Audiences hoping to enter Halloween season with a sizable bite of horror will be disappointed to hear that the upcoming remake of Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot has been delayed according to Deadline. The film, originally slated for September 9 of this year, is now releasing April 21, 2023. Deadline also reports that the delays are "due to Covid-related delays in the post production realm."
In recent years, the beginning of September has been home to other remakes of Stephen King films like It in 2017 and It: Chapter Two in 2019. Unfortunately, audiences will have to wait until spring to see Salem’s Lot.
The film, based on the 1975 book by King, follows a writer who returns to his hometown and discovers the residents are being turned into vampires. The remake, like the original book, will be set in the 1970s. It was adapted into a made-for-TV miniseries in the late 1970s, but this marks its first time at the movies on the big screen.
The film is directed by Gary Dauberman who is no stranger to horror. He’s written scripts for films in the Conjuring universe like The Nun and Annabelle Comes Home, which he also directed. Dauberman is also familiar with King’s work as he co-wrote 2017’s It and was the solo writer of its follow up, It: Chapter Two.
At CinemaCon in April, audiences got a peek at Salem’s Lot as well as Wonka and Elvis. Here’s hoping it fares better than the recent remake of Stephen King’s Firestarter, which we called “a bummer of a burn” in our review.
Casey is a freelance writer for IGN. You can usually find him talking about JRPGs on Twitter at @caseydavidmt.