Jack Torrance made a memorable surprise return in the theatrical cut of Doctor Sleep, but he actually gets more to do in the director’s cut. Going into the release of Doctor Sleep, fans were unsure if the Jack Torrance character would have any real presence in the film. While Jack’s ghost plays a role in Stephen King’s Doctor Sleep book, his characterization wasn’t nearly as dark in King’s The Shining book as it was in Stanley Kubrick’s iconic film version of the story, which the Doctor Sleep movie also acts as a sequel to.
Also, no casting announcements for Jack were made, and no pre-release confirmation occurred that the character would appear in Doctor Sleep. That turned out to be a case of wanting to save the surprise for theaters, as those who went to see Doctor Sleep got treated to an unexpected cameo by Jack, as played by Henry Thomas. While it certainly would’ve been nice to see Jack Nicholson reprise his role, he’s retired from acting, and also (understandably) looks much, much older now than he did in 1980. Since Jack is a ghost, a recasting was necessary.
When Doctor Sleep director Mike Flanagan revealed that a 3-hour director’s cut of the film was coming, many fans naturally wondered if this meant more time with Jack Torrance. Thankfully, that turned out to be the case.
Jack Torrance’s Role In Doctor Sleep’s Director’s Cut Explained
In the theatrical cut of Doctor Sleep, Danny Torrance returns to The Overlook Hotel to wake it up before the arrival of villain Rose the Hat. One of the last things he does is have a chat with the ghost of his father Jack, who’s playing the role of Lloyd the bartender, and tries to convince his recovering alcoholic son to have a drink. Danny wants to talk to his dad about what became of Wendy Torrance, but Jack seems to only have flashes of awareness of who he was in life, and disappears after Danny refuses to fall off the wagon.
The same basic scene happens in the director’s cut of Doctor Sleep, but the exchange is quite a bit longer, and it becomes a bit more apparent that more of the old Jack - albeit his bad side - might still be in there. Danny also reveals more about Wendy’s last days, and Jack gives a longer speech about the things that drive a man to drink. After Danny refuses to imbibe and Jack smack the glass away, he apologizes, then offers to clean the whiskey off Danny’s jacket.
This transitions to a reworking of the classic Shining scene in which Jack spoke to Delbert Grady inside the Overlook’s odd bright red bathroom, which was totally absent from the theatrical cut. Jack seems a bit more aware of who he once was here, but it’s likely only due to the Overlook wanting to leverage his family connection to manipulate Danny. Jack does his best to try and convince his son to no longer involve himself with Abra, and to bring her inside the Overlook so that the hotel’s hungry ghosts can feed upon her shine. Thankfully, he doesn’t take the bait. While this scene is well acted and written, the multiple straight-on closeups of Jack make it exceedingly obvious how little Henry Thomas looks like Jack Nicholson, and one wonders if that’s why it was ultimately cut from the theatrical version of Doctor Sleep.
More: The Shining’s Danny Has A Cameo In Doctor Sleep
