The long-gestating Amityville Horror reboot/sequel has hired Maniac director Franck Khalfoun, with Jennifer Jason Leigh and Bella Thorne set to star.
BloodyDisgusting has reported that Khalfoun had been brought on board to direct the new film based on the 1979 classic, with Jason Blum producing, and that veteran character actor Leigh (Fast Times At Ridgemont High, eXistenZ, Synecdoche New York) had been brought on to play the lead.
The Wrap then confirmed the news and added that Disney Channel star Thorne had also been cast in the Blumhouse/Dimension co-production.
Leigh will play “Joan, a single mother raising three kids all on her own. The family move into the infamous “Amityville” house, only to learn that it has a very dark history.”
Originally, the new Amityville was called The Amityville Horror: The Lost Tapes, and would be found-footage. However, it appears that this angle has now been dropped.
Genre fans will remember that The Amityville Horror was remade by Michael Bay’s Platinum Dunes in 2005, with Ryan Reynolds, Melissa George and Chloë Grace Moretz as the haunted family. It was duly forgotten, although Reynolds’ performance deserved a better film.
Amityville is set for release on 2 January 2015. You can buy the original Amityville Horror for £3.97 on DVD at Amazon.co.uk.
