FilmDistrict will release INSIDIOUS, a new horror film from the director-writer team of James Wan and Leigh Whannell (SAW), produced by the masterminds behind PARANORMAL ACTIVITY: Oren Peli, Jason Blum and Steven Schneider. The film also features Lin Shaye, Angus Sampson and Leigh Whannell and was executive produced by Brian Kavanaugh-Jones. It will be FilmDistrict‘s inaugural theatrical release on April 1, 2011, opening on 2500 screens.
INSIDIOUS is the terrifying story of a family who shortly after moving discover that dark spirits have possessed their home and that their son has inexplicably fallen into a coma. Trying to escape the haunting and save their son, they move again only to discover that it was not their house that was haunted.
“With INSIDIOUS, James and Leigh are redefining the haunted house genre,” says Peter Schlessel, CEO of FilmDistrict. “By taking well-known horror movie conventions and elevating them to the next level, they’ve created a film that is fun, suspenseful and very, very scary.”
FilmDistrict and Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions (SPWA) own all U.S rights on INSIDIOUS, which was financed by Alliance Films and is an Alliance Films/ IM Global presentation. The film was acquired after a riotous screening at the 2010 Toronto Film Festival. DVD and other ancillary rights will be handled by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. It will also be the first film in FilmDistrict‘s partnership with Netflix. Alliance will release the film in Canada, Spain, and the UK.
“James and Leigh have once again demonstrated their extraordinary talent and innovation as filmmakers,” says Haunted Movies CEO Jason Blum. “We are excited that FilmDistrict will bring this frightening and incredibly entertaining movie to audiences across the country.”
“INSIDIOUS is truly this generation’s POLTERGEIST,” says Bob Berney, FilmDistrict‘s President of Theatrical Distribution. “James and Leigh know their stuff, and horror fans and film lovers alike are in for a real treat.”
About FilmDistrict
FilmDistrict, a newly formed studio, is a multi-faceted acquisitions, distribution, production and financing company focusing on wide release commercial pictures. The company was founded by Graham King and Tim Headington’s GK Films, in partnership with Peter Schlessel, who serves as CEO of FilmDistrict.
About Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions, and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions (SPWA) and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (SPHE) are Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) companies. Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE’s global operations encompass motion picture production and distribution; television production and distribution; home entertainment acquisition and distribution; a global channel network; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; development of new entertainment products, services and technologies; and distribution of entertainment in more than 140 countries. Sony Pictures Entertainment can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.sonypictures.com.
About Haunted Movies
Haunted Movies is a new venture from producers Jason Blum, Steven Schneider and Oren Peli. Modeled on the success of the Oren Peli-directed film PARANORMAL ACTIVITY (2009), Haunted Movies brings low budget horror films to a mass audience. The trio also produced the record breaking sequel PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2 (2010) as well as the upcoming films AREA 51 (2011) directed by Oren Peli, PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 3 (2011), LORDS OF SALEM directed by Rob Zombie and THE BAY directed by Barry Levinson.
About Alliance Films
Alliance Films, Inc. is one of the top five international independent filmed entertainment companies in the world. A leading multinational distributor, co-financier and producer of filmed entertainment, its member companies, Alliance Films and Alliance Vivafilm (Canada); Momentum Pictures (UK) and Aurum Productions (Spain), offer integrated delivery of content in all media. On the production front, partnerships include: a feature film co-production and acquisitions deal with Italy’s Medusa Film; a first-look deal with Iain Canning and Emile Sherman’s See-Saw Films, which yielded the lauded feature THE KING’S SPEECH; the production joint venture with IM Global, Automatik run by Brian Kavanaugh-Jones; and a five-picture deal with Paranormal Activity producers Oren Peli, Jason Blum and Steven Schneider with upcoming titles that include INSIDIOUS and Barry Levinson’s THE BAY.
Strategic distribution partnerships include exclusive rights with Relativity Media in Canada and UK, Focus Features, The Weinstein Company, CBS Films and Newmarket Films in Canada. Current and upcoming theatrical releases include: THE KING’S SPEECH (Canada & UK), THE FIGHTER(Canada & UK), BLUE VALENTINE (Canada), CHALET GIRL (Canada & UK), Sofia Coppola’s SOMEWHERE (Canada), THE WAY BACK (Canada & Spain) and RED (Spain).
