The new Evil Dead movie Evil Dead Rise was made for release through the HBO Max streaming service, but when it received high scores at a test screening the decision was made to give it a theatrical release instead. Now the same thing has happened to the Stephen King adaptation The Boogeyman. According to The Hollywood Reporter, The Boogeyman – which was made for the Hulu streaming service – scored so well at a recent test screening, it’s going to receive a theatrical release on June 2, 2023!
Last year’s release Smile was another film that went from a streaming release (it was made for Paramount+) to a theatrical release due to a positive test screening. That move definitely paid off for Smile, which ended up making over $200 million at the global box office.
Coming to us from Host (watch it HERE) and Dashcam director Rob Savage, The Boogeyman follows a 16-year-old and her younger sister, still reeling from the death of their mother, as they’re targeted by a supernatural boogeyman, after their psychologist father has an encounter with a desperate patient in their house.
Scott Beck and Bryan Woods (A Quiet Place) wrote the initial draft of the script for The Boogeyman, which was then rewritten by Akela Cooper (Malignant) and more recently Mark Heyman (Black Swan). King has said the work those writers put into the script resulted in a “terrific screenplay”. Despite the fact that it’s quite different from the source material, a short story that appeared in the pages of King’s Night Shift collection.
The film stars Chris Messina (Sharp Objects), Sophie Thatcher (Yellowjackets), Marin Ireland (The Umbrella Academy), Vivien Lyra Blair (Bird Box), Madison Hu (Voyagers), and David Dastmalchian (The Suicide Squad).
The Boogeyman was produced by Shawn Levy, Dan Levine, and Dan Cohen of 21 Laps Entertainment, the company behind Stranger Things. Beck, Woods, and Emily Morris serve as executive producers. The movie has officially been rated PG-13 for terror, violent content, teen drug use, and some strong language.
Are you looking forward to The Boogeyman, and are you glad it’s getting a theatrical release? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.