One Hour Photo Director Mark Romanek Attached To Shining Prequel
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- July 20, 2014
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS)
As with any classic genre film, rumors of potential sequels or remakes have continued to haunt The Shining.
Now Variety is reporting that prequel plans are in full swing with Mark Romanek lined up to direct Overlook Hotel.
The original Stanley Kubrick film, which was adapted from Stephen King’s classic novel, starred Jack Nicholson as a troubled writer driven crazy by supernatural forces in a spooky hotel which has been closed for winter.
Scripted by Walking Dead’s Glenn Mazzara, the prequel is inspired by a deleted King prologue, and will center on the hotel’s first owner Bob T. Watson at the turn of the 20th century. For anyone who hasn’t seen the original film, or read King’s book, the hotel has an extremely dark past which was often hinted at, and it seems the prequel will explore this.
King himself revisited The Shining’s Dan Torrence, now an adult, in the book sequel Doctor Sleep.
While Hollywood’s habit of revisiting classic movies is often viewed cynically, this project is rather intriguing for one reason only, and that is the choice of director.
Romanek is a talented misfit who has only made three films in the last 30 years. The filmmaker has developed a lucrative career in music videos, where he has been afforded far more artistic freedom. However his last two features, One Hour Photo and Never Let Me Go, were both excellent.
Indeed, the former, starring Robin Williams in his most sinister role to date, shows that Romanek has what it takes to make Overlook Hotel distinct from Kubrick’s classic.
Stay tuned for Shining prequel news.
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