The Stephen King renaissance continues! Following the huge success of It and many other adaptations of the legendary horror writer’s work, an adaptation of King’s sequel to The Shining, Doctor Sleep, is now in development.
Warner Bros. is producing the film, and they might have picked the perfect director for the job. Mike Flanagan, who has already directed one King adaptation, Gerald’s Game, has been hired to direct the adaptation of Doctor Sleep. He will also rewrite the script originally penned by Akiva Goldsman.
The novel was first published in 2013, and tells the story of an adult Danny Torrance. Now in his 40s, and struggling with the same demons that haunted his father years ago, Danny meets Abra Stone, a mysterious woman who is also afflicted by the same gift that allow’s Danny to see people’s shine. The two soon become locked in a battle for Abra’s survival.
While King’s original novel is considered a classic and was hard enough for him to write a sequel to his own revered work, it might be even tougher for Flanagan to make a sequel to one of the most famous horror films of all time, and follow in the footsteps of a legend like Stanley Kubrick.
It will be interesting to see how they approach the film. Will it try to be its own standalone thing with a self-contained story but small links to The Shining? Or will Flanagan attempt to match the style and tone of Kubrick’s psychological classic?
It’s probably a good bet that the Doctor Sleep adaptation will likely be a bit less esoteric in is approach than Kubrick’s 1980 film and will likely aim for a more mainstream approach like It, but with Flanagan on board – an up and coming director with plenty of talent – there’s a possibility for something great here. Now we’ll wait on casting news.
#Peace.Love.DoctorSleep
