A few weeks ago, word came through that James Wan would be adapting and shaping the experiences of paranormal investigators Ed & Lorraine Warren into his next horror effort. Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga came on board as the Warrens and “The Conjuring” was mentioned as a working title for the film.
It appears that the project is now titled The Warren Files, which isn’t particularly grabbing for a horror film. Of course the cliched The Conjuring is all that great either. No worries though. After all, Wan’s last film went through multiple titles (The Astral, The Further, etc.) before landing on Insidious.
The tale revolves around our demonologist couple investigating a New England farmhouse in the ’70s that is said to be “a gateway for the dead“, with both good and evil spirits leaking out all over the place. The Warrens are brought in to help the owners, the Perrons, deal with the weirdness infecting their homestead.
Ron Livingston, Lili Taylor, Mackenzie Foy, Joey King, Hayley McFarland, and Shanley Coswell have all been cast as the members of the Perron family. Wan is directing from a script by Chad & Carey Hayes*, marking the first time he has done a film written by someone other than himself and pal Leigh Whannell. Production is slated to commence sometime in March.
Personally, I’m psyched. While I like Saw (2004) and Dead Silence (2007), I loved both Death Sentence (2007) and last year’s Insidious. James Wan seems to be improving with each subsequent project and I’m very much looking forward to see how this one turns out. He already has Insidious II lined up as his potential follow-up (possibly shooting later this year). Unless something else creeps up**, it appears Wan is going to be in the ghost/demon business for awhile…………as well as starting his second horror franchise.
Source | Shock Till You Drop
* – The script is based on the book House of Darkness, House of Light: The True Story by Andrea Perron.
** – Wan has Nightfall (a prison flick with vampires), an original science fiction project, and an adaptation of Castlevania on the table as well.