Sam Raimi is heading back into horror territory with a new take on Magic, the unsettling 1978 psychological horror film that originally starred Anthony Hopkins as a troubled ventriloquist whose dummy slowly takes control of his life.
Lionsgate has officially tapped the Evil Dead creator and Spider-Man director to helm the remake, which is a perfect fit for Raimi’s brand of stylish, twisted horror storytelling.
The original film was directed by Richard Attenborough and adapted by William Goldman from his own novel. Hopkins delivered an incredibly eerie performance as Corky, a struggling magician and ventriloquist whose creepy puppet Fats becomes more dangerous as Corky reconnects with a former love interest.
The role arrived years before Hopkins terrified audiences in The Silence of the Lambs, but you can absolutely see flashes of that chilling intensity in Magic.
This new version is being written by Mark Swift and Damian Shannon, who are reuniting with Raimi and producer Zainab Azizi after working together on Send Help for 20th Century Studios.
Raimi is also producing the film alongside Roy Lee, whose horror résumé includes It and Weapons. Producers Chris Hammond and Tim Sullivan, who’ve reportedly spent years pushing to get the project made, are also onboard.
Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chair Adam Fogelson shared his excitement about Raimi stepping into the project, saying:
“Sam is the dream director for this project—in fact, his coming aboard represents one of the truly great matches of director and material. The script is fantastic, and we could not be more excited to see Sam’s direction and creative vision take it to another level. We are absolutely thrilled he has chosen to direct the film.”
Raimi knows how to balance psychological horror, tension, dark humor, and nightmare fuel better than almost anybody working today. A movie about a malicious ventriloquist dummy sounds tailor-made for him.
Raimi most recently directed Send Help starring Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien, which became a surprise hit earlier this year. The film spent two weeks at the top of the box office and pulled in close to $100 million worldwide.
Now he’s diving back into creepy puppets, fractured minds, and horror chaos with Magic, and that sounds like a pretty awesome combination.
