Jacob’s Ladder Remake Writer Details What to Expect of the Reimagining

The original Jacob’s Ladder is considered by many horror fans to be one of the best psychological thrillers of all time, thanks to its blend of real-world horrors and potential supernatural occurrences. Debuting in 1990, the film came at a time when fans were overloaded by stereotypical slashers, with this unpredictable narrative helping open up the genre to various types of horrors in the following decade. Writer Jeff Buhler wrote the remake of the film, which was originally slated for a release earlier this year, only for it to be shelved for the foreseeable future. Buhler gave an update on what to expect from the film when it eventually lands in theaters.

“It’s a difficult adaptation, because fans of the original will remember that a lot of basically what occurs during that film is part of a fever dream that occurs at his death on the battlefield, is taking place,” Buhler admitted to ComicBook.com. “There’s a lot of questioning what’s real and what’s not real, and there’s a big kicker in the end. And we felt like we couldn’t just replicate that, because first of all, everyone would see it coming, because people who have seen the original would know it. So we looked for a twist that would kick as hard, and have the same effect, but operate in a slightly different way. We came up with a really cool idea that centers around two brothers who served, one Marine who was front lines, and one as a military surgeon, who were both deployed to Afghanistan, or Iraq I think would be the setting that we settled on.”

The time frame of the original film meant the lead character was instead recovering from his time in Vietnam, with this new update offering a variety of twists and unexpected turns from the original.

“It then jumps forward in time, and just like the original Jacob’s Ladder, there’s a lot, there’s multiple realities intertwined, and there’s some mystery,” Buhler pointed out. “But the big twist that occurred at the end of Jacob’s Ladder comes in a different form, and lands in a different way, and it just is really fun and equally messed up.”

Sadly, even Buhler is unaware when the film will see the light of day, despite his excitement for it.

“It was slated for early February, I was really excited, because I think The Prodigy [which Buhler wrote] and Jacob’s Ladder were coming out a week apart at one point on the schedule,” the filmmaker confessed. “And then it got pulled, and the company that produced it was aligning themselves, partnering with a new distribution company, so they were in the midst of changing their business structure. And I have not yet heard news on an updated release.”

He added, “That is a movie that’s dear to my heart, the original is dear to my heart, and I thought we did a fantastic job of updating it in a way that has incredible twists and turns, and similar thematic content, but is wholly original as well. I’m very excited for people to finally get to see it, it’s just a question of when and where. I don’t have the answers for that unfortunately.”

Stay tuned for updates on the future of the Jacob’s Ladder remake.

Do these comments have you excited for the new film? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things horror and Star Wars!

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