‘The police came because of the sea of red gore’: unseen photos from the set of The Shining

Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining has legions of admirers the world over – not the least Lee Unkrich, director of Pixar classics including Toy Story 3 and Coco. Unkrich spent years collecting pictures, artefacts and stories about the making of the film, uncovering deleted scenes and getting to grips with its most obscure details. Here are a collection of unseen photographs from his forthcoming book about the 1980 horror classic

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  • Jack Nicholson and Stanley Kubrick on the Overlook Lobby set at Elstree Studios, with sound recordist Ivan Sharrock.
    Jack Nicholson and Stanley Kubrick on the Overlook Lobby set at Elstree Studios, with sound recordist Ivan Sharrock.

  • “Stanley was extremely nervous,” said Leon Vitali, actor and personal assistant to Kubrick, of the infamous blood elevator shoot. “We didn’t know if it was going to work. It was a one-off. We had thousands of gallons of this stuff that was going to be coming out of those elevator doors and it had to work … It was so beautiful you wanted to hug [him].” To the horror of nearby residents, a good deal of the blood allegedly escaped from the studio into the surrounding areas, and police were called to address the sea of red gore running through town.
    Blood gushes through elevator doors

  • Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd and Jack Nicholson film a rear screen projection shot of the Torrance family driving to the Overlook in a Volkswagen Beetle.
    Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd and Jack Nicholson film a rear screen projection shot of the Torrance family driving to the Overlook in a Volkswagen Beetle.

  • The Burns twins – in wardrobe – outside the Hedge Maze set. Kubrick had planned on filming them in the maze for one of Danny’s visions, but never ended up doing so. “I don’t remember being very fond of the dresses,” recalled Lisa Burns. “Stiff, awful stuff!”
    The Burns twins in wardrobe

  • A deleted shot of Wendy Torrance taking Polaroids of Danny in the centre of the hedge maze.
    Wendy Torrance taking Polaroids of Danny in the centre of the hedge maze

  • A deleted shot of Jack Torrance being drawn into the scrapbook that outlines all the sordid details of the Overlook Hotel’s past. “It’s where Jack puts himself in the power of the evil force that from then on will drive the action,” said script co-writer Diane Johnson.
    Jack Torrance Looking at the scrapbook of the Overlook Hotel’s past.

  • Kubrick’s lipstick handwriting on a test door.
    Kubrick’s lipstick handwriting on a test door.

  • Duvall and Nicholson rehearse for a breakfast-in-bed scene, photographed by Kubrick.
    Shelley Duvall and Jack Nicholson rehearse for a breakfast-in-bed scene, photographed by Kubrick.

  • Nicholson in a partial Hedge Maze set. Nicholson had his head propped against a wooden brace to help keep it stock-still; he was in full frozen makeup and wore a wetsuit under his clothes to protect him from the cold and the snow. Hot water bottles lined the underside of his body.
    Jack Nicholson sitting in snow

  • Kubrick films Duvall and Danny Lloyd racing into the Hedge Maze. When filming in the Maze set, cast and crew were given maps to avoid getting hopelessly lost.
    Stanley Kubrick films Shelley Duvall and Danny Lloyd racing into the hedge maze
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