Salem's Lot (film)

Salem's Lot is an upcoming American supernatural horror film written and directed by Gary Dauberman, based on Stephen King's 1975 novel 'Salem's Lot. Produced by New Line Cinema, Atomic Monster, The Wolper Organization, and Vertigo Entertainment, the film stars Lewis Pullman, Makenzie Leigh, Bill Camp, Pilou Asbæk, Alfre Woodard, and William Sadler. Its plot centers on a writer who returns to his hometown of Jerusalem's Lot in search of inspiration, only to discover the presence of a vampire.

Salem's Lot is set to be released on Max on an unspecified date in 2024, and will receive a theatrical release in the United Kingdom and Ireland on October 11, 2024.

Premise
Ben Mears is a writer who returns to his childhood home of Jerusalem's Lot in search of inspiration, only to discover his hometown is being preyed upon by a vampire, leading him to band together with a ragtag group to fight it.

Cast

 * Lewis Pullman as Ben Mears
 * Makenzie Leigh as Susan Norton
 * Alfre Woodard as Dr. Cody
 * William Sadler as Parkins Gillespie
 * Bill Camp as Matthew Burke
 * Pilou Asbæk as Richard Straker
 * John Benjamin Hickey as Father Callahan
 * Jordan Preston Carter as Mark Petrie
 * Spencer Treat Clark as Mike Ryerson
 * Nicholas Crovetti as Danny Glick
 * Cade Woodward as Ralph Glick

Production
Salem's Lot is an adaptation of the 1975 novel by Stephen King. The feature film from New Line Cinema was announced in April 2019 when The Hollywood Reporter revealed Gary Dauberman was set to write the screenplay and executive produce and James Wan was attached as a producer. In an interview, Dauberman was asked if he would apply the same writing approach he utilized for It (2017) and It Chapter Two (2019), adaptations of King's novel It, to which he replied "I like to be as true to the story as I possibly can until it gets a little too unwieldy for a movie."

In April 2020, Dauberman was announced as director. In August 2021, Lewis Pullman was selected to portray the film's lead role. In September, principal photography commenced in Boston with cinematographer Michael Burgess. Filming in the state of Massachusetts took place in Ipswich and the towns of Sterling and Clinton, both within Worcester County. The Princeton Public Library in Princeton, Massachusetts, was also booked as a filming location for three days.

Additional photography occurred in late May or early June 2022.

Music
During post-production, it was announced that Nathan Barr and Lisbeth Scott had written the score for the film.

Release
Salem's Lot was originally set to be released on September 9, 2022, the post–Labor Day weekend that had been successful for the studio's past horror releases, but was delayed to April 21, 2023, "due to COVID-related delays in the post-production realm", before losing its release date to Evil Dead Rise.

In October 2023, it was reported that Warner Bros. was looking to release the film on Max, due to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike creating a "growing need for Max content", although a spokesperson stated no decision regarding the film's future distribution plans had been made yet. In February 2024, King once again praised the film and questioned why there were still no confirmed release plans for the film, stating that he is "not sure why WB is holding it back; not like it's embarrassing, or anything. Who knows." The following month, it was set to be released by Max in 2024.

In May 2024, the Film Distributors' Association added the film to the United Kingdom and Ireland release calendar for an October 11, 2024, theatrical release via Warner Bros. Pictures.