Doctor Sleep (2019 film)

Doctor Sleep is an upcoming American horror film based on the 2013 novel of the same name by Stephen King. Ewan McGregor stars as Danny Torrance, a man with psychic powers who struggles with alcoholism. The film is written and directed by Mike Flanagan.

King's novel Doctor Sleep is a sequel to his 1977 horror novel The Shining, in which the character Danny Torrance first appears as a child with psychic powers called "the shining". The Shining was adapted into a 1980 horror film of the same name by director Stanley Kubrick. While the film Doctor Sleep is a direct adaptation of King's novel, Flanagan said that Kubrick's The Shining would be acknowledged in part.

Warner Bros. Pictures began developing a film adaptation shortly after the novel was published. Writer-producer Akiva Goldsman wrote a script, but the studio did not secure a budget for the film until the box office success of its 2017 horror film It, also based on a novel by King. Flanagan was hired to rewrite Goldsman's script and direct the film. Filming began in September 2018 in the state of Georgia, including Atlanta and the surrounding area, and concluded in December 2018.

Warner Bros. plans to release Doctor Sleep in theaters in the United States on November 8, 2019.

Synopsis
Based on the 2013 horror novel of the same name by Stephen King, the film follows an adult Danny Torrance (who was a child in King's 1977 horror novel The Shining) with psychic powers he calls "the shining" and dealing with alcoholism like his father did. Danny comes across a cult that feeds on the "steam" of children who have the same psychic powers.

Cast



 * Ewan McGregor as Danny Torrance, a man with psychic powers known as "the shining". The character first appeared as a child in the 1980 film The Shining, played by Danny Lloyd.
 * Rebecca Ferguson as Rose the Hat, head of the True Knot, a cult that feeds on children with psychic powers
 * Kyliegh Curran as Abra Stone, a girl with "the shining"
 * Bruce Greenwood as Dr. John Dalton, the Stone family's doctor
 * Zahn McClarnon as Crow Daddy, Rose the Hat's right-hand man
 * Emily Alyn Lind as Snakebite Andi, a member of the True Knot
 * Carl Lumbly as Dick Hallorann, the former cook from the Overlook Hotel who has "the shining". Dick was originally played by Scatman Crothers in The Shining.
 * Alex Essoe as Wendy Torrance, Danny's mother. Wendy was originally played by Shelley Duvall in The Shining.
 * Jocelin Donahue
 * Jacob Tremblay
 * Zackary Momoh

Connection to The Shining novel and film
Doctor Sleep is based on the 2013 horror novel of the same name by Stephen King. The novel is a sequel to King's 1977 novel The Shining. The 1977 novel was adapted into a 1980 horror film of the same name by director Stanley Kubrick. King was critical of Kubrick's film adaptation to the point of writing and executive-producing a new adaptation with the 1997 television miniseries. While the film Doctor Sleep is intended to be a direct adaptation of the 2013 sequel novel, director Mike Flanagan said Doctor Sleep would still "acknowledge Kubrick's The Shining in some way".

When Warner Bros. showed footage of Doctor Sleep at CinemaCon in April 2019, IndieWire's Zack Sharf said, "The footage included a title that said 'Witness the Conclusion,' alluding to 'Doctor Sleep' being the true ending to 'The Shining' saga." Sharf highlighted elements from the film The Shining: a Kubrick-inspired overhead shot and that film's original music being played.

Production
Warner Bros. Pictures began developing a film adaptation of Doctor Sleep as early as 2014. In 2016, writer-producer Akiva Goldsman announced that he would write and produce the film for Warner Bros. For several years, Warner Bros. could not secure a budget for Doctor Sleep or for a prequel to The Shining to be called Overlook Hotel. In late 2017, Warner Bros. released It, a film adaptation of King's 1986 novel of the same name, and its box-office success led the studio to fast-track production of Doctor Sleep. Warner Bros. hired Mike Flanagan in January 2018 to rewrite Goldsman's script and to direct the film. Flanagan said why he was interested in directing Doctor Sleep, "It touches on themes that are the most attractive to me, which are childhood trauma leading into adulthood, addiction, the breakdown of a family, and the after effects, decades later." From June to November 2018, the cast was assembled.

Filming began in September 2018 in the US state of Georgia; locations included Atlanta and St. Simons. In the area of Atlanta, specific locations included Covington, Canton, Stone Mountain, Midtown, Porterdale, and Fayetteville. Production concluded in December 2018. By January 2019, Flanagan was editing the film.

The film score will be composed by The Newton Brothers (Andy Grush and Taylor Stewart), who also composed scores for Flanagan's previous works.

Release
Warner Bros. Pictures plans to release Doctor Sleep in theaters in the United States on November 8, 2019. It was initially scheduled to be released on January 24, 2020. Deadline Hollywood said the re-scheduling reflected Warner Bros. giving "a major vote of confidence" to the film.