Posted in: Blumhouse, Horror, Movies, Universal | Tagged: blumhouse, firestarter, zac efron

Zac Efron Joins Blumhouse and Universal's Firestarter Reboot

Published Tue, 29 Sep 2020 16:50:36 -0500

Zac Efron has just signed on to the Blumhouse and Universal Pictures collaboration — a reboot of the 1984 film Firestarter.

Firestarter (based on the popular novel by Stephen King) was announced to get the reboot treatment back in 2017, with very little news popping up sporadically over the last few years. At the end of 2019, we finally received confirmation that Keith Thomas had been selected as the director of the upcoming remake. Firestarter's reboot will be written by Scott Teems, behind the upcoming (and highly anticipated) Halloween Kills that was just recently shifted from October 2020 to October 2021.

Zac Efron attends premiere of Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile movie during Tribeca Film Festivall at BMCC Theatre. Editorial credit: Ovidiu Hrubaru / Shutterstock.com — Zac Efron attends the premiere of Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile movie during the Tribeca Film Festival at BMCC Theatre. Editorial credit: Ovidiu Hrubaru / Shutterstock.com

Efron's role is currently undisclosed, but this makes the first casting announcement so far for the film, after confirming the writer, director, and at least one cast member. The original film's synopsis describes Firestarter. "As youths, Andy McGee (David Keith) and his future wife, Vicky (Heather Locklear), participated in secret experiments, allowing themselves to be subjected to mysterious medical tests. Years later, the couple's daughter, Charlie (Drew Barrymore), begins to exhibit the ability of setting fires solely with her mind. This volatile talent makes the youngster extremely dangerous, and soon she becomes a target for the enigmatic agency known as The Shop."

Something particularly interesting about this King adaptation is that the author has always been vocal about his projects being adapted, with the original being a film he wasn't exactly fond of. Now, 36 years later, with a major evolution in special effects, this will be an opportunity to reinvent the cinematic version of a title that isn't as well-known to modern audiences and newer generations of King fans.

There isn't any other casting news or announcements about when we can expect Firestarter to come to life once again, but considering the progress is slow (yet stable), we'll continue to wait to see what Blumhouse has in store for us with a new take on Firestarter.

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