Sam Raimi’s “Send Help” was billed as his return to horror/thriller storytelling. It’s been many years since he’s directed a film within the genres that made him famous, and this R-rated return was a surprise hit with critics and audiences earlier this year.
Seems like Raimi has a real itch to quickly get back behind the camera for more genre chaos.
Lionsgate has set Sam Raimi to direct a modern remake of “Magic,” based on the William Goldman novel Magic, which was previously adapted into the 1978 film directed by Richard Attenborough and starring Anthony Hopkins. The story follows a troubled ventriloquist whose life unravels as he becomes increasingly controlled by his sinister puppet, even as he experiences a chance at happiness through a rekindled romance. Hopkins’ performance in the original film became a standout.
The screenplay is being written by Mark Swift and Damian Shannon, who wrote “Send Help.”
Raimi has only directed three movies in the last thirteen years—the others being “Oz the Great and Powerful” and “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness”—neither of which were in his wheelhouse or particularly alluring to his diehard fans. His actual last horror film before “Send Help” was the deliciously twisted “Drag Me To Hell.”
With a signature horror-comedy style that’s been widely imitated, Raimi’s influence cannot be understated—his best work includes “Army of Darkness,” “Evil Dead II,” “A Simple Plan,” “Darkman,” “Drag Me To Hell,” and “Spider-Man 2.” In Raimi, we trust.