How Jack Nicholson Upset Stanley Kubrick on the Set of ‘The Shining’

Sometimes, celebrities clash in amusing ways. Jack Nicholson and Stanley Kubrick might be most widely known today for their work on The Shining. On one level, the two cinematic icons seemed to get along. But Nicholson once made Kubrick extremely upset when Nicholson left the production for a while for reasons that were less than honorable.

Why Jack Nicholson left the set of Stanley Kubrick’s ‘The Shining’

During a 2016 interview with The Guardian, electrician Bob Tanswell discussed his experiences working on The Shining. “I’d heard of Stanley Kubrick but didn’t realize how special he was,” he said. “He’d do 150 takes of a simple scene.”

“One time, Jack said he had done his back in and needed a few days off,” Tanswell added. “That’s a lot of time when you’re shooting a big film, but Stanley said, ‘OK.’ The next day, we were in the sparks room watching Wimbledon [Championship] when Stanley walks in. He asks what we’re up to and as he turns to look at the telly, there he is: Jack Nicholson sat in the crowd with a girl on either side. Stanley went mad.”

Bob Tanswell discussed the relationship between Jack Nicholson and Stanley Kubrick

Tanswell said that he had a good relationship with Kubrick. “We played chess now and then,” he recalled. “He’d slaughter me. Some people were scared of him because he could make or break a career. Not Jack, though. 

“Jack called him ‘Stan’ to wind him up,” he added. “You could call him ‘Stanley,’ ‘Mr. Kubrick,’ or ‘Guv,’ just not ‘Stan.’ But they liked each other.” It’s interesting that people took Kubrick so seriously at the time considering that his reputation has only grown and grown in the 25 years since his death.

How the world reacted to ‘The Shining’

So, how did the public react to the movie? Box Office Mojo reports that The Shining had a budget of $19 million and earned over $47 million worldwide. It was a hit, but a modest hit at best. Reviews for the film were not enthusiastic, especially considering all the hype that preceded it. Looking at the film’s gross and critical reception, few would imagine that it would become a cultural touchstone. 

However, Kubrick’s movies tend to stand the test of time. 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, and Eyes Wide Shut are more culturally important now than they were decades ago. Recent movies like Everything Everywhere All at Once and Barbie feature many references to Kubrick’s filmography.

The Shining, in particular, has had a massive impact on the horror genre. It inspired a lot of later films that had a slow, deliberate pace or that combined horror with surrealism. It’s hard to imagine filmmakers like Jane Schoenbrun, Mike Flanagan, or Ari Aster existing without the influence of The Shining. The film also had an impact on a lot of disturbing internet content, such as Creepypasta and analog horror. In other words, The Shining matters a lot more than many other films from the 1980s that made far more money in theaters.

There were some shenanigans off the set of The Shining — but that didn’t stop it from becoming one of the greatest films of all time.