Finn Wittrock Totally Gets 'The Shining' Vibe in 'AHS: Double Feature'
Season 10 of 'American Horror Story,' dubbed 'Double Feature,' is about a writer and his family in a creepy seaside town, not unlike the plot to 'The Shining.'
Aug. 27 2021, Published 1:51 p.m. ET
Spoiler warning: This article contains spoilers for Episodes 1 and 2 of AHS: Double Feature.
If you were able to stomach the first two episodes of American Horror Story: Double Feature, then you might understand the vibe it gives off right away: think The Shining meets modern-day vampires.
And Finn Wittrock, who stars in Season 10 as Harry, a struggling TV writer, definitely understands the inspirations behind the season and the iconic horror film.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly following the season premiere, Finn compared AHS Season 10 to The Shining. He admitted that he's a fan of the Stanley Kubrick movie based on the eponymous Stephen King novel.
Since the plot to Double Feature revolves around a writer, his family, and the creepy mental corruption he undergoes while stuck in a seaside town, it gives off plenty The Shining vibes.
Finn Wittrock feels 'AHS: Double Feature' is similar to 'The Shining.'
In the interview, Finn said that he thought of The Shining often while filming AHS: Double Feature.
"The Shining is one of my favorite movies of all time, so it's never far off my mind," he told the outlet. "I don't think I gave it a specific re-watch for this, but it was definitely in my thoughts as I was working on [the season]. The type of fear that The Shining induces is the type of fear we're going for, which is, I guess, fear of the unknown."
The actor also teased that part of the horror of Double Feature's first part, Red Tide, offers a kind of psychological fear to viewers, saying, "there's monsters outside and then there's monsters inside," in reference to the mind.
Which isn't unlike what plays out in The Shining. While the "vampires" in the show are still a mystery at the top of the season, they're definitely part of that outside horror.
Is 'AHS' Season 10 inspired by 'The Shining'?
There's no doubt that Red Tide in AHS Season 10 has similarities to The Shining. A struggling writer? Check. A wife and kid who become the subject of said writer's reign of terror? Check again. Creepy outside forces that threaten to make viewers question everything? Another big check.
American Horror Story co-creator Ryan Murphy has shown an affinity for The Shining before.
In 2015, he spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about comparisons between Season 4 of AHS, subtitled Hotel, and The Shining. On a tour of the set, he explained that the carpeting in the hotel set wasn't a rip-off of The Shining, but instead "a loving homage."
Could it be that Red Tide in AHS: Double Feature is also a love letter to the movie?
Ryan hasn't said as much, but Finn's admissions of his own comparisons definitely make sense.
Watch American Horror Story on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET on FX.
