Any reservations fans might have had about the upcoming Doctor Sleep adaptation might be eradicated now that the feature has received a major endorsement from someone who knows the source material better than anyone else. Bestselling horror author Stephen King is the mastermind behind the eponymous novel and has thrown his full support behind the flick. The writer recently tweeted: “this movie is going to blow your mind. If you have any left after IT CHAPTER 2, that is.”
That’s some strong praise, especially coming from someone who’s not afraid to be critical of films based off of his work. For example, it’s well-known that King is not a fan of Stanley Kubrick’s cinematic take on The Shining. While many consider it to be one of the best scary movies of all-time, the author is not one of them.
He does seem to hold Doctor Sleep, the long-awaited sequel to the aforementioned 1980 spook fest, in high regard, though. It remains to be seen if this bodes well for the feature, considering his view of The Shining is so different than the public’s. Director Mike Flanagan has told moviegoers not to expect anything near Kubrick’s classic , which clearly works just fine for King.
Doctor Sleep has already piqued the interest of fans due to its eerie trailer and impressive cast. Ewan McGregor has been tapped as an older version of Danny Torrance, who returns to the infamous Overlook Hotel to battle a group of evil vampires. The group of bloodsucking fiends will be led by Rebecca Ferguson and consist of Zahn McClarnon, Emily Alyn Lind and more.
Bruce Greenwood will star as Dr. John Dalton, with Carl Lumbly appearing as Dick Hallorann and Alex Essoe as Wendy Torrance. Jocelin Donahue, Cliff Curtis, Zackary Momoh, and Jacob Tremblay are also aboard the production in currently unspecified roles.
Whether or not Doctor Sleep is as good of an adaptation as Stephen King claims is still up in the air. Regardless, the R-rated feature is certainly something audiences are going to want to get a glimpse of when it rolls into theaters on November 8th.