Let’s start a list of movies that are being remade or, as the saying now goes, rebooted for no particular reason except that Hollywood can’t be bothered to come up with any new ideas. Sound good? Great, because we’ve now got another one to add to the pile: The Grudge.
First announced a while back, we already know that The Eyes of My Mother filmmaker Nicolas Pesce has climbed aboard to write and direct the movie for Ghost House Pictures, which will be based on a spec script from Midnight Meat Train writer, Jeff Buhler. Sam Raimi, Rob Tapert, and Taka Ichise are all on board to produce the horror reboot, working in tandem with executive producers Roy Lee, Doug Davison, Joe Drake and Nathan Kahane.
Little is currently known about the plot, but it’s safe to assume that Ghost House Pictures’ reimagining of The Grudge will chronicle the titular entity as it moves from one grief-stricken victim to another, leaving a trail of dead bodies and nightmarish terror in its wake.
As far as casting goes, well, as you surely know, Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) starred in the English-language version, itself inspired by Takashi Shimazu’s cult Japanese thriller Ju-On. The Gellar-fronted sleeper hit, one which brought in a staggering $187 million worldwide on a budget of just $10 million, spawned two sequels that expanded on the horrific legacy with varying degrees of success.
However, we shouldn’t expect to see the actress returning here, given that this is a reboot. Instead, Deadline brings word that Black Mirror star Andrea Riseborough is circling the role of a detective and young single mother. No further details were revealed, nor were any other cast members, but the wheels are clearly moving now and we imagine we’ll be hearing more on who’ll be co-starring alongside the actress soon.
Despite the fact that no one’s really asking for another Grudge movie, it doesn’t come as much of a surprise that we’re getting one. It does make us wonder, though, what this means for all those other early-2000 American versions of low-budget horror films.
Will we have another Dark Water, for instance? Also, how far back could this go, and for how long will it go on? Only time will tell, but we’ll be bringing you more on The Grudge as the project continues to come together.