USA TODAY — Ewan McGregor has been cast to play Jack Nicholson's screen son Danny Torrance in the sequel to The Shining.
McGregor will portray the now-grown son in the horror film Doctor Sleep, based on Stephen King's best-selling follow-up novel, according to a person familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly.
The 2013 novel features Dan Torrance all grown up and haunted by (literally and figuratively) the tragic events in the 1980 classic Stanley Kubrick film The Shining.
Danny (originally played by Danny Lloyd) was chased by his ax-carrying father (Jack Nicholson in an unforgettable performance) into the snowy grounds of their deserted Overlook Hotel, where Jack died in the snow. Danny ended up escaping with his mother Wendy (Shelley Duvall).
Mike Flanagan is attached to write and direct. Filming is scheduled to begin in the fall, with a January 2020 release date.
Variety broke the news of McGregor's casting, noting it had King's blessing.
The plot, according to Variety:
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.
