The hits just keep coming out of today's first-ever Blumfest event, where Blumhouse Productions has been more than happy to share news and materials for their upcoming releases. After announcing that Patrick Wilson will direct and star in the next installment of the studio's Insidious franchise, and sharing new footage for David Gordon Green's Halloween Kills, Blumhouse revealed that 12 Years a Slave writer John Ridley is writing and directing an Untitled Paranormal Project for the studio.
Recently, the studio snagged the rights to develop a feature film based on an article centered around a terrified young boy living in New Jersey during the 1960s, which at the time was referred to as the first alleged haunting in a public housing project.
“This is an incredible true-life narrative of a young man dealing with horrors – both paranormal and racially systemic – in a community that is scarred by hate, yet ultimately brought together by hope. I really appreciate Blumhouse’s commitment to telling stories that seek to entertain audiences even as it challenges them,” said Ridley.
“The best scary movies are always based on a real event, and we were very compelled by the material this story is based on. I also know that John Ridley is as good as you get as a dramatic storyteller, so we’re confident that infusing this story with John’s brand of drama is a great bet,” said producer Jason Blum.
Before signing up for a project with Blumhouse, Ridley delivered the critically acclaimed documentary about the Los Angeles uprising, Let It Fall: Los Angeles 1982-1992. The doc recently re-aired on ABC and is currently available to watch via Netflix. Ridley also won the adapted screenplay Oscar for 12 Years a Slave, which if you'll recall, told the harrowing story of Solomon Northup, a free black man from upstate New York, who is abducted and sold into slavery. Another notable project of Ridley's is the Jimi Hendrix biopic Jimi: All Is By My Side, starring André Benjamin as the legendary innovator of rock .n. roll, Jimi Hendrix. Ridley wrote and directed the aforementioned film, which also starred Haley Atwell, Imogen Poots, and Ruth Negga. Ridley currently has a first-look deal set up at ABC Studios, with another untitled musical drama that he'll write, direct, and executive produce for Showtime, alongside Alicia Keys. In other words, Ridley is a man about town, right now, and Blumhouse is lucky to have him setting up yet another project at their horror-centric studio.