In celebration of Stephen King finally liking a superhero film in the form of DC’s The Flash, Guardians of the Galaxy director and DC Studios’ co-head James Gunn went on to Twitter just to prove that the superhero genre could crossover to the horror scene.
Gunn shared an image of Karen Gillan and her stunt double during the shooting of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. The director left a simple caption that reads, “The Shining ’23,” a reference to a horror film based on one of King’s novels. The image has a strong striking resemblance to the Grady Twins, characters from both the books and films that were killed by their father and haunt the Overlook Hotel.
King has not responded to Gunn’s tweet that referenced his iconic horror novel. However, fans had a good laugh seeing that the director was able to recreate one of the most iconic scenes in horror cinema.
King attended the advanced screening for DC’s The Flash, despite his history of him claiming that he isn’t a fan of the superhero films. The author gave the film positive reviews and Gunn confirmed his attendance, because fans were understandably a little sketpical. The author’s comments are one of many praises this DC blockbuster received thanks to early screenings.
During CinemaCon 2023, The Flash had a worldwide premiere, which featured a near-complete cut of the film. Despite its incomplete nature, audiences praised Ezra Miller’s performance despite his controversies and claimed that this was the best superhero film they’ve seen. Critics did warn keen moviegoers to take these praises with a grain of salt and to wait until the film comes out on June 16, 2023.