Movies
‘The Neverending Story’ Plotting Massive Return With Multiple Live Action Movies
Whether you have happy memories of Falkor flying through the skies or life-changingly-devastating memories of that horse dying in the mud, you probably remember The Neverending Story, director Wolfgang Petersen’s movie from 1984. You probably don’t remember the movie’s two sequels from the ’90s, but we’re not here to talk about those today.
Petersen’s movie was of course based on the same-titled 1979 novel from Michael Ende, and multiple brand new adaptations of that source material are now in the works.
Variety reports this morning that Michael Ende Productions and See-Saw Films are joining forces to bring The Neverending Story back to the big screen with “multiple live-action films.”
The website notes, “Variety hears that Ende’s estate had been fielding interest from across the globe over the last few years, including from studios and streamers.”
In the classic tale, “A troubled boy dives into a wondrous fantasy world through the pages of a mysterious book.”
Iain Canning and Emile Sherman will produce the new movies for See-Saw alongside Roman Hocke and Ralph Gassmann for Michael Ende Productions.
[Related] ‘Man and Witch’ – New Fantasy Throwback Pays Tribute to ‘Neverending Story’
“The story is both timely and timeless, and really has an opportunity to be told in a fresh way,” Canning tells Variety this week. “And part of the specialness of the book is that you can go back to it at different ages in your life and find different levels of meaning. So how wonderful that we have this opportunity to do a fresh perspective that will have new layers and meanings. We just believe that every generation deserves their own journey into Fantastica.”
“We’ve been completely overwhelmed with interest from the television and film industry in recent years,” adds Gassman. “But it was only about four to five years ago when we felt it was right to go back to Fantastica with new, fresher attention. So then we looked at hundreds and hundreds of requests and just thought, let’s see if we find a potential partner amongst them that is so compelling that they make us jump into the boat with them and go on this crazy adventure. But we knew we had to do it right and find the right partner, and luckily See-Saw was amongst them.”
You can read more about the team’s plans over on Variety now.
We’re now just days away from the theatrical release of The Strangers: Chapter 1, the first film in a brand new reboot trilogy from director Renny Harlin (A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Dream Master, Deep Blue Sea). It’s coming to theaters May 17, 2024.
While you wait, check out two brand new images from The Strangers: Chapter 1, which Lionsgate has exclusively shared with Bloody Disgusting to whet your appetite this week.
The first image sets a creepy mood with the Man in the Mask lurking in the woods, trusty axe in hand, while the second sees Madelaine Petsch’s Maya tied to a chair while the Man in the Mask and Dollface look on. We can be pretty sure Pinup Girl isn’t far behind…
Tickets for The Strangers: Chapter 1 are now available. Grab them here.
Madelaine Petsch (“Riverdale”), Froy Gutierrez (Hocus Pocus 2), Rachel Shenton (The Silent Child), Ema Horvath (“Rings of Power”) and Gabe Basso (Hillbilly Elegy) star.
Based on the original 2008 cult horror franchise, the project features Petsch, who drives cross-country with her longtime boyfriend (Gutierrez) to begin a new life in the Pacific Northwest. When their car breaks down in Venus, Oregon, they’re forced to spend the night in a secluded Airbnb, where they are terrorized from dusk till dawn by three masked strangers.
Here’s the full official synopsis: “After their car breaks down in an eerie small town, a young couple are forced to spend the night in a remote cabin. Panic ensues as they are terrorized by three masked strangers who strike with no mercy and seemingly no motive.”
Renny Harlin (Cliffhanger, Deep Blue Sea, Die Hard 2) is directing from a script by Alan R. Cohen and Alan Freedland (The Freak Brothers, Due Date). Lionsgate will distribute worldwide.
The Strangers began in 2008 with Bryan Bertino’s original home invasion horror movie, a terrifying film that introduced three masked killers who returned 10 years later with The Strangers: Prey at Night in 2018. The first film took place in a remote house in the woods while the sequel brought the murderous Man in the Mask, Dollface and Pinup Girl into a trailer park.
The Strangers – Chapter 1. Photo Credit: John Armour for Lionsgate
Madelaine Petsch as Maya in The Strangers – Chapter 1. Photo Credit: John Armour for Lionsgate
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