Stephen King’s “The Stand” is getting a new adaptation, with Paramount securing Doug Liman to direct the new adaptation of the author’s apocalyptic 1978 tome. Liman will also produce along with Tyler Thompson of Cross Creek Pictures, with the two previously collaborating on “American Made,” the based-on-a-true-story drama starring Tom Cruise. Largely thought to be one of King’s greatest accomplishments, “The Stand” takes place in the aftermath of a pandemic caused by a weaponized virus (dubbed Captain Trips), where the survivors are either swayed by the forces of good or those of evil, personified by Randall Flagg, who would go on to become a recurring figure in some of King’s other work, most notably the “Dark Tower” series of novels. In 1990 King updated and expanded the novel, moving the events from 1980 to 1990 and including more than 400 pages that were cut from the initial printing. The resulting book, known as “The Complete and Uncut Edition,” is King’s longest work, just edging out “It.” “The Stand” has been adapted twice before – in 1994, as an ambitious ABC miniseries that was spread across four nights (it starred Gary Sinise, Miguel Ferrer, Rob Lowe, Ruby Dee, Ed Harris and Molly Ringwald, among many others) and again in 2020 as a nine-episode limited series for Paramount+ (at the time known as CBS All Access). The 2020 version was notable for reshuffling the events of the novel and for a new coda, written by King himself with his son Owen King. That version starred Alexander Skarsgård, James Marsden, Amber Heard and Greg Kinnear. And while there have been a number of attempts over the years for a theatrical version of “The Stand,” including by the “Harry Potter” team of director David Yates and screenwriter Steve Kloves, who were attempting to mount a massive, multi-film franchise, none ever saw their way to completion. Will Liman, whose last three movies were direct-to-streaming films (“Locked Down” for HBO Max, “Road House” for Prime Video and “The Instigators” for Apple TV+) be able to crack the curse and get Captain Trips to the big screen?