LAID TO REST was a slasher flick that was generally split. Some didn’t like the idea of another slasher flick trying to become iconic while some did. I’m one of the latter. Even if you aren’t a big fan of Chromeskull you gotta admit that the guy is pointing his knives in the right direction. You wanted kills and the guy handed them to you like a bloody red steak on a silver platter.
Last we heard Ol’ Chromeskull wasn’t up for a sequel but you know how the drill goes. Another flick has been reported to have been green lit and awaiting production beginning November 1st. The flick in officially being titled CHROMESKULL: LAID TO REST II. So are we looking at a 2011 release? Probably so. Here’s a press release reporting more on the matter and then scroll down below to check out the film’s next poster.
In 2009, writer/director Robert Hall (Lightning Bug, Fear Clinic) introduced horror fans to a new face of horror: ChromeSkull, the mysterious and relentless killer who hunts down young women and records their grisly demises, all while donning a iconic silver skull mask and a video camera strapped to his shoulder. And while it may have seemed like ChromeSkull was dead at the end of the first Laid to Rest, every horror fan knows that evil never really dies.
Now Hall and the rest of the team behind the original are getting ready to take their modern slasher franchise to a boiling point. ChromeSkull: Laid to Rest 2 will begin principal photography on November 1st in Los Angeles. Hall is penning the script with producing partner Kevin Bocarde. Hall, Bocarde and Chang Tseng are producing the film under their Dry County Entertainment banner.
Returning for the sequel are original Laid to Rest stars Thomas Dekker (A Nightmare on Elm Street 2010) and Nick Principe, donning the by now familiar mask of ChromeSkull. Although casting is still underway, the film already boasts an impressive new line-up of stars including Brian Austin Green (“Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles,” “90210”), Michael Biehn (Aliens, The Victim), Christopher Nelson (Kill Bill: Volume 1, The Tripper), Jennifer Blanc (Bereavement, The Victim) and Danielle Harris (Halloween, Stakeland, Hatchet 2).
Producer Kevin Bocarde said, “Since the release of the first Laid To Rest, we have been hearing from fans who want to see a sequel. They wanted to know more about ChromeSkull and more importantly, seeing him do what he does best. We’re thrilled to bring him back to the screen and hopefully we can deliver to all the fans what they want.”
“We are currently in negotiations to secure distribution for ChromeSkull: Laid to Rest 2 in time for a Halloween 2011 release,” Tseng said. “It’s a calculated risk but we are confident in the power of franchise we know it will find the right home very soon.”
In the first Laid to Rest, Chromeskull raised the bar for serial killers everywhere by delivering indisputably some of the most inventive on screen deaths seen in recent horror history (due to the top-notch special effects work designed by Hall and his Almost Human EFX crew) and Hall promises to up the ante for fans with more mind-blowing kills for the sequel.
“You can’t really make a Laid to Rest movie and not have the best gore effects,” said Hall. “We’re doubling the carnage and doubling the fun. I know we raised the bar on the last one but people have no idea what’s in store in that department for the sequel- it’s the original and THEN SOME. I’m so happy to have such a stellar cast involved and I think Kevin and I have come up with a cool way to bring Chromey back without going all nutty and breaking our own rules.”
Laid to Rest went on to become one of the top selling direct–to-DVD horror titles of 2009. The film garnered several top awards in the industry, most notably winning a Reaper award for “Best Slasher.” ChromeSkull was the cover of April 2009 issue of Fangoria Magazine
Tabitha Cash