Ridley Scott on How ‘The Shining’ and ‘The Odd Couple’ Influenced ‘The Dog Stars’

In Ridley Scott‘s dystopian thriller “The Dog Stars,” mechanic and pilot Hig (Jacob Elordi) spends much of the movie trying to reach Grand Junction, where he hopes to find some semblance of civilization in the barren world he lives in. As Hig gets closer to his goal, his — and the audience’s — sense of anticipation intensifies, to the point that Scott knew he had to come up with a great payoff. The only problem: that payoff wasn’t working for him as written.

“I didn’t like what we had in the script,” Scott told IndieWire on an upcoming episode of the Filmmaker Toolkit podcast. Knowing that the Grand Junction sequence required something eerie and audacious, Scott turned to one of his favorite films for inspiration. “One night I was watching ‘The Shining,’ and Jack [Nicholson], who is a serious alcoholic, walks into the empty bar and imagines getting a drink. And the imaginary bartender says, ‘What’ll it be?'”

Scott was reminded that he had cast that bartender, Joe Turkel, as tycoon Eldon Tyrell in “Blade Runner” after seeing Stanley Kubrick’s horror film. (Kubrick also gave Scott some of his “Shining” outtakes to use in “Blade Runner” when the studio pushed Scott to give the film a happy ending — the lush woods Harrison Ford and Sean Young drive through at the climax were trims from Kubrick’s editing room floor.) He was also reminded of how effective Kubrick was at generating a sense of unease, and suddenly knew how he could make the Grand Junction set piece something special.

“I wanted to get out of the grunge and have something different,” Scott said of the sequence’s tonal shift, in which the Grand Junction airport becomes an art deco oasis in the middle of a post-apocalyptic wasteland — an oasis that’s ultimately the most horrific location in the film. The combination of symmetrical beauty and unsettling horror in Kubrick’s film made it a clear reference point for Scott when communicating with his department heads.

“I said, ‘Shining,'” Scott said of his guidance for production designer Chris Seavers, who was tasked with creating the creepy airport where off-kilter flight attendant Allison Janney lures the film’s heroes to potential doom. “I needed the third act to have a remarkable sanctuary where the siren welcomes you in. She’s like a pirate on the rocks. It’s been a base for private aircraft, so there’s good food, nice restrooms, massage tables, and a bar. But they can carry human meat, so…there’s all the horror of that.”

‘The Dog Stars’©20th Century Studios/Courtesy Everett Collection

It’s emblematic of the film’s wild combination of tones and styles — and of Scott’s varied tastes — that “The Dog Stars” also draws from a film that’s about as far from Kubrick and “The Shining” as you can get: Gene Saks’ 1968 adaptation of Neil Simon’s “The Odd Couple.” Scott looked to that comedy as a reference point when directing the scenes between Hig and survivalist Bangley (Josh Brolin), with whom he shares a bunker. Like Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon in “The Odd Couple,” Scott wanted Elordi and Brolin to come across as a variation on a bickering old married couple, an idea that gives his grim sci-fi tale an essential dose of levity.

“I think Walter Matthau said to Jack Lemmon, ‘If you clean that ashtray one more time, I will brain you with it,'” Scott said. “In a way, right there is the dynamic between [Hig and Bangley].” Scott allowed Elordi and Brolin to play with their dialogue and relationship and captured it all using four to six cameras at a time, an approach Scott says frees the actors up for happy accidents and helps give life to the humor. “They’re finding it on the open stage, where they’re covered from every direction.”

Scott says that casting is the most important part of directing actors; once they’re cast, he gives them full authority over their characters. “I make the actor my partner,” Scott said. “I will never ask them what they think.  I’ll just say, ‘I know you’ve read it. I know you’ve prepped it. And we’re just gonna shoot it. Let’s see what you’ve got.’ Suddenly they’re turned loose on the floor — and there’s a freedom in that.”

“The Dog Stars” opens in theaters on August 28. The Ridley Scott episode of Filmmaker Toolkit will air later this summer. To hear the entire conversation and make sure you don’t miss a single episode of Filmmaker Toolkit, subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or your favorite podcast platform.