It’s the Booze Talkin’, We can’t wait to unwrap James Wan’s return to genre!

It was Arrow himself that first made me aware of what James Wan was capable of. I hadn’t seen the original SAW, but once I read his review, I was ready and willing to check out the film that became an iconic franchise. Beyond impressed, I was more than a little excited for yet another cool flick from this talented dude called INSIDIOUS. Which, of course, become an iconic franchise. And then came yet another amazing flick, one that offered a fascinating look at two real life paranormal experts. And frankly, I became an instant fan of what both Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson brought to playing Ed and Lorraine Warren in THE CONJURING. Oh, and that movie, yeah, it became an iconic franchise. While I didn’t mention DEAD SILENCE and DEATH SENTENCE, I also have a bit of a soft spot for both of these underappreciated litlte flicks.

James Wan has done more for horror than nearly every other filmmaker working today. His ability to present something dark and twisted like SAW, yet still make a movie as inspired as THE CONJURING is unbelievably impressive. It’s nearly impossible to imagine that he and his equally impressive pal Leigh Whannell have grown as writers and directors as much as they have. In fact, Wan was so successful as a genre storyteller that he also managed to bring his engaging style to offer the thrilling – and yes, supremely bittersweet – FURIOUS 7. This remains one of my favorite films in THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS franchise, as it was an exceptionally done farewell to one of the coolest guys around, Paul Walker. And then, on top of all of that, Mr. Wan made AQUAMAN cool as hell. I mean, seriously, his resume is more than a little amazing!

Looking back at the last horror flick from Wan, I’m still blown away at what he’s managed to do with THE CONJURING series. In the film’s suspenseful sequel, the filmmaker managed to create a very terrifying world, yet still keep the humanity of not only the Warrens, but the family that they were attempting to help. The sequel, which came out in 2016, was the last time that James Wan himself directed a horror film. However, just in time for Christmas, this talented fellow announced that filming has wrapped on his latest… and it’s a horror film! Not only is the director returning to his roots with an R-rated genre flick, he’s collected an impressive cast that includes the lovely Annabelle Wallis, Maddie Hasson, George Young and another really talented fellow by the name of Jake Abel.

This excites me on a number of levels. I adore what Wan has brought to the world of scary movies. Instead of just following the same pattern with each and every film, he has created a number of unique tales of terror. Even though THE CONJURING films and the INSIDIOUS franchise both deal with hauntings, they manage to give the audience a fright in fresh and intriguing ways. The fun house thrills of the first two INSIDIOUS films are an absolute blast to entertain in. As well, both his CONJURING features offer much more than a scary ghost story. Hell, I’d be willing to call these two films a love story between Ed and Lorraine. As well, the director clearly has a deep amount of respect for the genre that we all enjoy so much, and it shows in his work.

To date, little is known about James Wan’s upcoming MALIGNANT. However, here is a little bit of what he himself had to say about it:

I’m super excited to go back to my indie roots with this hard-R thriller. An original horror idea (not a reboot/remake or anything based on existing IP) with old school, practical effects and no giant, blue screen sets. That’s all I’ll say for now.”

Everything in this gives me chills in the best of ways. A hard-R original horror flick? Hell yes! Old school, practical effects with no giant, blue screen? This just gets better and better! And of course, a fresh and exciting cast to bring it all together? I’m beyond sold and cannot wait to see what haunts that he has is store. As a horror fan, and especially a James Wan fan, I won’t be surprised if adds yet another awesome franchise to his resume.

Maybe it’s the booze talkin’, but we can't wait to unwrap James Wan's return to original horror. It’s fascinating to watch this one time indie director find the massive success he has found, not only in genre, but the spectacle of a blockbuster as well. However, watching him return to a smaller film that promises a hard-R rating and frights aplenty is something that I’ve been hoping for. Of course I’m still really looking forward to yet another chapter of AQUAMAN, but Wan and horror go together like Santa Claus and Christmas. In fact, the more that I hear about this new feature, the more excited I am about visualizing Wan’s insanely creative camera work and the impressive way he brings characters to life in scary and inventive ways. While we won’t see the finished project until August 2020, MALIGNANT is already on my must watch horror list. What say you? Are you looking forward to Wan's return to horror?