The Director Stephen King Wanted For The Shining Instead Of Stanley Kubrick

Although Stanley Kubrick's 1980 horror film "The Shining" is frequently cited as one of the scariest films of all time, it's widely known that Stephen King — who wrote the 1977 novel on which it's based — hates it. Kubrick famously altered several details of King's book, and the author felt that the changes were arbitrary at best and insulting at worst. King wrote his story as the tale of an ordinary man who was gradually driven to madness. King expressed interest in gentler actors like Martin Sheen or Michael Moriarty for the role of Jack Torrance, feeling they would be sympathetic immediately. Kubrick, however, cast Jack Nicholson in the role, and King felt that Nicholson was already unstable from the jump. With Nicholson, it wasn't a tale of a sane man going insane, but an already-insane man cracking open. 

Kubrick, however, was already granted permission by Warner Bros., so he went ahead with the version of "The Shining" he preferred, much to King's consternation. To this day, King is still sour on the film, feeling his version was much better. Indeed, King prefers the 1997 TV miniseries directed by Mick Garris and starring Steven Weber, which is far more sensationalistic than Kubrick's famously ascetic version. 

By 1980, King was already a force to be reckoned with in Hollywood, having written the book that inspired Brian De Palma's hit film "Carrie." He also seemed to possess a cinematic mind, keeping an eye on directors who might be well-suited to handling his work. Back in 1978, King was interviewed by the Cinefantastique magazine, handily archived by the website Scraps from the Loft, and he gave his very explicit thoughts about Kubrick, "The Shining," and the director he preferred. King wanted Don Siegel.

The interviewer, Peter S. Perakos, got into the nitty-gritty with King who, at the time, was gearing up to publish his epic apocalyptic novel "The Stand." Perakos asked about the psychology of his works, pointing out that Kubrick had frequently been accused of including Freudian imagery in his films. King bristled at the assertion, saying: 

"Please believe me: nobody has a Freudian view of the relationship of man to his society. Not you, not me, not Kubrick, nobody. The whole concept is abysmally silly. And as a movie-goer, I don't give a tin whistle what a director thinks; I want to know what he sees. Most directors have good visual and dramatic instincts (most good directors, anyway), but in intellectual terms, they are pinheads, by and large. Nothing wrong in that; who wants a film director who's a utility infielder? Let them do their job, enjoy their work, but for Christ's sake, let's not see Freudianisms in the work of any film director. "

Already, King and Kubrick were at philosophical odds. King posited that only the Swedish master Ingmar Bergman could be said to approach his films with a psychological viewpoint, and even then, King noted that he was Jungian and not Freudian. He also idly posits that a version of "The Shining" made by Bergman would have been incredible.

King noted, though, that Kubrick was already talking about altering his novel very early in the production process. King claimed that Kubrick wanted Dick Halloran, the character played by Scatman Crothers, to stop Jack's mad attack on his family, only to become possessed himself and murder Danny and Wendy. King hated that. Luckily, the script, at that point, was still being rewritten. Kubrick took a long time to perfect his projects. 

Prakos also asked King about his extensive use of violence and posited that the blood and gore might be a deterrent for any potential filmmakers who might want to adapt his work. King agreed that his novels were indeed filled with violence, and all that was required in adaptation was a director who was capable of handling it. In his mind, that was the director of "Dirty Harry," Don Siegel. King said: 

"Violence is dynamite. It's a dangerous package to handle. It is all too easy to let violence dominate. A lot of good directors have floundered on that particular rock. And that's one of the reasons I like Don Siegel, because he handles violence well. I would have preferred Siegel to direct 'The Shining,' or perhaps 'Salem's Lot.' I believe he would be very successful directing 'Salem's Lot.'" 

Don Siegel, of course, was an old pro by the time of the interview, having directed his first feature, "The Verdict," in 1946. Siegel made notably manly films about criminals and prisoners, having helmed movies like "The Big Steal," "No Time for Flowers," and "Riot in Cell Block 11." In 1956, he made the immortal paranoid classic "Invasion of the Body Snatchers." Eventually, Siegel teamed up with actor Clint Eastwood, and the pair made five movies together, including "Coogan's Bluff," "Two Mules for Sister Sara," "The Beguiled," and, yes, "Dirty Harry." Siegel was a master of cold violence and grizzled masculinity. 

Siegel, no doubt, would have made a dynamic and humane version of "The Shining," and likely one that King would have more openly approved of. As it stands, however, King will have to live with the fact that Kubrick turned his book into one of the scariest movies of all time.