Editing Left Behind (section)

==Film adaptations==
{{Main|Left Behind (film series)}}
The success of the ''Left Behind'' books has led to the release of five motion pictures based on the series so far. All four have been produced by brothers [[Paul LaLonde|Paul and Peter LaLonde]], and have been released through [[Cloud Ten Pictures]], an independent Canadian-based Christian film studio.

The first, ''[[Left Behind: The Movie]]'', was based on the first book of the series and was released in 2000. In a very unusual marketing scheme, the studio released the film on home video, and then theatrically. It fared poorly in theaters.<ref name="Imdb">{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0190524/business|title=Imdb.com: Left Behind (2000) – Box-office/Business|work=IMDb|access-date=October 4, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140804152913/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0190524/business|archive-date=August 4, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> The film starred former ''[[Growing Pains]]'' star [[Kirk Cameron]] as Buck Williams. Cameron, who praised the book series as "inspiring", became a practicing evangelist (and co-host with [[Ray Comfort]] on the TV show ''[[The Way of the Master]]'').

The [[sequel]], ''[[Left Behind II: Tribulation Force]]'', based on the second book, ''[[Tribulation Force]]'', was released in 2002. The film debuted at #2 on [[Nielson Ratings|Nielson]]'s video scan reports, behind ''[[Spider-Man (2002 film)|Spider-Man]]'',<ref name="Nielson">{{Cite web |title=Audition for TV role or be 'Left Behind' |url=http://cityguide.clarionledger.com/fe/Worship/stories/xgram.asp |url-status=dead |website=Clarion-Ledger |access-date=February 9, 2006 |archive-date=July 1, 2001 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20010701190330/http://cityguide.clarionledger.com/fe/Worship/stories/xgram.asp }}</ref> and was #1 in terms of overall sales for two days on [[Amazon.com]].<ref name="Amazon">{{cite web |date=October 28, 2002 |title=End-Times Thriller ''Left Behind II: Tribulation Force'' Ousts ''Spider-Man'' Over the Weekend to Become the #1 Selling Video Overall on Amazon.com |url=http://goliath.ecnext.com/comsite5/bin/pdinventory.pl?pdlanding=1&referid=2750&item_id=0199-2303250&words=End_Times_Thriller |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081201043815/http://goliath.ecnext.com/coms2/gi_0199-2303250/End-Times-Thriller-Left-Behind.html |archive-date=December 1, 2008 |access-date=October 4, 2014 |work=Goliath}}</ref>

The second sequel, ''[[Left Behind: World at War|World at War]]'', was released first to churches on October 21, 2005, for church theatrical viewings and was released via home media on October 25. Much of the main cast from the previous two films, excluding [[Clarence Gilyard]], reprised their respective roles for ''World at War''. Gilyard, who played Bruce Barnes, was unable to return due to a scheduling conflict with a play in New York.{{citation needed|date=June 2014}} It is based very loosely on the final 50 pages of ''[[Tribulation Force]]'' and features [[Louis Gossett Jr.]] as the President of the United States, Gerald Fitzhugh. The third installment was the least identifiable with events in any of the books. Recognizable events were the marriages of Buck with Chloe Steele, and of Rayford Steele with Amanda White; the death of Bruce Barnes; and President Fitzhugh's heading an attack, resulting in [[World War III]], with [[Great Britain]] and [[Egypt]] fighting against the [[Global Community]]. Major parts, however, were taken from subsequent books; these events include the poisoning of Barnes by GC forces, instead of Nicolae Carpathia himself, and an attempt by Fitzhugh to assassinate Carpathia. Buck's meeting with the President in the books takes a different form in the film.

The film series have been criticized for, among other things, low production values. A ''[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]'' reviewer commented that in 2004, Cloud Ten Pictures made a deal with [[Sony Pictures Entertainment]] to release all of its pictures under their banner and has been doing so ever since.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hendrix |first1=Grady |date=1 December 2005 |title=How to end the world on a budget. |url=https://slate.com/culture/2005/12/how-to-end-the-world-on-a-budget.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200126185445/https://slate.com/culture/2005/12/how-to-end-the-world-on-a-budget.html |archive-date=January 26, 2020 |access-date=January 26, 2020 |website=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]}}</ref>

In 2010, Cloud Ten announced that a remake of the ''Left Behind'' series was in development, with production set to begin in late 2012 for an October 2014 release date.<ref>{{cite web |date=October 13, 2010 |title=Cloud Ten Plans Big Budget Left Behind Remake |url=http://www.cloudtenpictures.com/site2/pdf/Press_Release_LEFT_BEHIND.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111027131700/http://www.cloudtenpictures.com/site2/pdf/Press_Release_LEFT_BEHIND.pdf |archive-date=October 27, 2011 |access-date=January 18, 2015 |website=Cloud Ten Pictures}}</ref> [[Left Behind (2014)|The reboot]], starring [[Nicolas Cage]] as Steele and [[Chad Michael Murray]] as Buck Williams, was released to theaters October 3, 2014. It focused mainly on the very beginnings of the first book and added much to the plot. The remake focuses on the experiences of the passengers on the plane and partially on Chloe Steele as she comes to terms with her missing family. It earned overwhelmingly negative reviews and [[box office bomb|flopped at the box office]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Whitman |first=Sarah |date=October 8, 2014 |title='Left Behind' flop shows difficulty of mixing preachy, popular in Christian movies |url=https://www.tampabay.com/news/religion/left-behind-flop-shows-difficulty-of-mixing-preachy-popular-in-christian/2201236/ |access-date=February 8, 2025 |website=[[Tampa Bay Times]]}}</ref>

''[[Vanished – Left Behind: Next Generation]]'', a spin-off film based on the spin-off series ''[[Left Behind: The Kids]]'' released on September 28, 2016. The film was developed by [[Tim LaHaye]]'s grandson, Randy LaHaye and was well received by the book author.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ortega Law |first=Jeannie |date=August 13, 2016 |title='Left Behind' Author Tim LaHaye Worked on Gen X Apocalyptic Film 'Vanished' Before His Death |url=http://www.christianpost.com/news/left-behind-author-tim-lahaye-worked-on-gen-x-apocalyptic-film-vanished-before-his-death-167895/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220904044700/https://www.christianpost.com/news/left-behind-author-tim-lahaye-worked-on-gen-x-apocalyptic-film-vanished-before-his-death-167895/ |archive-date=September 4, 2022 |access-date=June 1, 2022 |website=[[Christian Post]]}}</ref>

In November 2021, LaLonde announced the beginning of production on ''[[Left Behind: Rise of the Antichrist]]'', with [[Kevin Sorbo]] directing and replacing Nicolas Cage as Rayford Steele. The film is set six months after the events of the 2014 film and is an adaptation of the rest of book one in the series. The film makes a few small changes to be more relevant for modern times.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Barraclough |first=Leo |date=May 12, 2022 |title=Neal McDonough, Corbin Bernsen, Bailey Chase Join Apocalyptic Thriller 'Left Behind: Rise of the Antichrist' |url=https://variety.com/2022/film/global/neal-mcdonough-corbin-bernsen-bailey-chase-left-behind-rise-of-the-antichrist-1235265086/ |access-date=February 8, 2025 |website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref>