Steven Spielberg and DreamWorks have pulled the plug, at least for now, on anunder-the-radarupcoming horror movie that they have been developing for some time.Hauntedwas being produced bySteven Spielbergand was going to be directed by28 Weeks LaterhelmerJuan Carlos Fresnadillo, but he has been fired and any form of production on the project has halted. What is perhaps most surprising is that the movie was supposed to start shooting in a few weeks, meaning that this project was very far along in the development process.
The Hollywood Reporterbroke the news that the studio andSteven Spielberghad decided to give the project the axe. According to the report,Juan Carlos FresnadilloandContagionwriterScott Z. Burnswere doing some additional work on the script, which halted pre-production for a couple of weeks. As it turns out, the pair wound up doing a massive rewrite which conflicted with the direction that DreamWorks had approved of, changing the title of the movie, characters and major plot points. That essentially made it a completely different movie and notHaunted, the movie that the studio signed on to make. So, that caused them to fire the director and stop the project from moving forward. As of now, the movie isdead.
The original script forHauntedwas written byChadandCarey Hayeswho wrote the massivehorrorhitThe Conjuring. The story was said to have been inspired by theHenry James1898 novellaThe Turn of the Screw.Scott Z. Burnshad reportedly been brought in just to do the two weeks worth of rewrites that had been approved by DreamWorks alongsideJuan Carlos Fresnadillo. There is apparently some dispute as to what was or was not approved in terms of the direction of the script by the studio, but either way,Steven Spielbergand DreamWorks weren’t happy, so ultimately the outcome remains the same.
As mentioned, the project was very far along in the development process. According to the report, DreamWorks had already put around $5 million intoHaunted, which was going to have a production budget of around $17 million.Game of ThronesstarRose Lesliehad been cast as the lead in the movie alongsideAnnabelleand12 Years a SlaveactressAlfre Woodard.
Hauntedmay not be totally dead in the water, it just won’t be the same movie thatJuan Carlos Fresnadilloapparently wanted to make. DreamWorks andSteven Spielbergare hoping to try anddevelop the moviewith another director using the originalChadandCarey Hayesscript. There is no word on whether or notRose LeslieandAlfre Woodardwill still remain attached to star in the movie, but given that there will clearly be at the very least a significant delay, they will probably be moving onto other projects for the time being. Who knows? Maybe onceSteven Spielbergis done withReady Player Onehe’ll just step up to the plate and do it himself, but that seems unlikely.
