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Blumhouse and Lionsgate Join Forces for Brand New ‘The Blair Witch Project’ Movie!

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Best Horror Films

Twenty five years after the release of the original genre-changing classic, Lionsgate and Blumhouse announced out of CinemaCon today that they will partner on the development and production of a new The Blair Witch Project movie as the first film in a multi-picture pact with Blumhouse reimagining horror classics from the Lionsgate library.

The announcement was made today by Adam Fogelson, chair, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, and Jason Blum, founder and CEO of Blumhouse.

Based at Universal Pictures, where it has a first look deal, Blumhouse is the gold standard in the horror space, generating blockbuster results from a string of modestly-budgeted films including the Paranormal Activity franchise, Insidious, The Purge, Sinister, Halloween, Five Nights at Freddy’s and M3GAN along with award winners Get Out and BlacKkKlansman. Blumhouse films have grossed nearly $6 billion at the worldwide box office.

Blum will team with producer Roy Lee on the new Blair Witch Project movie; Lee previously produced the 2016 film Blair Witch, the most recent installment in the franchise.

“I have been incredibly fortunate to work with Jason many times over the years. We forged a strong relationship on The Purge when I was at Universal, and we launched STX with his film The Gift. There is no one better at this genre than the team at Blumhouse,” said Fogelson. “We are thrilled to kick this partnership off with a new vision for Blair Witch that will reintroduce this horror classic for a new generation. We couldn’t be more pleased to be working with them on this and other projects we look forward to revealing soon.”

“I’m very grateful to Adam and the team at Lionsgate for letting us play in their sandbox. I’m a huge admirer of The Blair Witch Project, which brought the idea of found footage horror to mainstream audiences and became a true cultural phenomenon,” said Blum. “I don’t think there would have been a Paranormal Activity had there not first been a Blair Witch, so this feels like a truly special opportunity and I’m excited to see where it leads.”

Found footage masterpiece The Blair Witch Project changed the game back in 1999, subsequently spawning its own sprawling universe of media, including official follow-up films in 2000 and 2016 as well as multiple books and video games that have deepened the lore.

The Blair Witch Project was created by filmmakers Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez.

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Writer in the horror community since 2008. Editor in Chief of Bloody Disgusting. Owns Eli Roth's prop corpse from Piranha 3D. Has four awesome cats. Still plays with toys.

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‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’ Just Had the Highest Domestic Horror Opening of the Year

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3 hours ago

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May 20, 2024

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The bar wasn’t very high to clear, but Lionsgate’s The Strangers: Chapter 1 did manage to break a box office record here in 2024, achieving the highest opening weekend at the domestic box office out of any horror movie released this year… so far. This despite largely negative reviews, once again proving that the horror genre is as review-proof as it comes.

The Strangers: Chapter 1 debuted with $11.83M at the domestic box office in 2,856 locations, just barely topping Blumhouse’s Night Swim to rip the crown off the top of its head.

Here’s the full lineup of domestic opening weekends for horror this year…

  • The Strangers: Chapter 1 – $11.8 million
  • Night Swim – $11.7 million
  • Abigail – $10.2 million
  • Imaginary – $9.9 million
  • The First Omen – $8.3 million
  • Tarot – $6.5 million
  • Immaculate – $5.3 million
  • Lisa Frankenstein – $3.6 million

For further context and comparison, 2018’s The Strangers: Prey at Night opened to $10.4 million before making $31 million worldwide, a number Chapter 1 may eventually reach.

The good news for Lionsgate is that the production budget for The Strangers: Chapter 1 was a reported $8.5 million, so there’s a good chance this one will soon be profitable. But is it enough to justify theatrical releases for both Chapter 2 and Chapter 3, which will continue Chapter 1‘s storyline and have already been filmed? Or will Lionsgate pivot to a streaming release?

These are the questions we can’t help but ponder today. Stay tuned for more.

Madelaine Petsch (“Riverdale”), Froy Gutierrez (Hocus Pocus 2), Rachel Shenton (The Silent Child), Ema Horvath (“Rings of Power”) and Gabe Basso (Hillbilly Elegy) star.

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 directed The Strangers: Chapter 1.

The Strangers Chapter 1 review

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