A video of Jack Nicholson in the moments before filming the iconic “Here’s Johnny!” axe scene in The Shining has resurfaced online.
Nicholson, who plays protagonist Jack Torrance in Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 adaptation of Stephen King’s novel of the same name, accepts a position as the winter caretaker of the Overlook Hotel in Colorado. But his mental state begins to detereorate when the evil spirits that inhabit the hotel convince him to attempt to murder his wife, Wendy (Shelley Duvall), and son Danny (Danny Lloyd).
The clip, originally posted in 2011, shows Nicholson gearing up for the climatic moment where his character hacks down a door with an axe in an attempt to kill his wife. The actor can be seen jumping up and down, shouting “axe murderer”, repeatedly. Moments later, he would improvise the line, “Here’s Johnny!”, which is considered one of the most famous moments in cinema history.
A sequel to Kubrick’s film is set to be released later this year. Called Doctor Sleep, the Mike Flanagan-directed film is an adaption of Stephen King’s 2013 novel, and takes place 40 years after the events of The Shining.
Watch the video below.