Two months after Texas Chainsaw Massacre rights quietly hit the market, the iconic horror property remains in limbo—and director Osgood Perkins is trying to change that, according to The InSneider
Fresh off “Longlegs” and “The Monkey,” Perkins is reportedly pushing Neon, under his new first-look deal, to scoop up the rights and commit $25M to a new take on Leatherface. So far, no deal.
The holdup? Infighting. Sources say the rights are still controlled by Exurbia Films, run by Chainsaw co-writer Kim Henkel, his son Ian, and Austin producer Pat Cassidy (who refers to himself as the franchise’s “curator” on Instagram).
Verve agent Bryan Besser is said to be shopping the property, but no offers have been accepted—possibly because the ask is over $3M, more than what Legendary paid for the last underwhelming reboot, which ended up buried on Netflix.
Glen Powell and JT Mollner (“Strange Darling”) were once in the mix, per THR, but both have seemingly moved on. Roy Lee is still sniffing around, and now Perkins wants in. The catch? He’s busy. With “Keeper” already finished and two more films on the way, Perkins likely wouldn’t be able to tackle Chainsaw for years—something that’s giving the rights-holders pause. They also want creative input, which is scaring off more than a few studios.
Legendary Pictures has held the rights to the property and even made a ‘Texas Chainsaw’ movie in 2022 that streamed on Netflix. The IP has since returned to the rights holders.
The best ‘Texas Chainsaw’ was the original 1974 film. It’s very hard to replicate the atmosphere of that one, which felt eerily authentic and practically homemade. There have since been sequels, prequels, spinoffs and remakes, including the 2003 reboot, starring Jessica Biel.
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