We still have a little while to wait before we get a chance to see David F. Sandberg's supernatural horror film LIGHTS OUT, a feature expansion of his viral short. That film isn't set to be released until July 22, an attempt by studio New Line Cinema to replicate the success they had with LIGHTS OUT producer James Wan's THE CONJURING back in July of 2013.
Of course, Wan and the executives at New Line have already seen the work Sandberg did on that movie, and are apparently so impressed that they are – according to Bloody-Disgusting – in talks to have him take the helm of their haunted doll sequel ANNABELLE 2.
If Sandberg ends up with this job, he would be replacing the first ANNABELLE's director John Leonetti and working from a screenplay from that film's writer, Gary Dauberman.
A spin-off from/prequel to THE CONJURING, ANNABELLE told the following story:
John Form thinks he’s found the perfect gift for his expectant wife, Mia — a beautiful, rare vintage doll in a pure white wedding dress. But Mia’s delight with Annabelle doesn’t last long.
On one horrific night, their home is invaded by members of a satanic cult, who violently attack the couple. Spilled blood and terror are not all they leave behind. The cultists have conjured an entity so malevolent that nothing they did will compare to the sinister conduit to the damned that is now… Annabelle.
Although I loved THE CONJURING, I didn't think ANNABELLE was very good at all. Hopefully a sequel will be an improvement over its predecessor, but I'm not quite sure when it could be set, unless it's a re-telling of the story that was already told at the beginning of THE CONJURING.
ANNABELLE's Annabelle Wallis