The firm Blumhouse Productions has made a specialty of producing micro-budget horror films with the aim of ensuring maximum profitability. The studio will have officially known its fame in 2007 with the found-footage output Paranormal Activity who, on the line of Blair Witch Projectwill have allowed the young studio to pocket $193 million in revenue for a small budget of $15,000. The franchise then declined into six films, including two spin-offs with mixed results. The fifth, baptized The Ghost Dimension (2015) had in particular screwed up its audacious bet to introduce 3D in this horrific world, little helped by a painful scenario.
Blumhouse Productions then got his hands on other film sagas and slightly more independent productions to grow his turnover. They are the progenitors of Sinister, Insidious, The Purge or even Split, Glass, Us or Get Out, big hits around the world. Latest: Their new collaboration with Scott Derrickson: The Black Phone. A way to succeed in economic bets that allows them to get their hands on exciting scenarios. It is indeed the firm dear to its owner Jason Blum who got their hands on the film adaptation of video games Five Nights at Freddy’s or even the anti-hero spawn.
On the occasion of the festival of Locarno, Jason Blum spoke to variety on the license Paranormal Activity and was very curt when it came to directing his frankness. Yet, in the documentary Blumhouse: The Incredible Mechanics Behind Horror, the producer confessed to hating to spread his stories over too many films, lest it offend fans:
” There’s been enough already. The latest Paranormal Activity is horrible.”
He took as an example the franchise Halloweenalso under his purse, which will end with Halloween Ends (October 14, 2022) :
” With Halloween, we only had the rights for three films. So we thought that with Halloween Ends, it would be over – for Blumhouse at least. […] I think with the rest you also have to stop the charges when the time is right. It could come back if a director I adore like Scott Derrickson said to me, “I have a great idea for Paranormal Activity! But that’s not something I want to do anymore. »
And he is right to turn to other horizons! In the meantime, the firm’s latest production: They/Them with Kevin Bacon, can be found directly in streaming.