Last year, we heard that Dog Soldiers (buy it HERE) director Neil Marshall was returning to “full-blooded horror and intense genre action” with a creature feature called The Lair. Now Deadline reports that RLJE Films has picked up the North American distribution rights to The Lair, and they’re planning to give the film a theatrical, digital, and VOD release on October 28th. Shudder is also getting in on the distribution action; The Lair will be available to watch on the Shudder streaming service in the US, the UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand starting early next year.
Written by Marshall and Charlotte Kirk (The Reckoning), The Lair follows
Sgt. Tom Hook as he is tasked with leading a unit to find Lt. Kate Sinclair after the Royal Air Force fighter pilot was shot down in Afghanistan. Pursued by insurgents, Sinclair has sought shelter in an abandoned bunker where she unwittingly releases the Ravagers – a half human-half alien man-made biological weapon. Hook and his team, accompanied by a handful of British SAS troops, must save Sinclair from insurgents and the Ravagers before they overrun the area and threaten the entire world.
Kirk also stars in the film, and is joined in the cast by Jonathan Howard (Thor: The Dark World) and Jamie Bamber (Battlestar Galactica).
The Lair was produced by Daniel-Konrad Cooper of Rather Good Films Ltd. Marshall executive produced alongside Kirk, Joe Simpson, Phil Rymer, Simon Williams, and Samantha Allwinton. Ingenious Media and Ashland Hill Media Finance funded the feature, while co-producers Jonathan Halperyn and Daniel Kresmery of Hero Squared provided production services in Hungary.
RLJE Films’ Chief Acquisitions Officer, Mark Ward, had this to say about the distribution deal:
After directing the scariest horror film of its decade, The Descent, Neil Marshall is back with another terrifying trip underground. The Lair proves yet again that Neil Marshall is a true master of horror.”
RLJE Films negotiated the deal for The Lair with Arianne Fraser of Highland Film Group. Highland’s COO Delphine Perrier says the film offers “an edge-of-your-seat experience with terrifying creatures and delivers exhilarating thrills that audiences love!”
Are you looking forward to The Lair? Let us know by leaving a comment below. Dog Soldiers is one of my favorite movies, so I can’t wait to check this one out.