Amazon MGM Studios is in the midst of early development for a TV series adaptation of classic horror film “Poltergeist,” TheWrap has learned.
Originally cowritten and produced by Steven Spielberg in 1982, the show version of “Poltergeist” will be executive produced by Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey on behalf of Amblin Television, which produced the original film. The TV series will be based on the world of the horror flick.
Starring JoBeth Williams, Craig T. Nelson and Beatrice Straight, the 1982 film centers on the Freeling family, who learn shortly after moving into their suburban home that their house is full of malicious ghosts who abduct their 5-year-old daughter, Carol Anne. In an effort to rescue their daughter, the parents consult a parapsychologist and a spiritual medium.
Following the release of the Spielberg-created film, the “Poltergeist” franchise released two sequels, one in 1986 and another in 1988. Zelda Rubinstein, who played the spiritual medium, and Heather O’Rourke, who played Carol Anne, appeared in all three films.
In 2015, a reboot of the 1982 film was led by Sam Rockwell and Rosemarie DeWitt, and the first TV adaptation of the film, titled “Poltergeist: The Legacy,” was released by Showtime in 1996. After airing for three seasons on Showtime, “Poltergeist: The Legacy” moved to Sci-Fi Channel for its fourth and final season in 1999.
The “Poltergeist” TV series joins Amazon MGM Studios growing list of projects, with the studio recently winning a bidding war for Vanity Fair’s story surrounding a Texas serial killer, titled “True Crime, True Faith: The Serial Killer and the Texas Mom Who Stopped Him,” as well as Marisa Meltzer’s nonfiction book “Glossy,” which follows Glossier founder Emily Weiss.
In April, the studio revealed its plans to leverage several titles from its $8.45 billion acquisition of MGM that the company plans to develop into TV or film projects, including “Robocop,” “Stargate” “Legally Blonde,” “Fame,” Barbershop,” “The Magnificent Seven,” “Pink Panther” and “The Thomas Crown Affair.”
