Dario Argento to Direct TV Series Longinus

After years of fans wondering what his next project would be, legendary horror filmmaker Dario Argento is confirmed to be stepping behind the lens to deliver the TV series Longinus, which Variety describes as a story featuring "mysterious murders, esoteric elements, and ancient enigmas." As far as when the production will shoot, where it will debut, and when it will land, we're still left to speculate, but the ever-evolving landscape of streaming services has opened up doors for ambitious new horror stories which push boundaries not only with their storytelling techniques but also which allow for more graphic subject matter to be explored.

The series will come from Italian co-producers BIM Productions and Publispei, who claimed the series would explore Argento's "obscure and terrifying" imagination. Longinus is said to be an "auteur series for the international market" which will be "suspended between the real and the supernatural," while the narrative unfolds "between the French Alps of Grenoble and the Siena of the Palio."

The filmmaker's last endeavor, Dracula 3D, landed in 2012 and, while it marked an ambitious endeavor for Argento, the project was mired in low production value, lackluster dialogue, and shoddy CGI, failing to connect with critics or even his more devout fans. This project was preceded by the Adrien Brody-starring Giallo, which felt more like a parody of his earlier films than a solid installment into the subgenre for which he earned acclaim.

Longinus won't be a complete departure for Argento, as he previously contributed to the short-lived Showtime series Masters of Horror, an anthology show which brought together some of the best filmmakers in the world of horror to tell any story they wanted to tell. Argento delivered the episodes "Jenifer" and "Pelts," depicting a variety of disturbing and unsettling experiences.

The horror world turned its spotlight towards Argento last year, as it saw the release of the remake of one of his most well-known films, Suspiria. The film, which was directed by Luca Guadagnino and starred Dakota Johnson and Tilda Swinton, failed to make its mark at the box office, though earned a fair amount of praise from critics. Argento, on the other hand, didn't enjoy the end result.

"To me, the remake of Suspiria doesn't look like a well-realized project. It lacks fear, music, tension, and scenic creativity," the filmmaker shared with Interview Magazine earlier this year. "Films like Get Out and Hereditary have struck me for their beautiful photography, their plot, and their production."

Stay tuned for details on Longinus.

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