Best Movie Novelizations (December 2025)

For as long as there have been Movies, there have also been Movie Novelizations. However, the reason for why some movies are made into books has changed in the face of modern technology. Despite this, these literary adaptations of films remain popular.

Movies have been getting the novelization treatment since the 1910s. Silent films and serials were often adapted into novels for the sake of those who missed a show. Later, these novels were intended to offer a means of remembering classic movies before home video and streaming became commonplace.

From the 1970s onward, however, movie novelizations became increasingly commercial. They were often treated as just another piece of movie merchandizing. As a result, the quality of these books was erratic. Many were bare bones affairs that barely did more than transcribe the movie. However, the best of them offer in-depth explorations of the world of their films.

Best movie novelizations as of 2025

Literary adaptations of movies continue to be popular in the 21st century. Indeed, there are whole websites like MovieNovelizations.com which index and assess these works. This is a boon to collectors, who might otherwise spend hundreds of dollars on a rare book that is little more than a screenplay script. The books on this list, however, are considered to be the best of their kind.

Alien

Alan Dean Foster is widely considered to be the best movie novelization writer in history. He certainly has the most notable resume, having written novelizations based on Star Trek and The Terminator among other franchises. It is his adaptation of the first Alien movie, however, that is most widely regarded as one of the best movie adaptations ever written.

The Alien novelization is noteworthy for how it was constructed in defiance of the usual protocols. Typically the adaptor is allowed to see an early work-print of the movie. At the very least, they are provided with pre-production materials, such as storyboards, artwork, or a screenplay. In the case of Alien, however, Alan Dean Foster was not allowed to look at H.R. Giger’s designs for the Xenomorph, Facehugger or Alien eggs.

Despite this, Foster soldiered on, and tried to match the suspense and uncertainty suggested by the screenplay he was given. It is generally agreed that he managed this well, with vague descriptions like “something man-shaped but definitely not a man.” Foster also expanded on several scenes cut from the initial theatrical release, which were later restored in the director’s cut. As a result, the Alien novelization became a best-seller and a timeless classic.

Ghostbusters: The Supernatural Spectacular

The 1984 Ghostbusters movie had two movie novelizations. The first one came out in 1984 and was written by Larry Miline. It is a faithful, but rather dry translation of the movie. The 1985 novelization, Ghostbusters: The Supernatural Spectacular by Richard Mueller, is another story entirely.

Mueller adapted the entirety of the original screenplay by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. As a result, The Supernatural Spectacular is filled with scenes that were cut from the original movie. Chief among these is a frame story centering around two unhoused men, who act as a Greek chorus observing the events of Ghostbusters from a distance. Mueller also includes the full scene in which Stantz has an encounter with a friendly female ghost. (This scene was briefly included in the final film, as a dream sequence.)

Some of these scenes are decidedly random and highlight why they were cut for time or clarity. However, these scenes also offer increased insight into the characters. Ray’s romantic experience, for instance, leaves him questioning the ethics of imprisoning all ghosts. As strange as some of these scenes are, Ghostbusters: The Supernatural Spectacular is generally agreed to have set the standard for how a novelization should expand on the original film.

Halloween

It is a rare novelization that is considered to be as good as its source material. It is even rarer for the novelization to have an influence on later films. Such is the case with the 1979 novelization of the 1978 slasher-horror classic Halloween. However, author Richard Curtis (who wrote the book under the penname Curtis Richards) did face one big problem.

“One of the great things about movies is that they move so fast, you don’t have time to think about logic,” Curtis reflected in a 1996 article. “Novels are a more reflective medium, however; at any time you can put a book down and think about what you’ve read.” Beyond his own personal questions as to why Michael Meyers became a killer, Curtis feared readers would ask questions like how a man who had been institutionalized since he was five years old knew how to drive a car.

Curtis addressed these points, establishing that Michael had been a trustee, who had been taught to drive a truck not meant to leave his hospital’s grounds. As for why he became a killer and was seemingly invincible, Curtis concocted a backstory involving an ancient curse dating back to Celtic times and the festival of Samhain. This backstory would later be worked into the later Halloween films. While fans were less than impressed with these sequels, this still stands as one of the few occasions where a novelization shaped later movies in a franchise.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Quentin Tarantino is known as a prolific screenwriter and director who defies convention. Nevertheless, he still stunned the world with his decision to personally adapt Once Upon a Time in Hollywood into a novel in 2021. It is rare enough a screenwriter to novelize their own work, but utterly unheard of a big-name director doing it.

Tarantino described the novel as “a complete rethinking of the entire story.” To that end, the film’s finale occurs toward the beginning of the novel and devotes considerable time to the aftermath. While the story isn’t significantly changed, the differences still offer tremendous insight into Tarantino’s writing process.

The story focus shifts somewhat from Rick Dalton to Cliff Booth, adding more details to Booth’s backstory. Chief among these is a chapter devoted to how Cliff came to own his beloved pit bull, Brandy. The novel also goes into greater detail regarding the inner thoughts of Sharon Tate. It also features a larger subplot involving Charles Manson’s efforts at building a music career.

Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith

Despite having written only four Star Wars novels, Matthew Stover is still regarded as one of the best writers to handle the franchise. This is largely because of his novelization of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. Beyond referencing the Expanded Universe (now called Star Wars: Legends), Stover also improved the emotional pacing of the film dramatically.

The fall of Anakin Skywalker is the centerpiece of both the novel and the film. However, Stover expands the narrative in several key ways. For instance, the duel with Count Dooku is extended and is confirmed to be the first time Anakin tapped the Dark Side to win a battle.

There are additional scenes in which Palpatine tempts Anakin with the power he is denied by the Jedi Council. Stover also gives Anakin another motive for seeking the rank of Master beyond simple greed. Namely, he needs Master-Level access to the Jedi Archives to research Force Healing techniques that might save Padme. Small wonder then that Stover’s novelization was voted Best Expanded Universe Work of all time by users of TheForce.Net.

How we picked the best movie novelizations

Quality and reputation among franchise fans were the main criteria in compiling this list. However, consideration was also given to how well the novelization expanded upon the source material. It is one thing for an book to merely adapt another work. It is quite another for it to build upon it and later be referenced by other works.

Source: Comingsoon.net