Following the success of Obsession and Backrooms, it seems studio execs aren't wasting no time hunting for the next big Internet horror hit, as Deadline reveals today that viral YouTube series The Mandela Catalogue is the latest to get a big screen adaptation.
United Artists‘ Scott Stuber, Amazon MGM Studios, and the legendary Steven Spielberg for Amblin have won the rights after what Deadline describes as a highly competitive 11-studio bidding war. The Mandela Catalogue creator Alex Kister will direct from a screenplay he adapted with Tyler Clifton.
For those uninitiated with The Mandela Catalogue, the series, which originated on YouTube in 2021, is set in the fictional Mandela County, WI, and follows the malevolent escapades of shape-shifting, uncanny doppelgängers called Alternates. Since its debut, The Mandela Catalogue has amassed over 100 million views, birthing an entire universe of lore including spin-offs, reaction videos and a fanbase dedicated to analyzing and dissecting each episode and its religious themes.
As mentioned, Amazon is clearly looking to the success of Kane Parsons' Backrooms, which along with The Mandela Catalogue is considered to be one of the main titles in the ‘analog horror' genre, which is hugely popular among the youth these days. Clearly hoping for a similar box office result to Backrooms, Amazon is the latest to get in on the meme-turned-movie trend following yesterday's announcement that a Siren Head adaptation is in the works at Warner Bros.
Per Deadline, Spielberg and Holly Bario are producing The Mandela Catalog for Amblin Entertainment alongside Aaron B. Koontz for Paper Street Pictures and Stuber and Nick Nesbitt for United Artists. Kister and Clifton are also producing.
Stay tuned for more on The Mandela Catalogue as we get it. And remember, if you see another person that looks identical to you, run away and hide.
