119 "2020-07-29T18:35:57Z")
I quite liked Tripods. I’d like to see a remake that stuck more to the books (I haven’t read the books though, I’ve only read on the internet what the books were like.) ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2020, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/120 "2020-07-29T20:57:54Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > > [@carnivorousplant](#): > > > > Roger Zelazny’s _Lord of Light_ . > > Roger Zelazny’s _Amber_ series would be much more marketable. Tho it would most likely work best as a TV miniseries. > [@Tamerlane](#): > > Hard to translate to the screen (though much easier now than it was even a decade ago) and with a serious potential to step on toes with its semi-cynical take on Hinduism and Buddhism. I know there are redeeming moments like Mahasamatman’s disciple, but there are cultural sensitivity landmines aplenty. > > The Amber series would be a far better adaptation target, but as noted above it really would almost have to be a multi-season prestige TV adaptation a la Game of Thrones to do it justice. _Lord of Light_ is first on my list; it has a beautiful combination of technology, magic, and religion that is unique. Besides Hinduism and Buddhism, it has a cynical take on Christianity as well. The three “religions” are used by various factions to further their political ends. A proper screen adaptation would have to divide it up into at least three movies, maybe more. (I see the [wikipedia page](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_of_Light) divides it into seven parts.) Besides the anti-authoritarian theme of the book, it has a natural diversity in characters. It would require a large number of non-white actors in leading roles. (Reincarnation means that the each character needs multiple actors.) The producer(s) and director(s) would probably have to be Hindu to get things right. I’m a fan of _Amber_, which would work best as a miniseries, but I think it’s too close to the _Game of Thrones_ to get a good treatment in the near future. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2020, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036/121 "2020-07-29T22:22:00Z")
> [@Pleonast](#): > > The producer(s) and director(s) would probably have to be Hindu to get things right. A Hindi guy I know wanted to borrow my copy I let him read to a friend in India. I didn’t let him. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-havent-these-books-been-made-into-movies/916036.md?page=7)