131. Doctor Sleep

This week on The Rotten Horror Picture Show Podcast, Clay and Amanda are tackling a film that might just be the most confusing sequel in horror history: Mike Flanagan’s Doctor Sleep (2019). Now, don’t get me wrong — it’s a solid, spooky ride with Ewan McGregor as an older Danny Torrance, still haunted by the Overlook and trying to cope with his powers. But here’s the thing: is this a sequel to *The Shining* the book? Or *The Shining* the movie? Or some strange in-between hybrid stitched together with ghostly typewriters and whiskey breath? Because I swear, every time I try to explain it to someone, I feel like I need a chalkboard, some red string, and a shot of bourbon.On the one hand, Doctor Sleep is based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name, which itself was written as a direct sequel to his original Shining book. That means we’re supposed to be following King’s continuity — the one where the Overlook Hotel burned to the ground at the end. But on the other hand, Flanagan clearly loves Kubrick’s *film*, and he goes out of his way to make *Doctor Sleep* visually and tonally connect to that version. Which means the Overlook is still standing, the carpet patterns are back, and suddenly it feels like we’re living in a cinematic multiverse before Marvel made it cool.Clay and Amanda dive into all this messy, fascinating crossover territory — breaking down how Flanagan managed to honor both King and Kubrick, while still creating something that stands on its own. They’ll also talk about Rebecca Ferguson’s terrifyingly charismatic performance as Rose the Hat, creepy steam-slurping cults, and what happens when childhood trauma grows up with you.Me? I’m still stuck asking: so wait… which Shining is this shining shining from?And don't forget to head over to patreon.com/thepenskyfile to follow Clay and Amanda down the muddy path of remakes and reboots too!