More than any other genre, horror is synonymous with sequels and remakes. Look at 2004’s The Grudge, for instance. The surprise box office hit ($187 million on a $10 million budget) starring Sarah Michelle Gellar was based on the Japanese horror film Ju-on: The Grudge, the third installment (but first to be released theatrically) in the Ju-On franchise. The American Grudge spawned two sequels, The Grudge 2 and The Grudge 3, while Ju-On is up to Sadako vs. Kayako, which pitted Kayako from The Grudge against Sadako from The Ring.
Got all that? Good, because none of it matters (although see The Grudge).
Producer Sam Raimi is wiping the Grudge-verse clean. The Evil Dead II director has been working on a reboot since 2014, but now he has a director and screenwriter (The Eyes of My Mother‘s Nicolas Pesce) and cast, including Demian Bichir, Andrea Riseborough, and the just-announced John Cho.
According to Variety, “Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions recently acquired worldwide rights to the film. [Production companies] SPWA, Ghost House Pictures, and Good Universe last collaborated on Fede Alvarez’s thriller Don’t Breathe,” which is an excellent horror movie that will eventually serve as the inspiration for nine sequels, a television series, and a theme park ride, probably.
The Grudge reboot does not have a release date.
(Via Variety)
