Imagine me affecting an “Oscar Isaac in Star Wars” voice when I write this: somehow, the Amityville Horror has returned. Deadline reports that Joseph and Vanessa Winter, the writer-director duo behind 2022’s found footage horror Deadstream, are working on a new film in the famed haunted house franchise, appropriately titled Amityville.
While plot details are under wraps for the new installment, Deadline refers to the project as a “radical new spin” on the story originally covered in Stuart Rosenberg’s 1979 film, based on the book of the same name. The Winters are set to direct the film from their own script, with Raphael Margules and J.D. Lishitz producing for BoulderLight Pictures, the studio behind Barbarian, and Adam Hendricks and Greg Gilreath producing for Divide/Conquer, who brought Heart Eyes to our screens.
According to Deadline, neither of the real-life paranormal stories that inspired the original tale — those being the murders committed by Ronald DeFeo Jr. in 1974 and the Lutz family fleeing the house after supposed paranormal activity just a year later — will factor into this new version of the story.
If you know anything about the public domain legend that inspired Jay Anson’s 1977 novel, then you’ll know this new project is just the latest in a long line of Amityville-inspired projects. In print, Anson’s novel was expanded upon in a series of novels by John G. Jones, including The Amityville Horror Part II, Amityville: The Final Chapter, Amityville: The Evil Escapes, and Amityville: The Horror Returns.
As for films, there are eight that compromise the original franchise, including the original starring James Brolin and Margot Kidder, as well as the 2005 remake starring Ryan Reynolds. But the name Amityville is probably better known for its association with numerous independent films, which number a whopping fifty-seven in total, including incredibly titled films such as Amityville Shark House, Amityville Glory Hole, Amityville Job Interview, and Amityville Death Toilet.
No release date has been set for the new Amityville film. Stay tuned to FANGORIA for more updates.
