Believe it or not, we are supposed to be getting a theatrically released remake of Stephen King’s classic vampire tale ‘Salem’s Lot in just a few months. What’s more, none other than Gary Dauberman, who wrote It and directed Annabelle Comes Home, is in the director’s chair with an A-list cast. So, why haven’t we heard more about this officially? Is it still happening this year? A new bit of tie-in merch seems to suggest so!
As noted by the folks at Bloody Disgusting, a new movie tie-in paperback edition of King’s 1975 novel has been listed on Amazon. The top of the new cover even says “now a major motion picture” to drive the point home. Plus, the cover of the novel (which we’ve included below) kind of offers our first real look at the new adaptation, even if it is just an eerie image that doesn’t tell us all that much. But with the novel’s on-sale date set for August 2, we have every reason to believe that the movie is still on target to hit its current September release.
‘Salem’s Lot has been adapted a couple of times, first in 1979 by Texas Chain Saw Massacre director Tobe Hooper and again in 2004 as a miniseries. In both cases, the films aired on TV and weren’t made by a major studio with theaters in mind. So, while Hooper’s version undoubtedly has its fans, this figures to be more of a horror event and, perhaps, another blockbuster based on King’s work, if all goes well. For those who may not be familiar, a logline for the book reads as follows:
“Author Ben Mears returns to ‘Salem’s Lot to write a book about a house that has haunted him since childhood only to find his isolated hometown infested with vampires. While the vampires claim more victims, Mears convinces a small group of believers to combat the undead.”
As mentioned, Dauberman and Warner Bros. have assembled quite the cast for this one. We’ve got Lewis Pullman, coming fresh off Top Gun: Maverick, leading the way as Ben Mears. The rest of the ensemble includes Alfre Woodard (Annabelle), Bill Camp (The Outsider), William Sadler (The Shawshank Redemption), Makenzie Leigh (The Assistant) and Spencer Treat Clark (Glass).
Now, we know that Warner Bros. showed off some footage from the film at CinemaCon earlier this year. With the novel slated to arrive in August, that leads us to believe we may well be seeing a trailer online sooner rather than later. It could just be that the studio wants to put all of its marketing resources to use once the release date gets a little closer. At this stage, a delay seems unlikely. So get ready, vampire lovers.
Salem’s Lot is currently set to hit theaters on September 9.
