Bryan Cranston recreates Jack Nicholson’s crazed axe rampage from The Shining in a new Mountain Dew Zero Sugar Super Bowl 2020 ad. Even though it was released way back in 1980, Stanley Kubrick’s classic adaptation of Stephen King’s novel The Shining continues to exert a strong hold on the pop culture consciousness, inspiring everything from hilarious deepfakes to disturbing sequels.

King of course has revisited The Shining himself, penning the sequel Doctor Sleep, which continued the story of Danny Torrance decades after the horrific events in the Overlook Hotel. Mike Flanagan directed the 2019 movie of Doctor Sleep, starring Ewan McGregor as Torrance, but unlike the recent King adaptation IT the movie failed to scare up a huge audience at the box office. Not only did Doctor Sleep pick up the story of Danny Torrance, it also recreated and re-contextualized certain key scenes from Kubrick’s The Shining, serving as both sequel and homage (to the film’s detriment in many people’s eyes). In a lighter vein, YouTube deepfake artist Ctrl Shift Face also paid homage to The Shining in a hilarious video that replaced Jack Nicholson with Jim Carrey.

Now, Mountain Dew Zero Sugar is getting in on this recent Shining mini-craze with their own recreation of a classic scene from the movie, and they’re recruited Breaking Bad star Cranston to help out. The Super Bowl clip features Cranston going insane with an axe - and a bottle of Mountain Dew Zero Sugar - just like Nicholson in the original film. Tracee Ellis Ross also shows up to do her best Shelley Duvall impression but with a twist. See the clip in the space below:

Of course, though Nicholson’s rampage in The Shining is horrifying in the context of the story, on the screen it plays out more as macabre comedy thanks to the actor’s over-the-top performance. That comedy element naturally comes out more in Mountain Dew’s take on the movie as Cranston does his best Nicholson impression, stalking through the Overlook Hotel with an axe and finally breaking down the door to the bathroom where Ross has hidden herself. But when it comes time for Cranston to utter the famous line “Here’s Johnny,” the ad does the obvious and has him offer Ross a Mountain Dew. Things then take a genuinely disturbing turn when the Shining twins show up for a cameo, and they are both played by Cranston.

As Super Bowl ads go, the spot is solid though maybe not particularly buzzworthy (unlike the recent Mr. Peanut spot that was supposed to launch a viral #RIPeanut campaign until the tragic death of Kobe Bryant put Planters’ plans on hold). The presence of Cranston certainly boosts Mountain Dew’s The Shining spot in terms of prestige, and it’s undoubtedly fun to see Cranston channeling Nicholson, and horror fans will no doubt be tickled by the ad’s homage to one of the most famous scenes in genre history.

More: Doctor Sleep: 5 Reasons Why It’s Better Than The Shining (& 5 Why It’s Not)

Source: Mountain Dew