In a sudden Instagram post earlier today, Blumhouse shared a picture of a candy cane, sharpened and dripping with blood with the words “Black Christmas” and “Friday the 13th of December” written below. After a quick search, here’s what else we know. Sophia Takal, who directed one of Blumhouse’s Into The Dark episodes, New Year, New You, will be directing the script written by April Wolfe. The film stars Imogen Poots (Green Room, 28 Weeks Later) along with Aleyse Shannon, Brittany O’Grady, Lily Donoghue and Caleb Eberhardt.
It’s fitting that the remake will be both written and directed by women, as the 1974 film was quite the feminist film, whose real horror were themes of sexual harassment, unplanned pregnancy and abortion shame. The film begins with obscene phone calls to a sorority house, and continues with the leading girl being harassed by her boyfriend to keep a baby she doesn’t want to have. This isn’t going unnoticed in the remake, as they’re teasing that
“The killer is about to discover that this generation’s young women aren’t willing to become hapless victims as they mount a fight to the finish.”
The original film was written by Roy Moore and directed by Bob Clark. It’s credited as one of the very first slasher films, paving the way for such classics as Halloween which Blumhouse also revived last year. The film was stacked with Margot Kidder (Superman) Olivia Hussey (Romeo and Juliet) and our favorite Elm Street dad, John Saxon. It was inspired by the urban legend “The Babysitter and the Man Upstairs.” and started the “the calls are coming from inside the house” trope.
Black Christmas is being produced by Jason Blum for his Blumhouse Productions, by Ben Cosgrove and by Adam Hendricks for Divide/conquer.
Black Christmas was also remade in 2006 by James Wong and Glen Morgan, who also wrote and directed it. The film, starring Katie Cassidy and Mary Elizabeth Winstead, wasn’t received well. Let’s hope Blumhouse gives it the much needed zest and suspense that it will need to thrive as a modern slasher.
We’ll be waiting anxiously for a trailer!
🔪Madame of Horror
Madame of Horror 
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