Paranormal Activity Is Coming Back In An 'Unexpected' Way
The story behind the highly acclaimed Paranormal Activity franchise is truly astounding. Developed as an independent project on a modest $15,000 budget, the first installment in the series debuted on the film festival circuit in 2007 to critical and financial success — raking in nearly $194 million by the time it wrapped up its 2009 theatrical run. Naturally, a sequel wasn't far away, with Paranormal Activity 2 hitting the big screen in 2010. The general reception proved mixed at best, but it held its own at the box office, leading Paramount to keep the saga going for as long as it was worth its while.
2011 saw the arrival of Paranormal Activity 3, followed up by Paranormal Activity 4 in 2012. Once again, the franchise managed to make millions off of a relatively meager budget, paving the way for two more additions to the canon: Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones from 2014 and Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension from 2015. The latter only took in $78 million, the worst performance of any entry in this series to date, and audience reactions were tepid at best. These factors inevitably led to the studio shelving the IP for some time, with the possibility of another sequel in doubt.
Now six years removed from the last Paranormal Activity movie, the brand is making a comeback in grand yet unexpected fashion.
Paranormal Activity is getting the reboot treatment
Much like the creatures of the night that haunt the poor protagonists, the Paranormal Activity franchise is preparing to rise from the grave. As reported by Variety, the Paramount Players division of Paramount Pictures is working on a reboot of the cash cow series under William Eubank (Underwater) and Christopher Landon (Happy Death Day, Freaky). Eubank will take on directorial duties, while Landon is set to pen the story — the fifth of his Paranormal Activity tenure. He will also take on the role of executive producer alongside Steven Schneider (Pet Sematary, Blair Witch).
Additionally, the mastermind behind the first Paranormal Activity film, Oren Peli, as well as Blumhouse Productions CEO Jason Blum will serve as producers on the impending revival. So long as there aren't any COVID-19 pandemic-related delays, the movie is slated for a March 4, 2022 worldwide release. As of this writing, little else is known about what the production entails, but Eubank referred to it as a "new, unexpected retooling" of the previous installments. What he means by this is anyone's guess, so for the time being we'll simply have to sit and speculate over what the Paranormal Activity reboot will have in store.