Ben Stiller as Jack Torrance in Stephen King’s The Shining?

By RodneyHatfieldJr for Movies

Yep you read that right. And yes I was surprised, but not for the reason most are. I will admit my favorite Shining is the miniseries with Steven Webber. Kubrick’s Shining is classic but for different reasons. The miniseries is more accurate, and it covers more of the things happening at the Overlook. Both are quality films, and both should be in your movie collections. However, Ben Stiller might be good.


How many movies and tv shows have we watched Ben Stiller lose his proverbial mind? I can see him transfer nicely to the role of losing his sanity as Jack Torrance in The Shining. Both Jack Nicholson in Kubrick's adaptation and Steven Webber in Garris’s adaptation have played the role of Jack Torrance in their very unique ways. Now, it appears that Stiller will take on the role for the upcoming stage adaptation of Stephen King’s The Shining.


Ivo Van Hove is set to direct the stage adaptation which is said to be much closer to the Stephen King work. Meaning it might be more of a faithful adaptation than what Garris managed in his go. Hard to imagine a more faithful adaptation. 


If you live under a rock and don’t already know, here is the synopsis for The Shining:


Jack Torrance becomes a winter caretaker at the isolated Overlook Hotel in Colorado, hoping to cure his writer’s block. He settles in along with his wife, Wendy, and his son, Danny, who is plagued by psychic premonitions. As Jack’s writing goes nowhere and Danny’s visions become more disturbing, Jack discovers the hotel’s dark secrets and begins to unravel into a homicidal maniac hell-bent on terrorizing his family.


The stage adaptation plans to rehearse with an opening in January 2023 in London’s West End.

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