Set at the fictional Overlook Hotel in the Colorado Rockies, The Shining is one Stephen King story that doesn’t actually connect to the fictional town of Castle Rock, Maine. And yet, as the Hulu series “Castle Rock” mentioned early on, Jane Levy‘s character is named Jackie Torrance, which was either a fun Easter egg or hint at a meaningful connection to The Shining.
This week’s brand new episode, ‘The Harvest,’ confirms that it’s more than mere homage.
Halfway through the episode, Jackie is having a conversation in a car with The Kid, wherein she reminiscences about the town’s evil heyday: “This town is so blah. People bitch about the bad old days, when there were like serial killers and psychopathic dogs… but I would give my left tit to go back there,” Jackie tells him, before digging into her own interesting past.
“I had this uncle though,” she begins. “He was a writer too. One winter he just flipped his lid and tried to axe murder his wife and kids in a fancy ski resort. And my folks will never talk to me about it. So I took his name… to piss them off. My real name’s Diane.”
Yes, Jane Levy is playing Jack Torrance’s niece in “Castle Rock,” Diane Torrance! The character is a brand new addition to the Stephen King Universe, created for the Hulu series.
What’s interesting about The Shining existing within the world of “Castle Rock” is that Molly Strand seems to have the ability to “shine,” so we may be digging more into that connection in the weeks to come. Anything is possible in the creepy town of Castle Rock…