Night of the Hunter is a classic to me. My dad loved it as a movie, so I was introduced to it very early in my cinephile life.
The new adaptation is set to be directed by Scott Derrickson, who has a decent resume. The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Sinister, Doctor Strange, and The Black Phone are all solid movies. His take on The Day the Earth Stood Still was not so great, but any remake of that sci-fi classic was never going to work.
The novel was written by Davis Grubb in 1953. It tells the story of Harry Powell, a serial killer who poses as a priest to get his hands on a widow’s fortune. His two new step-children are suspicious of him and end up on Harry’s hit list. The original Night of the Hunter, from 1955, starred Robert Mitchum, Shelly Winters, Lillian Gish, Peter Graves, and Don Beddoe. It was directed by Charles Laughton, who was known more for acting and this was his only directorial credit.
More in the book
Derrickson will write the new movie, with his long-time collaborator, C. Robert Cargill. According to Cargill, the book has much more to it than the original movie dared show, he said:
“For those unfamiliar, Night of the Hunter was based on a novel that was much darker than the 1950s would allow. Very excited about this project and thrilled we can finally talk about it.“
Night of the Hunter was one of the first X-rated movies I ever saw. What can I say, I was a rebel. I watched it again in the past year or so and it’s still very creepy in places. I hope they don’t go and ruin it.
Derrickson and Cargill are currently working on The Black Phone 2 at the moment, which has a release date of 2025. Then they will start on this remake of Night of the Hunter. Now, altogether everyone…
“Bringing in the sheaves, bringing in the sheaves…”
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