Stephen King Deeply Disappoints The Star Of His Adaptation
Everyone is familiar with the Stanly Kubrick adaptation of Stephen King’s novel The Shining, but there is also the lesser-known 1997 miniseries that starred Steven Weber in the role of Jack Torrance, played by Jack Nicholson in the Kubrick film. Weber recently appeared on an episode of the Inside of You podcast, where he recalled a slightly disappointing moment he had with King himself.
Steven Weber had an issue with a line The Shining, so he asked Stephen King about it, and was disappointed by the answer.
In the interview, Weber said, “There was a portion of the book that I couldn’t understand… and I asked [Stephen King] what it meant,” adding, “And I thought, ‘Great, I’ve got a living author downstairs. What does this mean, Steve?’ And basically, he was, like, ‘Yeah, this line is about a bottle of wine, and this is because I was standing over a carpet that had a color that intrigued me, and this — I was drunk.’ And I was, like, ‘Oh. Thanks, Steve.'”
Of course, Weber laughed about the anecdote and went on to say that Stephen King is a great guy, but it’s funny to learn that even iconic lines in iconic books don’t always have the most profound meanings behind them.
“There was a portion of the book that I couldn’t understand… and I asked [Stephen King] what it meant. And I thought, ‘Great, I’ve got a living author downstairs. What does this mean, Steve?’ And basically, he was, like, ‘Yeah, this line is about a bottle of wine, and this is because I was standing over a carpet that had a color that intrigued me, and this — I was drunk.’ And I was, like, ‘Oh. Thanks, Steve.'”
Steven Weber
King is a highly prolific author with an incredibly consistent output quality despite the number of books he releases. Understandably, his writing style doesn’t necessarily lend itself to poring over each and every line.
While Stephen King may not be as been satisfied with the film version of The Shining, he is likely happy with at least some of the adaptations of his work.
The Shining miniseries is an interesting entry to Hollywood history, as it was obviously always going to be compared to the gargantuan cultural phenomenon that was Kubrick’s adaptation. Famously, Stephen King wasn’t a fan of the Kubrick adaptation, so it wasn’t surprising that he wanted a more faithful version of one of his most iconic novels. King took it upon himself to write the TV miniseries adaptation, which Mick Garris directed.
Stephen King’s version of The Shining would air on ABC in 1997 and was met with fairly decent reviews, with fans of the book appreciating the more faithful adaption of the source material and the high production values. Steven Weber also brought his own unique flavor to the role of Jack Torrance, and his performance was praised.
Of course, it would never become as big as the Kubrick film, but it’s still worth a watch to see the differences between the two and see what King wanted out of an on-screen version of The Shining.
More Stephen King Adaptations Are In Production
While Stephen King may not be as been satisfied with the film version of The Shining, he is likely happy with at least some of the adaptations of his work. There have been a ton of TV shows and movies adapted from his work, and there are still more on the way. With that many projects coming out, you have to imagine he enjoyed at least a portion of them.
In fact, there are currently seven TV shows and a whopping eighteen films at some stage of development for Stephen King’s work, and there are sure to be more to come. These films also have big names attached as directors, such as Mike Flanagan, Scott Derrickson, James Wan, Bryan Fuller, and Edgar Wright.
It remains to be seen which of these films get further along in the development stage, but we’ll keep you updated on all upcoming King adaptations either way.
