You Probably Didn’t Know These 50 Iconic Films Were Adapted from Novels

Doctor Zhivago had a tumultuous release as a book, given the Soviet Union refused to let it see the light of day for decades. It had to be smuggled to Italy, where it was then translated and published. The CIA even got involved in helping it become even more widespread. Its author, Boris Pasternak, would later win a Nobel Prize for the book.

The novel was adapted in 1965, but due to the ban not yet being lifted in the Soviet Union, it had to be shot somewhere else so Spain was chosen. The result was a film over three hours long that has kept a longevity decades after its release. It also won five academy awards.