Director Christopher Smith has built up a solid following in the horror community over the last twenty years by taking the helm of such films as Creep (2004), Severance, Triangle, Black Death, Detour, The Banishing, and Consecration. Now he has lined up his next genre project, signing on to direct Spider Island for Vertigo Films. Protagonist Pictures is handling the project’s worldwide rights and will be launching distribution sales ahead of the American Film Market, which is set to be held in Santa Monica, California from October 31st through November 5th.
Scripted by Christopher Jolley (The Price We Pay) and David Quantick (Veep), Spider Island will follow a group of social media influencers going to the launch party of a new luxury resort on a beautiful island. With deadly spiders.
The killer spider effects will be handled by AUTOMATIK VFX, a company that has previously designed creatures for Monsters: Dark Continent, Game of Thrones, Doctor Who, and The Wheel of Time. Seb Barker is the VFX supervisor.
Smith provided the following statement: “For a while now, I’ve been searching for the perfect project to create another horror that strikes a balance between laughs and screams, with the potential to truly stand out. The script for Spider Island checks all the boxes, and I can’t wait to bring the audiences on that rollercoaster with me!“
Protagonist’s CEO Dave Bishop added, “We couldn’t be more excited to be partnering with world class distributors on this wild concept straight from the minds of some of the best genre creatives in the industry. Christopher’s remarkable ability to blend humor and terror will undoubtedly provide the perfect movie experience for horror-comedy enthusiasts around the world. We cannot wait to see Spider Island come to life… metaphorically that is.“
Vertigo Films co-founder Allan Niblo had this to say: “We are thrilled to be working with Chris and serving up equal measures of scares and laughs all set on a magically exotic island. It will be a cinematic feast for all the senses!“
Spider Island is expected to begin filming in Mauritius early next year with a multi-national cast. A press release says the film “will have a distinct British flavor that pushes boundaries of black comedy, while playfully subverting stereotypes.”
How does Spider Island sound to you? Are you a Christopher Smith fan, and are looking forward to seeing how this movie’s going to turn out? Let us know by leaving a comment below.