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The Pulitzer Prizes encompass the year's most-worthy journalism, literature, and music in the United States. Initially established by newspaper publisher Joseph Pulitzer in his will, the awards are distributed by Columbia University. The prizes are divided into sub-categories to honor ground-breaking written text.
Since its inception in 1917, many Pulitzer-winning literary works have been adapted to the big screen. These movies have gone on to win many awards, including the Oscars for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and more.
Fans of socially and politically significant themes in Pulitzer-winning literature will enjoy their on-screen adaptations.
Gone with the Wind, Spotlight, and other movies based on Pulitzer winners
1) To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
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Considered one of the most influential stories of all time, To Kill a Mockingbird is the story of Atticus Finch (Gregory Peck), a single father to Jem and Scout and a lawyer in 1930s Alabama. Tensions rise in the predominantly-white town when Finch represents an innocent black man charged with sexual assault.
Adapted from Harper Lee's Pulitzer-winning book of the same name, the story represents a critical turning point in the United States, with commentary about race, class, and justice. It has been adapted into movies, stage plays, and graphic novels. The movie won three Academy Awards, including Best Actor and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video and YouTube
2) Gone with the Wind (1939)
This romance drama follows Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh), a plantation owner's daughter, who falls in love with Ashley Wilkes (Leslie Howard), her cousin's husband. The movie is set during the American Reconstruction era when slavery was being abolished and new amendments to the Constitution were introduced.
The film is based on Margaret Mitchell's Pulitzer-winning book, Gone with the Wind. It received ten Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Actress. In the socio-political context, the film garnered mixed reviews, especially from the African-American community.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video
3) Spotlight (2015)
The Boston Globe's Marty Baron (Liev Schreiber) and his team of journalists Matt (Brian d'Arcy James), Michael (Mark Ruffalo), Sacha (Rachel McAdams), and Walter (Michael Keaton) investigate a local church on child molestation charges. Their investigation uncovers years of shocking and systemic child molestation and abuse in Boston's Roman Catholic Archdiocese.
The film is based on a series of articles run by The Boston Globe in the early 2000s for which they won a Pulitzer Prize for Public Service in 2003(Category: Journalism). The movie also won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2016.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV
4) All the King's Men (1949)
All the King's Men follows the life and lies of Willie Stark (Broderick Crawford), a man who rises in the political ranks to become one of the biggest leaders in the American South. Based on Robert Penn Warren's 1946 novel that won the Pulitzer, the story is loosely about Huey P. Long, a corrupt U.S. Senator assassinated in 1935.
The critically acclaimed movie received three Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Supporting Actress.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV
5) The Color Purple (1985)
Steven Spielberg's The Color Purple follows Celie (Whoopi Goldberg), an African-American girl in rural Georgia. It outlines the difficult lives led by young black women in the early 20th century and deals with sensitive themes like child sexual abuse, wrongful imprisonment, and racism.
Based on Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning book, the movie received wide critical acclaim and eleven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV
6) Driving Miss Daisy (1989)
Boolie, the son of a stubborn old Jewish woman named Daisy (Jessica Tandy), hires a black man named Hoke (Morgan Freeman) as her driver. While she refuses to let him drive her around at first, the two slowly form a bond as they navigate racism, anti-Semitism, and internalized prejudice in 1940s America.
Based on the Pulitzer-winning stage play of the same name by Alfred Uhry (who also wrote the movie adaptation), Driving Miss Daisy won four Academy Awards, including Best Picture. It was a critical and commercial success.
Where to watch: Apple TV
7) The Hours (2002)
Three women are connected across time and geography by Virginia Woolf's Mrs Dalloway. Clarissa Vaughan (Meryl Streep) is a New York socialite in 2001, Lauren Brown (Julianne Moore) is an unhappy, pregnant wife in 1950s California, and Virginia Woolf (Nicole Kidman) struggles with depression while writing Mrs Dalloway.
The film is based on Michael Cunningham's 1998 novel, The Hours, which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. It was received well commercially and critically, with nine Oscar nominations.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV
Pulitzer literature fans can also watch The Road, The Age of Innocence, and The Grapes of Wrath.
