Yep, they’re going through with it. A film that absolutely does not demand a remake is, in fact, being remade. This is as bad as Robert Downey Jr.’s plans to remake Hitchcock’s “Vertigo.”
Margaret Qualley has been spotted in costume filming intense scenes for Parker Finn’s remake of the ’80s cult classic “Possession.” She was wearing the same style of clothing as Isabelle Adjani wore in that indescribably brilliant film. She was spotted filming scenes, running and screaming on a street corner in NYC — which basically confirms that this is a “Possession” remake.
Starring Adjani and the late Sam Neill, the original 1981 horror film, helmed by Andrzej Żuławski, follows married couple Mark (Neill) and Anna (Adjani). Mark is a spy who returns home to discover that Anna is having an affair. She asks for a divorce; he hires a private investigator, and that decision leads the story into a nightmare descent into utter and surreal hell.
Qualley will be stretching her acting chops for this one. Good luck to her (and I’m a fan of Qualley’s). She is set to take on the lead role of Anna. Callum Turner, Diego Calva, and Paul Dano also star in the film, which is being shot by Finn on 35mm.
In an interview with EW, Finn described Żuławski’s original as one of his “absolute favourite films of all time.”
We’re planning a viciously sharp, crazy, insane film […] It’s going to have all the teeth and ferocity that the original had, but I want to do something that pays homage and honours the original while also being a spiritual successor that’s in dialogue with the original, with some new explorations in it.
Finn added: “I feel like I’m making this film obviously for a big audience, but I want to make this film also for the fans of the original. I hope people give it a chance!”
Back in July 2024, a bidding war occurred over this project between numerous studios, including A24, Netflix, Warner Bros., Sony, and Paramount — the latter ultimately won out. Now, under the ownership of David Ellison, it seems like this one will be released in 2027.
Finn’s surprise horror hit was 2022’s “Smile,” and it truly came out of nowhere. It was his feature-length debut and grossed $217M worldwide on a modest $17M budget. The critical response was fairly positive as well, but the sequel (“Smile 2”) was much better and much riskier — a film that got me excited for whatever he does next. Turns out, it’ll be “Possession.”
For Schrader, AI solves the curious practical filmmaking problem he had. How about just creating Black people? No casting calls, no agents, no actors turning down the roles.