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Fantasy and science fiction books for young teens have been hugely successful for decades, but the genre went supernova with the publication of JK Rowling’s “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” in 1997. Suddenly, YA novel authors began creating their own series about exceptionally gifted children embarking on epic adventures of self-discovery. When these books became runaway bestsellers, Hollywood came calling, and we’ve been inundated with YA film adaptations ever since.
Needless to say, many of these film series weren’t exactly classics. As the Harry Potter franchise turned out to be a $7.7 billion rainmaker for Warner Bros., “The Divergent Series,” based on Veronica Roth’s dystopian science fiction novels, hemorrhaged moviegoers’ interest so quickly that the fourth and final film was reimagined as a TV movie and spinoff series. Massive book sales do not always translate into vibrant theater activity.
But one series that managed to generate consistent interest throughout its three films was “The Maze Runner.” Based on the dystopian sci-fi novels of James Dashner (kids love immersing themselves in dirty future civilizations), the first film centers on a group of kids who find themselves trapped in a maze (aka the Glade) from which they must escape – which proves particularly difficult, as this maze has a nasty habit of shifting as our heroes move through it.
The three films in the series starred Dylan O’Brien, Kaya Scodelario and Thomas Brodie-Sangster and were directed by Wes Ball (who later ruled the “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes”). They weren’t all critical darlings, but they gained a sizable fan base. If you’re looking to give them a chance, they are currently streaming on Netflixbut you better get on with it: they will leave the service on January 9, 2026. Why are they worth watching?
The Maze Runner surpasses most of its YA competition
If “The Maze Runner” series had a downside when it was first released in theaters, is that the second film, “Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials”, was explicitly a bridge between the first and third installments. This film shows the Gladers (the name given to the children who escaped the maze) braving the perilous and obstacle-filled wasteland known as The Scorch. Although it may be the most exciting installment of the trilogy, it left audiences hanging for three long years until the release of “Maze Runner: The Death Cure” in 2018.
Aside from the expertly directed action (Ball will be a go-to studio filmmaker for years to come), the appeal of “The Maze Runner” trilogy lies in its terrific cast. Dylan O’Brien, who will perform with Rachel McAdams next month in Sam Raimi’s thriller “Send Help,” is magnetic as Thomas, the film’s amnesiac protagonist who has no idea how he ended up in the Glade. He’s perfectly complemented by Kaya Scodelario as Teresa, who, as we find out, was once employed by the World Catastrophe Killzone department, which uses teenagers as human lab rats. Scodelario is an extremely talented actor who gave a darkly funny performance as Josh Gad’s sister in Alex Winter’s “Adulthood.”
Some complained that the 143-minute “Maze Runner: The Death Cure” was a bit stretched, but most agree that it brought the trilogy to a satisfying conclusion. The series has remained so popular over the years that 20th Century Studios announced in 2024 that they were developing a reboot of sorts (although there have been no updates since). In the meantime, now is the perfect time to get lost in the Glade for the first time.
