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Ewan McGregor on Doctor Sleep: ‘I know my character better than Stephen King does’

Scottish actor who stars in The Shining sequel says he does not always agree with the way master horror author King wrote his character Danny Torrance – Jack Nicholson’s son in the 1980 film. There’s also a plot change, he teases

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Jack Nicholson and Danny Lloyd, as his son Danny Torrance, in Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 film The Shining.

Taking on a well-known film character and playing him at a different age is something Ewan McGregor is very familiar with.

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The actor famous for portraying a young Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequels is preparing to take on the role of the now-grown Danny Torrance, who was introduced in 1980’s The Shining as Jack Nicholson’s son. The sequel, planned for release in January 2020, is called Doctor Sleep and adapted from the Stephen King novel of the same name.

Trainspotting author back to doing what he does best

“I don’t think I saw [The Shining] for quite a long time, until I was older. I knew it was so scary, and it is,” says McGregor, while discussing his new movie Christopher Robin (in Hong Kong cinemas today). “I can’t wait to.”

McGregor plans to rewatch the classic Stanley Kubrick horror film, but right now, he’s reading both King books.

Ewan McGregor is reading Stephen King’s novels The Shining and Doctor Sleep in preparation for filming the latter. Photo: Reuters
Ewan McGregor is reading Stephen King’s novels The Shining and Doctor Sleep in preparation for filming the latter. Photo: Reuters
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He does not always agree with the way the character is written. “There are points where Stephen has written a bit, and I’m going ‘Oh, that’s not right.’ … I’m already thinking, ‘He hasn’t nailed it there.’ ”

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