Theatrical and director’s cuts of Doctor Sleep are now streaming

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Today marks the digital release of director Mike Flanagan's Stephen King adaptation DOCTOR SLEEP, and the filmmaker took to his Twitter account to remind us that the 151 minute theatrical cut of the film and his 185 minute director's cut are both now streaming online. 

You can watch the theatrical cut through Amazon Prime Video at THIS LINK, and the director's cut is at THIS LINK.

Flanagan has previously said that the director's cut features "new material throughout the whole film", inclduing "some big new scenes", "terrific material" involving Alex Essoe as Wendy Torrance, and "a fair amount of new stuff" involving the Abra character. The director's cut is said to be "more literary" than the theatrical cut, so much so that it's even divided into chapters.

Starring Ewan McGregor as an adult version of THE SHINING character Danny Torrance, DOCTOR SLEEP has the following synopsis: 

Still irrevocably scarred by the trauma he endured as a child at the Overlook, Dan Torrance has fought to find some semblance of peace. But that peace is shattered when he encounters Abra, a courageous teenager with her own powerful extrasensory gift, known as the “shine.” Instinctively recognizing that Dan shares her power, Abra has sought him out, desperate for his help against the merciless Rose the Hat and her followers, The True Knot, who feed off the shine of innocents in their quest for immortality.

Forming an unlikely alliance, Dan and Abra engage in a brutal life-or-death battle with Rose. Abra’s innocence and fearless embrace of her shine compel Dan to call upon his own powers as never before — at once facing his fears and reawakening the ghosts of the past.

McGregor and Essoe are joined in the cast by Kyleigh Curran as Abra Stone, Carl Lumbly as Dick Halloran, Bruce Greenwood as Danny's friend Dr. John Dalton, Cliff Curtis as Danny's pal Billy Freeman, Rebecca Ferguson as cult leader Rose the Hat, Zahn McClarnon as Rose's right hand man Crow Daddy, Jocelin Donahue as Abra's mother Lucy, and Jacob Tremblay as a kid named Bradley Trevor.