Sam Raimi is directing the modern update of the ventriloquist horror film “Magic” for Lionsgate

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Sam Raimi has settled on his next directorial effort.

Also follow him Send helphis twisty thriller released by 20th Century/Disney earlier this year, and Raimi will direct. charmLionsgate’s modern adaptation of William Goldman’s novel that was previously adapted into a 1978 horror classic that featured Anthony Hopkins as a mentally unstable ventriloquist.

Raimi was already on board to produce the remake, having placed it at his eponymous production company last year. Also producing are Roy Lee as well as Chris Hammond and Tim Sullivan, the latter of whom have long championed the project and guided its development by tracking down the original rights.

Mark Swift and Damian Shannon, who wrote Send help By Al-Raimi, who wrote previously Freddy vs Jason And a new edition of Friday the 13thwrote the script for charmwhich will serve as an updated version of the 1976 novel by William Goldman. (Goldman also wrote the screenplay for the original adaptation.)

charm Hopkins starred as Corky, a magician who rises to fame alongside his ventriloquist’s dummy, the obnoxious but wise-cracking Fats. Facing the prospect of signing a network deal for his own show but afraid of exposing his fragile mental state, the magician sets out for the Catskills, where he attempts to reconnect with his high school love, even when Fat begins to take a fatal hold on the situation.

The film stars Ann-Margret and Burgess Meredith, and was directed by Richard Attenborough. The film generated buzz before its release by 20th Century Fox with a television commercial that focused solely on the doll’s face, declaring, “Magic is fun. We’re dead.”

Zainab Azizi of Raimi Productions will also produce the film. Nathan Kahane and Paul Fishkin will executive produce alongside Andrew Childs for Vertigo.

Meredith Wick and Pavan Kalidindi are overseeing the Lionsgate project.

Send helpwhich starred Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien, was a surprise and modest hit when it hit theaters on January 30. The film marked a return to horror form for Raimi, generating some of his best reviews in over 15 years.

“His arrival represents one of the truly remarkable matches between director and material,” Adam Fogelson, president of Lionsgate’s motion picture portfolio, said as part of a statement obtained by the site. Hollywood Reporter.

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