20 Fantasy Adaptations That Could Be Bigger than Game of Thrones
By Jenn Reid
The Ocean at the End of the Lane cover art. Image via William Morrow and Company
11. The Ocean at the End of the Lane
The Book: The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
The Story: Neil Gaiman’s 2013 novel is a story about a man coming back to his childhood home for the first time in years and confronting his memories about his past.
That’s the straightforward explanation. It is Gaiman, and it is a fantasy novel. There’s a pond that’s secretly an ocean, a worm that grows into a malevolent person and scavenger birds that eat your heart. It’s a dark and twisted but totally enrapturing story.
The Adaptation: Everything Neil Gaiman does gets adapted eventually. There’s movies for Coraline and Stardust, and an upcoming TV show for American Gods. In 2013, they wanted to adapt this into a film with Tom Hanks and director Joe Wright, but plans have been stalled.
Personally, I think The Ocean at the End of the Lane‘s creepy town and familial drama would make a good show or mini-series. A&E’s Bates Motel could serve as a (less fantasy-based) inspiration for the show. The kind of creepy, foreboding but can’t-look-away performance Vera Farmiga gives as Norma Bates should be the blueprint for an actress stealing the show as Ursula.