A trio of Fear Street movies is headed to Netflix, based on the R.L. Stine book series. The streaming giant closed a deal with Disney to acquire a trilogy of interconnected films with stories lifted from the books, according to Deadline.
The films have already wrapped production and will run on Netflix next summer, one month apart. Their release is being billed as “The Summer of Fear.” The three films were slated to be released theatrically by Fox, though numerous issues derailed that plan. While the pandemic played a role, there’s also Disney’s constant crowding of the release schedule, as well as the fact it leans more toward horror than the family-friendly brand prefers. Production company Chernin Entertainment has a first-look deal with Netflix as of April, and though Peter Chernin and Jenno Topping had other options, they chose to go with the streamer.
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The saga of Fear Street begins in 1994 and follows a group of teenagers that uncover a string of terrifying events in the town of Shadyside, Ohio. As they start to realize the events might be interconnected, it results in the teens themselves having a target on their back. The trilogy will cover three distinct periods, going back to the 17th century.
Director Leigh Janiak helmed all three installments, as well as co-wrote the scripts with writing partner Phil Graziadei. Kyle Killen and scribe Zak Olkewicz also wrote on the project. It also opens up a new possible platform for Chernin’s Entertainment’s other features, including Hidden Figures, The Greatest Showman and Ford v Ferrari.
Netflix is also reportedly close to picking up The Woman in the Window, a thriller directed by Joe Wright and starring Amy Adams. Like Fear Street, filming was already complete and even had a scheduled October release date. It was also produced by Fox 2000 Pictures, which was shut down after Disney completed its acquisition of 20th Century Fox. This particular deal between Disney and Netflix is still being finalized, which also conveniently veers a little too horror for the House of Mouse.
Adams stars as Anna Fox, an agoraphobic child psychologist and recent divorcee who lives by herself in New York. During the day, she mostly interacts with people online and spies on her neighbors, just like the characters in her favorite movies. When a family moves in next door, she soon envies them, until she witnesses a shocking crime.
