Stephen King novella Rat is being adapted for the big screen.
The upcoming adaptation is being led by The Witch and The Lighthouse producer Jay Van Hoy, with the Haunting of Hill House’s Jeff Howard penning the screenplay and Mexican filmmaker Isaac Ezban at the helm.
In a statement to Deadline, the director said: “Stephen King has always been my favorite writer, ever since I started reading horror as a teenager, and since then, I’ve had the long-time dream of adapting some of his material…
“He embodies that essence of the contrast of beauty and brutality that has shaped my vision and sensibilities as a storyteller.
“I’ve read most of his work, and Rat remains one of my favorite stories he’s ever created… the perfect match — a dark, intimate, bizarre, even humorous and deeply unsettling story that gets under your skin…
“I see this as a survival movie about writer’s block, and also as the ultimate tale of our craft vs. our people, our creations vs. our loved ones, our art vs. our family, a theme I can very personally relate to.
“King has always inspired me as a filmmaker and a storyteller, and I feel honored to bring this tale to life.”
The novella is the latest story from 2020 collection If It Bleeds to get the feature film treatment after The Life of Chuck and Netflix’s Mr. Harrigan’s Phone.
The story follows writer Drew Larson, who is “cursed by his own ambition”.
The synopsis continues: “Each attempt at a novel has ended in disaster—illness, misfortune, or worse.
“Determined to break the cycle, he retreats to a desolate cabin in the Maine woods, convinced this time will be different.
“But as a violent storm traps him in isolation, Drew’s body falters and his mind begins to unravel.
“In the grip of fever and madness, a stranger appears—an uncanny visitor who promises salvation and success… for a price Drew can barely comprehend.”
Producers Van Hoy, Fernando Ferro and Paul Perez insisted the project will “capture both the terror and humanity” of King’s work.
They said: “Coming off the incredible experience of producing 52nd State, we were eager to dive into a project with the same level of ambition and artistic edge.
“Rat gives us that opportunity.
“Stephen King’s work has always been a touchstone for genre filmmakers, and with Isaac and Jeff steering this adaptation, we believe it will capture both the terror and humanity that make his stories timeless.”
It’s just the latest King story to be adapted for the big screen after The Long Walk this month.
The dystopian thriller – which was directed by The Hunger Games filmmaker Francis Lawrence from JT Mollner’s screenplay – is based on King’s 1979 novel, which he wrote under his pseudonym Richard Bachman.
Prime Video has an upcoming Carrie series from Flanagan in the pipeline, while Glen Powell is set to star in a new Running Man movie.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source uk.movies.yahoo.com ’
