Horror legend Clive Barker revealed to ComicBook.com during a press event for Hulu’s Books of Blood that a new TV series based on Nightbreed is slated to go into production in 2021. The series, based on the 1990 movie of the same title which was in turn based on Barker’s novella Cabal, will mark the first return to the story since the movie was a box office disappointment. Mike Dougherty of Trick ‘r’ Treat and Godzilla: King of Monsters fame, will direct the series, he confirmed on Twitter. At present, Barker is reportedly working on the show bible and looking forward to reconnecting with the characters and working with Dougherty on the project.
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Barker has had success both on the page and on the screen over the years, and so it wasn’t much of a surprise when he decided to write and direct Nightbreed himself. The film was a critical and commercial disappointment but has grown into a cult classic in the years since its release.
The original film follows an unstable mental patient named Aaron Boone, who is led to believe by his doctor that he is a serial killer. Tracked down by the police, his doctor, and his girlfriend Lori, Boone eventually finds refuge in an abandoned cemetery called Midian among a “tribe” of monsters and outcasts known as the “Nightbreed” where they hide from humanity. Reports that the property were coming to TV first emerged in a report from Coming Soon.
The new series, co-written by Barker with Jigsaw‘s Josh Stolberg, will update the premise somewhat and use the horror as a metaphor for race relations in America, focusing on factioning within the Nightbreed and their relationship to humanity.
As previously described, the collection of short stories “explores race relations in America, only the races are Humans and Monsters. It follows a group of underground half-human/half-monsters seeking to find a new refuge and home after their original hiding place is destroyed. Leading these efforts is a recently turned reluctant hero who not only is adjusting to his new supernatural status but also is dealing with the grief and mystery surrounding the death of his fiancée. Will this group band together despite being hunted and persecuted by humans who find their ‘otherness’ to be frightening?”
Keep your eyes on ComicBook.com for more details on Nightbreed as it develops. Are you excited to get to see a re-envisioned version of the cult classic? Hit us up in the comments to chime in on all things Midian.
