Warning: This article mentions child sexual assault.
Stephen King’s stories generally make for incredible movie and TV adaptations, but there’s one title that should never be adapted. From The Shining to Castle Rock and beyond, there have been loads of Stephen King adaptations, and there are even more to come. While some stayed true to the source material, others have struggled to properly replicate the original story.
However, not every title makes it to the screen. There are several Stephen King books and short stories that need adaptations, and readers are still desperately hoping for an announcement about them. There is one short story from King’s book Four After Midnight, though, that should never be adapted, and for a very good reason.
Why Stephen King’s ‘The Library Policeman’ Should Never Get an Adaptation
While taboo and inappropriate topics are common in Stephen King novels, and are typically somewhat disguised through tales of horrific beings or demons, The Library Policeman is another level of terrifying. The Library Policeman focuses on Sam Peebles, who, after a visit to his local library to prepare for an upcoming speech, is forced to face his greatest childhood fear. The main villain in The Library Policeman is Ardelia Lortz, an elderly librarian who helps Sam and is later revealed to have been dead for years.
Ardelia had committed suicide after killing two children and a local sheriff, which in turn left her as something of a spirit, floating around and looking for a new host to take over. However, this isn’t why The Library Policeman is so messed up, and sometimes, the primary villain isn’t the real monster in Stephen King’s stories. After seeing various posters advertising the titular character and working with two friends to stop Ardelia’s return, Sam remembers a suppressed memory of being raped by a policeman as a child. However, this figure isn’t actually a member of law enforcement, just someone who claims to be the authoritative Library Policeman.
Initially, the policeman who suddenly appears to an older Sam appears to be the same person who assaulted him, but it’s actually Ardelia. While it goes without saying that what happens to Sam is awful, it’s even more unhinged when you realize the man who attacked him is a real person and not some sort of creature or demon created by King. This alone proves that Stephen King’s human villains are some of his most twisted antagonists, and should really be feared more than any fictional creation.
It’s because of this that The Library Policeman should never be adapted. Of course, as it’s a short story, there isn’t really enough content to create a whole feature film, but perhaps it could make for an episode of TV instead. King has tackled child abuse in past stories, and certain adaptations, like the It movies, have followed suit. However, there is usually a villain or evil figure like Pennywise behind these horrors, and this is where The Library Policeman differs.
A potential adaptation could also cut this part of the story out, but as it’s so essential to the narrative, and it would limit an already short script, it just wouldn’t make sense. The Library Policeman is still a brilliant story worth reading despite the subject matter, but it’s definitely one that doesn’t necessarily need an adaptation.