American film studio New Line has bought the rights to remake the very excellent Kiwi horror-comedy Housebound written and directed by Gerard Johnstone. The Hollywood Reporter reports, “Johnstone will produce the remake but will handover the filmmaking reins to another. A search for a writer to adapt the movie is underway.”
We talked to Johnstone because we were like ‘whaaaaaaaat?’…
FLICKS: How long has this been in the pipeline for?
GERARD JOHNSTONE: Not long enough to even know it was really going to happen.
What’s the one main thing this means first and foremost for you?
Money’s nice, especially in this economic climate, but mainly it’s about seeing how someone else will reinterpret it. I spent a long time on that script and agonised over whether to go this way or that, so it will be interesting to see if they go a different way on certain things.
If people seeing your ‘Housebound’ is 10 out of 10 for creative satisfaction, where does seeing a remake sit?
Tricky question. At this stage, the best diplomatic answer I could give would be maybe an eight? That may increase closer to the time depending on how it goes.
What are the main hurdles the remake will need to overcome?
You mean what can they do better? They will have a proper budget for starters. They don’t have to worry about getting kicked out of the house they’re shooting in after four weeks because they can build their own.
What do you think this may do for your visibility as a filmmaker?
If I haven’t done anything else by the time it comes out, I may get a few Twitter followers, a few new friend requests on Facebook maybe.
You’ll have a producer credit on the remake. Do you expect to be intensively involved?
I honestly don’t know what my involvement will be. I’ll give them whatever information I can that’s useful and then most likely I’ll let them do what they want with it. But I will get one of those chairs with my name on it.
What are three other NZ films that – in your wildest dreams – would benefit from a US remake?
I don’t know if I’d have any wild dreams about them, but I was impressed with the concepts and scripts of I’m not Harry Jenson, How to Meet Girls from a Distance and Scarfies.
What New Line film would you remake in NZ, given any to pick from?
House Party.
Here’s the press release:
MAJOR RENOVATION DUE FOR KIWI COMEDY HORROR
Local filmmakers Gerard Johnstone & Luke Sharpe have made a deal with New Line Cinema to remake their horror-comedy hit Housebound in the United States.
While the film was only modestly successful at home, Housebound gained international recognition since its debut at the South by Southwest (SXSW) film festival last March, winning key film festivals, topping video on demand (VOD) charts in North America and garnering rave reviews, most notably from another kiwi filmmaker by the name of Sir Peter Jackson.
Written & directed by Johnstone and produced by Sharpe, Housebound tells the story of a rebellious young woman who is sentenced to home detention and forced to put up with her babbling mother, repressed stepfather and a tormented spirit that’s less than happy about the new living arrangement.
The film came to Jackson’s attention via executive producer Ant Timpson, who met Johnstone & Sharpe through his 48 hour filmmaking competition, which Jackson also sponsors. “Peter was pretty excited to see such an accomplished local genre film coming out of nowhere and in a nice touch of serendipity, his original title for Braindead was in fact Housebound. So once he got behind the film in terms of endorsement, numerous doors opened up for Gerard. It only took him 10 years after winning the first 48HOURS to deliver a feature but the wait was worth it. It’s rather poetic how it has all worked out.”
Sharpe and Johnstone will serve as executive producers on the remake. “It’s amazing to find ourselves in this position” says Sharpe. “For the format to now be picked up by a major Hollywood studio with such great pedigree in the genre, is just incredible.”
The original film was produced through the NZ Film Commission’s Escalator scheme for a mere $250,000. Johnstone has no qualms about his story getting a big budget makeover. “This is awesome for a number of reasons. I’m incredibly proud of the movie we made, but I’m curious to see what someone could do with a bit more cash” says Johnstone. “I know some fans of the original will have concerns about a remake, but it’s not like it erases the original film from existence. It’s still available for anyone who wants to watch it (for $24.99 at all good retailers)”.
The original film was released in theatres and on demand in the US in October through XLrator media. The Village Voice labelled it “The best new horror movie on demand”, while Variety called it “near flawless” and “marvellously entertaining”.
In addition to numerous film projects they have in development, the pair are currently shooting a revamp of the hit local comic book Terry Teo for TV2 through their company Semi-Professional Pictures.
Watch our interview from last year with Johnstone on Housebound:
