Salem's Lot...is it EVER being relased?

[Monterey Jack]

Pretty weird that there's a new adaptation of Stephen King's novel Salem's Lot (produced by James Wan) that was scheduled for a September release...last year, but we've still yet to see a frame of footage or have any new release slot set for it. How bad can this possibly be? It couldn't have cost that much to make, and King is a pretty tried-and-true horror brand name.

[AndyDursin]

The weird part is that nobody is talking either...must've all signed some NDA's.

My guess is it's just not very good and maybe they've gone the BATGIRL route with it. It was also submitted to the MPAA so it's definitely long past being "done" at this point.

There was someone on Reddit who claimed to have seen it, gave a detailed plot leak, etc. As some other Reddit poster indicated it just sounded pretty "blah". And it wouldn't be the first time they've made a lousy remake of SALEM'S LOT, that Rob Lowe TNT movie was terrible.

It reminds me of the time A RETURN TO SALEM'S LOT played its one and only theatrical venue -- the Showcase Cinemas in Warwick. Literally the only theatrical venue it ever played, back in 87 or 88, and I remember it because I was in 8th grade and it was there for a week. The "Phantom of the Movies" mentioned it in his review too!

That kind of thing happened in Warwick back in the 80s/early 90s. BETTER OFF DEAD with John Cusack had a "trial run" several months before it came out nationally. And when I was in high school THE LAWNMOWER MAN played in Warwick ahead of the rest of the nation for about 2 weeks -- which I distinctly remember because the Boston Globe sent their critic down here to review it (and mentioned it too). Why? No idea.

[Monterey Jack]

That (horrible) remake of Firestarter got a theatrical release, so for this to apparently get Batgirl'd kind of makes me curious as to just how bad it could be.

[AndyDursin]

It's probably just meh and as we are seeing, there's either an audience for these movies now or there isn't. If it's going to come out and do anemic numbers it's not worth the effort.

It's not like Warner is burying everything either. They shuffled EVIL DEAD RISE -- which was intended to be an HBO Max movie -- to theaters and the film did well. But that was because they had some confidence it, whereas SALEM'S LOT probably isn't giving off those kind of vibes.

[Monterey Jack]

There are always a surplus of "meh" movies in any given year that studios still release to theaters in an attempt to make at least some of their budgets back. The recent spate of nearly or completely finished movies never seeing the light of day at all smacks of this...

[AndyDursin]

Maybe SALEM'S LOT is decent but it's a big book -- and this movie has a 113 minute running time. Doesn't really inspire confidence that it's an adequate distillation of the source. More like another DARK TOWER. If they were doing IT again in the form of a multi-part movie adaptation that'd be one thing, but it's not what happened here.

Plus has 0 recognizable names in it. You might say IT also had 0 stars, but that was the first part with the kids. They cast stars in the 2nd part for the adult roles. This movie has basically nobody of note at all in the cast.

That and a modest budget make it expendable. At some point though they'll have to figure out what to do with it. If they have no confidence at all I'd think they'd sell it to Netflix or some other streaming venue.

[mkaroly]

SALEM'S LOT needs to be a miniseries, and it needs to adhere closely to the book (IMO). My thoughts on the movie are in the Read A Book, Then Watch Its Movie thread - still feel the same way about it today. I agree with Andy's comments.

[AndyDursin]

"Not a reflection of the film's quality"

[Monterey Jack]

Sure it is, Steve...

[AndyDursin]

"It's not like it's embarrassing or anything". LOL. What a compliment!

[Monterey Jack]

"It's not like it's embarrassing or anything". LOL. What a compliment!

King is the LAST person I'd trust to critique a movie based on one of his books. He'll always recommend any piece of sh!t so long as the check clears (even that godawful Dark Tower movie).

[AndyDursin]

[AndyDursin]

This sounds about right...completely plausible.

YouTube channel The Kingdom Movie Channel posted an update in which the host goes over an email from an alleged insider close to the situation that blows the lid off what’s been going on behind the scenes since at least 2022.

The delays dating back to that time boil down to the film being “very, very unbalanced,” according to a “trusted person” at Warner Bros. – the owner and proprietor of the streaming service (Max) where Salem’s Lot will probably pitch its tent.

It’s said director Gary Dauberman – who is known for The Conjuring films and the recent Swamp Thing series – had a specific vision for the film “that was faithful to the book.” However, producer James Wan looked at the project as a remake of the 1979 miniseries directed by Tobe Hooper.

But Warner Bros. – potentially concerned they’d have a three-hour movie on their hands and repeat the mistakes of Doctor Sleep – wanted a slimmer, trimmer movie with a faster pace.

Kingdom Channel’s purveyor and host says, via his source, that all these factors collided together with a drastic impact on the finished product as all the differing points of view were noticeable in test screenings.

The first ten minutes are like a Conjuring movie, for instance, whereas the final act is more “action-packed” with the climax including a swarm of vampires attacking a drive-in theater. This is a departure from how Hooper’s more contained miniseries ended.

However, there are scenes straight out of that ‘79 version, such as when the vampires creep outside windows. The problem is, Kingdom Channel adds, they feel inserted last-minute because they clash with the way Dauberman handled the rest of the film.

Per the email, the new Salem’s Lot was initially like three different movies of different genres thrown together, but feedback from “several test screenings” helped WB edit it into the best version of itself, apparently.

https://boundingintocomics.com/2024/05/ ... rner-bros/