Director assures fans The Shining sequel Doctor Sleep will be rated R

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Director Mike Flanagan's (see above) Netflix original series THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE will be hitting the streaming service later this month, and Flanagan is already hard at work on his upcoming adaptation of Stephen King's THE SHINING sequel novel DOCTOR SLEEP. We already know the film is set to star Ewan McGregor as adult Danny Torrance, but today we have word that the director is all but promising an R-rating.

While recently speaking with Collider, the filmmaker confirmed that it's “very safe to assume” that DOCTOR SLEEP will be rated R. He then went on to tell the site:

[I wanted to make Doctor Sleep] out of nothing but love for the Kubrick family and for the original novel. When I read Doctor Sleep, when it was first published, I was so taken with getting to spend time with Danny Torrance again. 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. It really speaks to a lot of my favorite stuff, so I was really, really fascinated by the possibility of being able to play in that world. It’s one of the most intimidating projects that I’ve ever done though, just because we’re standing in the shadow of Stanley Kubrick, which could have been Jesus. That’s a daunting thing. But the only way to get through it is to say, ‘I’m not Kubrick. I’m never gonna be, and I’m not trying to be.’ I’m gonna make my movie and see how people feel. I’ll just turn off the internet for two weeks, when the movie comes out, and everything will be fine.

Personally, I can think of no one better to take on this THE SHINING sequel than Flanagan. He's my dream-team director for basically every horror project out there and the man knows his way around a Stephen King flick (he directed GERALD'S GAME after all). Sure he's not Kubrick, but no one is.

For those who might not know, here is the film's synopsis:

Danny Torrance carries the trauma of the Overlook Hotel into adulthood. He’s become a reflection of his murderous father, with lingering rage and a drinking problem that dulls his pain as well as his “shining” powers. Those powers return when he embraces sobriety and uses his gift to help the dying at a hospice. He establishes a psychic connection with a young girl who shares his extreme abilities, and who is being targeted by a group with similar abilities. They’ve found that their powers grow if they inhale the “steam” that comes off others with the power to shine, when they are suffering painful deaths.

Flanagan directs Ewan McGregor as Danny Torrance, Rebecca Ferguson as Rose The Hat, and Kyliegh Curran as Abra Stone. The film also stars Bruce Greenwood, Carl Lumbly, Alex Essoe, Jocelin Donahue, and Zahn McClarnon. Flanagan rewrote Akiva Goldsman’s adaptation of Stephen King’s 2013 novel. Trevor Macy will produce along with Vertigo Entertainment’s Jon Berg, and Goldsman is executive producer.

How excited are you for director Mike Flanagan's upcoming adaptation of Stephen King's DOCTOR SLEEP? Let us know below!