Exclusives
‘The Blair Witch Project’ Returns!? (Exclusive)
EXCLUSIVE: I’m hearing rumblings of some major happenings over at Lionsgate that I haven’t had a chance to confirm yet. But, now that you’re reading this, I’m officially poking the bear(s) in hopes of gaining clarity.
In a potential monstrous exclusive (please, no eggs to the face!), an insider is telling us that Lionsgate is already in production on a new entry to the The Blair Witch Project series!
Is it a remake? Is it a sequel? Is it a spinoff? We aren’t sure. BUT, it’s quite possible that the newly announced The Woods, which is being directed by Adam Wingard from a screenplay by Simon Barrett, is said film. We just don’t know for sure.
The Woods‘ plot is being kept very much under wraps, which only lends credence to this theory. What we know is that it does, “…involve a group of college students on a camping trip who discover they are not alone.” If that doesn’t sound like the perfect foundation for a new Blair Witch film, I don’t know what would!
If this story proves true, the new Blair Witch is being produced by Keith Calder and Jessica Wu of Snoot (You’re Next, The Guest), Roy Lee (Poltergeist, The Ring) and Steven Schneider (Paranormal Activity, Insidious). That’s quite a team!
Rumors about a third Blair Witch have been swirling for years. Back just this past January Blair Witch co-director Eduardo Sanchez said a sequel was inevitable.
The 1999 The Blair Witch Project made a whopping $248M at the box office, which had Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2, the non-found-footage sequel in theaters by 2000. It was a huge flop and canned the series for the past 15 years. To me, a third Blair Witch is a no-brainer, and always has been. How exciting would this be?!
And…could we finally see “The Witch” this time around?!
I’m going to see what I can find out this weekend and update the story accordingly.
Exclusives
‘The Haunting of Pennhurst’ Exclusive Clip Trains Scare Actors For Historic Haunt in Tribeca Doc
The past and present collide in haunting, poignant ways in the genre documentary The Haunting of Pennhurst, which sees a Halloween haunt serve as a reclamation of true historic horrors.
Ahead of its world premiere at the 25th Tribeca Film Festival, we have an exclusive clip that sees scare actors in training for the Halloween season. The catch? This haunt is opening at the historic Pennhurst State School & Hospital site, a facility that caused immense harm to its disabled patients over decades of its operation.
In the documentary, “For over seventy years, Pennhurst State School & Hospital was called a place of care. What happened inside killed over half its population. It closed in 1987, leaving behind unmarked graves and an unresolved history. Today, on those same grounds, disabled performers – many living with the same conditions that once sent people to Pennhurst – put on their makeup, pull on their costumes, and prepare to scare people for a living.
“Through grit, compassion, and buckets of blood, the eclectic performers of the Pennhurst Asylum haunted attraction are wrestling with a space that is at once a lucrative business and a gravesite.”
The upcoming documentary hails from directing trio Nathan Stenberg, Mike Attie, and Katarina Poljak, who explore their socially-relevant subject through archival footage, first-hand accounts, and an immersive verité.
“Pennhurst has haunted us since we first passed through its dragon-tooth gates; the horrors of the institution echo through the site today. We are so grateful to bring this film to the Tribeca Festival, particularly the Escape from Tribeca section, which feels right for a story where past and present bleed together. We hope audiences leave unnerved and asking the same uncomfortable questions we did,” Attie, Stenberg, and Poljak said in a statement.
Watch the clip below that sees disabled and neurodivergent scare actors learning the ropes of a Halloween haunt, reclaiming the site’s grim history in the process.
Tribeca Screenings:
- Public 1 (Premiere) Screening – Friday, June 5 at 9:15PM at Village East by Angelika
- Public 2 Screening – Sunday, June 7 at 3:15PM at Village East by Angelika
- Public 3 Screening – Tuesday, June 9 at 6:15PM at Village East by Angelika