Posted on: September 23rd, 2023
Somewhat unbelievably, despite wrapping initial photography over 2 years ago, the long-in-gestation modern adaption of Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot still hasn’t seen the light of day.
Initially announced 4 years ago, the project had all the talent and momentum to become the next Stephen King adaption to slay the box-office. The project’s announcement came hot on the heels of It: Chapter Two lighting up the charts, and fans expressed their excitement as It scribe Gary Dauberman took on another King property.
Further exciting King lovers and genre fans alike was the involvement of The Conjuring and Saw creator James Wan as producer. It was promised that akin to the It adaption, this latest visit to Salem’s Lot would be much truer to the novel than previous offerings.
So… where is it?
The question has been lingering in the minds of King devotees for two years now, as the project has had a rough cut for at least that long. Initial photography was completed in the summer of 2021 after shooting at various locations around Massachusetts, but then all went silent for an entire year.
The last we heard was that reshoots had taken place in June of 2022, dangerously close to the film’s Labour Day Weekend release. It came as little surprise when that release date was scrapped and a new one of April 21st arrived. Of course, Warner Bros ultimately gave that date to Evil Dead Rise, an unexpected juggernaut.
So, where does that leave Salem’s Lot? With no new updates for the better part of a year, it’s safe to say the project has fallen into development hell very late in post-production. A source tells us that the very last-minute June 2022 reshoots were ordered after a disastrous test screening and that the film hasn’t tested well since.
Discussions are reportedly ongoing as to whether to release the film direct to streaming as it is, or wait for star Lewis Pullman to become available for further photography. Pullman’s career has gone stratospheric since his appearance in Top Gun: Maverick, and though he’d undoubtedly be a boost to Salem’s Lot, the studio may be waiting some time.
With all that said, would you rather the studio tries to save their investment by continuing to tinker with the project? Or are they best to cut their losses and garner what they can from streaming? Most of all, do you think we’ll ever see this highly troubled adaption of Salem’s Lot? It certainly doesn’t look promising.
