‘The Exorcist’ TV Series Creator Writing ‘The Tommyknockers’ Adaptation

Stephen King has been an iconic name in the world of horror for decades, with The Conjuring and Insidious director James Wan becoming a seminal figure in the horror genre in recent years. Wan is helping develop a remake of King’s The Tommyknockers, with the producer having tapped The Exorcist TV series creator Jeremy Slater to pen the upcoming adaptation.

“I’m pretty sure this is the first book I ever bought with my own money,” Slater shared on Twitter accompanying an image of The Tommyknockers. “It was 1988 and I was 10 years old. I’d borrowed other King novels from various friends and libraries, but this was the first one that was MINE. In meetings I always joke that I was raised by the two Stephens—King and Spielberg—but that’s not far from the truth. While other kids were playing sports or doing whatever cool kids do, I was spending the night in the Overlook, or hanging out in the sewers beneath Derry.”

He continued, “And when I finally got my foot in the door, I only had three dream projects on my bucket list. One was Marvel (umm…sorry about that one, guys), one was Star Wars, and the third, of course, was Stephen King. Any one of those jobs would let me die a happy man. Now, thirty years later, I’m beyond thrilled to be part of the team bringing THE TOMMYKNOCKERS to life. It just feels…right, you know? Like coming home. And most of all, thanks to Stephen King for the lifetime of incredible nightmares. I can’t wait for you to visit Haven. It’s a hell of a town. Just don’t go in the woods.”

While The Exorcist may have only lasted two seasons, it was lauded by critics and horror fans alike for its daring reimagining of the source material that both honored its roots and took the mythology in all-new directions.

The Tommyknockers was previously adapted into a mini-series in 1993, which earned impressive ratings, despite the ambitious sci-fi project suffering from its minimal production value.

In the 1987 horror/sci-fi story, “On a beautiful June day, while walking deep in the woods on her property in Haven, Maine, Bobbi Anderson quite literally stumbles over her own destiny and that of the entire town. For the dull gray metal protrusion she discovers in the ground is part of a mysterious and massive metal object, one that may have been buried there for millennia. Bobbi can’t help but become obsessed and try to dig it out…the consequences of which will affect and transmute every citizen of Haven, young and old. It means unleashing extraordinary powers beyond those of mere mortals—and certain death for any and all outsiders. An alien hell has now invaded this small New England town…an aggressive and violent malignancy devoid of any mercy or sanity…“

King stories have always lent themselves to horrifying live-action productions, from Carrie to The Shining to Misery. Last year’s adaptation of IT, a story which had previously been adapted into a mini-series, went on to earn more than $700 million worldwide, proving how effective a modern take on a previously adapted storyline could be.

Hitting theaters next April will be a new take on Pet Sematary, which previously earned a feature film adaptation in 1989.

The Tommyknockers is slated to hit theaters in 2020.

Are you looking forward to checking out this new approach to the project? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things horror and Star Wars!

[H/T The Wrap]