Salem’s Lot remake isn’t being shelved; will officially debut on Max

Some good news, ladies and gents – it appears as though the long-shelved big-screen adaption of Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot (buy a copy of the novel HERE) won’t be deleted after all. Variety just broke the news that New Line and Warner Bros will put the movie out on its Max streaming service this year. While this was widely anticipated, in recent months, the buzz had turned pretty dark, with it heavily rumored that WB would be taking a loss on the film and deleting it, which is what they did with Batgirl. The Looney Tunes/live-action mash-up Coyote vs ACME seems to be going that way as well (unless John Cena’s comic performance at the Oscar swayed anyone).

This is the third adaptation of Salem’s Lot. The previous two were both mini-series, which aired in 1979 and 2004. This new take on the concept is said to be set in 1975, the same year King’s novel was first published. Here’s the synopsis: Haunted by an incident from his childhood, author Ben Mears returns to his hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot in search of inspiration for his next book, only to discover the town is being preyed upon by a bloodthirsty vampire and his loyal servant.

The film stars Lewis Pullman (Top Gun: Maverick) as Ben Mears; Makenzie Leigh (Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk) as Ben’s love interest Susan Norton; Spencer Treat Clark (The Town That Dreaded Sundown 2014) as Mike Ryerson, “one of the town’s simple folk”; Bill Camp (12 Years a Slave) as Matthew Burke, “a former high school English teacher who knows about the Marsten House’s evil past and helps out Ben”; Alfre Woodard (Star Trek: First Contact) as Dr. Cody; Pilou Asbæk (Game of Thrones) as the vampire’s familiar Richard Straker; and John Benjamin Hickey as Father Callahan. William Sadler (Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey) is also in the cast, but we don’t know who he’s playing. Alexander Ward (American Horror Story) might be playing the vampire Kurt Barlow.

When this project went into production back in 2021, Dauberman was one of New Line Cinema’s go-to people when it comes to making horror. He co-wrote the Stephen King adaptations It and It: Chapter Two for them, and also wrote four entries in the Conjuring Universe for the company: Annabelle, Annabelle: Creation, Annabelle Comes Home, and The Nun. Annabelle Comes Home was his directorial debut. While Warner Bros. had Salem’s Lot gathering dust on a shelf, Dauberman left the studio behind and signed a deal to develop projects for Sony’s Screen Gems.

I have to admit, I’m shocked that Warner Bros. didn’t decide to just scrap Salem’s Lot and use it as a tax write-off, since that’s something they seem to enjoy doing these days. It’s good to know this movie is actually going to see the light of day on Max.

Are you glad to hear Salem’s Lot will be released through the Max streaming service? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.