Stephen King shares his top 10 favorite movies including a surprising choice

Imagine being one of the world’s greatest storytellers, someone who has written novels that turned into Hollywood classics, and then being asked to share your all-time favorite movies. What would you pick? That’s exactly what Stephen King, the “master of horror,” did this week when he revealed his personal top 10 films.

And his choices may not be what you expect.

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My 10 favorite movies (excluding MISERY, SHAWSHANK, GREEN MILE, STAND BY ME). In no particular order:
SORCERER
GODFATHER 2
THE GETAWAY
GROUNDHOG DAY
CASABLANCA
TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE
JAWS
MEAN STREETS
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE 3rd KIND
DOUBLE INDEMNITY

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— Stephen King (@StephenKing) September 8, 2025

First, King set one rule. He would not include movies made from his own books. That meant no ‘Misery’, ‘The Shawshank Redemption’, ‘The Green Mile’ or ‘Stand by Me’. If he had allowed those in, his list would have been more like a “top 14”.

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But this way, we get to see the movies that shaped him as a viewer, not just as a writer.

So what makes the cut? King’s taste runs toward the timeless. He picked several classics that often appear on “best movies ever” lists. ‘Casablanca’ made it in, as did ‘The Treasure of the Sierra Madre’.

He also praised thrillers and gangster epics like ‘Jaws’, ‘The Godfather: Part II’, and ‘Double Indemnity’. The sci-fi wonder ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ also earned a place.

But King’s list wasn’t all heavy drama. He also has a funny side. The time-loop comedy ‘Groundhog Day’ landed among his top films.

And he didn’t forget his love for gritty crime. Martin Scorsese’s early classic ‘Mean Streets’ stood tall next to Sam Peckinpah’s stylish action film ‘The Getaway’.

Still, one movie stands out, not because it’s famous, but because it isn’t. King gave special attention to ‘Sorcerer’, a 1977 film by director William Friedkin. The movie tells the tense story of men driving trucks full of nitroglycerine across dangerous terrain in Latin America.

When it first came out, ‘Sorcerer’ flopped badly. It cost $22 million to make but earned only $9 million at the box office. To make matters worse, it had to compete against the first ‘Star Wars’, which swept audiences off their feet that year.

So why would King pick it? Maybe because, like his own stories, ‘Sorcerer’ is tense, dark, and unforgettable once it gets inside your head.