In a entertainment climate dominated by nostalgia and horror, it’d be criminal not to revive the beloved horror anthology Are You Afraid of the Dark? The Nickelodeon show is best remembered for bringing new frightening tales every episode, as told by the kids of the Midnight Society. Now, those cherish, terrifying memories can be re-lived as the show gets a silver screen debut.
Paramount Players, part of Paramount Pictures, hired Gary Dauberman, the screen writer behind the hit horror movies It and Annabelle: Creation to both write the script and produce the production. Given Dauberman’s prior success in the genre, he feels like an excellent fit. According to an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he won’t be toning down the scares just because it’s based off a kid’s show (unlike the Goosebumps movie):
“The show is about the shared experience of telling stories — especially scary ones. We’re going to celebrate that with this movie and honor the darker, scarier tone of the show, which was really groundbreaking for Nickelodeon at the time. I hope the Midnight Society approves.”
There is currently no director attached to the project, but it seems like a role that many will vie for. Paramount Players is starting strong, picking one of the best series from Viacom’s line up, which is the studio’s mission.
Are You Afraid of the Dark? isn’t the only Nickelodeon show to get a chance at the big time. Hey Arnold! will be getting its out feature-length movie in theaters this Thanksgiving.
