Movies
Paramount’s ‘Monster Problems’ Moves from March to April 2020
Michael Rooker (Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, “The Walking Dead,” Guardians of the Galaxy) is starring alongside Dylan O’Brien in Paramount Players’ upcoming Monster Problems, a new monster movie being produced by Shawn Levy’s 21 Laps (“Stranger Things”). The film was set for release on March 6, 2020 but has now been pushed back to April 17, 2020.
Michael Matthews (Five Fingers for Marseilles) is directing the film.
Rooker plays Clyde, an expert hunter who teaches Joel Dawson (O’Brien) how to survive the Monster Apocalypse.
Brian Duffield & Matthew Robinson wrote the script, described as “a coming of age story about a young man living in a post-apocalyptic world overrun by monsters.”
Ariana Greenblatt and Jessica Henwick will also star.
The film is being eyed as a potential franchise.
In the wake of Backrooms and Obsession, everyone is prowling YouTube for horror shorts to adapt and horror filmmakers to scoop up, so don’t be surprised to see a whole bunch of upcoming articles about YouTube success stories crossing over into theaters. One horror short that’s already been picked up for expansion is Dolly director Rod Blackhurst’s Alone Time.
The 12-minute short was uploaded in 2014 and has amassed nearly 2 million views at the time of this article being written, and Deadline reports that it’s getting a feature adaptation.
Witchcraft Motion Picture Company & Fever Dream will turn the viral short into a feature film.
Alone Time follows Ann Saunders, a young NY professional whose carefully constructed life begins to unravel following a devastating personal loss. “Seeking refuge from a collapsing relationship, a deteriorating family situation, and mounting emotional trauma, Ann reluctantly joins her closest friend on a remote camping trip deep in the Adirondack wilderness.”
The synopsis continues, “When her friend mysteriously disappears, Ann becomes convinced that an unseen figure is stalking her through the forest. What begins as a survival nightmare slowly transforms into something far more disturbing as fractured memories, conflicting realities, and hidden truths force Ann to confront the possibility that the greatest threat may not be lurking in the woods at all, but buried deep within her own psych.”
“Alone Time has quietly followed me for over a decade,” director Rod Blackhurst said in a statement. “What began as a short film about isolation and the weight of life now feels more relevant than ever. The original short found its audience organically online long before that was considered a legitimate path for filmmakers. Bringing it to life as a feature allows us to explore those themes on a much larger and more psychologically unsettling canvas.”
Blackhurst is directing the feature length expansion.
You can watch the original Alone Time short film below.