The new Paranormal Activity movie is heading to Paramount Plus for a streaming exclusive debut this October.
The seventh film in the popular found-footage franchise is scheduled to premiere on Paramount's streaming service before Halloween, and will be accompanied by a Making-Of documentary. As is the case with the Paranormal Activity franchise, plot details remain under wraps.
"A new Paranormal Activity from Paramount Players should bring fans an unexpected reimagining of the beloved horror franchise," Tanya Giles, Chief Programming Officer for ViacomCBS Streaming, announced today via Deadline. "We’ll also be launching a documentary on the making of the Paranormal Activity feature. Both of which will be coming to the service in time for Halloween."
The movie is directed by Underwater's William Eubank and is scripted by Happy Death Day and Freaky director Christopher Landon. Franchise creator Oren Peli, who wrote, directed, and shot the initial Paranormal Activity movie, will return in a producing role. Emily Bader, Roland Buck III, Dan Lippert, and Henry Ayers-Brown all star.
Touted as an "unexpected retooling" of the franchise, which sounds painful, Paranormal Activity 7 was originally intended for theatrical release in March 2022 until Paramount opted to make it a streaming exclusive.
Why the overhaul? Producer Jason Blum spoke to Collider recently on the topic, revealing it was a matter of branding for a younger audience, as the intended demographic were mere babies at the time of the first movie's release.
"Paramount wanted to continue Paranormal Activity, I probably would have left it alone," he said. "So they wanted to continue it, but I thought if they were gonna continue it, you gotta – it was tired, there was no way to continue the road that we'd been down.
"So I really encouraged all the creative people involved to think of something new. A lot of people who are going to go see the new Paranormal Activity were three years old when the first Paranormal Activity came out, so they don't even know from those older movies. I thought if you were going to re-do it, you better really re-do it, not try and expand what we did all those years ago."
Interesting approach to rework the franchise so as to appeal fresh to new eyes. It's likely that despite Blum's attestations, the movie will link into the earlier films in a way that doesn't diminish the viewing experience for franchise newbies yet adds nice nods for die-hard Toby fans.
While the film is as-yet-untitled, five dollars says it'll be officially called Paranormal Activity, as a way to reboot the franchise like the latest Halloween, Candyman, and Scream sequels. Whatever they call it, the movie is scheduled to arrive on Paramount Plus this October. Ahead of its premiere, why not get acquainted with our picks of the best found-footage horror movies?
