Doctor Sleep: 10 Questions We Still Have About The Sequel To The Shining

Doctor Sleep, the eagerly anticipated sequel to Stephen King’s novel was recently released, filling in the last several decades of time after the horrifying events contained in ’77s The Shining. It’s also the equally anticipated sequel to Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 film by the same name, though it bears less resemblance to that film. Instead, it draws the bulk of its inspiration from King’s novel, and therefore goes into more depth about the psychic powers referred to in “the shining”, and what they have meant to Danny during his adult years.

We meet Danny again after he’s fled with his mother to Florida, and we learn that in the years following he dulls his “shine” with self-destructive habits including drugs and alcohol. He has to revisit his horrifying past when another young girl with his same abilities is in danger, and the only way to save her seems to indicate a return to where the pain began; the Overlook Hotel. But viewers of Kubrick’s film that haven’t read King’s novels will be at a disadvantage as they make sense of what exactly “the shining” is, as well as the nature of its powers, and the vampiric beings that want to possess it. Here are 10 we still have about the sequel to The Shining. 

10 WHY DIDN’T THE TRUE KNOT FIND DANNY IN FLORIDA?

After the horrific events of The Shining, Wendy and Danny moved to Florida “where they would never see snow again”. Danny was stilled haunted by the ghosts from the Overlook Hotel several years later, attracted to his shining. Around this time, members of the True Knot, a group of shine vampires were present in the area as well, and should have been able to sense Danny’s psychic energy.

After Dick Halloran approached Danny and told him to keep a low profile and dull his shine, they still should have been able to sense him, as he didn’t start abusing drugs and alcohol to get the job done for many years. Dick told him not to directly use any of his gifts in a blatant way that would attract attention, but then also told him how to construct mental lockboxes to deal with the Overlook ghosts.

9 WHAT HAPPENED TO TURN DANNY INTO AN ALCOHOLIC?

We know that Danny was an alcoholic, because in his own words being a belligerent drunk was the only way that Danny could feel a closer connection to his late father. But what if he was really trying to dull his shine? Halloran didn’t expressly tell him how, but the True Knot explained they couldn’t sense shine as much among adults who had polluted their powers with drugs and alcohol and unhealthy living.

8 CAN ONLY THE TRUE KNOT SEE A PERSON’S SHINE?

When members of the True Knot feed on a young person, they inflict violence on them so they scream and emit steam, their life force essence that contains all their psychic power. The shine vampires then feed on it and absorb the powers into themselves. It not only increases their abilities but it also perpetuates their long lives.

Can only a True Knot member or people with the shine see the steam emanate from a victim? Are they also the only people that can sense if a person has the shining? And does their lust for it come from becoming a member, or could anyone with the shining decide they want to drink up another person’s gift?

7 CAN ANIMALS SHINE?

In the hospice facility where Dan becomes a caretaker, a cat named Azzie prowls the hallways and slips into the rooms of patients who are about to die. The patients know when Azzie sits on the end of their bed that their time is up. At first, Dan doesn’t think anything about Azzie’s gift, but could it be indicative that animals can possess the shining?

Animals often seem to have a sixth sense when their loved ones are sick or near death, and often they themselves seem to know when it’s time to go. They often remove themselves from their surroundings and find a dark place to pass over, where no predators can find them. Perhaps Azzie was just being a normal cat, or perhaps there’s something more special about him after all.

6 WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT PSYCHIC ABILITIES?

In Doctor Sleep, Rose the Hat is the first member of the True Knot cohort to use the term “pusher” and “looker” to describe others’ with the shining. The labels seem to indicate that they each have specific abilities. A pusher seems to be able to convince individuals to perform certain tasks against their will, including making them commit suicide.

A looker, which Rose used to describe Abra, seemed to be someone who could see across great distances in great detail. It isn’t stated what Danny is, but he is capable of psychic feats of extraordinary power. Who knows how many others with the shining there are, and what unique things they can do.

5 WHAT DID ABRA FIND IN ROSE’S MIND LIBRARY?

Rose uses her powers of astral projection to float across the country and into Abra’s bedroom, where she thinks she’ll be able to invade the girl’s mind. While she’s accessing Abra’s “mental library” in the form of a series of filing cabinets, she declares that hers is even more impressive, the size of “a cathedral”.

Abra suddenly appears, her eyes white, laughing at Rose and shutting her hand into one of the filing cabinets. While Rose tries to wrench herself free, Abra infiltrates Rose’s “mental cathedral”, and digs through her mind’s library for information about shine vampires. What does she find? Doctor Sleep never fully explains, and the information doesn’t come up again.

4 WHY COULD THE WOMAN IN ROOM 237 STILL HAUNT ABRA?

After Danny helps Abra escape and uses the boiler to destroy the Overlook Hotel once and for all, we think all of the ghosts of its guests will finally be at rest. Which is why it’s so surprising to see the woman from Room 237 haunting Abra when she gets home. If the hotel was destroyed, why wasn’t she?

A possible answer is that the ghosts weren’t tied to the hotel, and whether it was still standing or destroyed didn’t matter. Besides, Danny released all the guests from his mental prison to attack Rose. They simply went after whomever they felt had the shining, and fed on its energy. Abra uses the trick Danny taught her to lock the woman in her own mental box from which she can never break free.

3 HOW LONG CAN DANNY AND ABRA COMMUNICATE?

When the Overlook Hotel was destroyed, Danny was killed in the ensuing explosion and fire. Dick Halloran explained to him that no one ever really leaves, so he’s able to appear to Abra at the end of the film and appease her doubts and discomfort. He’s passed on to a plane of existence that no one can understand.

Dick Halloran only came to Danny twice, and on the last occasion, he said it would be his last. Will Danny continue to visit Abra as she grows up, or is that not a possibility? Can only people with the shining return to communicate with their loved ones? A sequel may explain it further.

2 WHAT WAS THE POINT OF BURNING DOWN THE OVERLOOK NOW?

At the end of Doctor Sleep, the abandoned Overlook Hotel burns down because Dan overloaded the boiler on purpose. It’s thought that by destroying the hotel, it won’t be able to possess anyone else. However, spirits are still able to escape because the woman from Room 237 still attaches herself to Abra.

So what was the point of destroying the Overlook? It was abandoned, and probably not in any condition to possess anyone else unless someone with the shining (like Dan) came back to it. The only purpose its destruction could serve was to rectify the ending of The Shining film, which differs from the Stephen King novel where Jack Torrance’s negligence of the boiler destroys it after Danny, Wendy, and Dick Halloran escape.

1 WILL OTHER SHINE VAMPIRES COME FOR ABRA?

When Danny reappears to Abra at the end of Doctor Sleep, he explains to her that he was wrong to make her dull her shine. She shouldn’t try to extinguish her gifts but embrace them, and use them to make her life and those around her better. Perhaps so that she can have a more fulfilling life than he did.

By telling her to “shine on”, will other shine vampires be drawn to her? Rose the Hat explained to Abra that there are many more of her kind, and that they’ll never stop being drawn to the raw power she possesses. Is it truly safe for Abra to become a beacon of psychic energy knowing she’s basically putting a huge target on herself?

About The Author

Kayleena Pierce-Bohen
(1344 Articles Published)

Kayleena has been raised on Star Wars and Indiana Jones from the crib. A film buff, she has a Western collection of 250+ titles and counting that she’s particularly proud of. When she isn’t writing for ScreenRant, CBR, or The Gamer, she’s working on her fiction novel, lifting weights, going to synthwave concerts, or cosplaying. With degrees in anthropology and archaeology, she plans to continue pretending to be Lara Croft as long as she can.

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