Ethan Hawke is re-teaming with director Scott Derrickson for another horror movie. The duo previously collaborated on 2012’s Sinister, and will now team up again for The Black Phone, which is in the works at Blumhouse.
The film is being adapted from a short story by Joe Hill. In the story, a man named John Finney is locked in a basement that’s stained with the blood of half a dozen murdered children. In the cellar with him is an antique telephone, long since disconnected, but which rings at night with calls from the dead. What, did you expect anything else from Stephen King‘s son?
The duo will also re-team with writer C. Robert Cargill, who also worked on Sinister. That film put Derrickson on the map, and led him into the MCU with Doctor Strange. With Sam Raimi taking over directorial duties on the next installment though, it gives Derrickson a chance to jump back to the genre that got him started.
Adapting short stories into feature films can sometimes lead to trouble. Obviously the source material doesn’t add up to 90 minutes, so Cargill will have to do some work to elongate the story. But the premise sounds like perfect Halloween viewing. And with Blumhouse on board, it should have an audience.
The film is scheduled to begin filming in North Carolina in February. Hawke is also diving into the MCU himself with the Disney+ series Moon Knight, while he also has a starring role in Robert Eggers‘ The Northman lined up.
#Peace.Love.TheBlackPhone
