Stephen King calls Doctor Sleep a hell of a scary movie

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

It has been a while since Stephen King had to distance himself from a new adaptation of one of his novels, or have to point at his books on shelves to assure fans who were disappointed by the movies that they hadn't ruined the books, "They're still right there." Now King is an active part of the hype machine – it seems every time a new King adaptation comes out, he's using his Twitter account to talk it up.

Sometimes fans can see where King's coming from, like when he called GERALD'S GAME "horrifying, hypnotic, terrific". But when he praised THE DARK TOWER? Not many fans were on board with him for that one.

A few months ago, King promised that GERALD'S GAME director Mike Flanagan's upcoming adaptation of his novel DOCTOR SLEEP "is going to blow your mind". With DOCTOR SLEEP's November 8th release date quickly approaching, King took to Twitter to remind his followers that it's coming soon, and while doing so he described it "as a hell of a good movie. And a hell of a scary one."

DOCTOR SLEEP is coming in November. It's a hell of a good movie. And a hell of a scary one.

— Stephen King (@StephenKing) September 24, 2019

While the DOCTOR SLEEP novel is a sequel to King's THE SHINING, Flanagan's film also serves as a sequel to Stanley Kubrick's version of THE SHINING, which King was famously not happy with.

Starring Ewan McGregor as an adult version of the shining-gifted 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 is joined in the cast by Kyleigh Curran as Abra Stone, Carl Lumbly as Dick Halloran, Alex Essoe as Wendy Torrance, Bruce Greenwood as Danny's friend Dr. John Dalton, 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 in an unspecified role.