A few years after it was first announced in development, the movie adaptation of a hit horror video game is gearing up to get underway. The video game adaptation genre has been on an upward swing over the past five years thanks to the likes of the Sonic the Hedgehog movie franchise, the animated Super Mario Bros. Movie and Prime Video’s Fallout all proving to be mammoth successes for their respective studios. This has led to many studios aiming to get in on the trend, with everything from It Takes Two to Street Fighter having adaptations in the works.
One of the most popular subsections of the video game adaptation world is that of the horror genre. Milla Jovovich’s Resident Evil franchise is arguably one of the earliest examples of such success, but there’s been an uptick in horror adaptations in recent years, particularly Blumhouse’s record-setting Five Nights at Freddy’s movie, which has a sequel on the way. Sony has also just released their Until Dawn movie, while adaptations of Outlast and Bendy and the Ink Machine are in development, as is one based on a viral sensation.
The Mortuary Assistant Movie Has Cast Its First Two Stars
The Project Was First Announced In Late 2022
Publisher DreadXP and its parent company Epic Pictures Group previously announced their plans to develop an adaptation of The Mortuary Assistant in 2022, with Jeremiah Kipp tapped to write and direct the project. The horror game put players in the shoes of Rebecca Owens, a young woman starting her titular new job at a small-town mortuary in 1998 Connecticut, though while working an emergency night shift, she is tormented by a demon attempting to possess her. Though having garnered mixed reviews, The Mortuary Assistant became a viral sensation thanks to Twitch and YouTube gamers.
Now, Deadline has brought word that The Mortuary Assistant movie has cast Willa Holland and Paul Sparks. The former, well-known for her role as Thea Queen in the Arrowverse, is set to play game protagonist Rebecca Owens, while the latter, known for everything from House of Cards to Physical, will play the ominous mortuary owner, Raymond Delver. Filming is currently underway on the movie in Missouri, with sources describing it as “a new chapter in the story that will expand on the game’s world and mythology, delving deeper into the lore of the demonic entities plaguing River Fields“.
Kipp and Clarke also released statements to the publication regarding The Mortuary Assistant‘s development progress, with the writer/director assuring the movie will consist of “character-driven storytelling within a disturbing horror space“, while the game’s creator praised Kipp, Epic Pictures and the stars for “adding their own unique cinematic flair” to the game. See both statements below:
Jeremiah Kipp: Brian Clarke and I respond to character-driven storytelling within a disturbing horror space. Because his influences have been largely cinematic, the whole process has organically felt like an expansion of his unique gameplay. We’ve captured the atmosphere of singular dread that players responded to so powerfully – this movie will be scary as hell.
Brian Clarke: Seeing The Mortuary Assistant evolve over the years from a small prototype to a full feature film is beyond anything I could have imagined as a solo developer. Jeremiah Kipp is an insanely skilled director, and it has been one of the highlights of my life working with him. Jeremiah and the entire team at Epic Pictures have done an amazing job capturing the spirit of the game while adding their own unique cinematic flair. It is an honor to see Willa and Paul bring these characters to life along with the rest of the film crew. I feel extremely fortunate and can’t wait for fans to see The Mortuary Assistant expand into new territory.
What This Means For The Mortuary Assistant Movie
Its Success Could Lead To Its Own Franchise
While there’s still a lengthy enough road ahead for the film between production, post-production and distribution, The Mortuary Assistant building its cast and getting cameras rolling is a promising sign of its progress. Depending on how large of a production Kipp and his creative team are aiming for, filming should wrap before summer’s end, and potentially put the movie on screens for audiences by Summer 2026.
One of the more interesting takeaways from the latest update is the tease that The Mortuary Assistant movie will not just be an adaptation of the game, but rather a new chapter in the source material’s universe, thus opening the door for Epic and Kipp to build a franchise out of it if it’s successful. The Five Nights at Freddy’s movie, its upcoming sequel and even the recently released Minecraft Movie have all proven that viral games can bring audiences to the theater, while also building their own universes from their games.
Related
10 Upcoming Movie & TV Video Game Adaptations We’re Most Excited About
There are plenty of video game movies and TV shows in development promising to adapt popular series, from recent multiplayer hits to old classics.
Considering The Mortuary Assistant game doesn’t technically have a conclusive ending, but instead one that leaves the door open for a sequel or spinoff to it, Kipp and the film’s team can take a similar approach. Having Clarke’s vote of confidence and involvement in the film could go a long way to selling fans of the game on the adaptation and help build out further stories.
Source: Deadline
The Mortuary Assistant
- Released
-
August 2, 2022
- ESRB
-
m
- Developer(s)
-
DarkStone Digital
- Publisher(s)
-
DreadXP
- Engine
-
Unity
