Blumhouse's They Listen Gets Major Release Date Delay

Blumhouse and Columbia Pictures' new horror movie project They Listen has been hit with a major release date delay. Instead of being released on August 25, 2023, They Listen has been pushed back almost a year, and now has a new release date of August 2, 2024. 

The plot of They Listen is unknown, but the film will star John Cho (Searching) and Katherine Waterston (Fantastic Beasts). Cho will be re-teaming with his American Pie director Chris Weitz (The Golden Compass, Twilight Saga: New Moon); additional cast members include Lukita Maxwell (Shrinking), Greg Hill (Sneaky Pete), and Riki Lindhome (Wednesday).  Jason Blum, Chris Weitz, and Andrew Miano are producing They Listen, while Bea Sequeira, Dan Balgoyen, Britta Rowings, and Paul Davis are serving as executive producers. 

From the title, it's not hard to speculate that They Listen will either be a ghost story (about spirits "listening" from the other side) or a high-concept horror story based around sound, like Don't Breathe or A Quiet Place. 

Blumhouse's track record of horror hits includes Paranormal Activity, Insidious, The Purge, Get Out, Happy Death Day, and more recently the Ethan Hawke movie The Black Phone. Even though They Listen may now be off the slate, the studio has a packed schedule of films for the foreseeable future. In 2023 Blumhosue will release the long-awaited next chapter in the Insidious franchise, Insidious: The Red Door (with star Patrick Wilson directing), as well as the franchise reboot The Exorcist: Believer, from Halloween Reboot Trilogy director David Gordon Green. The studio will also release its adaptation of the Five Nights at Freddy's video game series, this fall. 

Blumhouse is also merging with Insidious and Saw creator James Wan's Atomic Monster imprint, bringing two of the biggest figures in horror under one roof. 

"I don't have one idea to turn into a horror movie," Blum said when the merger was announced. "Not one. I built a business by recognizing great ideas from other people." 

Wan added: "I have so many ideas – so many ideas – more than I can handle by myself...It really allows me a bigger canvas to paint on, if you will. Universal is very supportive of filmmakers and brilliant at marketing. To have partners that trust you, that believe in you, that goes a long way."

The goal of the merger is to grow beyond movies, bringing new horror IPs to "podcasts, live events and perhaps merchandise."