The Autopsy of Jane Doe director André Øvredal to direct Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark
André Øvredal, director of The Autopsy of Jane Doe and Trollhunters, is set to helm the upcoming horror film Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, according to Deadline. The original plan was for Guillermo Del Toro (The Shape of Water, Hellboy) to direct the pic, but instead he’ll now produce with Sean Daniel, Jason Brown and Elizabeth Grave. Back in late 2013, CBS Films nabbed the rights to develop Alvin Schwartz’s beloved children’s book anthology Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark into a feature film.
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark follows a group of teens who have to solve the mystery of the deaths occurring in their town. The most recent draft of the script was written by Kevin Hageman and Dan Hageman (The LEGO Movie). Production is set to begin next summer.
First published in 1981, the first book of what became a three-book series (it was followed by More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark and Scary Stories 3: More Tales to Chill Your Bones) is officially described as follows: This spooky addition to Alvin Schwartz’s popular books on American folklore is filled with tales of eerie horror and dark revenge that will make you jump with fright. There is a story here for everyone — skeletons with torn and tangled flesh who roam the earth; a ghost who takes revenge on her murderer; and a haunted house where every night a bloody head falls down the chimney. Stephen Gammell’s splendidly creepy drawings perfectly capture the mood of more than two dozen scary stories — and even scary songs — all just right for reading alone or for telling aloud in the dark. If You Dare!
Gammell’s illustrations were replaced with art by Brett Helquist for a recent 30th anniversary edition of the books, which led to some heavy criticism from fans who grew up with the original artists’s truly terrifying images.
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