For whatever reason, the Possession remake is still going ahead at Paramount, with Paul Dano (There Will Be Blood, Prisoners, The Batman) the latest to join the cast opposite Margaret Qualley (The Substance) and Callum Turner (Rose of Nevada).
From Smile director Parker Finn, Possession is a remake of Andrzej Żuławski's 1981 psychological horror classic starring Isabelle Adjani and Sam Neill as a couple enduring a painful separation in Cold War era Berlin.
The ever-eclectic Robert Pattinson is producing Possession, alongside Finn, Jonathan Fass via Bad Feeling, and Roy Lee and Andrew Childs via Vertigo. Marc Bienstock executive produces.
No news yet on who Dano's playing, but if Qualley is Anna (Adjani) and Turner is Mark (Neill), we could see Dano putting on his best German accent to play Heinrich (Heinz Bennent), Anna's lover.
While Dano is an incredible actor, we still can't help but wonder who exactly this Possession remake is for. The original film is held in such high regard among horror fans, and is now more accessible than ever thanks to the efforts of Shudder and boutique labels like Second Sight Films. Born from Żuławski's own traumatizing divorce, Possession is one of those films that's so deeply personal it would feel wrong in the hands of anyone other than its original creator, not to mention how inextricably tied it is thematically to its Cold War/Berlin setting.
Finn's Smile 2 was a big hit at the box office and garnered positive reviews, so it seems that Paramount evidently has enough trust in him to tackle the source material in a way that's at least going to be a hit financially. Time will tell if it holds a candle to the original.
Possession doesn't yet have a release date. Stay tuned for more updates.
