Which Stephen King short story is The Monkey based on? Explained

The freshly released horror comedy The Monkey by Osborn Perkins has been loved by the audience ever since its release.

This bizarre horror tale is derived from a short story, 'The Monkey,' by the eminent author Stephen King.

The film The Monkey follows the plot of a family's upheaval due to a peculiar toy monkey. It gives rise to mass murder and chaos around, one drumbeat at a time. No matter how hard they try to get riddance from the accursed plaything, it somehow crawls back into their lives.

However, let us unravel more details about this particular Stephen King short story and its relation to the film The Monkey.

Which Stephen King short story is The Monkey based on?

Osborn Perkins' The Monkey is based on 'The Monkey' short story by Stephen King.

Stephen King is an acclaimed American author who is prominent for his remarkable literary contribution to the genre of horror. Some of his most celebrated works include novels, namely Carrie (1974), Salem's Lot (1975), The Shining (1977), IT (1986), Pet Sematary (1989), and many more.

King's short stories are very well known amongst the masses as well. Some of them include 'The Jaunt,' 'The Raft,' and 'The Reach,' etc. in his book Skeleton Crew (1985), amongst many others. 'The Monkey,' too, is a part of Skeleton Crew.

Stephen King's short story, 'The Monkey,' was written in the year 1980. It reached people via the popular Gallery Magazine in the form of a brochure.

Stephen King's 'The Monkey' follows the plot of Hal Shalburn. He also has a brother named Bill. Upon his son's accidental uncovering of a toy monkey, he is forced to revisit and re-experience his childhood trauma. All hell breaks loose upon the arrival of the accursed toy years after, activating a string of deaths and tumult again.

The toy monkey carries a pair of cymbals in its hand. With each strike of the cymbals, a death occurs out of nowhere. The toy monkey took the lives of multiple people in Hal's childhood, including his mother, their pets, his close pal Johnny, and his babysitter.

An adult, Hal is married to Terry, with his two sons - Dennis and Petey. However, the toy monkey's return creates tension in his family.

At the end of the story, after multiple desperate attempts, Hal finally frees himself from the eerie toy. He timely recollects a story narrated by his Uncle, where he mentions Crystal Lake having a void inside it. Accompanied by Petey, Hal forcefully discards the evil plaything into the lake.

The toy monkey still does not stop at its sinister actions, as implied towards the end of the story.

However, in Osgood Perkins' film adaptation The Monkey, the original Stephen King story has undergone several changes.

One of the major differences between the story and the film lies in the iconography of the toy monkey. In Stephen King's short story, the toy monkey carries a cymbal, whereas in the film, it has a drum.

Some of the other changes in The Monkey film include Hal's family structure, Bill's character treatment, and the film's ending as opposed to the short story, amongst many more.