Chad and Carey Hayes, writers of the first two Conjuring films, are writing and developing a new historical horror franchise. Much like The Conjuring, this one will be based – loosely – on real life events as well. The franchise will take inspiration from the LaLaurie mansion, an infamous haunted house in New Orleans.
The legend goes that the owner of the house, ‘Mad’ Madame Delphine LaLaurie, snapped after her third husband left. A wealthy slaveowner, LaLaurie’s home suffered a catastrophic fire in 1834, destroying parts of the house and revealing a gruesome scene of slaves chained in their quarters. There was one with an iron collar around her neck, another with a deep head wound, while others were mutilated.
The house was soon gutted when stunned residents heard of the horrors within. Today, its exteriors are naturally a popular stop on the city’s ghost tours. It makes sense that the Hayes brothers would not only be interested in crafting a franchise from this legend, but be given every chance to do so. The first two Conjuring films that they worked on led to a franchise that has grossed over $1.9 billion worldwide.
The stories will consist of multiple movies on the house’s terrifying history, spread out over two centuries. For added authenticity, the brothers are reportedly considering writing the first draft of the script from inside the house. They said of the project:
“We love writing films in which we get to tell true stories – incorporating moments that people can look up and discover did in fact happen. With the LaLaurie House we get to do exactly that. There is a wealth of documentation of a very dark and frightening past of true events. Not to mention that after spending some time there, what we personally experienced was truly unnerving”.
Nicolas Cage actually bought the house back in 2007 for $3.45 million. However, he sold it just two years later for $2.3 million. For even more authenticity, why not get Cage to star in the film? He could do with the cash considering his debt problems. And maybe there’s a reason he sold the house just two years later for a loss?
Either way, expect this franchise to be deliriously successful. While it’s not directly related to The Conjuring franchise, it will be easy to relate them in some way. The Conjuring franchise and its increasingly predictable and jump scare-heavy instalments continue to make bucketloads of money. There’s no reason to expect that to slow down any time soon.
#Peace.Love.TheConjuring
