Bring It On: Cheer or Die Reveals First Look Photos at Horror Spinoff for Cheerleading Franchise
It's not quite Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey, but most fans likely didn't expect to see a horror-themed revival of the Bring It On franchise. Nevertheless, here we are, with Syfy sharing the first still photos from the special, which is called Bring It On: Cheer or Die and hails from Rebekah McKendry (Glorious) and She-Hulk: Attorney At Law writer Dana Schwartz from a story by Alyson Fouse (Bring It On: Fight to the Finish). Originally titled Bring It On: Halloween, the movie was announced last May and will be released on Syfy (and probably Peacock) later this fall.
In the 22 years since the original Bring It On, the film has had no less than five sequels, none of which feature any of the original cast (all while Gabrielle Union is still waiting for them to call her). Well, if you knew that, you've got a leg up on most of us -- and you won't be as surprised as we were to learn that Syfy is developing a slasher-themed Bring It On Halloween special that will pit a team of desperate cheerleaders against a mask-wearing psychopath.
"We are excited to team up with SYFY to continue this ever-popular franchise with an all-new installment from renowned filmmaker Karen Lam, the very first female director of the movie series," said Glenn Ross, general manager and executive vice president, Universal 1440 Entertainment. "Featuring a fresh take on the franchise's historically comedic films, this next chapter showcases a multi-talented diverse cast and will entertain long-time Bring It On movie fans as well as open the doors to the legion of fans who enjoy thrillers."
In Bring It On: Cheer or Die from Universal 1440 Entertainment and Beacon Pictures, "a cheer squad's plan to have a secret practice at a nearby abandoned school on Halloween takes a terrifying turn when their teammates begin disappearing one by one," says a new synopsis for the film provided by Bloody Disgusting, who also debuted the photos.
While the cheerleading element is certainly here, the idea of transplanting the Bring It On brand into a horror setting feels a little similar to what Warner Bros. and Syfy did in 2019 with The Banana Splits Movie, which reimagined the children's puppet series as a horror movie by incorporating meta elements about the show losing relevance with modern audiences and facing cancellation. It also marks the first time that Bring It On has made a major genre shift, with each of the previous sequels centering pretty squarely on a traditional narrative about a cheerleading competition.
Bring It On: Cheer or Die is executive produced by Beacon Pictures partners Armyan Bernstein and Charlie Lyons, produced by Griff Furst (You Might be the Killer), and co-produced by Tony Gonzalez (Bring It On franchise) and C. Eve Stewart (Tales from the Hood 3). Tony Gonzalez also returns as choreographer to create the stunts.
Missi Pyle (Josie and the Pussycats, Y the Last Man), Kerri Medders (SEAL Team) and Tiera Skovbye (Riverdale) will star in the film, which is to be directed by Karen Lam (Syfy's Van Helsing).