Ever the one to keep his projects shrouded in secrecy, director M. Night Shyamalan has been quietly putting the pieces together for his follow-up to this year’s domestic thriller The Visit, casting the likes of Anya Taylor Joy, Betty Buckley, Jessica Sula, Haley Lu Richardson and James McAvoy despite the fact that the project was yet to announce a title.
That changes today, however, now that Universal and Blumhouse Productions have unveiled Shyamalan’s all-new thriller to be Split, which is now due to scurry into theaters on January 20, 2017. Aside from the logistics, there’s really not an awful lot to go on in terms of plot – such is the Shyamalan way – though it’s understood that the divisive filmmaker will also write and produce the feature.
It’ll mark a swift reunion between Shyamalan and producer Jason Blum, too, now that The Visit has accrued close to $90 million at the global box office off the back of a $5 million budget. What remains to be seen is exactly how much Universal will allot in terms of budget for Split, though it’s no secret that the filmmaker has maintained a less-is-more approach when crafting delightfully dark and meandering horrors, and we imagine that his next project will be no different.
Split is just one of a number of Untitled Blumhouse Productions currently incubating in the works over at the horror maestro’s studio, and production is due to get underway in the director’s home town of Philadelphia some time next month.