Stephen King, the renowned American author, has named Sorcerer, a 1977 thriller directed by William Friedkin, as his favorite film of all time. The movie is a remake of The Wages of Fear, originally directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot in 1953. While some may prefer Clouzot's original, King clearly favors Friedkin's version. He made this announcement during a selection of films presented to the British Film Institute in September 2017. He also mentioned Clouzot's 1955 film Les Diaboliques as another personal favorite. Sorcerer follows four men from different countries, each wanted by their respective governments, who accept a perilous mission in South America to transport nitroglycerin through the jungle. The journey becomes a series of intense trials, where even the smallest shock can lead to disaster. The film features actors such as Roy Scheider, Bruno Cremer, and Francisco Rabal, and is known for its grueling depiction of the struggle against the jungle, exhaustion, and fear. It currently holds a rating of 4.2 out of 5 on AlloCiné, a French film review website. The original novel, The Wages of Fear, was written by Georges Arnaud. Friedkin intended his film to be a new interpretation of the book rather than a direct reprise of Clouzot's version. Despite this, Friedkin himself considered Sorcerer his favorite film among his own works, stating in a 2014 interview with Yahoo! that he would not change a single shot from the film. However, it faced a heavy commercial failure at its release. Sorcerer has since been rediscovered and appreciated for its atmosphere and cinematography. A new adaptation of The Wages of Fear was released in 2024 by Julien Leclercq for Netflix, featuring Franck Gastambide and Alban Lenoir. This version received less favorable reception compared to the original films. Sorcerer is available on DVD and Blu-ray, while the 1953 version of The Wages of Fear is available on VOD (video on demand).