10 Ways "The Monkey" Film Strays from Stephen King’s Tale

Osgood Perkins’ The Monkey brings Stephen King’s 1980 short story from Skeleton Crew (1985) to the screen, sticking close to its core but veering off in striking ways. While the spine of the tale remains, the film spins its own web of changes. Here are ten standout differences—beware, spoilers lurk ahead!

The Mystery of Hal and Bill’s Father

The Monkey pits twin brothers Hal and Bill against a cursed toy monkey. Young Hal and Bill are played by Christian Convery, with Theo James stepping in as the grown-up duo. The monkey came from their father, Pity (Adam Scott), a pilot who snagged it on his travels. The film opens with a blood-soaked Pity—stained by the monkey’s past victims—trying to ditch it by fire. He then walks out on his wife, Lois (Tatiana Maslany), and the boys, perhaps hoping to drag the curse away with him. But Hal and Bill unearth the miraculously intact toy, unleashing a grim parade of deaths.

King’s story skimps on dad details. He’s a merchant sailor who “vanished off the face of the earth” when the boys were tiny—no backstory, no blaze of glory.

Brotherly Bonds

In the film, Hal and Bill are twins, with Bill edging out as the elder. In King’s tale, they’re not twins—Bill’s just two years older.

Hal’s Family Ties

The movie’s hellish monkey slaughters those near Hal and Bill: their nanny Annie Wilkes (Danika Dreyer, a nod to Misery’s Annie), mom Lois, and uncle Chip (Osgood Perkins himself). After the carnage, they chuck it down a well. Years later, Hal frets it’ll claw back to haunt his kin. He’s since split from his wife, Terry (Laura Mennell), and drifted from his teen son, Pity (Colin O’Brien)—who ultimately joins Hal to face the beast.

In King’s version, Hal’s family ties are rocky too, thanks to his monkey phobia, but there’s no divorce. His sons are Peter, a sweet 9-year-old, and Dennis, a bratty older brother—not a teen Pity. Peter still aids Hal in the fight.

Monkey’s Makeover

The film’s monkey bangs a drum with tiny sticks, each beat spelling doom for someone close to Hal and Bill. In the story, it clangs cymbals instead.

Bloodier Body Count

King’s deaths are tame—think car wrecks, not gorefests. The film cranks it up: Aunt Ida (Sarah Levy) faceplants into fishing hooks, sprints around with a flaming head, and smashes into a signpost. In the tale, she just “has a stroke”—no theatrics.

Fresh Faces

Perkins plays fast and loose with King’s cast. Out go Bill and Hal’s school pals, victims of the monkey. In come newbies like Terry’s new hubby, Ted Hammerman (Elijah Wood), and Bill’s sidekick, Ricky (Rowan Campbell).

A New Villain

King keeps Bill in the wings, focusing on Hal’s clan versus the monkey. Perkins flips the script, crowning Bill the big bad. Flashback: a furious Hal winds up the toy, half-hoping it’ll zap Bill for bullying him, not fully buying its curse. Their mom, Lois, pays the price instead. Bill pieces it together—Hal’s to blame—and years later fishes the monkey from the well for revenge. It’s gone, leaving just a key, biding its time. When Bill finds it at Aunt Ida’s, he targets Hal, but the monkey picks its own prey, wiping out everyone around him. In King’s tale, the toy bends minds to wind itself—or springs to life solo—making it the lone menace, no Bill vendetta in sight.

Bill’s Demise

The film’s climax sees Hal and Bill bury the hatchet—after Bill tricks young Pity into starting the monkey, killing Ricky. The tune cuts short, but as peace settles, the toy claims Bill anyway. In the story, Bill dodges the curse entirely, living on.

Monkey’s New Fate

Burned and well-dumped, the monkey always resurfaces. In the film, Hal and Pity opt to lock it away in their family, guarding it from careless hands. King’s Hal and Peter maroon it in a lake—where it sinks their boat but lets Hal swim back to shore. Later, the lake brims with “hundreds of dead fish.”

A Town’s Tiny Apocalypse

Bill’s revenge spree leaves the town littered with bodies. Driving home, Hal and Pity watch the curse ripple on, spotting a pale rider with black eyes at a crossroads—likely Death, one of the Four Horsemen. Bill’s meddling sparks a pint-sized end-times vibe, a twist King never penned.